Black Crows Corvus Freebird vs. Atomic Backland 107

What kinda skiing are you doing?

It depends on where your priorities lie. The Backland 107 is a lot lighter than the Corvus, but the Corvus will be better on the downhill, especially in worse conditions. I had the 18/19 normal Corvus (which has the same profile as the freebird) in 188 and I loved it. It had a strong tail that was super supportive through fast turns.

But yeah, do you want to charge uphill or downhill? Blister has a review of the Corvus freebird and they should have a review of the Backland soon. Checking those might be helpful.

kim_jong_illWhat kinda skiing are you doing?

I would say I'm doing 90% off piste (70% resort access/30% touring) and 10% on piste. I'm in the French alpes so theres not a huge amount of powder days but more crudy, so i get that a heavier ski might be better. But weighing 85kg (190lb) do I really need the extra weight of the corvus. I'm also wondering if the HRZN tech really makes a difference or is that more of a marketing thing.

DistancedaveI would say I'm doing 90% off piste (70% resort access/30% touring) and 10% on piste. I'm in the French alpes so theres not a huge amount of powder days but more crudy, so i get that a heavier ski might be better. But weighing 85kg (190lb) do I really need the extra weight of the corvus. I'm also wondering if the HRZN tech really makes a difference or is that more of a marketing thing.

I would look at heavier skis if you're doing 70% resort access. The Backland is a very light ski (just over 1600 g for the 182 cm), which is great for touring, but not great for skiing hard inbounds. So I think going with something in the ~1800-1900 g range would be a better call. If you have more of a directional, traditional style (drive the front of your skis hard), the Corvus FB could be a good option. Alternatively, I think the Line Sick Day 104 is one of the best 50/50 skis currently on the market, and it's a bit more forgiving than the Corvus and, while I still need to get the Backland 107 mounted and on snow, I'd be willing to bet that the SD 104 would be significantly more stable in rough snow.

As for HRZN tech, I never noticed it on the old Backland FR 109. I think it's just such a small part of the ski that's so subtly beveled that it's hard for it to make a difference.