Faction Candide 1.0 2015

Riding: Mostly park, groomers

Edges: 2.5mm, heavier but durable
The edges on the 1.0's are thicker than your traditional park ski edge, which is nice for a rail warrior like myself. After a bit of hard usage, the edges are still basically brand new, no edge cracks and minimal compression on the edge underfoot. Although 2.5mm edges are said to be heavier, the rest of the 1.0's construction is very light.

Bases: Sintered PTEX 4000
Faction also put in a higher quality base, sintered bases are faster and more durable than the average extruded style base. They hold onto wax really well. The only downside to the sintered base, if you are prone to core shots, it will be harder to repair.

Sidewalls: traditional/ Sandwich construction
Faction just went with the traditional sidewalls, probably because of the higher quality edges and bases. However, sandwich construction is common among park skis because it does a great job at increasing edge grip and is better against impacts. Increasing edge grip is key as your edges begin to dull from riding rails.

Tip & Tail Rocker/flex/shape
Tip and tail rocker is interesting, it is the first time i have been able to ride skis with rail tip and tail rocker. Tip and tail rocker is more comforting, because it is definitely not as easy to catch an edge. Rocker is also great/fun for butters, which were done lots while testing these. The rocker isn't too large on the Factions, making them still relatively stable on jumps compared to other skis with rocker. Faction rates these as a medium to soft flex, but when you first start riding them they definitely are a medium flex. It took a solid few days to begin to work in the flex. The 1.0's are Symmetrical construction, as with most park skis, they ski forwards and backwards perfectly.

Durability
The bases and edges have amazing durability, both were engined to last, and after riding them hard i can tell they will be long lasting. The top sheets on the other hand are a bit of a different story. The top sheets look amazing, because of the silkscreen printing they use on the graphics. The Matte EC4060 top sheets are really unique, but their durability is questionable. They crack a lot on the tips. The cracks are hard to spot in flat light, but the cracks happened after the very first day of riding. Its a "spider web" style cracking that happens under the top sheet but is visible.

Riding Conditions:
While riding these in ontario, the days I got to test them were pretty good. Riding at Dagmar, it is a primary rail centred resort, so I spent a large amount of time on rails. They had a few jumps in the smaller range (35 feet) that i had fun doing butters on the knuckles and floating cork 3s. On this size of jump, it was nice to have the extra pop compared to the recoils, the extra airtime helps when having to deal with smaller jumps. I also really liked the way they land switch. I enjoy landing switch more than forward, so it is nice for jumps to be riding the symmetrical 1.0s. On the second day of testing, we had a bit of snowfall, and they cruised through that beautifully.
The 1.0s are fun to ride, they are poppy and are awesome for ripping around groomers if you feel like taking a break from the park. I had k2 recoils prior to the factions, and I have found the 1.0s actually skis better outside of the park than the recoils. The 1.0s edges are also a lot more durable than the k2s edges. The only real spot that the K2s beat the 1.0s in durability is the top sheets.The factions are killer to ride switch, and the rocker is nice for butters. Although the 1.0s are a medium flex, they are still surprisingly stable, which is my preference. I usually ride rails a lot more than jumps, however nothing is worse than riding jittery skis on a jump day. The 1.0s flex gives the perfect blend between jumps and rails.


Overall, I would really recommend giving this ski a try, or even purchasing it. Get out to a demo day if you can, because they are a really fun ski to try. Faction loaded it up with high quality materials, and you can tell by riding it they put a lot of time into perfecting the way it skis both inside and outside the park. The durability of the edges and bases is top notch and I am sure that these 1.0s will last me a couple seasons.

• Terrain
  Park
  Pow
• Design
  Clean
  Busy
• Durability
  Fragile
  Durable
• Weight
  Light
  Heavy
• Style
  Uncool
  Cool
• Flex
  Soft
  Stiff
• Camber
  Cambered
  Rockered
• Pop
  No Pop
  Poppy
• Stability
  Jittery
  Stable