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| Black Diamond’s twin tip offering has been a popular ski this winter. Justifiably so. Combining soft flex with moderate width (88 waist), the Havoc yields a winning combo for soft snow skiing. Add the feel of a rear tip to the mix, and you’ve got a ski that’s a bonafide “all mountain all terrain” plank. I’ll not go into an extensive review here as we’ve already covered this ski, but I’ll say the Havoc is an excellent choice for a backcountry twintip.
A rear tip can be nice for ski mountaineering (among other things, it makes a falling-leaf sideslip easier). Conversely, the rear tip does have issues. It’s tough to jam in the snow tail-first when using skis as an anchor, problematic for skin attachment, adds weight, and has handling characteristics that my not be of liking to all skiers. Keep those factors in mind — but if you like twintips, by all means consider the Havoc. (And yes, those are Freeride bindings and Dynafit Freeride Aero boots — hey — we’re gear testers!). We tested the 173 cm Havoc. Weight is 56.4 oz (1600 g) per ski. |
WildSnow.com publisher emeritus and founder Lou (Louis Dawson) has a 50+ years career in climbing, backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering. He was the first person in history to ski down all 54 Colorado 14,000-foot peaks, has authored numerous books about about backcountry skiing, and has skied from the summit of Denali in Alaska, North America’s highest mountain.
