Loading...
Loading...
PTO Review
We know them. Here's how they stack up.
These skis span 2 categories (Carving, All-Mountain Freestyle). Scores reflect each ski's intended use — direct comparison across all dimensions may be misleading.
Octo Birdie — women who ski groomers first and want carving to feel quick, playful and unhurried rather than race-serious.. Bent 100 — intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle.. Check the radar chart below to see where each one wins.
Each row compares all skis on one dimension. 🏆 marks the highest score.
| Dimension | Octo Birdie | Bent 100 |
|---|---|---|
| Carving | 8🏆 | 6 |
| Park | 3 | 7🏆 |
| Playfulness | 8 | 9🏆 |
| Forgiveness | 7 | 8🏆 |
| Stability | 5🏆 | 5🏆 |
| Powder | 3 | 6🏆 |
Women who ski groomers first and want carving to feel quick, playful and unhurried rather than race-serious. Progressing intermediates get a ski forgiving enough to learn real carving on; advanced skiers get a piste toy that stays entertaining at sane speeds. It rewards skiers drawn to the swallowtail character - a piste ski that refuses to look traditional.
Powder-first and off-piste-first skiers: at 84 mm the float is modest, and this is a piste and piste-side tool. Strong, aggressive skiers who want stiff, damp, locked-down high-speed grip: it is lively rather than damp, softer than a traditional carver, and the Octo family has a ceiling a strong skier will find. Anyone who wants a traditional carving ski or a traditional freestyle ski - the swallowtail concept deliberately sits between the two camps and looks like neither. And one-ski-quiver buyers who genuinely ski the whole mountain: that ski, in this line, is the Camox Birdie.
Intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle. It rewards people who like to press, slash and ride switch, plus lighter or less aggressive skiers who do not want to fight a heavy ski, and anyone after one do-it-all ski that still floats on a soft day. It also makes a light resort-to-sidecountry option.
Skiers who want a metal ski's hard-snow bite and race-like precision: with a light woodcore and no metal laminate, the Bent 100 handles a groomer but will not match a metal ski's edge hold on firm snow or feel as locked-in on ice. Heavier, aggressive skiers who charge through cut-up crud will feel the light build deflect - a metal all-mountain ski like the Nordica Enforcer 100 tracks that line better. True beginners should skip it too; independent reviews place it at intermediate and up. And if deep powder is the priority, the wider Bent 110 or Chetler 120 is the better tool.
Octo Birdie is best for women who ski groomers first and want carving to feel quick, playful and unhurried rather than race-serious. Bent 100 is best for intermediate and better skiers who value a light, quick, playful ride and drive the ski with finesse rather than muscle. The right choice depends on your terrain, ability, and riding style.
Black Crows Octo Birdie has the highest Stability score in this comparison at 5/10. That score compares composure; it does not by itself mean the product is the most versatile choice.
Black Crows Octo Birdie leads Carving in this comparison with a PTO score of 8/10.
Atomic Bent 100 has the highest Forgiveness score here at 8/10. Forgiveness is one factor in progression, not a claim that every beginner should choose it.
Not sure? Ask us.
