1 / 6Black Crows Mentis Freebird 2026/2027
Pre-order · Ships September 2026
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PTO Verdict
“900 grams at its shortest, 80mm underfoot - a firm-snow uphill tool that pays its weight bill in float and damping.”
Best for: Uphill-first ski tourers and ski-mo fitness skiers: multi-day traverses and big-vertical spring missions where low weight compounds day after day, and spring steep-skiing on firm snow where the long effective edge earns its keep. It rewards experienced touring skiers with smooth technique who can pilot an ultra-light ski through mixed snow.
Not for: The vast majority of resort and lift-served skiers - this is a sub-1,000g touring specialist with no damping reserve for resort speeds or cut-up afternoon snow, and Black Crows builds its piste and all-mountain skis for those days. Powder skiers - 80mm of waist and minimal tip rocker add up to weak float; one independent review calls the surface area deficient for real float. One-ski-quiver buyers - it gives up too much downhill breadth and soft-snow range to be anyone's single ski. Skiers who want damp, high-speed charging - the ultra-low mass transmits vibration and chatters when snow is refrozen or cut up. Breakable-crust days as a habitat - it will get you down, but slowly and roughly. And World-Cup-level skimo racers chasing an absolute minimum: dedicated race skis are lighter still.
At a Glance
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Description
The Black Crows Mentis Freebird is an 80mm ski-touring ski - the narrowest and lightest ski in the Black Crows 26/27 catalog, built for the gram-counting end of the sport. Each ski weighs 900g in the 157.1cm length and stays under a kilo below 171cm. The construction spends weight selectively: a paulownia core laminated with glass and carbon fibers, cap construction over the tip and tail, ABS sidewalls underfoot where grip and durability matter, and titanal reinforcing the mount zone under the bindings - the one piece of metal named in the ski. Independent reviews back the brand's skiability framing where it counts: on firm snow, the edge hold is unusual for the weight class.
The buyer picture is genuinely narrow. This ski exists for human-powered days on mostly firm snow: fitness skinning laps, traverses that stack up over several days, spring couloirs where a long effective edge earns the jump turns. If your skiing starts with a lift ticket, this is the wrong ski - a sub-1,000g build has no damping reserve for lift-lap speeds and end-of-day chop, and Black Crows' Serpo, Camox and Vena Cor are the resort tools. Powder is its floor, not its habitat: 80mm of waist with minimal tip rocker floats poorly, and the wider Freebirds all float better. It is a specialist, not a one-ski quiver.
At $1,049 the Mentis costs more than the wider Freebirds it sits beside; within the family, just the $1,199 Draco is priced above it - the light build is the point. If versatility matters more than the last 100g, the 85mm Ova Freebird at $849 is the more accessible pick. PTO stocks three of the four lengths - 157.1, 164.3 and 171cm. The ski comes flat, with no bindings, and Black Crows publishes no touring-binding compatibility statement, so we make none: bring the touring binding you have in mind, we check it against the ski, mount it, and help you settle on a length.
Specs
- Program / category: Ski touring (official program: TOURING) — ski-mo / fitness-uphill / long-traverse end of the range
- Waist width: 80mm (8.0cm, all sizes)
- Dimensions (per size, tip-waist-tail): 109-80-100mm (157.1) · 109-80-100mm (164.3) · 110-80-100mm (171.0) · 111-80-101mm (178.2)
- Sidecut radius (per size): 18m (157.1) · 18m (164.3) · 19m (171.0) · 19m (178.2)
- Weight (per_ski, per size): 900g (157.1) · 975g (164.3) · 1000g (171.0) · 1075g (178.2) — per ski
- Construction: Semi-cap — cap in tip & tail for lightness & handling, ABS sidewalls underfoot
- Core: Paulownia
- Added materials: Glass & carbon fibers; titanal reinforcement under the bindings
- Gender: Unisex
- Lengths: 157.1 cm · 164.3 cm · 171.0 cm · 178.2 cm
Details
- Type
- SKI
- Vendor
- Black Crows
- SKU
- 101371-157
- UPC / GTIN
- 3662481049489
Turquoise Green / 157.1 cm
Black Crows Mentis Freebird
By PTO Team, Based on the manufacturer’s published specs and published third-party testing · Spec analysis and published third-party testing
The take
“900 grams at its shortest, 80mm underfoot - a firm-snow uphill tool that pays its weight bill in float and damping.”
The Mentis Freebird carries Black Crows' TOURING program label, and the numbers explain the assignment: 80mm at the waist in all four lengths, with weights of 900g per ski at 157.1cm, 975g at 164.3, 1,000g at 171 and 1,075g at 178.2. That is per ski, not per pair - Black Crows' own store lists pair weights at exactly double, and two independent measurements agree. The brand's stated target is 'very high skiability' for a range this light.
The build story - where the Mentis Freebird puts its material and why - is told in the description above; what matters here is the boundary of the evidence. The one metal Black Crows names is a titanal reinforcement under the bindings: a localized mount-zone plate, not a full sheet, and no damping claims come with it. The brand publishes no rocker figures, flex index or mount point. The profile in circulation - a slight tip rocker ahead of a long run of classic camber - is third-party coverage, not a Black Crows spec, as are the squared tips notched for race-style skin attachment.
On firm snow, that long camber contact is the Mentis Freebird's signature. Two independent reviews land in the same place on edge hold - confident bite well above the weight class - and one of them describes a ski that holds an edge and wants to arc turns longer than its 19m radius. The trade arrives the moment snow stops being firm, and it lands exactly where the description above says it will: float is weak, and every wider Freebird does it better; chatter shows up in refrozen and cut-up snow; breakable crust, in one reviewer's words, is a rough and slow ride; and the thin tips are vulnerable to rock damage.
Line the Mentis up before you buy it. Inside the family, the Ova Freebird - 85mm, $849, $200 less - is the more accessible light-touring choice when the last 100g matter less than breadth; the Navis Freebird - 104mm, $999 - is the opposite pole, the downhill-first Freebird. Across brands, one independent review forks it against the Blizzard Zero G 95: the Mentis for uphilling and multi-day traverses, the Zero G with more ski underfoot when a single high-consequence descent is the objective. World-Cup-level skimo racers should keep walking: dedicated race skis are lighter still - the Mentis spends its last grams on skiability.
PTO carries the Mentis Freebird in 157.1, 164.3 and 171cm; the 178.2 is not in our order. The radius runs long for the category - 18m in the two shorter lengths, 19m in the two longer - the geometry of long arcs, not slalom turns. At $1,049 the ski arrives flat, and Black Crows makes no statement about touring-binding compatibility, so neither do we: the binding conversation happens in the shop, with the ski on the bench and your setup in hand.
Bindings we'd pair with it
Mount point: Flat ski - sold bare; Black Crows gives no mounting spec. Our pick: None named - the brand gives us nothing to quote.
Black Crows sells the Mentis Freebird flat and makes no statement about touring-binding compatibility - no pin-binding, insert or brake-width guidance exists in its published material. We do not infer compatibility from the category. Bring the touring binding you are considering and our technicians will evaluate the pairing on this ski before mounting.
Common Questions
- Black Crows Mentis Freebird or Ova Freebird?
- The Ova Freebird is one step wider at 85mm and $200 cheaper at $849, and it was largely revamped for 26/27 - the more approachable route into light touring when versatility beats the final 100g. The Mentis is the sharper tool: narrower, lighter, aimed at fitness laps, long traverses and firm spring snow.
- How much does the Black Crows Mentis Freebird weigh?
- Per ski: 900g at 157.1cm, 975g at 164.3cm, 1,000g at 171cm and 1,075g at 178.2cm. That is per ski, not per pair - Black Crows' own pair listings run exactly double, and independent measurements corroborate the basis.
- What touring bindings fit the Black Crows Mentis Freebird?
- Black Crows sells it flat and publishes no compatibility spec for touring bindings - no pin, insert or brake-width guidance - so we do not infer any. Bring the binding you are considering and our technicians will check the pairing on this ski at mount time.
- What length Mentis Freebird should I get?
- Four lengths exist - 157.1, 164.3, 171.0 and 178.2cm - and PTO ordered the first three. Radius is 18m on the two shorter lengths and 19m on the two longer, a long-arc geometry. We size a touring ski this light against your height, weight and objectives in the shop.
- Is the Black Crows Mentis Freebird good for powder?
- No. An 80mm waist with minimal tip rocker gives limited float, and independent reviewers do not recommend it for deep snow. The wider Freebirds - the 85mm Ova, 91mm Orb, 97mm Camox Freebird, 104mm Navis and the Draco - offer more float than the Mentis.
- Can I use the Mentis Freebird as a resort ski?
- It will get down a groomer, but it is the wrong tool for lift-served days: this light a ski has no damping margin at resort speeds and chatters in end-of-day chop. For lift days, look at the Serpo, Camox and Vena Cor side of the Black Crows catalog.
