1 / 8Black Crows Nocta 2026/2027
Pre-order · Ships September 2026
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PTO Verdict
“A 122 mm surf tool for the deepest days - and a deliberate mismatch for anything firmer.”
Best for: Advanced to expert skiers with real deep-snow days on the calendar - resort storm cycles, soft backcountry lines and powder tree skiing - who turn by pivoting and smearing and want a dedicated deep-day ski that stays composed when pushed, ideally alongside a narrower daily driver. The level call rests on third-party testing and listings of the identical gen-3 platform; Black Crows itself prints no ability level.
Not for: Anyone whose season is mostly groomers and hardpack: at 122 mm underfoot with a 19 m pivot-oriented sidecut, the Nocta is slow edge-to-edge and wasted on firm snow - the Atris or Corvus is the everyday Black Crows tool. Carvers should skip it; this ski smears, it does not bend into quick high-angle arcs. Intermediates and lighter skiers have no business on it: it is an advanced-expert platform with no length under 177.6 cm, and the width punishes soft technique everywhere except deep snow. Weight-counting touring skiers should look at the Freebird line instead. And if you are chasing higher speeds and bigger impacts on a freeride-comp line, the Anima is the better tool.
At a Glance
Terrain
Ability Level
Pair It With
Compatible ski bindings.
Browse our recommended binding brands for this ski.
Description
The Black Crows Nocta is a big-mountain powder ski with a 122 mm waist — the widest of the 26/27 Black Crows line, built to surf deep soft snow. It sat out the regular 25/26 catalog and returns this season under the official motto "guess who's back". The comeback is literal: this is the third-generation Nocta platform with sizes, dimensions, radius and weights unchanged, in a new orange colorway.
Two long progressive rocker lines sit over gentle positive camber underfoot. The rocker and the width put the ski on top of deep snow and let it pivot immediately — you turn the Nocta by smearing and steering it sideways, not by bending it into an arc — while the camber underneath keeps the platform stable and balanced. The 19 m radius, printed for every length, is a pivot sidecut rather than a carving one. Weights run 1925 to 2100 g per ski: moderate for the width, and clearly lift-served numbers rather than a touring build.
This is a ski for strong skiers whose winters actually include deep snow — storm-day resort laps, soft lines beyond the ropes, and the forest skiing Black Crows names in its own description. It asks for an advanced or expert pilot, and it is deliberately narrow in purpose. If most of your winter happens on firm snow, this much ski becomes dead weight; carvers will fight the sidecut; there is no length below 177.6 cm for lighter or intermediate skiers; and touring skiers counting grams should look at Black Crows' Freebird range instead.
Within the line, the Atris (105 mm) and Corvus (110 mm) are the everyday tools, and the Anima (115 mm) charges harder on days that are not bottomless. Choose the Nocta as a dedicated deep-day ski, ideally next to a narrower daily driver. It ships flat — bindings are a separate purchase, and we mount them, match the brake to the 122 mm waist, and help you pick the right length.
Specs
- Program: Big mountain / powder — 'Our widest legendary big mountain is intended above all to surf soft deep snow. ... For lovers of the deep' (official)
- Waist width: 122 mm (all three lengths)
- Dimensions tip-waist-tail (per size): 145-122-135 mm (177.6) · 145-122-136 mm (185.5) · 147-122-137 mm (190.6)
- Sidecut radius: 19 m — printed identically for all three lengths
- Weight (per_ski, per size): per_ski: 1925 g (177.6) · 2025 g (185.5) · 2100 g (190.6)
- Profile: Double rocker + gentle positive camber underfoot
- Gender: Unisex
- Lengths: 177.6 cm · 185.5 cm · 190.6 cm
Details
- Type
- SKI
- Vendor
- Black Crows
- SKU
- 102575-177
- UPC / GTIN
- 3662481103211
Orange / 177.6 cm
Black Crows Nocta
By PTO Team, Based on official specs and identified third-party testing of the spec-identical prior-season model · Spec analysis + identified third-party testing of the spec-identical gen-3 model
The take
“A 122 mm surf tool for the deepest days - and a deliberate mismatch for anything firmer.”
The Black Crows Nocta comes back for 26/27 with one job and no apology for it. Black Crows aims it squarely at 'lovers of the deep', and the numbers agree: a 122 mm waist at every length - the widest of the line's 21 models. The profile details live in the description and spec table; the case here is the evidence behind them and the company this ski keeps. Float first, an immediate pivot second; everything else is negotiable.
Do the generation check before reading anything older about this ski. The first two generations of the Nocta ran full reverse camber; the current ski does not. The third-generation platform - camber underfoot, two long progressive rockers - holds a line better than its ancestor, so old-generation reviews describe a different ski. The 26/27 Nocta is a carryover of that third-gen platform, identical in sizes, dimensions, radius and weights, back in the regular range after a 25/26 season when the name existed solely as the limited Powder Hunter edition.
Independent testing of the gen-3 platform fills in the on-snow picture: the spec-identical 2023/24 ski is the evidence. Testers found softer tips that keep the ski planing with no tendency to nosedive, a stiffer forebody through the tail, and the kind of stability the gen-3 testers singled out - a 122 that can be pushed hard without complaint. They also found more firm-snow edge grip than the width suggests, while conceding the obvious: a ski this wide takes longer to move from edge to edge. Firm snow is transit terrain here - the Nocta gets you back to the lift without drama, and that is the honest ceiling.
Construction comes with a caveat. Retailer spec listings for the gen-3 ski show a paulownia and poplar core with fiberglass in a semi-cap build with full ABS sidewalls, and the 26/27 platform is dimensionally identical - but Black Crows had not published 26/27 construction details at the time of writing, so treat those as gen-3 spec rather than official 26/27 copy.
Within Black Crows' range the choice is clean. The Anima (115 mm) is the harder-charging big-mountain ski; gen-3 testers pointed skiers chasing higher speeds and bigger impacts there. The Corvus (110 mm) covers far more of a normal season, and the Atris (105 mm) is the everyday soft-snow choice. The Draco Freebird matches the Nocta's $1,199 price and takes the opposite job: earning deep snow uphill. The Nocta is the widest, floatiest platform Black Crows makes, and deep snow is the whole case for it. Three lengths - 177.6, 185.5 and 190.6 cm at 1925, 2025 and 2100 g per ski - with no shorter option, which tells you who it is for. It ships flat; plan on a binding with a brake wide enough for the waist, mounted and set up in the shop.
Bindings we'd pair with it
Mount point: Flat ski - binding is a separate purchase and needs mounting; the brake must clear the 122 mm waist. Our pick: Chosen at fitting - a freeride alpine binding with a wide brake, never assumed by spec.
- Freeride alpine binding with a wide brakeLift-served deep-day setups
Black Crows does not publish a recommended mount point for the 26/27 Nocta. The ski is sold flat; we choose a binding at fitting and match a brake that clears the waist.
Sole-norm compatibility is never assumed - it is checked by a technician at mounting.
Common Questions
- Is the 26/27 Black Crows Nocta the same as the old Nocta?
- No. The original Nocta was a full-reverse-camber ski; the current third-generation platform runs double rocker with gentle positive camber underfoot and holds a line better. The 26/27 ski is a carryover of that third-gen platform - identical sizes, dimensions, radius and weights - returning after it skipped the regular 25/26 catalog.
- What lengths does the Black Crows Nocta come in?
- Three lengths: 177.6, 185.5 and 190.6 cm, all with a 122 mm waist and a 19 m radius. There is no shorter option, which is part of why it suits advanced to expert skiers.
- Is the Black Crows Nocta good on groomers?
- It manages: independent testing of the gen-3 platform found more edge grip than expected for a ski this wide. But 122 mm is slow from edge to edge, and firm snow is the wrong job for it - Black Crows builds the Atris and Corvus for those days.
- How much does the Black Crows Nocta weigh?
- Per ski, not per pair: 1925 g at 177.6 cm, 2025 g at 185.5 cm and 2100 g at 190.6 cm. That is moderate for a 122 mm platform but heavy for touring.
- Black Crows Nocta vs Anima - which one should I pick?
- Pick the Nocta for deep days: it is wider (122 mm vs 115 mm), floats more and pivots more easily. Pick the Anima to charge - gen-3 testers pointed skiers after higher speeds and bigger impacts at the Anima, and it handles more of the mountain when snow is not bottomless.
