The result was the Black Ops a 118mm-wide ski designed with the input of backcountry-freestyle icons Parker White and Chris Logan. What a lame name.. maybe its better in French? The next day I took these skis into the side country to find some leftovers from the prior storm, and I had a blast. The Black Ops 118 is reportedly the same as it was upon its release (apart from graphics). +3.5 if I want to drive the tips more; Optimal ski length is determined according to (in order): weight, physical ability, skier height and type of skier (aggressive/non-aggressive). The S7 has a much more tapered shape than the Black Ops 118, and as a result, I imagine the Black Ops 118 would not feel nearly as quick and easy to pivot in tight spots. Of all the skis Ive been on, I think the Black Ops 118 is the most stable in soft chop. Its the Black Ops version of the Moment Bibby Pro 190s. The ski that stays solid when others call it quits. Three different lengths of almost the same ski. That would be a great everyday ski right! However, the flex then ramps up a lot, and does so pretty quickly. The ski started out simply being called the Black Ops, then they renamed it the Black Ops 118 after adding the Black Ops 98, and then for 20/21, they renamed it once again and its now called the BLACKOPS Gamer. But according to Rossignol, the construction of the ski has not changed throughout all of those name and top sheet changes. You Buy, We Plant Trees! Hey Charlie, If you ski a bit of everything and appreciate a ski that you can ski extremely fast on through chop and variable snow, then the Black Ops 118 is a better option. They feel like a racer's powder ski. -2 from recommended is fantastic for all mountain freeride. Both rely on soft-stiff-soft, and turned up tips and tails. I like my skis long and stiff. Now about the ski. As usual, I found your review great, detailed and almost entirely accurate for myself also. And skiers who prioritize quickness and a low swing weight over high-speed stability should check out lighter skis (see the Powder Skis More Playful section in our Winter Buyers Guide). As I noted above, the ski felt best when skied from a centered stance when mounted on the recommended line. Even then, I felt like I was getting too much tip dive, and would just get launched forward when I didnt want to. Not so fun. Its far from the quickest ski, but its weight becomes much more of a benefit when that fresh snow starts to get tracked out. And bigger skiers should note that this skis max available length is 186 cm; Sam, Jonathan, and I never had any issues with tip dive and we range from 58, 155 lbs to 510, 175 lbs, but larger skiers should keep this in mind. Free Shipping and Returns Bikes Excluded, Subscribe to our newsletter to get 15% off your first order. Please enter your email address below to receive a password reset link. How much stability does the black ops lose? We may have forgotten one or two, but the only heavier skis we can think of are the 184 cm Head Monster 108, the 192 cm Dynastar Pro Rider, the 194 cm 4FRNT Devastator, 190 cm Salomon Q-Lab, the 178 cm Fischer RC4 The Curv (w/ bindings plates), and the old 186 cm Blizzard Bodacious. The store will not work correctly in the case when cookies are disabled. For a 118mm-wide, 2400+ gram ski, the Black Ops 118 is surprisingly versatile. ), Specifically, the 189 (pull length c.190) Pettitor 120 is the missing, longer ski heavier folks and more chargy folks like SEVERIN above, were wanting, it really is! How similar is this ski to the 2012-2013 rossignol squad 7? O works well, if the snow is not too deep. Bought this ski last year before this review was published. -0.5 (havent tried yet, but will.) I might also add that I am too old anymore to really launch off anything, but on these skis, on that day, I felt like I probably could have, and I would have been fine. Maybe it could now apply to the 118 Black Ops also.). Which takes us to. Love to see you guys get your hands on a pair or just jump on mine if ever in Bend. I ski Alta/Bird and I had been primarily skiing on Gunsmokes as my everyday driver, and this ski does everything I liked about the gunsmokes, better, and raises the limit by a few notches. They were stiff and could be charged all day. See below.). How would the Rossi blackops 118 compare to the blizzard bodacious 186. Skip to the beginning of the images gallery. Since December Ive also started trying out terrain parks and wonder if I could use these for parks as well. Yep I ended up skiing on the same day the Black Ops 118 and current 190 cm Blister Pro / Wildcat. Theyll be able to let you feel the skis in a way you wont quite get online, even if you dont end up buying there. And thats good news for many of us since, we assume that you too probably end up skiing a lot of not-perfect snow even on a pow day. But if you want to be able to make super quick turns and particularly if you want to do that all day youd probably be better off on a lighter and / or more tapered ski. It was only after I switched back to other skis like the Faction Prodigy 4.0 and K2 Mindbender 116C that I noticed the weight of the Black Ops 118. (1) Does the Black Ops 118 feel more like a stable (variable conditions) charger, or more like a surfy, playful (pow) ski? It also still felt good at around -5.5 cm from center. But if you want a ski that is loose and balanced, but thats also capable of absolutely mobbing through chop, we think that the Black Ops 118 is one of the best options on the market. Solid when needed. Curious as to impressions, as for me at me weight (205 lbs) Ive also found no spped limit on the Bibbys (crud or groomers) while finding them remarkably nimble at slow speeds in steep, tight spots for a 190cm, 118mm ski. I think directional skiers who are always laying hard into the front of their skis may still prefer skis with more rearward mount points. I really dont know very much about the technical aspect of skiing or skis, but picked up skiing pretty quickly and enjoy cruising through blues and the occasional black. As an intermediate skier with one set of skis, I would suggest something in the 90-100mm range, as thats the true western all mountain range. point, where tip drive feel is maybe there but minimal; and the other point 2 cm back, where tip drive potential becomes greater; depending on the skier, for the 189 (90/91) Pettitor, the first is at about +3.5 to +4.5, the second at +1.5 to +3.5, in my (our) experience). On paper and based on the reviews Ive read this ski seem to tick most of the boxes I want it too. If you are an advanced or expert freerider looking to turn the entire mountain into your playground, buy a blackops and see what happens. Both seem to have similarish dimensions. I agreed with Jeff above, they need a longer length for the big guys out there, Im 135lbs 59 and the 186 is great for me. Since my resort powder days often only consist of a handful of truly untracked turns and much more of my time is spent skiing chop, I absolutely love the Black Ops 118 as a resort pow ski. Apart from the very ends of the ski, the Black Ops 118 is quite stiff. Very stable and balanced in air too. I was able to ski these at a demo day last weekend, I wouldve bought them on the spot if they were for sale. The 186 (184.2) Black Ops fits in nicely in size between the 179 (180) Pettitors of Sean and the 189 (190/191, for mine) at times of Seth. So that night I remounted the ski to -2 of recommended to give them a little more float. Maybe too fast. I look fwd to the next year's Black Ops 107 on which I've already planned an 'extraction'. Such a fun ski and everyone loves it, just needs a longer size! Even mounted at -6cm from true center it just feels too short for us north of 6 ft. In terms of float, the Black Ops 118 was very good (for reference, Im 58, 155 lbs / 173 cm, 70 kg). I have a pretty old school stance, and like to drive the shovels. There is an intriguing comparison. I am also trying to stay on the lower side of the price range as these would be my first owned skis renting is adding up and is too much $$! I just need to decide where to mount. Sam Shaheen and I have now both spent time on the Black Ops 118, in conditions ranging from straight hardpack to more than two feet of snow at Crested Butte. (Rec. I would reccomend going into a local shop, and just talking with them about whats going to work best for you. I dont know, the flex pattern you listed above for the Black Ops, Tips: 5.5-6 Maybe I should remount them again to -4 of recommended per the Blister review, but I think for someone my size that will not really change the fundamentals of the ski in the deepest snow. Sweet ski. would pretty much be exactly how Id rate the Helldorados. There are also things that stand out about the Faction CT 5.0 (152 122 140) like weight (much lighter). How much more playful is it? I demoed these skis on a pow day. Have loved a lot of heavy hitter old schoolish skis (Dyna Proriders, Line Motherships, Solly Dictators, OG Rossi Squads, OG Katanas etc), but also enjoy newer designs (Hojis, GPOs) although I have not embraced the upright stance of newer boots and ski designs fully. Love em. I felt like I could plow through just about anything crud, bushes, small animals, children, the lodge, etc. The Rossignol Black Ops 118 is a big, heavy, and pretty strong ski thats also got a very centered mount and nearly symmetrical rocker profile and shape. This season I was able to hit a lot of features I hadnt felt confident hitting in the past, and they made it seem easy. Would really love to try the Black Ops based on your review though, sounds great. The ON3P Kartel 116 is also over 2400 grams, and it is a very, very good ski that weve still found to be quite playful. Maritime snowpack has taught me to be leery of pow skis w/ this much camber. When I bought the ski, I was interested in finding a great powder ski, in particular one that I could use for heli / cat skiing. Just impulse bought a pair on a summer sale and Im really looking forward to trying them out. And it should be even more appealing if the in-runs and runouts you hit tend to be choppy or rough. Even the Blister review headline starts with our managing editor is calling the Rossignol Black Ops 118 his favorite resort pow ski of all time Interestingly the review also ends with my main takeaway from this ski though is that it feels like a purpose-built tool with a very specific end user in mind a pow ski for physically strong advanced to expert skiers who ski with a neutral stance and like to jump off stuff, but not necessarily spin/flip. I guess I see how both of these statements are true, but you really need to pay attention to the word resort here. But with the bindings at -4.4 cm from center, I could drive the Black Ops 118 quite hard, and I never found its speed limit in chop. But, interesting, Skied the Black Ops for a season when they first came out. This ski is stupid good on fairly soft groomers for how big it is. The Black Ops 118 feels very balanced in the air, but you really need to initiate tricks hard and early to get it around, rather than being able to decide to throw something mid-air like you can on lighter skis. Note I say resort because at least for heavier folks like myself, you need to find the bottom the of snowpack for this ski to work, even with a neutral stance, or risk excessive tip dive. You will not be disappointed. Not familiar with them? You can manhandle any ski profile in blower, but Ive never skied a pow ski w more than 4mm camber that didnt drive contact points down into sticky snow causing hooky behavior when pivoting In deep, wet conditions. But since I know plenty of people that ski 115mm+ skis as their daily drivers, I think its worth noting that the Black Ops 118 is far from some niche ski that is only fun in perfect, untracked, deep snow. After one day of riding these skis I have fallen in love. I would prefer a narrower ski for days where conditions are brutally firm, but if the groomers were soft at all, the Black Ops 118 held an edge, initiated turns easily, and I was pretty blown away by how hard I could carve it. +4.0 if I want most forward still feeling a bit of tip drive; I got some advice from the Snowbird shop guys when I bought my first pair of adult skis that has stuck with me. And when youre coming back to earth, the Black Ops 118 provides a really big, supportive landing platform. But its also a very hefty ski, and that affects how playful it feels. After about a half a day on the ski, I got used to the weight and did not think the Black Ops 118 felt sluggish, especially given its weight. https://blisterreview.com/gear-reviews/rossignol-squad-7, Michael, the Rossignol BlackOps 118s ski very different from the Squad 7s: believe it or not, for mid-size and lighter folk, much more stable, and much better on edge, including on groomers. Or just re-release the sickle and call it good!