Gear Review: Black Diamond MegaWatt Ski

True, the winter of 2010 was a snowy one. What better time to have a solid powder ski that had me floating while my closest friends choked on powder in neck-deep conditions. In discussion with Black Diamond athletes Callum Petit and Brett Crabtree (who also ski on the Megawatt) I discovered that it’s not only my favorite shred stick. Callum says he chose to ski on it most days last winter.

The Megawatt features a rockered tip and zero camber. This makes it easier to float in powder but it also charges when turning on groomers or in soft packed conditions.

There are only a few negatives to the ski, the first being Black Diamond’s suggested mounting point. I chose to go with the 178 version, thinking that would be okay because it is such a fat ski at 120mm underfoot. Unfortunately, the short stature of the ski combined with Black Diamond’s suggested mounting point left me with hardly any tail to speak of on the ski. I felt at a loss sometimes when I needed a little more control through the end of a turn. It would have been a better idea to go with the 188 Megawatt and then mount it forward so you have something that feels and skis like a traditional big-mountain ski with the floatation of a powder ski. The only other complaint I have is when skiing in the really choppy, dense snow that we get in Whistler once the powder is pretty skied out, especially lower mountain where the snow is heavier, the skis chattered quite a bit. No ski is perfect, however, and considering those two downsides, the positive aspects of the ski make it a worthwhile purchase.

The best part about the Megawatt is its maneuverability in powder. The shape of the ski allows for lightning-fast powder turns, which comes in handy for dense tree skiing. The most noticeable advantage to the Megawatt is how easy it is to shut down speed on a turn when necessary.  In powder it makes for a really flowy ride with the slightest leg movement to slow down when you have to.

Overall, the Megawatt is a great ski to use for the guts of the winter, as a companion to those skis you don’t care about quite so much that you use in the early season and for spring riding.  Retailing for $800USD, they’re worth the investment because they amortize to mere dollars per use because you won’t want to use your other skis anymore. Read more about the Megawatt at www.blackdiamondequipment.com.

-Amy McDermid