I skied with the OGSO skis all the 20/21 ski season, I did an initial review here of the Schwarztor where I talk about the ski shape and weight and my first impressions. I wanted to do a second review after having skied it all season.
In the initial review I said the Schwarztor was a very easy ski to ski and have I changed my mind, well no is the easy answer. Throughout the season I put these ski to the test on a variety of terrain and snow conditions and each time they were a joy to ski, they are fun and agile and very forgiving. This is to do with the medium flex and its super rocker shape this allows an easy turn whether this is a short or long radius turn. And the rebound is really playful and fun to throw around.
In the initial review I was a little worried that the shape which is great for turning and perfect for soft snow may lead to a lack of grip on hard or steep lines. I put them though their paces at the end of the season on quite a few couloirs and they were great. No issues with grip, the edges hold really well and the confidence you get from knowing they turn really well makes a big difference, no fighting to turn the skis. For the icy slopes I didn’t ride that many icy lines its not something that I am look to do if I can help it. On the odd bit of ice or bullet hard snow they preformed well there is a little bit of skitter but nothing that felt off putting even when your somewhere you wouldn’t want to fall. I always felt happy and secure on them and never found myself wishing I was on other skis.
Build quality, at the end of a season of heavy use the top sheets still look great with no big sign of wear. For the base they survived well. I did have to do some petexing throughout the season, but I did ding quite a few rock this season and I don’t see them as being any different to other brands bases. An example being a day we got caught out, myself and a group of friends did a tour. For most of the route there was soft deep snow and great fun but just at the top leaving the col, there was a long section that the wind had scoured the snow off the rock a day earlier and then a very thin layer of snow just covered them, we discovered this very quickly but had no choice than to descend. As I was on test ski I was volunteered to be test dummy and go first. At the end of the tour we examined the base of all the skis, 5 sets all from different brands, and they all had some scratches, and some deep gouges. No one brand had done better than the others and we all had to spend a bit of time petexing that evening.
Over all I can see the Schwarztor being my go to ski for the next few seasons, I love them, they’re so much fun to ski. This probably sums it up best, there where times in the season when I was planning longer tours either in height gain or distance and the night before I would plan to take a lighter set of skis, yet each morning I would pick up the Schwarztor because I knew that I would have more fun and a better ski on them.
I have a set of OGSO Thor skis to test next season, I am looking forward to it. But they will have to be good to get me off the Schwarztor’s.
I would really recommend these skis to the vast majority of skiers out there, beginners to ski touring or freeride will find them easy to learn on and build confidence, and very experienced skiers will appreciate a fun ride on a fully rockered fatter ski.
