Black Diamond Verdict Telemark Ski - 2005 BCS

I'm skiing the verdicts using dynafit boots and bindings. The whole setup is amazingly lightweight, especially for such a wide ski. I bought them for powder, but they're wonderful in the heavy spring snow and crud.

My Atomic Teledaddys are now in they fourth season of hard skiing and starting to look a little ragged. Over the last two years I tried a bunch of different skis, and never found anything that compared to the versatility of the Teledaddy. I demoed the Verdicts, and finally have found a suitable replacement. They are everything I loved in the Teledaddys -- masses of floatation, light (astonishingly so), powerful, damp, stable at speed -- but with a little extra sidecut and a little extra width in the shovel. Remember that this is a *big* ski: don't be afraid to go shorter than you would normally. I'm 5'11 and 160lb, and a very aggressive skier and the 180cm feels a little on the large side. (Noticeably less flickable than 173cm Teledaddys, but super stable and reassuring at high speed in deep snow.)

I love this ski, it rips in any condition I've taken it into. I ski hard, T1 ,black diamond 01 bindings, they all work together beautifully. This set-up is definitely beefy compared to my previous T2's, work stinx and G3 bindings, but my skiing is way more aggressive now and I don't feel I'm as worked at the end of the day. This ski rocks.

A lot has been said about this ski. I Tele skied a 180 with about 15" of Powder. The more I skied it the more I liked it. Exceptional flotation in Powder. If it had just a little more sidecut it would turn a little quicker in my opinion. With the proper binding set up it can be extremely lightweight for a wide ski. Although I'm not sure I would personally tour this ski. It seemed more of a big mountain ski. Very stiff and quite snappy. Almost too snappy for such a large ski. Really need to ski these things hard. If you're looking for a Powder ski give it a whirl. Also, Check out the K2 Anti Piste for the same application.

I've ridden loads of planks and, a few years ago, I settled on Volkl. Then I broke them on a wobbly landing and needed something new. I ride hard and can't afford a ski that is soft or slow. The BD verdict is now my choice. It's stiff enough to handle hard turns on hardpack and floats in the soft stuff super great. The shape and width make it a little stubborn if you're not going fast but open this ski up and the controls are fantastic. I would recommend you know what you're doing first because these can get away from you- but if you like stiff and hard, this is your ski. Plus the weight is amazingly light.

This ski makes me think I know how to tele. I have the Linken Binding, and T1 Tele Boot. I have never felt solid in icy, cruddy, bumps, but the Verdicts smoothly crush through it all. They are lightweight for touring, make nice smooth big turns, and have a good pop in them to make it through the trees. For a resort ski, or backcountry you can't go wrong because the Verdict holds strong on whatever terrain you’re riding.

Why do I like this ski? First it performs as well as any ski in its class BUT, weighs pounds lighter [not ounces], POUNDS. Very forgiving, yet first class performance. Some have expressed concern about how far forward the mounting point is for AT, but rest assured this is correct. This ski performs, the steeper the better. On low angle slopes it takes a little more effort to get them on edge.

I demoed this, G3 Rev, and K2 Anti-Piste. Hands down this was my favorite. It floats thru pow, powers thru crud and isn't too unfriendly on the end of day hardpack. It's lively and damp and the same time. Get your A game ready and these skis should eat up anything you can dish out. The K2 was a little more dead feeling and sluggish and the Rev is a close second, but this one is a little bigger, a little lighter and a little more fun.

My friend and I both got some fat boards at the same time. He got Voille Insane's and I got Black Diamond Verdict. When he lifted his (sans bindings) and then lifted mine (also sans bindings) he said 'Man, those are light'. That’s how they ski in powder as well - they float. The ski is in a word 'sick'. Can't wait to slay more pow this season on these.

The verdict turned on a dime in trees, floated on top in the pow, carved big lines and even skied well in soft moguls. Fast and so light.

This is the nicest ski I have owned to date. Black Diamond finally filled the gaping hole in the ski industries product line; a fat ski that is stiff enough to be skied on area, but light enough to rip it up touring. I have mounted Dynafit's on my 180cm verdicts, and they are the perfect tour setup (super-light on the uphills for a 98mm waist, but rip on the downhills). I am about 5'7", and the 180cm is perfect. The 190 has a stiffer flex pattern (more big mountain oriented).