Black Diamond Helio Carbon 115 Review

These are skis for soft snow. The Black Diamond Helio Carbon 115 is a specialized tool. Pick these as your second or third set of skis. Even then, be careful about when and where you take them out. You don't want to be caught on extensive or serious icy snow conditions with such powder snow specialists.

Performance Comparison

Weight

Skis this big will inevitably weigh more than smaller skis, all else equal. The Black Diamond Helio 115 in size 177cm and on our calibrated scale, weigh 1597 grams per ski. That's 3193 grams, or 7 lbs for the pair. For all-around skis, we consider that to be on the heavy side. For skis that will only go out on the deepest of excursions, it is an acceptable “weight point”. Realize too that bigger skis require bigger, heavier skins and that the larger topsheet surface area, especially in soft snow conditions, will collect more snow mass while you walk. They aren't super light but the weight is acceptable to desirable for this application.

Firm Snow

Don't choose these for any serious or extended firm snow skiing. Our few inbounds runs and polished luge-run exit tracks gave us all we needed to see. We assert on good authority that these are no good in firm snow. That's okay. It is not what they are made for.

Powder

You get skis this big exactly for powder snow. They do awesome. We logged around 50,000 vertical feet of powder snow in our first test season on the Black Diamond Helio 115. Everyone, every day out, found them to be centered, predictable, floaty, and well-tuned to a wide variety of soft snow conditions. They are on the snappy end of the “snappy to damp” continuum.

Crud/Poor Snow

Again, you don't expect skis this specialized to endure a great deal of tough snow conditions. When you are ready for such specialized backcountry skis you are (hopefully) also ready to anticipate the conditions and choose the right tool for the day out. Similarly, you shouldn't choose these skis for expeditions or distant travel (unless that travel is to northern Japan in February). All that said, you will regularly encounter at least short sections of breakable crust or sloppy mashed potatoes in the backcountry. It is inevitable; it is part of what we love about the backcountry, that adventuresome uncertainty. When your day or ski run on the Black Diamond Helio 115 turns to crappy snow, they will get you through just fine. A more well-rounded, all-purpose backcountry ski in the same weight range will do better, but the 115 does better than skinnier specialized skis, to be sure.

Stability at Speed

The Helio 115 likes slower, more turny skiing. It'll hang on at higher speeds, but this is a ski primarily for the short radius, deep and popping turns more than the high-speed rails. If the snow conditions and circumstances allow for higher-speed powder skiing, just realize that the Helio 115 will have a speed limit beneath your own. Realize too that, no matter your ski or ski skill, the consequences of wiping out at 40 mph in the wilderness are great.

Should You Buy the Black Diamond Helio 115?

If you want or need a soft-snow ski to complement your all-around backcountry skis, check out the Black Diamond Helio 115. If you are thinking “My backcountry zone/habit is mainly powder skiing. I want one ski that will do it all and be great in powder snow” don't be tempted by a big ski like the Helio. Our test team is mainly based in Wyoming's Tetons. Few ski destinations have the reliable powder snow that the Tetons do. Even here, with plentiful powder snow, no intentional, experienced backcountry skiers are using anything this big for their primary, day-to-day, “quiver of one” skis.

What Other Backcountry Skis Should You Consider?

Every major ski company now sells a wide-body, lightweight powder ski. The Black Diamond Helio 115 is a widely available, proven entry in this subcategory. Slightly better, in our experience, is the Voile HyperDrifter. The HyperDrifter is slightly wider for a few grams less mass. It's also a little more forgiving at higher speeds while still maintaining snappy and centered performance in tighter radius turns. If you've gotten this far and realize that you don't actually need a light, wide, powder-specialized backcountry ski, check out one of our award-winning all-around skis like the Blizzard Zero G 105.