Moment Bibby Tour vs. Moment Bibby / Blister Pro

Cy Whitling reviews the Moment Bibby Tour for Blister Gear Review.
Moment Bibby Tour

Moment Bibby Tour vs. Moment Bibby / Blister Pro

Ski: 2016-2017 Moment Bibby Tour, 184 cm

Available Lengths (cm): 184, 190 cm

Blister’s Measured Length (straight tape pull): 180.5 cm

Stated Weight per Ski: 1800 g (184 cm)

Blister’s Measured Weight per Ski: 1903 & 1929 grams

Stated Dimensions (mm): 141-116-131

Blister’s Measured Dimensions (mm): 142-116-134

Stated Sidecut Radius: 25 meters

Core: Paulownia / Pine with triaxial fiberglass and carbon fiber stringers

Tip & Tail Splay (ski decambered): 71mm / 62 mm

Traditional Camber Underfoot: ~1 mm

Recommended Mount Point: -6 cm from center; 84.2 cm from tail

Boots: Salomon MTN Explore & La Sportiva Spectre 2.0

Bindings: Marker Kingpin 13

Test Locations: Porters Ski Area backcountry, NZ; Baldy Yurt & Grand Targhee, WY

Days Skied: 10

Ski: 2016-2017 Moment Blister Pro, 184 cm

Available Lengths (cm): 174, 184, 190 cm

Blister’s Measured Length (straight tape pull): 182.4 cm

Stated Weight per Ski: 2140g (184 cm)

Cy Whitling draws the Moment Blister Pro
Moment Blister Pro – CW

Blister’s Measured Weight per Ski: 2103 & 2100 grams

Stated Dimensions (mm): 141-116-131

Blister’s Measured Dimensions (mm): 142-116-133

Stated Sidecut Radius: 25 meters

Tip & Tail Splay (ski decambered): 71mm / 68 mm

Traditional Camber Underfoot: ~2-3 mm

Recommended Mount Point: -6 cm from center; 85.25 cm from tail

Boots: K2 Pinnacle 130, Nordica Strider

Bindings: Salomon Guardian 13

Test Locations: Grand Targhee & Teton Pass, WY

Days Skied: 8

Intro

When I reviewed the Moment Bibby Tour earlier this spring, I mentioned that I was excited to get time on its inbounds sibling, the Moment Bibby / Blister Pro. While Blister has written a lot about the Bibby Pro, I actually wrote that initial review of the Bibby Tour before I had spent time on the Blister Pro.

A pair of Blister Pros — with the custom graphic I drew for Blister — showed up a few weeks ago, and since then, the Blister Pro has been my go-to inbounds ride. So I’ve got some comments on my experience with the Blister Pro, as well as comparisons of the Blister Pro to the Bibby Tour now that I’ve skied them back-to-back with the same boots, in the same conditions.

Flex

Jonathan described the Bibby Tour’s flex as:

Tips: 7

Underfoot: 10

Tails: 8

The 184 cm Blister Pro feels very similar, but it’s just a touch softer throughout. I mostly noticed this on snow; I found it a little easier to lean back and load the tails into ollies on the Blister Pro than on the Bibby Tour.

Moment Blister Pro

If you couldn’t tell from the name, a number of Blister reviewers like this ski a lot. So before skiing it, I was quite worried that I was going to be the anomaly — be that one Blister reviewer who got on the ski and came away disliking it, or even worse, thinking “Meh. I really don’t get the hype.”

But that was not the case.

Until I skied the Blister Pro, my go-to ski when snow conditions are at all soft was the 186 cm ON3P Kartel 116. And while I still love that ski (and will be offering more comparisons to it in an upcoming Deep Dive), I’ve found that the 184 cm Blister Pro has an edge over the Kartel 116 in any sort of tracked, beat-up snow. It’s more powerful on edge, more stable on questionable landings, a little quicker in the air, and generally facilitates the sort of, way-too-unpredictable, jump-off-freaking-everything, go-way-too-fast-to-be-fully-in-control skiing that I absolutely love to do (and that strikes fear in everyone around me on the hill.) Of course, to be clear and fair, ON3P positions the Kartell 116 as more of a pow ski than as an all-mountain, variable conditions destroyer.

Cy whitling reviews the Moment Blister Pro for Blister Gear review
Cy Whitling on the Moment Blister Pro, Teton Pass, WY.

All that to say, I’m very much in agreement with the praises that other Blister Reviewers have heaped on the Bibby / Blister Pro. I would have no problem skiing it as my one-ski-quiver at Targhee or Jackson Hole, and it would be one of my top choices for a playful-but-chargy pow ski — even if I hadn’t drawn the graphics for this particular edition.

So how does it compare to its backcountry-oriented counterpart, the Bibby Tour?

Blister Pro vs. Bibby Tour

While I haven’t gotten to ski the Bibby Tour and Blister Pro back-to-back in fresh snow, I have skied them in a variety of crust, crud, slush, and groomers at Grand Targhee. I skied them both with the K2 Pinnacle 130 boots with both skis mounted on their recommended lines.

As you’d expect, the Bibby Tour felt quicker and lighter — it is 200 g and 2 cm smaller than the Blister Pro, after all.

But in firm snow, the Bibby Tour felt a little less playful than the Blister Pro, and I think that’s due to a combination of different factors:

First, I really noticed the difference between the bindings that I had mounted on each ski: the Salomon Guardian vs the Mark Kingpin. Sure, the Kingpins tour worlds better than the Guardian (and ski better than any tech binding we’ve been on), but when skiing inbounds, it’s just not a contest; I’d take the (heavier) Guardians every day for their suspension and power transmission.

Second, the Bibby Tour felt stiffer and more skittish than the Blister Pro in firm conditions. This is exactly what you’d expect from a touring ski inbounds, and it made it harder to lean into the flex of the ski and pop off features.

At speed in chopped-up snow and on groomers, the Bibby Tour feels lighter and less damp. It gets bucked around more, and offers less suspension than the Blister Pro, meaning that the Blister Pro has a much higher speed limit (or is much more comfortable at speed) in these conditions.

That said, I’d rather ski the Bibby Tour inbounds than just about any other touring ski I’ve been on. It’s not as powerful and damp as the Blister Pro, but that’s a high bar for any ski — especially a ski that is lighter by 200 g per ski.

NEXT: So, Which One Should You Get?

24 comments on “Moment Bibby Tour vs. Moment Bibby / Blister Pro”

    • After a weekend where I skied the Tour in the Targhee backcountry all day Saturday and the Blister Pro inbounds at Jackson all day Sunday, I’m pretty sold on that concept.

  1. Thanks for the comparisons. Is the 2cm difference in measured length because of the tail notch cut into the tour? And therefore should have no discernible difference in the way each model skis, based purely on length. Thanks

    • I think that’s where most (maybe all) the length difference comes in. I sure couldn’t tell a difference in the length between the two skiing, and wouldn’t have noticed it if we hadn’t measured both!

  2. The reason the Bibby tour is a tad bit sketchy on groomers VS the Blister pro/Bibby, is the 1mm camber on it VS the 2.5mm on the Blister pro, if you have ever ridden a regular Bibby with 1mm camber it is a tad sketchy compared to the regular Bibby, just like the tour, its not the weight difference.

    • That could be part of it, sure, but I definitely notice the weight difference, especially in any kind of chopped up snow, even just on a bumpy groomer.

  3. Great write-up!

    As someone who’s been dragging my clapped out 190’s uphill on Beast 14’s for the last couple seasons, you guys are making it really hard to pick my replacement.

    On one hand, at 160lbs I probably don’t need the extra stability (and skin track weight) of the OG Bibby’s, but on the other hand they sure do shred chop inbounds.

    And on a third (more vain) hand, those tour graphics really do suck compared to the rest of their lineup..

    • I would definitely go Kingpin. This isn’t the sort of touring ski where the weight difference is going to be that glaring, and it’s such a fun ski to push hard, might as well get a binding that facilitates that!

      That said, a Bibby Tour with ION’s would still be an awesome setup, just wouldn’t be as inbounds / cliff huck and big line friendly….

  4. Hey Cy, what are your thoughts on the Blister pro for east coast skiing 75% of the time. Usually ski Aspen when i’m out west Back east i usually ski Magic, Stratton, Killington, Stowe, Loon, Cannon, Bretton. I’m on a pair of Atomic Automatics from 2015/2016 and all the reviews have me curious on how it would preform, i’m a fan of fat skis despite primarily an east skier and i got a pair of skis for boilerplate ice days here.
    Thoughts?

    • You’d probably be fine….but I really don’t think it would be ideal. It’s just a lot of ski for a daily driver anywhere that doesn’t get a fair amount of snow.

      I’d be more tempted to go with something like the Moment Deathwish, it’s just a little more versatile, and makes more sense as a daily driver for more people (even out here at Targhee). That said, you’d probably be just fine on the Bibby Pro, and could have a lot of fun on it, I just think you might be able to have more fun in more conditions on something a little narrower, given where you’re skiing.

  5. Hey Cy, sick review and I’m feeling the graphics on the top sheet massively. Noticed these are still in stock in 190 on moment’s website, have you got any pictures of the bases you can link me to before I take the plunge?

  6. I’m an aging guy in that time of life where I have a more in my quiver than I do in my tank. In recent years, my go-to kit for in-bounds powder half-days before work has been 193 Chetlers, Kryptons, and FKS. However, light seems right for the way I ski now, even when the uphill is free, so I’m looking for some new boards, to pair with my new favorite boot, Lupo Carbon, and probably some Griffons. Would the 190 Bibby Tour suit this function? Maybe Backland 117? Other suggestions? I’m 6’4”, 200#, lifetime Utah skier (with life starting to catch up). Thanks.

  7. Sweet comparison, Cy.

    What’s your take on using the 174 Bibby for a smaller guy as a 50/50 ski, as it’s only .25 kg heavier than the 184 tour?
    I’m 172cm, 69kg. I’m interested in running both tech and alpine with inserts. And would you still recommend the -6 mount point for 174? I noticed the recommended mount point is the same across sizes.

    • Just noticed that the 2018 Bibby Tour now comes in a 174, which adds another option for me. Still not sure what the ideal length is, for both tour and pro.

      • Hey!

        I haven’t gotten time on the 174 cm, and I don’t think anyone at Blister actually has, so it’s really hard to say. For 50/50 with inserts, I’d go regular Bibby though. As far as mount, again, none of us has been on that ski, but I think you’d be fine at -6 (but I think you’d probably also be fine at -4 or -5 too). I’d base that off what sort of mount points you’ve liked in the past.

  8. I am considering the Bibby Tour and the ON3P Steeple 108 as my quiver of one touring ski for use in a mix of resort uphilling and backcountry touring central Colorado and occasional SAR. I realize the first reaction might be that this is an apples to oranges comparison, but in the Venn diagram of burly touring ski that can perform at least adequately in any snow condition (weight is not a significant issue and these two are in the same range despite the difference in width), a wide-ish freeride shape (I am kind of down on both flat tails and fully rockered shapes and generally prefer fat skis) and made in the USA, there are not a whole lot of options. My main concern about the Bibby is the width as a work ski and challenge of maneuvering it in sketchy situations (IOW, I do not want to have to get it to full speed to turn it). My main concern about the Steeple is the reverse elliptical sidecut (fear of the unknown?). There are not many credible reviews of the Steeple out there. Any thoughts from the Blister folks or the general population would be welcome. Thanks!

  9. Hello. I am looking at some new Moments.
    Was wanting a more “quiver killer”, and coming off Faction 3.0’s, which I destroyed in one season. (Just over 1.2 million vertical)
    I have ALWAYS loved to shred the cut up powder. Really wanting the Bibby, but am tempted to go more all around with the Deathwish for more versatility.
    I love to play around, go fast by my self, go slow with the wife, drop big bowls wide open, trees, powder, and rip the groomers on last run to the village (Revelstoke). I am 215 ish, 6’4″ , and I guess my main want is stability.
    Would the Bibby be a better bet for my main ski in Revelstoke, or should I go more narrow in the Deathwish???
    Thank you.

    • Wow this is crazy but I am in almost the exact situation. Just destroyed my Faction 3.0’s after a season and looking at either the Deathwish or Bibby and have the same skiing profile except I’m 5’11 180. If you come to Tahoe apparently we should be friends.

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