Lib Tech Cygnus Big Mike Review: Mike Olson's Techno Pop

Lib Tech Cygnus Big Mike is one of Mervin's flagship boards: a high-tech freeride board with a reinforced C2 and Techno Pop carbon construction, made by Mike Olson as a demonstration of engineering possibilities. Who it is for: an experienced rider who wants flotation (in fluffy snow) in deep snow, grip on ice and knows what they are looking at. Here is what we know about it from the shop and from Mervin.

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Big Mike is Mike Olson: 40 years of experience in one board

BM in the name stands for Big Mike, and Big Mike is Mike Olson, the creator of GNU and one of the founders of Mervin, a designer, engineer and snowboarder from the very beginning of the sport. The Cygnus is one of the boards we connect directly with him. Mervin writes that Mike took everything he has learned about board geometry and construction over the last 40 years and put it into the Techno Pop Cygnus BM.

The model is in Lib Tech's experiMENTAL category, where Mervin tries its boldest ideas. Even the artwork is not by an artist but by the "experiMENTAL department." Under the clear topsheet you can see the carbon X. Such a snowboard can easily be compared to an exotic car: not everyone needs it, but whoever understands it knows what they are looking at.

Reinforced C2: flotation in deep snow and grip on ice from one profile

Mervin calls the profile "dynamic reinforced C2 with Banana": a C2 with a more radical rocker in the middle and precisely tuned camber zones. The rocker lifts the nose in deep snow and the Cygnus floats without effort. On hardpack, the camber zones and the deep sidecut work together with the central rocker. The result, in Mervin's words, is incredible grip and carving on packed hard snow and ice.

The sidecut is 7 m on all sizes, which is deep for a board this length. For comparison, the T.Rice Pro 153 has 8 m. A smaller radius means a shorter, tighter turn, and Mervin calls the Cygnus a "360-degree carving board" for good reason. Mervin's 2023/24 technical panel also lists Magne-Traction.

Techno Pop: carbon on carbon on recycled PET

The construction is exceptionally light. From the bottom up: a wood core of 30% aspen, 25% paulownia and 45% recycled PET from plastic bottles, wrapped in Magnesium Techno Fiber Bands, with 30° Carbon Mega X on top of them and unidirectional carbon on top. Mervin sums it up as "carbon on carbon on recycled PET." On top is an Eco Sublimated Bio Beans topsheet, and underneath a Knife Cut sintered base. According to the technical panel, the nose and tail are lightened and thinned, with birch internal sidewalls and UHMW impact protection at the ends.

The visible carbon X under the clear topsheet carries energy from the zones under the toes and heels to the nose and tail. That makes the board springy and very lively: pressure under your foot reaches the ends without the board feeling heavy. The same Techno Pop construction is in Travis Rice's Apex Orca.

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Who it is for: a rider who knows what they are looking at

The Cygnus BM is for an experienced snowboarder: freeride and all terrain, deep snow in the morning and hard piste in the afternoon. The flex is 6 to 7 depending on the size, and the 1" setback (0.5" on the 161) gives a clear direction without making the board heavy to steer. Mervin describes it as a "magically fun, dream high-level snowboard for any terrain."

It is not necessarily a board for everyone. If you are still learning or mostly ride in the park, you will not feel the money and the technology here. But if you have been riding for a long time and want to find out how far a snowboard can go, you should at least try it. This is a collector's board that many people will not sell years later.

• reinforced C2
• directional
• 1" setback
• Techno Pop construction
• unidirectional carbon + 30° Carbon Mega X
• Magnesium Techno Fiber Bands
• core 30% aspen / 25% paulownia / 45% recycled PET
• Knife Cut sintered base
• 7 m sidecut
• flex 6-7
• Mike Olson
• freeride / all terrain / deep snow

Size: 154 and 157, with a short contact length and a deep sidecut

The Cygnus has a relatively short contact length, 110 cm on the 154 and 113 cm on the 157, and a wide nose and tail. That makes it maneuverable in the trees, even for its size. The waist is 25.7 cm on the 154 and 26.1 cm on the 157, and the second is for a bigger foot. We have the 154 and 157. Enter your weight and boot size and we will show you which size.

Cygnus vs. Apex Orca, MC Wayfinder II and GNU Something

Lib Tech Apex Orca is the same world of Techno Pop (unidirectional carbon over 30° Carbon Mega X and magnesium bands) but with the Orca's shape: a long floaty nose, a short tail, C2X and a 2.5" setback, more specialized for deep snow. Lib Tech MC Wayfinder II is the other freeride board from experiMENTAL: Matt Cummins' deep-snow surf board with a 4" setback and a volume-shifted shape (shorter and wider for the same volume). GNU Something is the other side of Mike Olson: a swallow tail and a 4" setback inspired by his early boards, on a much more affordable construction.

Frequently asked questions

How to choose, and where to see it

If you want the most high-tech board Mervin makes and you ride it in deep snow and on hardpack, the Cygnus BM is the choice. If you chase only deep snow, get the Apex Orca. If you want Mike Olson's ideas on a more affordable construction, get the GNU Something. Come to our shop at 6A Golo Bardo St. in Sofia or call us at +359 887 800 575 and we will show you the board in person and pick the size together.