First Purchase - Final Advice Needed

Posted: 11 March 2010 01:41 PM

Hi Rich, Tom, and all the others involved,

I really like the site - excellent to trawl through the endless boards out there.

I am a good beginner (low intermediate) looking to get my first board and need that final piece of advice on what to buy before i spend my hard earned (ok maybe just earned) cash. I go for about 3 weeks a year and a couple of weekends (i live in denmark and hit some of the swedish slopes) so want to invest in a good all mountain ‘go anywhere’ type of board that will help me progress. Riding style is more all mountain with a willingness to hit the park.

Im 6ft, 78kg and have size 9.5UK boot size.

I seem to have narrowed my seacrch to the following:

Ride Machete (although have heard it doesnt corner at high speeds so well)
Lib Tech dark series c2 btx
Salomon Official

probably go for a 158cm in either.

In an ideal world i would just go for the rossignol angus but i dont like the graphics (sorry..!)

Anyways your thoughts on those 3 boards or anything else you could recommend would be great.

Also if you have any suggestions for bindings that too would be cool..!

Cheers

Posted: 11 March 2010 04:24 PM

Hey there robdk,
you probably did some rather deep research on these 3 boards so I don’t think I can tell you any great secret you don’t know already.

Regarding bindings you may have heard that I always like to suggest the UNION Forces, Rich loves his pair of Drake Czars and Tom is rocking (or cambering.. sorry for that really bad joke) on his Salomon’s if I am still up-to-date.
As you can see bindings are pretty much about personal preference, but as you are looking for an allmountain ride, you should look out for bindings with mid- to stiff- highbacks for the best compromise in comfort and response.

Good luck on your further steps
Cheers

Posted: 11 March 2010 06:34 PM

thanks for the reply and info on the bindings.

guess i just now need to get my wallet out..!!!

Posted: 15 March 2010 08:06 PM

Hey man,

I would have to say you may want to lean away from the Dark Series being on the beginner end of the spectrum.  It is a stiff super responsive ride.  Take a look at the Never Summer SL-R for a nice all-mountain stick.  I think the other two you listed are good options as well.  Best of luck.

Posted: 15 March 2010 09:11 PM

Yeah the Dark Series is going to be a bit of a handful… you’re probably better looking at the GNU riders choice or the 157 Phoenix Lando if you want a Mervin board. The 57 Lando has a little extra width for your feet. Or of course the Travis Rice which is a beauty.

The Machete sounds like a wise choice, other boards in the same vain worth looking at are the Rossi Angus (yep I recommend this board quite a lot but it’s rad). I think the Yes boards are going to be a little too narrow. You might also want to look at the K2 Turbo Dream, which is all mountain but rocks the park too.

To help you make a better choice can you jott down what king of riding you do and your level?

e.g. Powder 10% of the time
Hard Ice 30% of the time
50% park / 50% piste
Riding for 3 years happy on red kickers and down black runs
Like to ride lazy.. all about the style

etc etc.. you get the picture.

Rich

Posted: 16 March 2010 08:37 PM

Hi Rich,

thanks for taking the time to reply.

I would go for the angus but to honest im not a fan of the graphics.

level is low intermediate (can hit black runs but still need to improve my switch).

Anyways riding is the following:

60% piste
20% powder
20% park

However i really want to increase my park and powder riding skills.

As mentioned im leaning towards the machete, but if you have any other suggestions that would be great.

Posted: 16 March 2010 09:57 PM

Graphics are definitely an importnat factor regardless of what peeps say, got to look at the board you’re riding!

I think the Machete is going to be a good choice, I’m also a big fan of the Rome Agent, that board is so versatile and if you’re set on Rocker you could have a look at the Agent 1985.. The Turbo dream is a good all mountain board happy in the park and on most of the hill, it’s designed for freestyling in the backcountry and gives a nice bit of float.

If you’re set on park progression it might be worth looking at the K2 Believer. zero camber is great on rails and Tom has been digging the mellow flex as it’s really helping him push his freestyle riding, softer still is the Parkstar which is a good laugh around the whole hill, but might be a little too soft for all out piste assault… especially if you’re spending 60% of your time on the piste.