Cheep n’ cheerful beginner/intermediate board

Posted: 31 January 2010 02:56 PM

Hi there

Any info on a cheep n’ cheerful beginner/intermediate board would be gratefully received.

Vital stats:

  Body height: 177cm / 5’8"ft
  Weight:  176lbs, 80kg
  Shoe size: 43 EUR, 10 US, 9 UK

  Riding level:

  [*] Beginner
  [*] Intermediate
  [  ] Advanced
  [  ] Expert

  Riding style:

  [*] Piste   [ 90 ] %
  [*] Powder   [ 5 ] %
  [*] Park [ 5 ] %
  [*] Rails [ 0 ]  %

  Price Limit:  [ 300 ] £

Boards I’ve been looking at the Endeavor Gurilla 157, Artec Novus 158, Forum Scheme 158 and the APO seed 155.

Also does anyone know the quality of custom printed boards from either true snowboards or Antero snowboarding.

Cheers

Posted: 31 January 2010 10:22 PM

Hi Penfold,

The Endeavor Guerilla and Artec Novus are going to be perfect for you. Nice affordable packages with a slightly directional shape that’ll run nice on pistes, give you enough float in the pow and be playable enough in the park. You could also look at the Omatic Boron or the Ride Control… which both meet your requirements. With boards in this genre, it’s kind of a case of what you can find at a good price and what graphics you like. I’m a fan of the Guerilla, Max at Endeavor has got a good eye for design. I think the Seed is a bit basic… I’d only suggest it to riders who have been at a beginner level for a while and are finding it hard to progress. Might be worth looking at the Line, if you want an APO, this board is a bit more piste and carve focused than the Guerilla and Novus.

Rich

Posted: 03 February 2010 11:09 AM

Cheers for the lodown.

Got my mind set on an Endeavor board now. Is there much difference between the Guerilla and the Live boards other than the price? Also Anyone out there in the internet have last years Endeavor Live (156) in stock as the graphics are wicked!

Ta

Posted: 03 February 2010 03:25 PM

The live’s shape is slightly less directional (a bit more park focused) and the glass fibre is triaxial not Biaxial like the Guerilla (in 3 axes instead of 2). THis means the board will require slightly more force (commitment and weight in real terms) to initiate a carve. I think the live is a bit more advance but I’m sure you’d be ok, it’s just the Guerilla might be a bit more dialled for progressing quicly through the Begginer intermediate stage. Which country are you in… if you’re in the UK I might be able to point you in the right direction for an 08/09 Live…. I prefer tyhis years Live graphics… but last years were dope too.

Posted: 03 February 2010 05:11 PM

Cheers Rich, I’m Just in Manchester (UK). All those Endeavor boards have awesome graphics especially the Marok designs. Another quick question this time about the Artec Blueprint any idea which board its based on?

Posted: 03 February 2010 11:58 PM

Hello penfold,

just check the official artec website for more informations about the board shapes for the blueprints: http://www.artecsnowboards.com/blueprint/about-the-boards

Regards

Posted: 04 February 2010 01:40 AM

Couldn’t find any 08 Lives… even tried the distributor. Endeavors are hot property.

However I did find a good price on this years boards at Edge riders. Can’t vouch for the shop but it’s a good price. Got the Guerilla too.

http://www.edgeriders.com/mens-endeavor-snowboards-c-2_3_644_643.html

Posted: 27 February 2010 04:03 AM

Hi all,

Came across this forum whilst searching for a board to buy.

Am also from Manchester (Bolton, UK actually), and am going on my first Boarding trip in 10days. Am also a beginner/intermediate, no tricks and struggle a great deal on the front foot turn. I hardly fall off and i have great control with my heels but no toes control. I have scaled the net for a board and the lib tech skate banana seems to be the stand out board. As its light, flexible, and supposed very easy to turn but a little unstable at extreme speeds. I really want to buy this board but its expensive and i want to make sure its money well spent as i intent to take up boarding at least twice a year. Can you advise?

Is it suitable?
Any other cheaper better options?
am I crazy and don’t really know what am talking about and need to research more?

Please help time is running out and i feel the later i leave it the more expensive it will be to make an informed decision and buy a suitable board?

(Sorry for hijacking your thread, but i thought it was the most suitable for asking this question)

Regards

Alex

Posted: 27 February 2010 06:50 PM

Hey Alex,

If you’re a beginner I’d probably stick to a board with a camber or zero camber profile; rockers are great but the can take away some of the stability. Nevertheless you could look at a hybrid rocker profile like Rossi’s Amptek.

With regards to the kind of deck you should be looking at; at your current level you need something that allows foot pedalling (movements of the toes up and down) through a slightly softer lateral flex and also allows you to flex the board longitudinally without having to shift your weight around too much. I would therefore look at an intermediate all-mountain board or a park specific deck:

The boards that really spring to mind are:

K2 Darkstar
K2 Believer
Burton Easy Livin’
Rossi Angus
Atomic Hatchett
Artec Gabe Taylor

If you want something a little cheaper then you can’t go wrong with the Option Logic.

Hope this helps, don’t hesitate to reply if you need more info.

Tom