ISPO Preview - 2011 YES. Nowboards

The 2009/10 season was a sensational year for the boys at YES. Dropped from the Burton International Team in 2008; with hard work, a great brand and backing from Europe’s most technologically advanced factory Nidecker; JP Solberg, Romain De Marchi and DCP have had quite a reversal of fortunes. 2011 sees YES expand their range from one board to five. Snowboard-Review managed a sneaky peek at their growing range at ISPO, Europe’s premier winter sports tradeshow.

1) The Basic. 2) The Typo. 3) The Dudes. 4) The Optimistic. 5) The Hand Sign.

The Hand Sign- Japanese uber pro Tadashi Fuse joined the YES crew in what can only be described as one of the most significant team moves of the season. Tadashi is the biggest thing since sliced sushi roll in Japan, so his move onto the YES team is a savvy move. Tadashi’s board uses a standard camber profile with triaxal glass, carbon reinforcement and an 8800 grade sintered base in a twin shape. Unique to Tadashi’s snowboard is a narrow waist and short lengths (as small as 139cm), perhaps an option for kids and women who want to get on a YES board?

The Dudes- The Dudes of History are here and you don’t need Bill & Ted to find them, they’re coming to a board shop near you. The Dudes is YES Nowboard’s premium ride, and with an 8.8k sintered base, triaxial glass with carbon reinforcement an asymmetric sidecut and Nideckers Camrock profile there’s no doubting that it’s spec’ed to the max.

The Basic- The YES boards were ridiculous value for money last season, but the chaps at YES wanted to make snowboarding even more affordable so everyone can get on the bandwagon. Twin shaped with triaxial glass and a 5000 grade sintered base, the Basic puts most other snowboard brands entry level boards to shame. With identical graphics to last year’s YES boards nobody will know you’re riding the entry level ride.

The Typo- The Typo is last years hit ride in a new skin. A smash on mountains all over the world, this YES board is a proven master class in snowboard design. Camrock combines the forgiving nature and added float of rockered tips and tails with camber between the bindings for great edge control in all types of snow conditions. The Typo is the board of choice for riders who want to ride every type of terrain on the mountain without breaking the bank.

The Optimistic- When the snow is super deep and the terrain is steep and burly, even the best riders on the planet retire their twin park boards and bring out the directional shapes. DCP takes out the Optimistic when the conditions and cliff drops dictate. A directional Camrock profile, carbon fibre reinforcement and super slippery 8.8k sintered base should have you flying down what others wouldn’t even think was ride-able. Whether the pencil shaded topsheet is to everybody’s taste remains to be seen.

Posted by Rich Ewbank in Features.

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