Board Recommendations?

Posted: 04 March 2010 06:45 PM

Phenomenal site.  What a wealth of information.

I am in the market for a new board.  I have been riding for close to 10 years now.  I would describe myself as an intermediate/advanced freerider.  I love to carve groomers, surf powder and ride fast.  At my advance age (44), I don’t hit the park at all.

My current board is a Never Summer Premier 159.  I have had it for about 6 years now.  It has served me very well.  Love the dampness and stability.  However, the thing is a tank (heavy) and I really have to weigh the back foot to get it to float well in powder.  I am 6’-0”, weigh 180.  Current boots and bindings: Salomon Dialogues (11.5) and Drake F-60’s.

I am a little hesitant to stray away from the Never Summer line due to their quality, but I am open to all suggestions.  I live in CA and ride Tahoe and Mount Shasta.

Some of the boards that interest me include:

Atomic Banger
Head Intelligence AK
Flow Solitude
GNU Billy Goat
New Never Summer Premier F1

Thanks.

Posted: 04 March 2010 07:20 PM

Hey Baddmaddy,

Thanks for the compliment; when people tell us how useful the site is it really makes all the hours spent collating and uploading this info worthwhile.

Anyway, if you’re looking for a board that will plough through Tahoe powder effortlessly, is light, damp underfoot, stable and carves like a demon I’d look at the following boards as well as your selection:

Rossignol Experience - Probably the best freeride board I’ve ever ridden. This board was developed by Jeremy Jones and Xavier De Le Rue who are probably the best freeriders in the world and like yourself stay clear of the park. Firstly, the build quality is first class; it’s light; carves beautifully thanks to it’s large sidecut and magnetraction edges; it’s damp underfoot but very responsive;has a progressive longitudinal flex meaning the nose is softer than the tail so float isn’t compromised but landings from drops are solid . Also, the Experience has a rockered nose and tapered tail meaning that it will float on even the shallowest gradients. This is a board that you can depend on even the most exposed faces, I genuinely believe it is the best freeride board available.

Prior Khyber - Prior are one of the most renowned manufacturers for making freeride decks and the Khyber is the result of years of R&D and shape testing. The Khyber was designed with the Whistler backcountry in mind; a tapered shape for easy float and agility in deep snow, a directional freeride shape and a good amount of dampening under foot for variable conditions. If you’re looking for a board that loves tight tree runs, deep snow but can still deal with the rest of the hill then the Khyber is worth a look.

Arbor A Frame - Rich took this out for a cruise and thought it was a freeriding animal…...have a look at the full review on the site.

Hope I’m not adding to the confusion. If you want a board that will do everything you mentioned, and do it very well I’d seriously consider the Rossignol…....it’s also an absolute bargain for the amount of technology and R&D that went into making it.

Tom

Posted: 04 March 2010 07:32 PM

Wow, thanks for the quick reply.  The Rossignol Experience looks like a winner.  Magnetraction definitely has an appeal to me for that early morning hardpack/ice.

There are some great deals on that board now.  Do you think the 163 with a waist width of 25.2 work with my size boots.  I ride binding angles of +18 / +3.

Could you also describe the similarities/differences between the Rossignol Experience with the Rossignol Mag One.

Thanks again.

Posted: 18 March 2010 01:48 AM

Hey Badmaddy,

Sorry about the long wait but I’ve been super busy over the past week….....long story.

Anyway, a waist of 25.2 should be ok as long as you change your back binging angle, which you should really do anyway. Biomechanics show that knees flex better if the feet are in more of a duck position…..you’ll also have better balance and control of longitudinal body movements along the board. I’d try +18 and -12 if I was you…....

So, the differences between the One Mag and Experience:

1) The One Mag has the shape of an all-mountain board and the Experience has the shape of a freeride specific deck.

2) The One Mag feels stiffer in the tail and nose.

3) The Experience is rockered in the nose and has a slight taper in the tail so that it floats better in powder.

4) The Experience is an exceptional freeride board that is unbelievable when carving down the piste too…....but it hasn’t been designed for hitting rails or kickers in the park.

5) The One Mag carves like a demon…....but the Experience carves far better.

6) Both will tire you out because they’re quite stiff and powerful, but I felt the Experience was more forgiving.

7) The Experience is the best freeride board ever built, in my opinion, and the One Mag is a good but very stiff all-mountain board…......it isn’t as exceptional as the Experience.

8) I felt the Experience was more stable at high speed due to the added length…...and slightly more forgiving flex.

9) The Experience has much more of a set-back stance…....when you ride it the nose is significantly longer then the tail.

I just spent a whole week riding the Experience off-piste during an off-piste guide/instructor course and didn’t fall over once…...it’s unbelievable!

Tom