Rome Notch Vs Rossi Experience?

Posted: 05 April 2010 03:27 AM

I’m looking for a powder board. Currently I see a good deal on each of these boards; the Rossi is about $50 more, however (275 vs 330). The Notch is in a 158, and the shortest Rossi I can find is a 163—a bit long for me. (I once had a 164 Prior 4x4 and found it ungainly.)

I already have a Rossi One Mag 159 and love it. I haven’t yet taken it on powder, though—and I’m thinking that now’s a good time to buy a pow board on sale for future trips to CO.

Tom’s review of the Experience has me really leaning toward it:
http://www.snowboard-review.com/forums/viewthread/110/

And yet the specs on it make it seem like not really a dedicated pow board. Plus it’s kinda long for me—maybe. (On steep, long, powdery slopes out west, it might be OK.)

Hell, maybe I don’t even need a dedicated pow board. The One Mag might be just fine.

Anyone have any thoughts?

Thanks!

Posted: 05 April 2010 05:11 PM

Personally I’m massively into longer boards, the extra float and stability you get is definitely worth the investment. I’ll just list the plus points of each board and then you’ll be able to make a decision.

Rome Notch: The Notch has a tapered shape, there’s nothing like a tapered shape in fresh snow, I’ve ridden the Rossi Twilight and Atomic Banger and they’re unbelievably fast edge to edge which gives them a really surfy feel. The stances are set back which means the tail is short and narrow making tapered boards really slashy and agile. My Twilight is a 164, but the Atomic I rode was a 157 and actually felt really stable even straight lining late afternoon powder chop. I’d shoose the Notch if you’re riding mainly treelined bowls in deep snow, where you’re dancing between edges and laying down big ol’ slashes.

Rossignol Experiance: Although the Experience is a 163 it will feel agile because of the amptek profile which means you dont have camber working against you through the whole length of the board. The rockered tip and tail will provide plenty float and make the Experiecne a little bit more agile. As you’re used to Mag edges now, you’ll definitely appreciate the Mag edges on the Experience. Tom’s managed to keep hold of the Experience he borrow and he’s riding it whenever the snow falls in Verbier, he’s been really suprised about how much fun it is to ride and how capable it is in all conditions… you only have to watch Xavier De Le Rue’s line at the Verbier Extreme this year to see what the Experince can do. THis board is more of a hard charger for blasting snow in all conditions and dropping monster drops.

Posted: 05 April 2010 06:12 PM

Rich, thanks for the quick reply! That really helps.

For me, the most pow I’ll ever see is if I get to go to Park City again. Or maybe Vail someday. Alas, snowboarding in Europe is only a dream for now.

From what you’ve said, I think I’m leaning more toward the Notch; we have some crowded runs over here (especially in the Northeast), and I need to be sure I can slalom around the legions of snowplowing children, clueless noobs, etc.

Could I ask your thoughts on the Atomic Banger? I’d always thought it was more of a freeride board than a pow-specific board.

Thanks again.

Posted: 05 April 2010 06:33 PM

Sure. I spent a day riding next years Banger in Zauchansee Austria, just around the corner from the Atomic factory. I got hooked up with 4 of next years boards by head of R&D Manuel… riding next years boards in the place where they make them practically makes you a celebrity! I got stopped tons of times!

I have to say, I was pretty blown away by the Banger.. got a full review coming early next season, but for now I’ll keep it brief. The Banger is a great general all purpose freeride board, but it’s really astonishing in the pow. Atomic have given the Banger Quadraxial glass, so you’d think it would be really stiff, but they’ve kept the core profile really thin, so you get a board with a snappy medium flex that has fantastic torsional stiffness, so you get tons of acceleration out of hard slashes, and it’s really light too. They’ve also used pop-rocker on the nose which means when you load your weight on the board the nose lifts from about 6 inches back from the traditional board nose transition. The use of pop rocker means the Banger just dives into pow turns without a worry of going over the handlebars and then the lively tail just pops you out…pretty fun. The profile also gives loads of float in pow even on a 157 but because they’ve put honeycomb in the nose it’s effortless in really tight turns and is great when you’re popping off pillows and diving between trees. The only downside is that there is a little bit of chatter in the nose when you’re charging on hard pistes but it doesn’t make the board unstable and as soon as you’re in sonw deepr than a couple of inches, it ceases. Oh and the base is sooooo fast. Basically I don’t think there is a better powder board for the money… and it’s great for charging around the whole hill, but I wouldn’t suggest riding it switch… next years version has a slightly seethrough base at the nose so you can see light through the honeycomb… looks crazy good.

Posted: 05 April 2010 06:45 PM

Wow—sounds great! Thanks for that very helpful info. Great blog, btw.

I’d most likely not be taking the Banger on hard pistes, since I have the One Mag for that. This would be for those handful of days when it’s up to my knees—like the one day I had out in Park City. Or going off the Continental Divide at Loveland (basically a big bowl with some rock outcroppings at the bottom).

So now I have a really tough decision: a Banger on sale for $280, or a Notch on sale for $275? They sound so similar—fantastic pow boards. I doubt either would be a bad choice. I wonder which will be more durable.

Any concerns re. the honeycomb in the nose? I’d heard some horror stories about people bending the nose of the Burton T6 after taking a dirve nosefirst.

Posted: 05 April 2010 06:56 PM

Yeah very similar boards, especially if you get the Notch with S-Camber. It’s a difficult choice.. the boards even look the same! I guess the honeycomb could be a point of weekness if you think you’re going to be smashing it into roots and rocks, but from my experiences Atomic decks are super durable.

Choices… choices! You’ll be fine with both.. I’ve only ridden the Atomic and it ripped, but they’re very similar. Good luck!

Posted: 05 April 2010 08:48 PM

Thanks again, Rich!

BTW, I just pulled the trigger on the Notch 158—for $200 shipped at Sierra Snowboard. What a steal! I’ll review it next winter.

Posted: 05 April 2010 10:02 PM

No Probs. $200 is an absolutely ridiculous price! THey’re litteraly paying you to take that board… most shops wouldn’t be able to buy the Notch in for that price. Looking forward to reading your review.. until then enjoy the summer.