New freestyle board - help please!

Posted: 01 May 2010 09:35 AM

Hi Guys, great site, sorry to have been hiding as a guest for so long!

I’m 168, 65kg, Womens UK8 (in Salomon F20s) and I currently ride an Endeavor Colour 148 (bought in a rush of blood after my first week).

Now I love the board, took it out to Meribel over Easter and had an awesome time with it, for me it’s great for just bimbling around on the mountain not doing too much (bit of pow, the odd little jumps here and there).

However, since getting back I’ve been going up to Hemel for their freestyle sessions and I’m lovin’ it! Rails are what I’m mainly doing but working up to spins off kickers at the moment as well.

What I’m after is a board that’s got more flex and that I can get some more pop out of than my current board. Obviously buying a mens board to start with wasn’t ideal, but whilst its great on the flat, I’m just not strong enough to get any real flex out of it when sliding down rails, fine doing 50-50s but as soon as I try boardslides on anything other than a box I’m just wiping out :-(

Anyway, 2 I was looking at were the Ride Compact and Burton’s Lipstick, but if you’ve got any ideas on others (or feel free to rubbish them!) I’d be well chuffed.

Cheers, Hazelle

Posted: 01 May 2010 01:46 PM

Actually, just realised that I wouldn’t be able to do the lipstick without getting new bindings.

grr…damn you Burton!

Posted: 01 May 2010 02:39 PM

Hey there Haz, glad you like the site, thanks for the props!

Did you read the ISPO Preview YES article on our site?
The new team-member of the YES crew, Tadashi Fuse, will have his own YES deck next season!
I don’t know the exact stats but as he is a pretty small chap and in case you could wait until next season, this might turn out to be a great thing!

I am not too much into the female board section but I remember I suggested some thread we discussed about these before:
http://www.snowboard-review.com/forums/viewthread/128/

Maybe you can find some inspiration there :)

Cheers, Tobi

Posted: 01 May 2010 03:11 PM

That Amplid looks awesome I must say, whether I can find one I don’t know. Cheers for the heads up about the Yes ‘hand sign’. Looks good on top, I’ll do a bit more research into it and see if I can wait that long!

On the size front, I’m on a 148 at the moment, best to go 152 or 147 for the Amplid do you think?

Cheers for the help

Posted: 02 May 2010 12:25 AM

Hello again,

I’m riding an Amplid board myself (Paradigma) and I have to say I’m pretty stoked!

I think for you, the Mescalina would be okay in 147. It will be a bit softer than the 152 but as you are intending to mainly rip the rails with the deck, the shorter length fits. With your 65kg you will be heavy enough to flex the 152 as well, though. (just don’t get me wrong on that, okay? =D) So if you want a slightly more stable but also slightly stiffer ride, go with the 152.

Might want to wait for what Rich has got to say to that whole thing :)

Always glad being able to help a bit!
Tobi

Posted: 02 May 2010 04:57 PM

Haha, no offence taken!

I shall wait for a few words of wisdom from Rich then.

Cheers for the help Tobi, much appreciated

Posted: 03 May 2010 07:02 AM

I really like Roxy boards for chicks, they are packed with awesome features and cost a lot less then the Gnu and Lib Tech boards that sport the same stuff for us dudes.

Other then that I can’t add much but welcome to the board! :)

Posted: 09 May 2010 12:47 PM

Hi Haz,

Sorry for the late reply, I’ve been in Austria for the last week testing next years boards and having a nightmare with trans european postal services… long story.

So you have an Endeavor Colour and you’re looking for a board that is even more rails specific and that has slightly more pop. Now if I were you, i’d look at a board with rocker. Having just spent 6 days riding every possible rocker variation going, For rails and jibs I’m blown away by K2’s jib rocker profile and in particular K2’s Fastplant… which is next years Park destroyer. It has a bamboo core which is laminated, with 3 layers one on top of the other, like maple in a skateboard deck. This board has it all, high and low speed pop, stability at speed, it’s easy to press and jib with and you can even land heavily on the tail off big jumps without it folding up… amazing board.

Other boards that would rock your world in Hemel, would be the Forum Scallywag, Endeavor Colour RC (the rocker version), the Arbor Draft (next years is crazy soft and has much better graphics) and the Ride Crush.

Boots wise, I’m yet to get any heel lift with Vans, they have a lot cushier fit and tons more padding and support around the ankle than competitors. If you get a chance try a pair on. If your toes are slightly touching the end, that’s a good fit, they’ll pack-out and be a perfect fit.

Rich

Posted: 10 May 2010 08:47 PM

No worries on the delay Rich, any help always welcome. Glad to hear you’re working hard on our behalf - though I’m very jealous you get those opportunities!

Anyway, reckon my fav’s so far are the Amplid Mescalina, Ride Crush, Yes HandSign and the K2 FastPlant. Reckon if I can find the Amplid or Ride at a good price in the sales that’ll do the job, otherwise I will wait and see between the K2 and the Yes in the Autumn.

Either way it’s great to get the advice of you guys who know your stuff, and aren’t just trying to sell us boards that are in stock which I’m sure has at least a little bit of an impact on some salesmen’s advice.