A New Board for season 10/11?

Posted: 23 September 2010 06:21 PM

Hi
I Have been looking for board for a while now and it seem that there are too many to choose from.
I’ve been ride for 5 years and my last board was the Jeremy Jones Experience from Rossignol 158+,
now i’m looking for a softer and a lighter board for riding in the park but a board that still is fun to ride on the pist. I would say that i’m a advanced rider but my knowlegde on boards, bindings and boots is minimal.
My Weight is 180 lbs
    Height is 6’3” ft
    Shoe size is 10 US

I have come across some interesting boards like the Easy Livin’ and Love from Burton. I’m not quite sure about the flying v and how that handles, but looks interesting if it handles the same….
As you can see i’m very lost in the sea of snowboards and options, do you have any save bets that any rider would like to have.  Also what bindings and boots would you guys recommend?

Posted: 23 September 2010 08:09 PM

So you’re looking for a softer all mountain snowboard. How do you divide your time between different terrain. For example, I probably split my time between 33% park, 33% piste bashing and 33% freeriding.

Are you looking to develope any particular part of your riding? And where do you ride?

Posted: 24 September 2010 03:33 PM

iI’m gonna be riding 50-50 park and pist bashing, I don’t get a chance to freeride off pist that often but if the oppertunity comes i’ll just use my Jeremy Jones Board. I’m hoping to develop more in the park and need a board that is fun in the park and that i can goof around with in the pist.

Posted: 24 September 2010 10:15 PM

And yeah i’m from Iceland, I mostly ride there every chance I get and I go on a skiing trip to Norway every year.
So what do you reckon is the Easy Livin or Love a good option or is there anything better out there?

Posted: 24 September 2010 11:08 PM

Tom, our head of testing, just loved the K2 Believer which could maybe be a pretty good choice for you.
To quote from his review:

If you’re looking for a great board to jib the whole mountain and slay the park then the Believer really is one of those few boards that you won’t ever get bored or frustrated with. It floats surprisingly well in powder and carves nicely even on icy piste, these are two characteristics that many other park boards have to compromise. As with all K2 products it represents good value for money and will last you for at least 5 months of riding every day.

Go check the whole review out and let me know what you think!

Bindingwise: I really do have to write a binding-buying-guide to that..
To sum it up: There are a look of serious binding companies out there. For your kind of riding you should look out for an allmountain binding being not too stiff but even not a noodle!
Might want to have a look at the UNION Force or Raiden Blackhawk. Also try using the search function here at the forums so find some more posts where we already discussed that binding thing.

Concerning boots, luckily I’ve already written a guide :)
http://zoryfl.wmw.cc/wordpress/?p=1094

Cheers, Tobi

Posted: 25 September 2010 02:33 AM

Tobi is the man!

If Burton is your board of choice and you spend 50-50 park vs. piste I would say the Easy Living Flying V or the Hero would be good choices.  The Hero has dual pop in the nose and tail vs. the tail of the Easy Living, it’s also softer and has a continuous V-rocker.  The rockered boards are pretty unique and they have built a lot of support in them this season that they won’t feel has washy compared to previous season where the design wasn’t as supported.

To add one more board in K2, the Parkstar is a great piste / park player.  I have it and took it all over the resorts last season from black moguls to green rollers to the boxes and kickers, it is very playful thanks to the jib rocker profile and slightly softer flex.  Honestly I’m sure you’d have a blast with it as I have.

I will agree with Union bindings, super popular and very unique designs.  I also dig Ride bindings with the aluminum construction, I have a set of Ex’s on the Parkstar and they have a great response vs. support feeling for me.

Boots, I gotta say I like Burton…  expensive but they build good stuff.  A pair that I have my eye on is the Grail, freaking expensive but packing a lot of cool tech for a freestyle boot.

My two cents. :)

Posted: 27 September 2010 08:41 PM

Alright thanks a lot for the help, I’ll check these boards out as for brands I have only been on a rossignol board.  I am quite concerned about the rocker boards that they might be to soft would you go for the camber or the rocker boards? And do you not like burton bindings with the channel technology?

Posted: 27 September 2010 10:57 PM

Hey Maggi,
the good thing about rocker/camber hybrids like Rossi’s Amptek or (more or less) K2’s Zero Camber is that they do combine the strengths of both worlds without sacrificing too much of each one. They do provide the deck with a more playful feeling, float in pow,.. without loosing major grip/edgehold especially on harder snow.
Of course you are right, for only straightlining the hill, traditional camber is probably still unbeaten as edgehold and stability is everything that counts on that but as you said you are planning to go 50-50 piste and park, some insanely hard flexing plank is not what you want to get!
To sum it up: I wouldn’t be too concerned about them being too soft, just look out for a deck with a rather stiff flex pattern, if you want, and you won’t be thinking “omg it’s a noodle” just because it does have rocker on it.

Concerning Burton’s EST System: I mean the advantages are obvious but right now you have to spend quite some extra cash on getting a deck with EST and especially because not too many bindings are actually compatible with the EST system so you’re kind of restricted in your choice.

Posted: 27 September 2010 11:36 PM

I’ve been hearing that the Rossignol line this year are good. One of the S-R review team really like the 2011 JDUB Magtek. Rossi rates it 7/10 flex and has CamRock. So you might want to check that out :)

Posted: 28 September 2010 12:07 AM

Some people aren’t a fan of the channel system too because only two screws hold down the binding compared to the 4x4 pattern in standard boards.  I have not used the channel but in terms of adjustments they are second to none, you can pretty much come up with any stance option you’ve ever wanted.

I am right with Tobi, just because it is rockered doesn’t mean it’s a noodle.  Companies are still shoring up the design with carbon stringers to maintain pop and edge hold.

Posted: 28 September 2010 02:20 PM

Between the Love and Easy Livin I’d go for the Easy Livin Flying V… Nice graphic with Hunter S thompson (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) although the Love girls are nice. I think the Flex on the Easy Livin is a bit softer than the Love, probably better for piste bashing and pushing your park riding. The new Flying V profile is buttery and poppy… a nice combo!

A lot of people dislike ICS because it’s a way of Burton packaging their bindings and Boards together, i guess monopolising their customer base. I quite like it, the stance options are great and you get a touch more board feel… is it worth the extra money? Probably not, but it’s definitely not a bad feature.

Posted: 28 September 2010 06:15 PM

I think I’ll go for the Easy Livin’ Flying V, because I want a board that is pretty soft but I’m not quite sure about which size I should choose. I think the choice is between the 155 that are suited for 120-170 lbs. or the 158 that are suited for riders that weigh 130-180 lbs. Since I’m pretty tall 6’3” and light 180 lbs should I rather go for the 155 since I want a softer board and going to be more park and jib oriented than usually?

Posted: 28 September 2010 06:56 PM

No way! You need the 158! 6’3” riding a 155, that would be far too short. The Easy Livin is a freestyle board, but it’s not designed soley for jibbing so you wouldn’t want it too short. For an all-mountain board i would say you should ride a 162+.

Posted: 29 September 2010 03:29 AM

Listen to Rich, you’re way too tall for a 155 that you still want to shred around the resort with…

Posted: 30 September 2010 11:44 PM

Alright I’ll do that! Thanks a lot for the help wouldn’t been able to make up my mind without your help