All Mountain Intermediate Snowboard wanted

Posted: 30 September 2010 06:29 PM

Hello and thanks in advance for you help / advice,

I am 6’1” weigh about 95kg and have UK size 11 feet, I am currently on an old Solomon board from years back and have about 8 weeks on the snow. I spend most of my time on the pistes but love going for powder when I can, I am comfortable at speed, do a few small tricks, jumps etc but haven’t had a go in the parks as yet but definitely something I want to get into.

I have checked out some boards and the ones I like so far are:

Burton Custom Flying V
K2 Slayblade
K2 Turbo Dream
Ride Machete

I don’t mind spending a bit of money as long as I’m getting what I’m paying for, also don’t want to spend all my time on a new board on my arse.

Many Thanks,

Andy

Posted: 30 September 2010 11:51 PM

All great choices, but with size 11 (UK) feet, you are definitely going to need a wide board for cutting down heel and toe drag. Secondly, at 95Kg and 6’1” you are going to need a board in the 162+ area length wise. I’m just about to hit the hay, but I’ll post some boards to check out tomorrow.

Rich

Posted: 03 October 2010 11:16 PM

Thanks for that, ended up going for the 163 Slayblade wide. I’m thinking of pairing it up with Union Force SL Bindings, could you tell me if they’d be a good fit or if there would be any compatibility issues?

Again, many thanks in advance,

Andy

Posted: 03 October 2010 11:29 PM

No they should be fine… a very nice binding indeed. I’m not sure about the Union Force bindings, but some bindings can have quite narrow heelcups and baseplates as they’re designed to fit snuggly with a sibling brands boots (Although I’m pretty sure Union are independent). Just be prepared to sned them back if the fit with your boot isn’t good, as you’ll end up wearing your boots down… expensive.

Actually, have you thought about going for the standard Force binding? The baseplate is pretty similar material wise, as in it uses a reinforced dupont nylon, except the standard force hasn’t had holes cored into it to save weight. And the Highback has no carbon in it. So the Forces’s might be a little less responsive and a bit heavier, but they might be a bit less painful after a whole days riding and they’ll cost a bit less. The SL’s are the bomb, it’s just unless you’re hiking lots or boosting out of the pipe, the standard Force will do the job just as well.

Actually Tobi (Zoryfl) has the Force SL bindings so he can probably give you some great feedback on them.

Enjoy the slayblade, it’s a quality deck!

Rich

Posted: 05 October 2010 01:02 PM

Thanks again for that,

You’re probably right - I’m at the wrong end of my 30’s to start setting the World alight on the pipe - young children and broken bones is not a good mix! And comfort is a big consideration too these days, I’ll go with the standard force bindings and get to save £80 - all good.

I found I’d reached a bit of a plateau with the old setup, hopefully I’ll feel a noticable difference with the new kit and this should bring on my skills / confidence a bit, I’ve noticed over the last few years that Friends with newer and more high end gear always seem have a lot more fun with a lot less work.

Thanks and good work with the website - very informative and it has become my reference for the past few weeks.

Cheers,

Andy