stepping up to a freeride board for the new season

Posted: 23 October 2010 09:01 PM

Hi there,

I cam across your site a while ago, and have found myself coming back more and more as I look for good advice on boards and boarding in general - great site!

I am looking to step things up to a freeride board this season for the first time, and need a little help with my board selection.

I am 5’ 11” and about 185lbs, with size 10 boots. I currently ride a Rome Agent 156 which has been a great board for the last 3 or so seasons and has really helped me progress - But the longer I have ridden and the better I have got the more I have gravitated towards freeride style riding and away from the park riding. I have found that the Agent, whilst still a great board, cant handle the speed I want to ride at, and gives me major rear leg burn in the pow.

I am looking to get into the backcountry a lot more this season and get a good amount of days in out there. Having said that the majority of my riding will probably be split between charging down the piste and hitting the sidecountry in search of powder, natural drops/kickers and tree lines. So I need a board that is gonna be able to rip fast and controlled on the piste and still be great in powder… I have looked at a load of boards and have narrowed it down a bit, but have a few queries over each one. Hopefully you will be able to help me out, or offer further suggestions, the boards I have been looking at so far are:

Jones Flagship 161
pros: great reviews, like the sound of the camrock tech, looks great
cons: will it be too stiff? how does it handle on piste? is it too far set back for me?

Atomic Alibi Renu 159
pros: great reviews
cons: hat is the rocker/camber tech on this board? 159 may be a tad on the short side?

Burton T7 162
pros: great reviews, regular camber, lightweight
cons: I think it will be too stiff for me? was always a bit intimidated by the sound of the T6, is the T7 any softer?

Neversummer Raptor, Heritage, Premier F1
pros: great reviews - everyone raves about NS camber/rocker tech
cons: so far havent been a fan of rockered board I have ridden, so not sure I like the sound of the rocker camber combo on the NS decks - being essentially the exact opposite of the camrock tech, which I can get my head around a lot easier. also not sure what size to get.

Amplid Creamer, Paradigma
pros/cons: to be honest I know very little about this company, but have seen a few good reviews on these two decks.

So thats what I have come up with so far, do these sound like good choices? Any other suggestions? Hopefully you will be able to help me clarify some of the queries I have over the various boards…

thanks a lot!

Posted: 24 October 2010 11:34 AM

Hi powdog, thanks for the props on the site, much appreciated!

First of all, I’m not sure I can help you at all.. the list of decks you put together just includes some of the most capable (big-)mountain/freeride decks available on the market!
Some minor things to maybe help you with your decision:
The Jones has got Magnetraction which provides the deck with better edgehold especially on icy pistes. It’s something like a “love or hate” thing but our head-staff here, impersonated by Rich and Tom, seem to love the tech!

The NS Raptor.. not much to say about it, you’ve read the review! I’d probably go with the 164, but you might want to try to get your hands on a 169 at a test to check out how it feels riding such a long deck!

Amplid is a smaller brand from Austria, founded and still lead by snowboard legend Peter Bauer. Their boards are all built in Austria in the Elan factory which is one of the the most experienced factories in whole Europe. You’ll get the highest quality when buying an Amplid ride. Additionally the guys at Amplid are super friendly and will help you out with any question you got! I think for you,  the Creamer would be the best choice out of the Amplid range.

Let me know what you think, Tobi

Posted: 24 October 2010 07:54 PM

Hi Zoryfl,

thanks for getting back to me. I think I will be able to make a better decision once I get to actually see/hold some of these decks in person, especially the jones so I can get a look at just how far the set back is.

I was a bit put off by the magnetraction at first, but I heard that the jones has a much more subtle mag tech than many other boards on the market - which i thought would be a better way to go.

I think I have ruled out the NS unless I can find a demo… I am just too scared of not liking its crazy rocker tech, lol! Also, probably ruled out the Alibi as I think I would like a little longer than 159.

I have a few more specific questions if you don’t mind:

- how does the jones handle on piste/groomers? where would you rate this boards stiffness?

- is the T7 much stiffer than the custom X? do you know how it rides in pow?

- Do you know how the creamer rides? what is the camber/rocker tech?

thanks again for your help - I am probably thinking about this way too much, and would probably be happy camper with any of these boards, but i guess thats what happens when you wait around for snow for too many months :D

Posted: 24 October 2010 10:31 PM

THere’s always a danger of over thinking about a purchase. Once you know the details of the boards and understand the features it’s best to just go with your gut instinct unless of course you get a chance to test them.

For your height and weight I would say you should go for the 164 Jones Flagship. The profile is camber between the feet and then rocker at the tips and tail. Because the nose and tail are lifted the board feels like it has a reaaly sort running length so it’s really reasy to initiate turns. When the whole board is engaged into the turn it goes back to having a long effective edge for plenty of grip. The Jones isn’t crazy stiff and the early rise tips certaily help to make it easy to ride. This kind of freeride snowboard has little resembelance to the stiff fully cambered boards that used to be the only option 5 or so years ago.

The Never Summer design is quite different but effectively does a similar job. The majority of the profile is rockered so there’s some extra float and the start of the effective edge is lifted so the board roles into turns, but then you have the camber at the tips for some extra pop. Is it better than early rise camber? It’s just different, but feels more lively in shorter carves.

Tom tells me the T7 is easier to ride than the T6. It’s a great board for gunning pistes, flying off big jumps and riding big pipe transitions. He said it works off piste but it’s not designed specifically for backcountry. I beleive it is a little firmer flexing than the Custom X. Watch Tom’s vide on it, he does a little backside 180 right at the end, you can see how unforgiving it is.

Finally, the Creamer uses a standard radial rocker. These boards work great in the deep stuff on big wide open faces. Seemless transition between edges, more float than a lilo and no worries of going over the handlebars. If you want an easy-rider it’s all about the creamer.

Posted: 25 October 2010 12:04 AM

Hi Rich,

thanks so much for all the information. That really helped to answer some of my questions - I think I will take your advice and go for the Jones Flagship, as it is what I have been leaning towards up until now anyway… like you say, I have been over thinking things somewhat. I was between the flagship and the creamer, but with the amplid boards seemingly hard to find out in BC it makes deciding a little easier.

thanks again for your help - i will let you know what i get and how it rides… now we just need mother nature to bring on the snow!

Posted: 25 October 2010 12:30 AM

Great board! Always best to go with your gut feeling. Although I’m glad you considred AMplid, those guys make some fantastic product and they’re an absolute pleasure to deal with.

Regarding the snow. You just said you live in BC… didn’t Whistler get 10m of snow in November last year? Surely snow is the least of your problems!

Enjoy, and thanks for using the site!

Posted: 26 October 2010 12:51 AM

Haha, yeah it looks like its gonna be a good ‘un, whistler getting a good layer of snow already… long may it continue…

I had also bee recommended the salomon answer and K2 slayblade - but figure that the would both not be as good in the powder… since i still havent bought anything yet and you guys seem pretty knowledgeable, I may as well throw those out there for your opinions

cheers guys