Help finding a first board?

Posted: 20 June 2011 06:47 AM

So I haven’t been into snowboarding very long, got in on it January 2011 and totally loved it! Rented a board and boots, popped up, came back, and craved more.  I’ve been surfing the web all day, popping in and out of places like REI (checked out their helpdesk), Ebay (trying to find deals), and Craigslist (more deals). 
I have a good $490 to get myself outfitted with a good kit that’s easy to learn and progress on.

I’m a girl, barely 5 foot 4, around 140 lbs, and am an 8.5 in Airwalk sizes (or 8 wide), and from the day’s research have decided I’m supposed to be aiming for a board that is directional twin, all mountain, has a narrow waist and low side cut, and soft flex. Somewhere between the lengths of 146-149.
I fiddled around with the Board Selecta and came up with two different boards, the 2011 Forum Aura and the 2011 Salomon Lotus, and I found an Atomic Fallen Angel on Ebay.

If anyone could help steer me in any particular direction or hook me up with a Boots-Binding-Board kit, I would be very grateful.

Posted: 20 June 2011 09:41 AM

Hi Miss-Oxis,

You’ve done some thorough research… you’ve hit your requirements on the head and the Salomon Lotus, Forum Aura and Atomic Fallen Angel would be ideal boards for you. I think you’d probably find that the Forum Star, Salomon Radient and Nitro Fate (2011) also fit what you need. THere is a Forum Star on Evo with 25% off. Most of the sale boards fly out of the shops at the end of March / beginning of April but there are still some bargins to be had. Feel free to pop back and ask questions on any boards you find and aren’t sure about.

Rich

Posted: 21 June 2011 07:25 AM

Hey thanks Rich, great to know I’ve been looking for what I should be looking for. :D
So I’ve found a Salomon Radiant, Forum Star, Forum Ultra, and a Nitro Fate.
I have a lingering concern of the Radiant, which is advertised on the House Boardshop; famous for negative reviews on shipping, accuracy and customer service.  Any experience with them?
Another question is about the Nitro Fate . It seems to be a 2009 or ‘10 model, is there any difference between the most recent one and slightly older ones? I mean, aside from graphics.
Thanks again!

Posted: 21 June 2011 08:37 AM

No I’m afraid I have no experience with US retailers, I’m British and live in Austria, importing stuff from the US usualy results in a substantial import tax bill. I did it once wih a pair of snowboard pants and they ended up costing me about 20% more than the UK rrp.

I did see the Nitro Fate on Backcountry.com. The reason I didn’t pick it out was because the 09/10 Fate was cambered where as the 10/11 Fate was zero camber. Most snowboarders learnt on camber but zero camber and rocker do make pickng up the basics and progressing to an intermediate level a bit easier. I’d probably look for a board with either a zero camber or reverse camber and give that Fate a miss. I’m sure it’d do the job nicely but wih all the choice out there you can nail a perfect board.

Posted: 21 June 2011 08:54 PM

Ah ohwell.  Better to buy in-country then, it seems.

Day 3 has me with the 2011 Salomon Lily (148), Lotus(146), and a K2 Moment(146).  The Lotus is really appealing to me, it seems like a nice, basic beginner board with flat camber, plus it’s not hard on the wallet. Lily seems like the next step up, but just one step.  It’s more expensive and can do more on more terrain, but I’m not sure about it because it seems more like a board for doing tricks, not coasting around groomers getting your snow legs. (Also the only sintered board out of the three) Finally, the K2.  It’s rockered, so that would be a major plus in turning, and fully twin-sided, which I’m told gives you the same experience going forward or backward, no matter how you land.

Out of the three, which would you say fits my needs the best?

Posted: 23 June 2011 08:48 AM

I’d probably go for the Lotus. The thing about snowboarding is that buying boards is a little addictive. It’s probably best to pick-up a board that’s going to help you progress really quickly, then in a season or two when your riding level has improved and you know what type of terrain you like riding and the board flex that you get along best with, you can upgrade. So yeah I’d pick up the lotus, save some dollar and enjoy learning on a board that’s designed for it.