Stepchild 2012 Snowboard Reviews

The Stepchild FTW is the direct replacement to the extremely popular Headless Horseman. Our tester Tom rode the HH in NZ’s icy terrain parks Tahoe’s bottomless powder, huge booters and monster superpipe for back to back seasons and was constantly raving about the lively flex, versatile shape and all out performance. As the board has changed very little other than the name and the graphic we thoroughly recommend the FTW to all-mountain freestylers from intermediate to pro.

Read full review of the Stepchild FTW 2012 Snowboard.

It’s the Jib Stick but slimmer and softer for smaller riders.

Read full review of the Stepchild Jib Stick Slim 2012 Snowboard.

There are two things that suck when you’re riding urban features (so I’m told). The first is catching an edge; you might have mastered sliding through steel rail kinks but when it comes to wood handrails or concrete ledges there’s a lot more risk. The second is cracking or ripping out an edge and ruining an expensive and perfectly good snowboard. Remove all of the edges and gone are the risks. The Street Recession is pretty much identical to the Forum Street Dweller of years ago and equally useless for anything other than sliding street furniture.

Read full review of the Stepchild Street Recession 2012 Snowboard.

The name probably gives the Stepchild Park Rat’s game away. It’s a park and urban snowboard with a soft flex and mellow sidecut designed for mini rippers.

Read full review of the Stepchild Park Rat 2012 Snowboard.

Almost two decades as a pro rider and still riding strong, we’re surprised JP hasn’t hung up his boots and bought a flat in a Malibu retirement complex. Only joking, JP is a legend of the sport and a true pioneer of the jibbing movement. Does anybody remember his section in Simple Pleasures? That last handrail was utterly unbelievable at the time. Anyway enough retrospect, JP’s pro model is very much in 2011. Its Zero Camber profile will provide pop for high and low speed tricks and maximise board/rail contact. The Kevlar reinforcement cancels out chatter for high speed stability and the Park Formula sidewalls should keep the edges crack free a little longer.

Read full review of the Stepchild JP Walker 2012 Snowboard.

Simon Chamberlain always hits the spot with his pro model graphics, this year the crow and dove (perhaps a metaphor for good and evil) is stunning. There are a couple of unique details to Simon’s board; the more elliptical tips are a nice change to the current blunted trend and the new Park Formula, Philan compound sidewalls mean this snowboard can take an urban beating.

Read full review of the Stepchild Simon Chamberlain 2012 Snowboard.

Whilst the majority of brands are dropping pro models, Stepchild in their typically defiant manner are championing their long serving team and keeping their well-deserved pro models. Joe Sexton’s pro model on Stepchild is the jibber and park riders dream snowboard, its low rocker profile, twin shape and slap bang in the middle flex make it a great do it all park snowboard that rider can happily size down a couple of cms with.

Read full review of the Stepchild Joe Sexton 2012 Snowboard.

Nearly everything about the Jib Stick is what you’d expect from aÖ erm jib stick. There’s a progressive rocker profile which increase with board length, there’s rubber dampening under the edges which incidentally are rounded between the bindings to minimise the risk of hook-ups. The Jibstick’s core places beech under the inserts and Armadillo glass fibre reinforcement to eliminate the risk of compression damage when you stomp those tricks. The only thing you won’t expect is the medium to firm flex of quadraxial glass, if you like soft jib-noodles this won’t be your cup of tea.

Read full review of the Stepchild Jib Stick 2012 Snowboard.

The Sleazy Rider is the only snowboard in the Stepchild range that could be considered truly all-mountain. With a directional twin shape and snappy camber profile the Sleazy will skip plough through chunder and float over powder,  the light biax glass is soft enough torsionally for the board to work on rails and the bamboo core provides that extra ‘je ne sais quoi’.

Read full review of the Stepchild Sleazy Rider 2012 Snowboard.

When powder sucks hell will freeze over. Until then if powder doesn’t get your engine revving and park riding does, the popular Stepchild Powder Sucks should be on your hit list. The 24 insert pattern means getting that Gangsta or super skinny stance is possible, there is also the option of a camber or rocker profile.

Read full review of the Stepchild Powder Sucks 2012 Snowboard.

The longest running board in the Stepchild line gets a special 10 year anniversary graphic for the 2011/12 season. Its twin shape, reverse camber profile, medium flex and lightweight “pre-cured” fibreglass make it a good choice for an all-around park riders who likes to get stuck-into a bit of powder every once in a while.

Read full review of the Stepchild Latchkey 2012 Snowboard.