Burton Vapor - 2011
Like a military fighter plane, the Burton Vapor is designed for ‘seat of your pants’ speed, instant response and BIG air time. Not for beginners or intermediates, the Vapor is a snowboard designed specifically for aggressive pilots with lightening quick reactions and an addiction to icy pipe walls and freshly pisted groomers. Leave your friends in your Vapor trail.
Manufacturer's Description:
The dream machine.
Setting a standard the competition can’t even fathom, the Vapor™ is so polished and refined that riding it brings the best out of anyone who gets on it. Simply put, you dream it, this board does it. Featherweight for effortless flow and instant action, this year’s edition gets even lighter (and tighter) with the addition of the Slimrail, along with the high styling of Paul Smith. At the team’s request, we also evolved the shape for greater freestyle versatility no matter which way you point it.
Recommended for park riding.
Recommended for halfpipe riding.
Very high cost $
Camber Construction.
Directional Shape.
Year: 2011
Available Lengths (cm):
155, 157, 159, 162W
Riding Style: All Mountain
Specifications:
Vaportech™ Construction
The Channel ICS binding system
Camber profile
Directional shape with a twin flex
Alumafly™ Core with Multizone EGD™ and Negative Profile
Carbon Vaporskin™ with Carbon I-Beam™ reinforcement
Sintered WFO base
Stainless Frostbite Edges with Grip and Rip™ Tune
Slimrail sidewalls
New 155cm, Pro-Tip™, and Infinite Ride™
Feel: 6
Similar boards: K2 Zero - 2011 Amplid HiDef - 2011 Bataleon Enemy +++ - 2011
Snowboard Review:
From the second your fingers touch the topsheet of the Burton Vapor in the rack, it is immediately obvious that you are dealing with a serious piece of snowboarding hardware. The understated shiny black graphics, this year featuring styling by the UK’s very own Paul Smith, and the incredible lightness of this board, combined of course with the Vapor’s awesome reputation and eye-watering price tag, all point to the fact that this board is targeting a certain market. For the 15 year old jibber, this board isnt going to do it. Its stiff construction just doesn’t lend itself to presses and butters, and this piece of kit is far too pretty to even consider going near a rail with it. But what the Vapor does do, it does very, very, very well. Sliding away from the drag lift for the first time, I just could not believe the rigidity, both torsionally and longitudinally of this board, trying to press either end yielding nothing but aching muscles. Turn the Vapor’s nose to point downhill, however, and things start to happen. The amazing weight saving measures and super slick base mean this board accelerates very quickly and that rigid flex means the edges hold carves like the thing is on rails. I was honestly grinning from ear to ear as the super fast edge to edge changes fired me down the hill at mach 2. And the next place to take your Vapor ? It has to be the pipe : I cannot think of another board that I would rather have strapped to my feet when dropping into a superpipe; the Vapor is perfect, holding the edge all the way up the walls, floating through the air and helping you stomp solid landings every time. The Vapor isn’t for everyone, but for those riders not so interested in jibbing down the hill, but rather in high performance (and high speed) carving, backcountry powder runs or those looking to buy a specialized pipe board, the Vapor would make a very good investment.
Posted by Ben Molloy in • Burton
User Snowboard Reviews
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on January 04, 2011 at 04:26 PM
Yeah. I was skeptical when i saw the Method air. how much??? and the whole ‘Flying v’ business… really?
enter the vapor. 30% less. and still… well its not 4x lighter than my superModel (09) but damn. its still easily 1.5x lighter.
everyone is yakkin about the new flying v - im not sure i should be skeptical about spending a motza on a Method with its ‘aluminum core’ and wavy bottom… afterall, i own a macbook air.. thats aluminum too, and last time it bounced, it ended up looking like a rat bastard.. whats a 2000$ board gunna look like after Mont Fort’s back-country?
so well.. the Vapor has camber (pop and rigidity) AND a alum core.. hmm its light. thats damn tempting. and its a boat load cheaper than a method, so if the aluminum idea is gay, well at least i wont cry about coughing up a lung to pay for the method….
so i stumped up the CREDIT card ... threw my CFX (carbon 100%?) 1999 bindings on that bad boy and took off…
(yes, i had new ‘fifty-cent’(gangsta rubbish) uber great burton bindings on my SuperModel (09)... i ripped em off and went back to the lighest binding ive ever ridden on (my CFX) (tell me, am i wrong?) they just seem to be the best bindings ever for me)
162cm. i go to click in, the board is already racing away - damn, that base is SLICK.
hop on, its -5 to -10 Celsius - fresh snow a day or two ago so plenny of POW drifts plus corduroy groomed runs
in the am, my superModel was not so super. i was a vetran trailing my newer bud’s like a grommet going WHY O WHY WONT THIS PIG SLIDE?? (a nasty gash and a few days in the (whispers) rain a season or two ago…hmmm maybe i DESERVE to be forced to max out my plastic..)
so im sliding to speed now, the board is not squirley but damn, its light. its definitely rigid, its definitely light, its definitely strong enough to let me push it into some decent carves on the packed stuff - POW puffs coming up, no problem, woaw, effortless. sh1t. this thing…. im grinning..
now im doing alley oops, ollies-to-fakie -> stuff i just havent done easily on the superModel .. with this board woaw. Ive barely taken this board down the mountain and already im looking at the possibilities..
i cant wait to ride again- again.