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Arbor’s site says that this is a “big-mountain,
freeride-specific gun for riders who want more
on-edge performance. It’s designed to lock into and
hold a deeply carved line and provide tighter edge
control in the steeps. The A-Frame’s beefed up tail
creates a solid landing platform and adds power
edge-to-edge. A structural real-wood topsheet, made
with koa, maples and walnut, seals the deal”....
That is quite a lot to live up to but I think this
board does come close. Strip away the marketing hype
and what you’re left with is a high quality board
that is quick in a straight line and from edge to
edge, responsive in the trees and has a lovely old
school look to it. This is one of Arbor’s top range
models so the base and other construction materials
are as good as you’ll find on most other top level
general production boards. It is quite stiff, both
end to end and edge to edge with a moderate sidecut–
this enables the board to hold an edge in all but
the iciest or roughest conditions. It also means
that with the fast base it’s a great board to have
on open terrain. It is a very stable ride and pushes
through the rough very easily.
This is not a beginner’s board, nor is it a powder
board. It is a board that will let you ride a wide
range of conditions without compromise. It does do
well in the trees and it can handle powder but it
really comes into it’s own as the conditions firm up
and the gradient increases. The A-Frame is a high
end generalist so if you have only one board and
your time in the snow is spread between steeps,
powder, trees, groomers and the odd jump or two,
this board might be worth considering. Because it is
a little narrow think about buying a longer version
than you normally would. A 162 board is normally
long enough for me but with hindsight I think maybe
the 166 would give me that extra bit of float in the
powder.
The topsheet is what really sets this board apart.
It reminds me of a 1960’s Malibu surf board and is
distinctive enough to draw admiring comments from
other riders. The topsheet damages easily and even a
small amount of damage is very visible. It can be
fixed and Arbor provide help on how to repair damage
but the wood veneer topsheet is so thin it really
doesn’t take much for the damage to be beyond
repair. I’ve had two of these boards. The first
suffered terribly in some early season off piste
sessions at Hakuba that did a lot of damage to the
top (tore the top sheet in a couple of places) and
bottom of the board. I thought I was going to have
to live with a constant reminder of my errors of
judgement until the board started to ever so
slightly delaminate. At the end of the season Arbor
took back my abused and battered original and
replaced it with a pristine new one – it still looks
good after last season’s 16 days of trees and rope
ducking.
Arbor’s site has an owner’s forum which Arbor
monitor. From what I have seen, they seem to be
pretty responsive to consumer complaints.
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