Ippy's Snowboard Buying Guide 2.0

[ippy 66]

to save me posting another massive text ill bullet point my answers this time

 

- I think its fair for me to claim authorship. If only because its got my name in the title.

 

- The me that started off writing the guide with tentative opinions and unsure of his right to even embark on this ridiculous project is still laughing at how bad a snowboarder he is in real life. So dont worry, hes definitely grounded. As nietzsche said: the belly is the reason man does not take himself for a god.

 

- So dont worry dude, i laugh at my own ridiculousness too! and not just about snowboarding. I just quoted nietzshe for heavens sake! it doenst get more over the top than that

 

- But fairplay, i do know a crap load more about this than i did three months ago. It doesnt make me an expert but it does mean my opinions are going to be stronger and more concrete (and maybe even a little unique) given that theyve been formulated in conversations with far wiser and smarter people than me not only on here, but also on trusnow/sierra. Ps, you dont have to acknowledge this, it simply stands to reason

 

- I think the guide is balanced fairly. I think it has legitimacy and i think claiming it is just repeating stuff everyone already knows is a bit mean, firstly since in a fit of arrogance i would have LOVED this guide to be in existence a year ago. But secondly, you maybe misunderstands that its probably not actually aimed at you If you can take stuff from it, im stoked and happy that an abstract write up bereft of genuine earned experience helped deepen your understanding about something regardless of how ridiculous that sounds, but you arent really the target audience as im sure you are aware.

 

- I wrote it because i was myself completely bewildered when i came to buy a new snowboard October last year. It was, frankly, a pain in the ass. I then spent a year explicating that frustration and trying to consolidate everything I learned so i could pass that information on to people who were at that same spot i was and not have to wade through the same vague airy abstract meaningless crap i had to wade through

 

- Everyone on the ladder has something to contribute. My time at sierra taught me that theres always someone newer than you are at this game who you can help. Even if its really obvious to you personally (and youre not the only person to tell me that by the way ), think about ipps one year ago thinking "so er, i have to have BTX right? i mean why wouldnt i want it? it makes things 'playful and forgiving' gives me float and powder, and the mtx makes it stable! i can even size down!!! why would i even want anything else?"

 

- or better yet, the ipps 6 or so months before that and having his mind BLOWN by meeting a guy in hakuba talking about this brand new "banana" technology and showing me this rad board with this wavy sidecut which no one else had because it was so limited and soooo rare!!!!!! (i discovered reverse camber).

 

- or the ipps a couple of months before that watching some dude give lessons at myoko and wondering how these dudes were pulling off their presses with ease whilst i was sitting on my freeride barely able to lift my deck a couple of inches above the snow. I think that was the day i realised those bas%**ds were cheating! (ie. i discovered the advantages of a soft flex whilst sitting on a very not soft deck ).

 

- or the ipps who came on thsi very site and said: "hey dudes im going into my season and i want a freeride before because i dont like park, i went to this shop in nagano and they have an artec 2.3 or a burton blunt. Which board will let me progress into backcountry" (i remember someone saying get the artec, but dont you dare go into the backcountry at yoru level, youll just end up getting you or someone else killed).

 

- or how about the ipps the season before who went to hardoff and on the meagre advice i managed to find on the net at the time hand-flexxed a board and measured it up to my chin to decide if it was right for me. It was, by the way It was a 160 with a soft flex and was about 8 years old. I doubt i could have gotten a better recommendation for my first year if i read this entire guide 1000 times (i discovered size and weight (and price )

 

- Or better yet, the ipps just under 4 years ago who turned up at yeti (yes kids, that was my first day on a snowboard), all alone and with no idea how to stop on a snowboard and tried riding one run before going to the dudes in the rental place asking if they could switch the bindings to goofy. I mean what the hell difference would it make? I was literally falling on my ass regardless of what foot went first. I only knew i was goofy because i skated (badly) with a guy who was good who told me i was goofy. (i discovered snowboarding).

 

- The point of all of that is to say just because i learned stuff doesnt mean ive lost sight of the fact that i thought i knew stuff then and didnt But it also means i have in fact learned more stuff than i did then too.

 

- As Mike Muir once said (and ive kept with me to this day because im "suicidal for life!"), "when i was 16 i looked back to when i was 14 and thought, 'man, i was really **** up then! im glad im okay now!' and whan i was 20 i looked back to when i was 16 and thought 'man, i was really **** up then! but im glad im okay now!" And when i was..."

 

- Because mike muir is a legend of EVERYTHING thats wise and true in this world i live by his code! Which means dont worry dude! I might know more, but this dude is always keeping me self aware

 

- But obviously not self aware enough to not write and submit an over the top post thats all about how ironic, rad and self aware i am even if ive already explained the ridiculous is the basis of my sense of humour

 

- A note from my sponsors:

 

 

Love and peace dude, youve been awesome througout the formulation of the guide!

 

[ippy 66]

Ps. A bottle of wine.

 

oooh, the capita thing was pretty much because if theres three brands i know inside out its bataleon, neversummer, and capita. Bataleon and neversummer are RIDICULOUSLY expensive, where as capita is nice and cheap. Its also because theres a dude called spenser who i literally trust on EVERYTHING. He is the tech nerd to end all tech nerds he cant write all that well, but the guy knows everything about snowboarding there is to know, and whats more, he's happy explaining the same thing a thousand times or answering the most banal easy question with long detailed explanations.

 

Anyway, this dude loves capita like you wouldnt believe. The charlie is because of his influence id say, at a time when the 399 jones jovercraft didnt exist, he made a strong case for it vis a vis the malolo.

 

He really really loves C3 stuff for its value for money. And having to import from the US Capita is automatically a great option compared to a lot of other brands.

 

The quiver killer on the other hand is because i wanted a deck that would rock the pipe and the niseko pow because i felt my sierrascope last year was too lose and really required some serious fiesty riding to get some decent turns out of it. I was recommended the food court gangsta for my ridiculously contradictory demands (powder and pipe - im sure you know why they dont match well). I would have bought it too, but i found the quiver killer (its 2010 replacement - though same deck) for dirt cheap on ebay around april last year so naturally grabbed it!

 

I almost sold it too just last week, but re-reading all those reviews reminded me why i need to give that deck a fair crack at it. It honestly sounds amazingly good, extruded base or non extruded base

 

The sierrascope on the other hand was because i got my initial board choices (which i complained about in the post above as being the source for this guide) down to three - indoor FK, 2009 evo-r, and some gnu deck - maybe the pickle, i forget. All reverse camber because i was really jealous about dudes pressing the crap out of their decks while i was sliding on my ass on boxes and failing to lift the deck off the snow without serious thigh strain! (see above).

 

The 2009 evo r was top choice, but impossible to find, and so it became the indoor fk. I dunno why, but i ended up on sierra, found out about the sierrascope (one of my doubts about the indoor of 2010 was it was TOO steezy and so a real target fior theft) and got one for $299 which i thought was ridiculously cheap.

 

So thats why! But screw those guys now. Theyre joining the ranks of burton, lib, and k2 and oakley by restricting exports internationally! So yeah for it! TBT for this year (well, that and the charlie/quiver killer).

[gnarly-dude 1]

A truly gnarly thread.

 

[ippy 66]

A while back i wrote a guide for women at another forum i use. I thought it was going to be hard work bringing it across, but its actually suprisingly easy, so ill post it up what with the new server.

THE WOMEN'S SUPPLEMENTAL SNOWBOARD BUYING GUIDE

 

Contents:

Step 1: Why do you need a women's board?

Step 2: The different kinds of board

Step 3: Conclusion and Board list.

 

 

 

Understanding and Using the Supplement:

 

 

I'm a guy. I don't work in a shop. I've only been riding for 4 years. And in those four years, I've probably ridden, at most around 8 decks. Unsurprisingly, none of them have been women's decks.

 

In summary: I am no expert, don't take me for one. Realistically, how much information can I give a woman asking about her gear?

 

You might think "not a lot, ipps!" and you'd be quite right. I can't tell you how a board 'feels', nor can i tell you how it flexes or where its sweet spot is. That is something YOU are unfortunately burdened with finding out for yourself.

 

Instead, much like the intentions of the original guide, the aim is to give you a general idea about women's snowboards, throw out some recommendations, explain some things about the tech, and then send you off on your merry way.

 

This guide won't answer all your questions about board (x), indeed it will barely scratch the surface. But that isn't really the function. The aim of this guide instead is to start you off on your own little mission.

 

In addition it should be mentioned that this is a supplement to the main guide. So I'm afraid I won't be going over the things from the main guide: for example I won't be explaining the differences in cambers, or what an extruded base is, or how directional boards work. So if you are hoping that this is self contained, I'm afraid you might find this a bit overwhelming.

 

The aim of this guide isn't to tell you what everything is, (that was the aim of the other guide). The aim instead is to simply cover some of the glaring oversights, omissions, and assumptions I made in that guide pertaining to womens issues when buying a snowboard.

 

About this Guide:

 

Which of course leads me to the question: Is there even such a thing as a women's snowboard? Aren't all snowboards the same and aren't we just being sold a cosmetic repackaging of a mans snowboard just in a smaller size wand with 'girlier' graphics?

 

The answer is No. (qualified).

 

In Part 1: I will outline the two central reasons why women's snowboards even exist and why you should probably be buying them instead of a man's snowboard. I will then add a third reason which has nothing at all to do with the ride you are looking at, and everything to do with assumptions in the industry.

 

In part 2: I will break down women's snowboards into three principal categories: Boards that work well in park; Boards that work well for the whole resort; and boards that are more for all terrain/conditions inside and outside the resort. In effect I've smashed categories 1 and 2 from the earlier guide together, as well as categories 4, 5 and 6.

 

Finally part 3 will offer a table of all the boards I decided to research. Want to know which boards have a sintered base? or a directional cut? Or are hybrid cambered? I've got your back.

 

The intention is to try and offer women something comprehensive to make up for the general lack of information out there. Buying a snowboard is a pain in the ass. Manufacturers don't help (with the possible exception of Burton and Rome). Almost every major snowboarding site or review site focuses almost all of their attention towards male snowboarding and male snowboarders. Compared to men's snowboards (which often have peer reviews a mere google search away), researching women's snowboards often leads to sites simply repeating the company blurb.

 

The table in part three puts all the information in one place and standardizes the language so that you can see for yourself what kind of boards have the camber profile/shape/base you're interested in, (or the price point you're looking at (all MSRP, and hopefully correct)). This way you can also get a sense of some other boards that might fit a similar function or criteria to help you out with your own research.

 

In this instance, the supplement goes way beyond the mens guide specifically with the intention of correcting a little of the imbalance of access to information out there.

STEP 1: WHY YOU SHOULD PROBABLY BUY A WOMEN'S BOARD

 

 

 

With the obvious exceptions of maybe Roxy and Bitchboards, you will be hard pressed to find a company that has as much diversity in their women’s line than their men’s. Obviously the bigger brands like Burton or Rome might have several women specific boards, but compared to their men’s range, women still have fewer options available to them. This may be due to an economic reality that fewer girls snowboard, or buy snowboards. It might even be due to a simple failure of imagination on the part of manufacturers to encourage female riders by actually marketing towards them (making it a long-standing oversight that’s only recently being corrected).

 

Whatever it is, it’s well beyond the scope of this supplement but it can lead to an interesting quandary for any average sized woman out there in that 146-156 size range feeling like her options might be limited.

 

And it is this:

 

if my recommended size is 146-156, why shouldn’t I just get on a man’s board and double or even triple my options out there?

 

There are 2 technology related reasons who you wouldn’t want to. The first of these is differences in strength between men and women relating to the pressure required to flex and move a board. The second reason, and arguably the most important is about foot size vis a vis a boards width at the binding point. Simply, women’s boards are narrower and smaller than men’s boards with a softer flex pattern (comparatively speaking).

 

There is however a third reason, which I’m slightly reluctant to put up simply because it feels like its bringing in politics to what is supposed to be a board guide. It also feels like it adds a burden of responsibility onto female shredders that men just don’t have to face. So I qualify it with this: this one has nothing at all to do with your riding. So feel free to consign it to the same place as eco friendly snowboarding. If it matters to you, then it matters. If not, it doesn’t.

 

A quick note about the phrase: "Comparatively speaking."

 

Just like men's boards, women's boards come in all flexes, all cambers, all shapes, and all sizes. I could make the statement that womens boards are universally softer than mens boards, but this is of course utterly incorrect. Hows about the signal park rocker versus the Burton Fortress? They are however COMPARATIVELY softer. And that context is set by the fact that many women's boards are built along the lines of (and derived from) a male counterpart board. The second sex snowboard if you will.

GET YOUR DAMN HANDS OFF MY STUFF!!!

 

 

Reason 1: Women are ON AVERAGE lighter then men. Women's boards are therefore COMPARATIVELY softer than men's boards

 

 

Firstly women’s boards have a different longitudinal and torsional flex from men’s boards. Board makers reason that since women (on average) are lighter, and have less muscle mass, even if they narrowed the waist width, the average woman would still have trouble flexing or loading a burton custom. It would effectively ride as a much stiffer board (taking it out of the realms of an all mountain do it all board, and making it feel more akin to their much stiffer, and more technical custom-x (just as an example)).

 

So in order to deliver that all mountain 'do it all' ride, they brought over a lot that made the custom what it is and tried to apply it to a slightly softer flexing board. That's really the nub of reason 1.

 

Women's boards are comparatively softer than their male counterpart board. The reason then that you want to buy a women's snowboard rather than a man's snowboard is: 1. It's obviously more likely to 'fit' your height/weight/strength better. And 2. it takes a lot of the guesswork out of the product description when you don't have to apply it to how a woman might feel riding a man's board.

 

In addition to being softer longitudinally (from tip to tail) they are also softer torsionally (from edge to edge). This means the board will twist easier and get on edge with less resistance... comparatively speaking of course

 

Flex: the 2011 reprise

 

A brief reminder about flex: There is no universal criteria of flex. Board companies decide for themselves, (often based upon referencing their own line), what they mean by the board's 'flex'. A 5 on a Burton board may feel completely different to a 5 on a Ride board for example.

 

What makes this even more confusing is that different companies decide whether they are appealing to an internal single scale when talking about their own boards – so 4 is a 4 on all boards regardless of the sex of the person riding them; whilst others will base it on a flexible scale specifically referencing the intended sex of the person on the board (so a womans four will ride like a mans 2 or 3 and a mans four will ride like a womans 5 or 6).

 

Finally, not really related specifically to the point, but a note of caution on flex in general: First, it's NEVER to be trusted on its own. It's a ball park figure that only gives an indication on how a board MAY feel.

 

Anyway, that covers the first reason: Board's designed specifically for women are softer than their male counterpart ride.

Reason 2: Women ON AVERAGE have smaller feet than men:

 

 

Waist width is a silly term. Why people measure from the narrowest part of the board instead of at the central point of the inserts is anyone’s guess, but let’s not dwell on it. The pertinent fact is rather this: women have smaller feet compared to men, so women’s boards are built specifically to address this by being much narrower than their male counterparts. Pretty simple and straightforward then.

 

Why does this really matter then? What would it matter if you got on a board a bit too big for you? Aren't I being a little abstract here? It's one a few cm's difference, right?

 

Well, getting on a board that's too wide for you means you’re working a damn sight harder getting on edge than you need to be and so will be having a pretty hard time riding it. Consider this: if you are on a board with a teensy bit of boot overhang on a slightly raised platform (your bindings), the turning force required to get onto your edge is pretty small. Just a little bit of pressure and the board will move to your will. Now consider the inverse: you’re on a snowboard, your boots are a couple of centimeters shy of the edge, and you want to raise your board onto its edge. Clearly it’s going to be more difficult to achieve if only because the turning force is being applied to the wrong place (a few cm's inside the board). Throw in the stiffer torsional flex on top of it and you’re looking at a harder time to get on that edge.

 

The result is less fun, less control, and a more exhausting ordeal. In effect you are riding a wide board. If I just want a regular ride, a wide board isn’t remotely on my consideration list, and it probably shouldn’t be on yours either.

 

Technical conclusions:

 

Still, you might have (relative) boats for feet, you might be (relatively) big enough to justify a guy’s board, and you might have even learned everything you know from riding men’s boards. Well, truth is, this isn’t to tell you what you can and can’t ride; It’s to explain what the consequences MIGHT be should you wish to buy a guy’s board and aren't the right size for it. If you're big enough for a guys board then don't let em tell you you shouldn't be riding one. That's not really the message. The message is OVERALL most people will either be too light, or too small, or not have big enough feet to get on one.

 

Shay for example famously rides a lot of men’s boards, and indeed cherishes her 03-04 black snowboard of death (a men’s seriously ripping freeride board). The day I tell Shay “You’re doing it wrong!” is the day I get a deserved punch in the face. You ride what you like, and if you feel none of this applies to you, then understand that this literally means ***none of this applies to you.*** I'm just telling you what the differences are and why the differences exist in relation to your ride.

 

But I said there were three reasons. Well, I have one more reason left, and it’s got NOTHING to do with your ride.

Reason 3: Supply and demand

 

 

Here's a typical day in the life of me at SIA:

Me: "Why didn't you release your [insert awesome new tech] for women this year?"

Them: "We didn't think enough women would buy it until it was more well known."

Me: "Why don't you have that board in sizes for smaller or larger women?"

Them: "We sell more of the middle sizes, unusual sizes aren't cost effective. Many shops won't order them."

Me: "Why the shtook does that board have butterflies and hearts all over it?"

Them: "The average buyer is some girl's daddy, and innovative graphics don't sell well, since daddy finds them confusing."

(Kelly from shred betties on easyloungin).

 

 

I like this quote because it lays bear one of the issues touched upon above. Namely, manufacturers possibly don’t feel an economic imperative to prioritize research and design on women’s boards (or offer a comparative range of product). It is consumers and demand that dictates whether people will take more risks in development and since there appears to be a smaller demand, why take risks on creating boards that no one maybe wants?

 

Buying men's boards when there are alternatives out there then not only causes issues for your ride, in addition it creates a false idea of the environment allowing board manufacturers to shirk their responsibilities to women.

 

In my times I have yet to meet a girl who didn’t love powder just as much as the next guy. Yet where are the powder boards for women? To my knowledge there are only two companies with a female specific powder board (venture and burton). Even if there are a couple more I've missed, the sad fact is that women have significantly less choice in this regard than men. An oversight? A lack of demand? A failure of imagination? It could be any one of those things, but what is crucial is that there is a perception that there is just not enough demand out there to justify the creation of one for most company lines. It is a vicious cycle that helps keep investment hyped around offering new gadgets and gizmos instead of offering the more practical and dare I suggest equitable policy of equal lines and ranges for women as men.

 

So while it is understandable for someone to want the newest tech on a board that might not be available to women for a few years, it does help to perpetuate the cycle and encourage manufacturers to focus more on what new things their majority consumer base (guys) might want to see on next years deck instead of offering similar lines for female riders.

 

Again though, this isn’t your individual responsibility, you are just one consumer out there, so put this argument somewhere around the same area as eco-friendly snowboarding. It’s really one that appeals to your own moral compass. If you think more money should be put into making women boards then you vote with your dollars. If you couldn’t care less about it, I’m not going to tell you that you should. It’s just an open ended question that might be worth considering in your personal calculations when you hand over your cash at the end of the day.

Conclusion:

Flex:

The flex on women specific boards is often softer than their comparative men’s board.

Women’s boards are also torsionally softer. This makes them easier to get on edge as well as easier to twist about.

All changes between male and female boards are context related. Women’s boards aren’t just ‘softer’. They are softer with a clear purpose

Waist Width:

Because women have smaller feet, women’s boards are narrower than men’s boards at similar sizes.

A boards WaistWidth is a GUIDELINE and doesn't give the full picture.

2 boards with a waist width of 23.2cm can have 1 or 2cm difference at the inserts due to the sidecut.

Getting on a board that is *too* wide for you makes almost everything WAY more difficult and less fun. It is something most people would strongly advise against.

The snowboard as a (political) weapon:

Finally, supporting women specific lines encourages manufacturers to invest in supplying those and other lines.

In the end, I would love to make the statement that things have changed for the better, and i genuinely assume they have, but since I started writing this on the grounds that I know nothing about boards for women, it would be a little disingenuous to proclaim myself as some kind of knowledge on the history of female shredding.

[surfarthur 22]

Very interesting Ippy.

 

I watched the 2011 Burton Canadian open on the weekend, on the TV coverage, they said that Burton was putting up equal prize money for both sexes. Does anyone know if it was just this event or across the board (pun intended) at all burton open events? Either way, it is a step in the right direction, and makes our sport one of the most progressive in terms of equality of the sexes.

[ippy 66]

STEP 2: TYPES OF DECK

 

 

Introduction Summary:

 

The main board guide has 6 categories. They're pretty reasonable, but do stem more from my own assumptions than anything else. The thinking went something like this:

 

Type 1: Noodles: urban, jibbing, struggles outside of park. Super soft.

Type 2: Park: poppier, stable, but still super soft. Mainly park, but more versatile and built with small-medium features (jumps in particular) and cruising in mind.

Type 3: All resort: Do it all boards. Bit of everything, can hold an edge in most conditions, but don't really achieve anything specific. Great intermediate all round boards for trying things out and finding one's preferences.

Type 4: All mountain: Literally ALL mountain (resort and backcountry). These are technical freestyle boards for big hits and features. Will be solid and stable and can be taken into any terrain. Still, not freeride specific nor will they be great in conventional sense of 'park' riding.

Freeride: Directional setback slackcountry style twisty turny, lightning edge to edge perfect carves, charging boards. Will bomb any line and will rip through anything nature throws at it.

Powder:As above but with a taper. Super fast edge to edge, and can hold up on any line. But you will NEVER sink that nose in even if you go from light pow to wet crud. Its surfing it all!

 

I kind of stand by that as a general way of breaking the boards down, but well, theres just not enough 5's and 6's out there for women to really justify 1 let alone 2 categories. In addition, types 1-3 are pretty confusing whilst 2, 3 and 4 often overlapped.

 

In order to provide a clearer map, and also a larger margin of error, I've cut the categories from six to three (Park, resort, all mountain).

 

Ostensibly the criteria still exists, and if you look at the table in step 3, you will see that (where necessary), I have added one of the old categories to make it a bit more distinct (you may see boards listed as jib/park or all mtn/freeride or all mtn/pow if i felt it required a little extra emphasis, hell, i even have resort/all mtn when i can't honestly tell).

So what's changed? Well, now there are THREE categories.

They are: PARK - RESORT - ALL MOUNTAIN and for an extra little bonus (and what makes this MUCH better than the original breakdown) I'm going to explain what each of them offers different level riders. Please insert self into arbitrary categorising mechanism and press "deindividualise" to make the programme spit out your ride. Naturally it's generic and even terms like intermediate throw about a million different theories. So sometimes you just have to use your common sense and do some of the stereotyping yourself if you want to make a bit of sense of it all

 

Type 1: The All-Round Park Deck

 

General Specs:

Flex: super soft to soft-medium (very buttery to quite buttery)

Base: Extruded mainly.

Shape: True twin - almost exclusively.

Camber: Mainly reverse or zero, but some camber boards are still holding the line.

Best for: Jibs: rails and boxes; very mellow cruising; buttering the mountain and looking pro.

Worst for: Progressive riding outside the park; getting down your carving and pop; and hitting those double black diamonds or slashing pow in the slackcountry.

 

So this is a park board right? Well yes and no. The defining characteristic of these boards ISN'T that they are park boards, but that in the grand scheme of riding (and once you have a few years under your belt), this board will be used PRIMARILY in the park.

 

However, if you are a beginner, the term 'park' is not only useless, it's also rather unhelpful. These boards are soft, super forgiving, and easy as hell to learn on. For a first year wanting nothing more than hitting turns, cruising the groomers, popping a few ground spins, maybe sliding a box or two and hitting a couple of jumps, this board will not only do what every other board will do, but it's maybe going to do it better.

 

Park then is a misnomer to the beginner. It's also a massive misnomer in general given that these boards won't be landing 30 foot kickers, and they'll be folding up in the pipe (the park is after all a big place). These boards are built for pressing, buttering, jibbing, cruising, and all round doinking about. They aren't made for ripping all terrain, nor are they made to land massive airs. Of course, as you progress you will find that statement to be less and less true, but let's not confuse things more than they already are.

 

For Beginners: These boards are perfect for getting those first turns and really enjoying snowboarding. They are made for FUN. You may outgrow this board or consign it to a jib deck in your quiver in a year or two when you realise it's holding your progression back, then again, you might think charging blacks and trees suck. It's all personal. In the end they may hamper progression, but for greens/blues, park and those early days, no problem.

 

For intermediates: Great to cruise with, and perfect for anyone starting in park after neglecting it for that first year or two. Anyone used to harder charging boards may find it fun at first, but feel a little restricted by it as a go to board. It will probably end up an essential part of any quiver though and get pulled out on those days you just want a bit more of a mellow day of it or just want to show off a bit.

 

For Advanced: you know what it is, you know what it's for, you know why you're looking at it. You don't really need me to egg the pudding here. This is your park ride. It's your urban ride, and its your cruising the resort or even your ripping up double diamonds just to spit in the faces of people like me that might suggest "you will struggle outside the park on a jib board!" ride.

 

A couple of recommendations to show the scope we're talking about here:

 

Capita Space Metal Fantasy: On the noodley side you have capita's SMF: The horrorscope for women. It comes with flatkick and a super soft jibcore which makes everything super buttery and playful. This board is ultra forgiving, maybe a hair too soft to be anything more than a jib deck, but Zoe loves it, it's also her go to ride just to spit in the face of what I wrote above about it being 'too soft to be anything more than a jib deck'

 

Arbor Cadence: On the stiffer end of the range you have the Arbor Cadence. It comes with reverse camber (parabolic rocker, which just means rocker from the middle - with a smaller arc as you get to the tip and tail), along with grip tech (extra edge contact at the inserts) and a slight blunted shape. This board is made for some serious park shredding but also a great board for cruising. The park system puts it a little more in the park line though, but easily this board could end up your go-to shred stick:

Shayboarder loves this deck and made it her park board... well, up until she got hold of the 2012 endevour boyfriend (which i sadly didnt add to my list).

 

Personally i kinda like the sound of the K2 Fling, sounds like a fun deck. Zero camber, softish flex, loose and fun, but still decent stable to have a charge. Sounds a good deck for the price.

 

Other recommendations:

Nitro Runaway; Bataleon Distortia; Burton feather or social; Flow Jewel; Gnu B-street; K2 Fling or vavavoom; Rome detail; smokin PYT.

 

Type 2: The All round RESORT deck

 

General Specs:

Flex: Soft-medium - medium flex.

Shape: Twin, directional twin (and the myriad of ideas directional twin encompass).

Base: Sintered and Extruded. Basically a price point issue.

Camber: Veering towards hybrid cambers with a camber option.

Best for: Tasting it all: cruising the whole mountain, messing around in the pow and pretty much hitting up everything the resort has to offer. Also stable and forgiving, so great for progressing through those first few years. It's the one board quiver killer.

Worst for: Specializing and fitting it into your quiver when you start building it. You'll probably outgrow it when you find your preferences, and you'll find your preferences by recognising where you're outgrowing it (which is kinda one of the best things about it too)

 

 

Usually on the medium-soft side of things, these boards are made (almost entirely so), to be one board quiver killers. Of course they aren't and never will be, but the nice thing is that for progressing riders you likely won't realise until the time comes when you need to make that next step forward. These boards then come with a beautiful double edged sword: On the one hand they are PERFECT for letting you try out everything, (and i mean EVERYTHING) the resort has to offer. This will really let you get a handle on your preferences and help with your progression. Yet on the other hand, if you do find yourself preferring certain things over others, you'll maybe end up realising that you need to be on a board more suited to that particular function.

 

This isn't of course an iron law of the universe. It's just as likely that you come to love this ride and are more than happy NOT specializing because you like just riding about the mountain and enjoying your vacation snowboarding. This isn't a job and we don't all have aspirations of being the greatest rider or getting our technique the best it's ever going to be. Some people just want to enjoy being on the mountains and doing it on a board that holds it's own pretty much anywhere you want to ride it. Well this board will do that and more. And who says you can't be pro riding one of these? Not me.

 

From grinding boxes all day, to riding every course the mountain has to offer and maybe even mucking about under the ropes or in the trees, this board will pretty much cover it all. Sure, it's going to be harder to get a full steezy press out of it like a park board, and maybe it'll slide out a bit or nose dive in deeper pow, and maybe it won't be all that quick with its turns and bounce you around a bit in chop.

 

But you bought this board NOT because it gives you the BEST performance in EVERYTHING, you bought it because it gives you the best ALL ROUND performance in a single board. It's going to grind boxes and rails better than an all mountain, it's going to slash pow, hit steep lines, and charge way better than a park board. You bought it because it's the most friendly and versatile board for everything you're likely to do at a resort and that's pretty much the bottom line.

 

For Beginners: Another great choice for beginners. In fact the ideal choice if you ask me. These boards not only allow you to start off your riding in a nice easy forgiving manner, but it will also have the stability and edge hold to push you into that next step. These boards also come in pretty much every camber conceivable allowing you to trade off a bit of stability at speed (camber) for early doors forgiveness (reverse), or even mix and match them both in hybrid. They also come in a variety of flexes from medium-soft through to medium-stiff.

 

So whereas your mates who went for the soft boards will be busy getting bounced around and washing on the harder runs, you'll be holding your edge and learning to deal with the terrain. These boards offer a much longer progression curve for beginners whilst still allowing for a forgiving ride (though its all a game of trade off's).

 

For intermediates: You've done your first year or two and you want an upgrade. You're hit with questions like "what do you like doing?" and you honestly can't answer the question because you have no idea. You just kinda like snowboarding with your mates and hitting up whatever. Well say hello to your new board. These boards are built for you. They're soft enough to be mellow and forgiving, (but stiff enough that when you want a bit of pop it's not going to just fold out on you), they hold up in almost all terrain, they can hit up almost all of the park with no bother. More importantly they are FUN. They're the boards that let you doink about the mountain bouncing off bumps, charging up ice walls, hitting the trees, and buttering the flats. These boards are built for intermediates who either dont know or dont care what their preferences are. They just want to snowboard and want one board that lets them taste it all.

 

For advanced: Obviously the main reason to get one of these is that not everyone likes the feel of stiff boards. Not everyone enjoys ripping with really aggressive rides. Not everyone is going to naturally veer towards the baddest, heaviest, nastiest, crud smashing, chop destroying, uber-stable, turn on a rail, bombing deck. Some people are a little more subtle and maybe refined in their tastes. These boards are just as likely to feature as an advanced riders go to deck as any other deck. In fact since they are all resort and FUN forgiving playful stable rides, they might even feature in MORE people's go-to collection than any other ride out there.

 

But for those of you who do love a bit of smashing things up on your tank board these boards give you two things to consider: 1. They make more aggressive small-medium feature park rides and 2. They make great cruising decks. they're still going to hold a line, and they're still going to pop, it might feel a bit more underwhelming than your main ride in both senses, but then your main ride probably feels a little too lively and aggressive when all you want to do is just muck about a bit and enjoy yourself.

 

A couple of ideas:

 

Rome Lofi and Lofi rocker:

The rome lo-fi and the lo-fi rocker are great all round boards. Obviously the camber version is going to feel a lot more stable, and part of the reason for choosing the lo-fi is because there will be some big differences between the camber and reverse camber versions which indirectly also allows me to hype up camber as a VALID and LEGITIMATE tech in getting you to the ride you want to be on. Finally though, i put it up because people seem to pretty much love it.

Burton Feelgood, Burton feegood flying V and Burton Feelgood 2010 V-rocker:

Another fun experiment just to show your range of options. This years flying V is hybrid camber, has pretty much every tech that burton could jam into it and seems like a SOLID do it all board. The camber version on the other hand will have a bit more stability (due to the nature of camber) and power. However, the 2010 came with Burton's V-rocker which will make this board feel looser than either of the 2011s with some extra stability issues that the others won't really have. It's important to recognise that just a year of tech can change the feel of a ride, so if you want something that does it all but feels a bit more forgiving, you might want to look at the v-rocker 2010 model instead of the 2011. The point is that even in one line, and with one ride from one line you can tinker your experience in a myriad of ways to get just the style you want.

 

Other boards to consider: Ride OMG; Ride Canvas; Bataleon Violenza (and feelbetter); Neversummer Infinity; Gnu BNice; Roxy Eminence; Roxy Olliepop; K2 Fling; K2 Luna/Lunatique; Nitro Cheryl Mass; Nitro Mystique; 2011 Burton Lipstick; Salomon Lark; Salomon Gypsy; Smokin Vixen.

 

[ETA: I'm real torn on some of those, for instance the OMG and the lipstick (both for opposite reasons). And i also left out some that I wasn't entirely sure if I understand the board well enough. Understand though, these are after all only general ideas to help you out for further research and ultimately categorising is STUPID and arbitary. I did make up the criteria and I did decide to group the boards based on that made up criteria! This isn't science here.]

 

Type 3: The AGGRESSIVE FREERIDE/FREESTYLE ALL MOUNTAIN + POW sticks.

 

General Specs:

Flex: Stiff. Super poppy.

Base: Sintered

Shape: Directional, or directional twin

Camber: Camber and Hybrid.

Best for: Ripping, charging, bombing, dropping, launching, nuking, murdering, slashing, wasting, and killing the whole mountain. These boards are poppy, fast, aggressive and won't ride anything less than the most technical ridiculous lines just to make sure your worthy of standing on it.

Worst for: Hangover days, learning to ride, and seducing intermediates into thinking they really want the stiffest board because everyone knows that the stiffer a board is the more advanced a rider you are! (cue: bored intermediate wishing she bought the lofi rocker instead).

 

 

When you have aggressive freestyle rides sitting in the same group as powder boards it gets a little squirly trying to come up with an expression that encapsulates or sums up an inherent quality in common with all of these boards. Why I shouldn't just let the spaces, subtleties and distinctions breath a little is a fair question. I mean other than the fact they're all on the stiffer side, tend towards a directional or directional twin shape, and are packed with enough pop to launch any good rider that knows how to load it into outerspace is all by the by! Well maybe...

 

There are three boards out there though, that sum this category up for me and can help illustrate what it's all about. They are: The K2 GBpop; The Burton Fortress; and The Ride Promise. I really could add in the malolo and the venture boards, but they sit at a slightly more extreme side of things and honestly deserve their own category. (But they're not getting one)

 

That I mention these three doesn't mean I personally endorse or recommend them, but rather that they each stood out as defining rides for each of the areas this category encompasses.

 

In the first case you have the K2 GBpop, an incredibly lively and aggressive directional twin freeride big feature destroyer. This board is BUILT for launching off every hit you might want to have a go at. No matter the conditions or the terrain, or where the hell you are on the mountain, this board will storm through it. what else can you add? This is your standard all mountain (whether hitting the resort or backcountry kickers) freestyle ripper. These are very much the stiffer brothers and sisters of the boards in the previous category.

 

Secondly you have the Ride Promise. While i was happy browsing boards it stuck out. The reason being that it's of course a nice stiff freeride board, BUT whether intentionally or otherwise, it looks like it has real potential for a powder kid starving for options out there. This year they added the lowpro which means you get rocker in the nose and flat camber in the tail. You also get a solid core freeride board on top of that that with a setback. If they only threw in a taper...

Obviously ride wanted it to be versatile and still be that aggressive all mountain ride, so if you're looking for a pure powder ripper, then maybe it's not going to be that, but if you're after an alternative to the malolo or a freeride charger with a bit more powder orientatation (and a tail that you can stomp (like my charlie slasher which (sans taper) this board sounds a bit like)), then this rig definitely fits the bill.

 

Finally you have the Fortress. I was looking for something to add about the fortress in the bells and whistles section and struggling to find anything specific that people might be pulled in with (like say a camber profile or a sidecut gimmick), but then something magical happened, the pieces all mashed together in my head and I realised this board had absolutely EVERYTHING going in one direction. This board is an uncompromising freeride destroyer! Lightning fast, super damp, and super lightweight, this board is going to crash through anything put in front of it. This board seems to have one function and it's to tear up whatever line you want to ride. Whether its bombing the blacks on the resort or hitting 60 degree chutes this board is going to hold up on everything. It's honestly one of the boards that had my jaw on the floor.

 

So that's the three types of rides I wanted to cover in this section. Hopefully the three boards I mentioned give you a general idea of the other rides in this category. These boards are stiff, aggressive, and meant to really show their stuff on either bigger features in the park or completely outside the resort boundaries.

 

Inside the resort they may feel a little one dimensional or a bit repetitive (given that they'll pretty much nuke every groomer out there). But outside the resort boundaries or in natural terrain they really come into their own and start returning that investment.

 

A couple of last boards I really should mention though are the Burton Malolo and the Venture storm. Both boards sit a little in the pow category unto themselves. I've honestly been underwhelmed by the pow board options out there but at least these two are flying the flag. Sure an 8mm taper isn't massive, but it beats the crap out of no taper at all and the malolo sits on a 20mm taper which is AWESOME. Coupled with the S-rocker, you'll never sink that nose!

The reason the Venture really stands out though is that they offer a splitboard version which brings to the table something utterly unique for women. If you want nothing but back country lines and a deck that's going to give you that, you definitely want to look at either of these boards.

 

Anyway, to summarise:

 

For Beginners:Just don't do it. I'm not kidding, really stay away from these boards until you're absolutely sure you really want one to push your riding up a notch. This won't be for a couple of years at least. Until you're cruising the double blacks bored out of your mind and feeling penned in by the resort then there's nothing this ride is going to bring to you that you can't get on a softer more forgiving board out there. Nothing!

 

For intermediate riders: The same applies. These boards sing to you a song of freedom and waist deep fluffy fields of pow! But its the sirens call. Buy one of these before you really need one (and it's pretty likely you will know when you need one), and they'll feel pedestrian, one dimensional, boring... and on top of that, they'll probably knock you about a bit. These boards are somewhat uncompromising and really only suit the people that know they need them.

 

For advanced riders: Yeah these boards are meant for you. BUT WITH THE PROVISO that you actually want to do the stuff they are made for. Don't assume this is some natural step on the progression ladder. It's not. If you want to hit the backside of the mountain or get a bit more kick to your pipe riding then you probably want one of these boards, but there's nothing in the world that stops you improving your riding on any board you have. If you want to rip pow on an Infinity instead of a Lotus then that's entirely up to you. You won't stop progressing.

 

Your progression, (and I feel like I'm stating the blindingly obvious here), isn't related to how stiff your board is at the end of the day. So a massive note of caution to people thinking I'm building some kind of beginner, intermediate, and advanced scale and mapping it onto these three categories. You can be an advanced rider and be happy just cruising the groomers all day for all it matters. And if that's what you want to do, you probably don't need this board to do it.

 

Just because these boards are almost exclusively for advanced riders, it doesn't follow that they are advanced boards or that the people riding them are ipso facto advanced. All boards have a function that they specialise in. Save yourself the agro and buy the board that does what you want it to do, not the board you think you should be on because you're 'advanced'.

 

A final rejoinder then: If you don't find what I just wrote was blindingly obvious and labouring the point, you maybe aren't quite as advanced as you think you are

 

Other recommendations:Arbor Push; Capita Midnight; Flow Myriad; Nitro Carrara; Burton Feelgood ES; Venture Zephyr; Salomon Ivy; Palmer Liberty (I also want to throw out the Rossignol Diva Magtek but I'm honestly not 100% sure about where to put it. it sounds just a little too all round )

 

Conclusion:

 

Beginners: Just because youre a girl doesn't mean I've changed my opinion. If you want to learn snowboarding and are looking to buy a board that will carry you throughout your progression chain (and last you a couple of years at least), you still need to be on a stable soft-medium flexing board. If however its just something fun to do in winter and you're not all that bothered, then the only harm in learning on something soft and playful is that you might have to shell out next year on a more aggressive ride when you realise you're hooked. Happens to us all.

 

Intermediates: Ignore the sirens call! for there lies only damnation! Don't start looking for a technical ride before you really know you want it. Just enjoy the moment, get a taste of it all, and then the day you get sick of washing or feel your board isn't buttery enough, then start looking at boards to supplement or replace that all resort ride.

 

Advanced: I aint telling you squat. You know your preferences, you know what you want to do, you probably know all the tech available so er, why the hell are you even reading this? Shouldn't you be WRITING this instead of me? :?

[HelperElfMissy 42]

Awesome guide as usual Ippy. I am in the market again (hello! nothing unusual about that)

Not enough time to do it justice right now - once I feed and thrown the ferals in bed and get some peace I shall give it the attention it deserves.

I am lusting after a number of boards at the moment - if only I had a shack in the snow and a place to store a quiver!

To narrow it down to the ONE I think a good read of your guide will help

Cheers!

[ippy 66]

just wait dude. Part 3 is gonna do something magical

 

And by magical, i mean transport you back to the year 2010 when all this information was relevant to the gear coming out that season. What im trying to say is that this list im about to post, is all 2010/11 season boards. Most of the stuff up there will be pretty similar i assume (i doubt many of those decks will have undergone a radical tech facelift), but some of it will be out of date for 2012 gear just hitting the shops unfortunately.

 

Still, the whole point was to standardize the wacky language different companies use to explain their tech and also position it within the criteria in part 2. So hopefully its still useful as it is. I might trawl through everything and update it some time, but it wont be until i start feeling all hyped up again for writing about decks

[ippy 66]

STEP 3: BOARD LIST AND CONCLUDING REMARKS

Men are from Mars, (and mars is colder, so...)

 

An absurd task, this one. A task that's no less absurd as it draws to its end I might add. I started this supplement off by proclaiming myself completely unfit to carry it out and I still believe it to be true. Still it's been fun and if nothing else I've learned a few things. Not the least of which is how much I can talk about a subject I'm not really qualified to talk about.

 

That being said I learned quite a bit about women's snowboarding, which I'd like to summarise in this conclusion:

 

On the positive side of things, women's boards are fantastic. There's no skimping on the tech that men get in their lines. There are absolutely no shortage of shapes, cambers, sidecuts, core profiles and price points out there to suit any woman looking to either get into the sport or simply take her riding up to the next level. Whatever you want to do, there';s a board out there that is going to let you do it.

 

On the flip, are some minor issues though that need to be mentioned:

 

Firstly, women get a MUCH smaller field of product to choose from. A blessing and a curse you might think, but there it is. Women DO have less options available to them, PARTICULARLY in the more aggressive side of things. This may be because women don't really want those boards, or they don't sell, who am I to attribute a cause? But they do have less options and that is unfortunate... Particularly with regard powder boards.

 

Aside the boards mentioned in the previous section, women's powder boards right now look a lot like hybrid camber directional twins, and though decent for powder, it does smack a little bit off "will this do?" This is certainly one area I'd like to see improved upon (says ipps, with obvious delusions of being the CEO of snowboarding).

 

A second and bigger complaint though relates to information. Men can find PEER information on almost any well known board out there. Now we all know reviews are crap at the end of the day, but a few sources telling you about their experience is going to give you at least some idea of how something rides (or at least give you a bit of a clue on what it's for). Women have much less information out there, and this really lands at the feet of women I'm afraid. One of the biggest hurdles I had writing this supplement was trying to make a best guess of the information related through the product information. A google search for a review often led to maybe one or two tiny little product reviews on a retailers website. Outside of shayboarder there was almost complete silence about the range of women's boards (other than maybe 3 or 4 boards that continually cropped up).

 

And speaking of manufacturers and their websites, a quick note:

 

YOUR WEBSITES SUCK!

 

I'm not joking. Seriously. Go look at them again and honestly ask yourself, are we giving enough information to someone out there looking to buy this board? The answer was always NO NO NO (except in the case of Burton and lesser in the case of Rome (sometimes)). Please stop with the obfuscation, it drives me up the wall. I know you want to say your board is pretty much good at everything, but if every board you have in your line is "pretty much good at everything" how the hell am I supposed to choose? Oh! your jib board is a 7 for carving, rome? Is that so? So your scale is really 7-10 then?

 

Nitro - your videos. MAN ALIVE. I CAN READ!!! How about you ELABORATE or give a general idea on how it all functions together in the videos instead of just plastering your product descriptions of the exact same stuff i'm reading!

 

I could go on... Actually, I will.

 

Arbor. I single these guys out because I was completely underwhelmed by one of the companies I was really looking forward to promoting. Indeed almost all companies ASIDE BURTON (have I stressed this enough yet?) came up incredibly short at making the information clear, simple, and straightforward. K2 were definitely one of the absolute worst offenders though. No one gives less of a shit about the customer than K2 it seems. They don't even link their tech. They stick a single meaningless buzzword at the bottom of their product and DON'T EVEN BOTHER TO LINK IT to an explanation.

 

What do I expect you might ask? Well here's the bear minimum of what I expect: I expect a clear simple and straightforward breakdown of the tech. I then expect you to elaborate on it in a SIMPLE and EASY TO UNDERSTAND way that gives a general sense of what the board is about. Finally I would like to see some opinions on the boards serious strengths. Any company that made sense of its technology and let me go as simple or as detailed as I liked wins the internet.

 

Conclusion:

 

The situation at present is that there is a huge gap in viable and credible information out there for women compared to men. The reasons are irrelevant. The more pressing task is what to do about it? This brings me to the very final part of this supplement.

 

Once I explained the technical differences between men's and women's boards there isn't really much more I can do but throw out a few recommendations and get on with things. And sure that helps, but it's not enough. So in order to help address the disparity in information I did a little bit of cataloguing and collected together the information from most of the big lines out there. The following table should provide information on all the 2011 gear out there right now that you might want to get your hands on.

 

It tells you all the boards, their shape, their camber profile, their size range, their minimum waist width (i should have also added the maximum too), their flex (if given, although a fair few companies don't bother with a number definition any more), the MSRP (though i was going off websites for this so it may be incorrect) some bells and whistles, and finally a designation of the type of board in accordance with the descriptions I offered in Step 2. Hopefully this should give anyone thinking about buying a snowboard a really solid resource they can access and find out some similar boards out there.

 

In addition I've thrown this up as a google spreadsheet so that if anyone feels the info is incorrect or not detailed enough they can add to it. Possibly more than any other part, this is what distinguishes the women's guide from the main guide. I hope people do find it relevant, informative and useful.

 

Anyway, thanks for reading the rambles and rants. Good luck out there and I hope you realise its all just nonsense in the end

 

[Jynxx 4]

I have a major issue about this Men´s vs Women´s boards.

I personally think imho it´s a marketing hype and putting graphics that appeal to women.

I adress this isssue that a board should be designed with lightweight people in mind.

Different sidecurves and waist width, and soft/hard flex.

So it´s just a Unisex board, different weight parameter, and choose your own topsheet design

 

I have been slammed when I said this from snowboard marketing types and women.

Yes, it´s like the battle of sexes but in this case I feel like it is brought on by the Wimmen .. like a feminist board thing.

I have been told on a different forum to grow a vagina before I open up my mouth on this topic.

The thing is that a lot of people want to believe that the womens board require/need different design because women have a lower centre of gravity from men. Meaning, women´s centre of gravity is lower in the abdomen and men´s near the solar plexis. The truth is that the manufacturering process /design cannot make a board with this as a parameter.

Basically, bend your knees and lower your center of gravity. It doesn´t matter where your inherent center-of-gravity is.

 

The problem of Webstite shopping is - just marketing image - you gotta have this - this is cutting edge

So much bullshit and hype to cut thru.

Works well for marketing employees and critics

[ippy 66]

i dont disagree with you. In fact i think youre absolutely right. I dont think its just entirely marketing hype though. People are tring to convey information, and to do that they sometimes need something to distinguish it against.

For example, companies like Burton derive most of their boards from their mens lines and tweak those to offer 'comparative' womens boards, (for instance the feelgood/custom, or the lipstick/joystick). Theyre trying to give the same ride to a woman. BUT (and heres where i agree with you), the term woman in this case is arbitrary and needless. Its just someone with smaller feet and lighter. Thats pretty much the sum of it. They narrowed down the waist and made it a little bit softer.

 

They then slap on a technical term to indicate that its 'for women' when all it means is that the boards a bit narrower and softer (and shorter, i forgot that one just because its so obvious) As i said, shay (a woman) rides mens boards all the time. She likes the feel of them. It doesnt mean she ONLY rides mens boards, in fact her main quiver is predominantly women's boards, but she still thinks decks like the TRS and BSOD are awesome to rip on. In fact it was her review of the quiver killer that stopped me from selling mine just before the season started. It was so full of praise for what is almost the antithesis of a womans board (stiff and med/wide).

 

Theres also a dude on trusnow that just prefers riding women's boards. They just suit him more TECHNICALLY (not graphically). He likes narrower boards. He gets a lot of shit about this... though not from me because why the hell cant he ride a woman's board if he likes them more?

 

This is why i said "No, (qualified)". The qualification isnt that there is no distinction between men and womens boards. There clearly are - and its in flex, width and length (with also a description often alluding to the much more common male counterpart rig which gives at least an idea of where the manufacturer thinks their board fits in their overall line). But the gender attribution IS arbitrary and meaningless. It is for whoever decides to fit it and wants a board like that. It doesnt start and end at your sex and thus your decision shouldnt be based on your sex. Its case by case and also completely skewered by personal preference and even stubbornness

 

The next time someone gives you crap about this position, just send them to venture snowboards and have them read their mission statement.

 

SEX

 

We don't make "women's-specific" boards for good reason: there's no such thing. Sex is of no consequence when choosing a snowboard. The factors that matter are height, weight, boot size, and riding style. The rest is just marketing hype.

As women take to the snow in greater numbers, we need solid equipment that's up for every challenge. We need less hype and more performance. We need boards that ride as hard as we do.

Venture delivers all of this, and offers four different widths in every model. This means ladies can get narrower, more responsive boards, and maximum power for carving turns, stomping landings, and ruling anything we choose to ride.

[ju87 0]

Dude, this is an EPIC thread ! I wish I had come across this before I bought my first board. Although I am lucky that I made a good pick, all the research I did during the buying process is encapsulated in this thread and then some.

 

Thanks !

[Jynxx 4]

Ippy, you won´t believe the shit I got from snowboarding forum.

I was quite shocked to know that there are really narrow minded snowboarders employed in that industry.

I got a standard lecture ;

! What is your credentials ? I bin snowboarding for so long / am an instrucor / employed by the industry.

! I went to a snowboard factory tour at K2 and they explained to me blah blah ...

! There are female ninjas and they use different weapons than men. So women use different snowboard from men. I practice Ninjutsu and know a lot of martial arts, believe me ...

! It´s like a car. Ferrari are different from Toyota and it´s like that with snowboards ..

[Jynxx 4]

Let me add something to filter thru all the information given. From everywhere and above.

Regardless of your height and weight, the truth is only you will find the board you like in length and flex and shape

 

Missus and I are about 55-60 kg, size 8 boots, about 5´8 so we are compact sized.

We love our boards long length, narrow waist and stiff in the centre to tail. We ride boards 157, 159 and would like to go longer.

Missus only took a day to get used to going from 151 to 159 and she would never go back to her old 151 size.

Reason - stability at high speed and powder float.

From our point of view, there are not many boards out there that fits our bill.

 

There are guys 6´ and 100 kg who likes to ride shorter boards.

It really doesn´t matter as long as you are having fun, how long your deck is is.

Also the 2 dimentional area comparition ... short length x wide waste = long length x narrow is not entirely true.

But that´s for you to figure out. Don´t rely on information but try and demo as much boards. Share your boards around! Do your own thing and make your own demo day with your friends !

[HelperElfMissy 42]

I just want a pretty board with girly graphics, Jynxx

(May I just qualify that statement with the addition that I want a board that handles well in the conditions I ride - that is a given)

However, given that I can get the right board having the added happy factor of girly graphics pleases me.

I do however come from a home of men, testosterone oozes out of my walls. Two brothers, a husband, four sons, even the cat is a boy. No wonder I want some girly stuff!

But the wrapping will never come before function, which is why I ride with mens bindings.

[ippy 66]

Dude, this is an EPIC thread ! I wish I had come across this before I bought my first board. Although I am lucky that I made a good pick, all the research I did during the buying process is encapsulated in this thread and then some.

 

Thanks !

no worries dude, im glad to have... well, not so much help, but corroborate.

And jynxxie, no shit from me! Well, other than the stuff i type.

Oh and mamabear, hope you get something from this, though i dunno if you will since you probably already know what youre after.

 

And just to prove i know jack, id like to point out ive just burned a hole in my leo palace carpet by switching on my wax iron upside down

[Tubby Beaver 209]

"Grow a vagina"

 

hahaha....best line of the day!!

[tripler 0]

interesting read, Ippy

 

Could I ask for your expert advice? My new board is 172cm, medium-stiff (7 out of 10). Because I'm into freeride I thought I should get the stiffest bindings (5 out of 5). But does it make sense to have bindings stiffer than the board? Boots will probably be 8 out of 10.

[ippy 66]

stiff bindings just mean youre going for an ultimate in response. This really just means youre looking for ultimate edge control of your board. Rock some soft bindings and youre really just looking to get a looser and less responsive ride. Bindings are therefore their own little beast. They take what you have and enhance it a little in the direction you want.

It doesnt mean you have to have soft bindings on a soft board, or stiff bindings on a stiff board. I ride my forces on my whole quiver and am delighted with them. If you want the best twitchiest response and thats how you like to ride, then stiff bindings will suit you down to the ground. Id personally find that a little exhausting So id rather have something a bit more in the middle. Decent response, but not dropping me on my face every time i drop my guard and start relaxing

[Jynxx 4]

Hey tripler.

Unless you are a hard booter or racing, I wouldn´t worry too much about ultimate edge control.

Stiff boots plus binding can/will sacrifice one important aspect - style and flexibility.

I got the stiffest board, stiff bindings (aluminum) with firm contact with medium stiff boots BUT ... I wear my front side boot tight and my rear side very loose. For me, it is not important to have stiff boots and I will only buy one if I go touring on splitboard.

BM adjust his boots tight/loose as well, I recall.

[tripler 0]

what I like most is slack country, trees, under the lifts - basically steep powder. If there's no powder, then carving. I never go in the park. Are stiff boots/bindings better in powder than medium?

 

I'm getting a bit confused here... Isn't edge control for carving - the opposite of freeride? My understanding of freeride is it's off-piste, ie. powder. But the stiffest bindings say they're for freeride. Why would you need edge control in powder?

[Jynxx 4]

I reckon when they talk freeride, they are talking All-mountain freeride and not just pow. Ever seen the freeride competition vids? There are on 70 degrees, ice, rock .. pick your own line with no margin for error. No wonder Xavier rides the Rossi experience with hardcore magna-traction .

 

Carving is just something I do, Doesn´t matter where but I associate it with hard pack and boot depth powder.

You don´t need super stiff boots for carving - but I have to say that I only weigh 60 kg. So perhaps if you are heavier, a little more stiffer boots.

 

I like stiff bindings. By using softer boot in combination, I only have to deal with how tight/loose I lace up (the only parameter to deal with). The stiffness from the binding actually supports/stiffen the boots and the softer boots becomes a cushion (padding) .. I like that feeling.

Don´t need any edge in powder - I need to get on my back foot and I can´t surf (on snow ) when my foot is all jammed up.

[ippy 66]

you open a can of worms here. Really its just a label. Its kinda like the term freestyle. Actually, its probably more accurate to suggest it exists entirely in relation to the term freestyle to draw out the distinction between two different styles of boards at a time when there probably were causes for them to be different.

 

Heres that difference.

 

Freestyle boards tend toward twin shapes and ride in both directions

Freeride boards tend toward directional shapes and tend to be ridden in one direction,

 

BUT, over the years these boundaries have blurred a fair bit. You get directional twins alongside twin-like-directionals and twins that are as about as freestyle friendly in the jib park as your average freeride ripping board. At the same time you have decks like the bsod (a classic freeride deck from capita) which have been modified over the years from straight freeride to a more hybridy freeride/freestyle board with the change to the camber profile and its sidecut allowing it to be used by hard chargers, backcountry dudes, and park rats looking for something with a bit mroe kick for some heavier hits (whilst the lightweight construction actually makes it surprisingly pressable if you even just want to cruise the groomers).

 

Freeride and freestyle are really just labels that are hangovers from a different time in snowboard marketing. They are also profoundly unhelpful at times. As you can see, they carry connotations that are often hard to shake - usually this is more for freestyle boards though, freeride boards tend to be the stuff designated nowadays as 'not freestyle' .

I always make a point of explaining that freestyle does not mean a park board (and the more modern description of 'park' is itself extremely lazy and lacking in detail). But its hard for people to shake that idea so i qualify it with this very explanation.

 

Dont get hung up on the language, its all just shorthand and attempting to summarise a board to the layperson in as easy to understand way as possible. This would be fine if it was relevant, but as you can see, freestyle/freeride are now holdovers from a different time. They dont quite have the same ring as they maybe did 10 or so years ago (assuming they even did then? i honestly wouldnt know). There arent just two shapes out there. Theres plenty of things that change a boards shape, from the actual shape itself, to the core profile and where it flexes, to its setback, to a taper, to its sidecut and even its camber profile that you end up with an ever increasing blurring of the freeride/freestyle distinction to the point where you have to qualify what KIND of freeride or freestyle board it is. And when you have to endlessly qualfy it, you have to assume the term has stopped working as a shorthand term. Its in fact redundant.

[tripler 0]

I reckon when they talk freeride, they are talking All-mountain freeride and not just pow. Ever seen the freeride competition vids? There are on 70 degrees, ice, rock .. pick your own line with no margin for error.

Thanks Jynxx, seems my definition of freeride was a bit off. Going down 70 degrees ice, dodging rocks, isn't something I want to do. But I can see how ultimate edge control would be good for that.

 

I can't decide between medium-stiff and super-stiff bindings. You say I'll lose style and flexibility with the latter - I don't want that. On the other hand, if they're better in powder maybe that's worth a reduced performance on groomers. But ARE they really better on pow? I just don't see why they would be. Though the online rep said they are. But then again, the ones she recommended just happen to be the most expensive they have - is she on commission?

tripler: hi

Brandi H.: hey there

tripler: what's the best flow binding for riding powder and trees?

Brandi H.: Flow NXT FRX Snowboard Binding - click here

Brandi H.: those are lightweight, stiff, super responsive, and kill it at high speeds

tripler: so a stiff binding is best for powder?

Brandi H.: typically you want a moderate to stiff flex depending on your personal preference

tripler: what stiffness boots are best for pow?

Brandi H.: same, moderate to stiff

tripler: Flow NXT FRX is their stiffest binding, is that better for pow than moderate-stiff?

Brandi H.: yes

tripler: ok, thanks!

Brandi H.: you're welcome

[Tubby Beaver 209]

They possibly are tripler, also they want sales right? So if there ain't that much diff, then they'll push the expensive one (or am I just cynical??). How much ACTUAL difference will you feel between the Mod-stiff to the Stiffest? I'm no tech head but it can't be that big a difference, right? If I had the money and really wanted the top line then I'd get it, if I was looking for a good balance between what is ultimately best and what is more affordable then I'd go for the slightly flexier and cheaper of the 2.