snowboard + powder ?

[tsondaboy 0]

Soo, I need some advice about powder boards, as the title says.

I am currently riding an 152 cm all mountain board. I am not very big person, 171 tall something like 65 Kg. I have not any serious problems with powder as long as I put my weight on the back leg. The bindings of course are set as back as it can go. If I get relaxed tough and move my weight to the front, even if I am on a relatively steep slope, the nose of the board immediately sinks. If I am not speeding I will get stacked, while if I am speeding ouch…..!!!!

I also don’t have enough control of the board when I am riding trees, since I mostly steer it with my front leg or by moving my weight.

I was thinking of buying a new longer board, but first I need some advice from someone more experienced. Do you “always” ride powder with your weight on your back leg?

If you have a bigger board, can you put your weight more to the front and steer a bit more with the back leg?

Any comments/advice are highly appreciated.

[kaiser soce 0]

I always have my weight on my back leg in powder, when im going really fast the nose does tend to be getting pushed up so the balance of weight from front to back is not so exaggerated at high speeds but i cant say ive ever put my weight on my front foot in this situation. I'd say you would definately crash. I ride a 160 option freeplus and am about 75kg, You could go up a bit on your board size, I'd say a 156 would give you some more float and not be so large that you couldnt do anything else with it. I've rode a 167 burton custom in some deep fluff, it did float a little better but technique in the pow wasnt radically different. Maybe you could look at something with a some taper eg.. Burton malolo/fish or Option pintail/northshore to take some strain off your back leg.

Hope that helps mate!

[montoya 0]

I think there are 2 general types of pow-boards now on the market:

*fish-type shapes

*swallow-tail boards

 

I have a Prior Kyber, which is very similar to the Fish. Big fat and flexible nose, lots of taper, bindings set way back. I don't have to lean way back, (it's already weighted by default) which makes it much easier to turn and control, and also lessens leg-burn. This board rocks for tree-powder, as it's so easy to turn...

 

That said, I am also looking to expand my quiver and next year will get a swallowtail. I think it will have better float, and should allow carving with more power. A couple of friends say it takes a while getting used to the riding style, as you don't ride it with the nose sticking way out, but fairly level or just below the surface - the nose is so long and flexy that it won't dive on you.

 

There are some other shapes out there as well, like the stuff from Gentem, etc.

 

Regarding sizing, I would get the biggest board you think you can handle.

[unit 0]

Not that I'm advising you to go this way, it's a matter of preference, but if you don't want to get a fish/swallow tail, most board manufacturers do normal shaped boards which are designed to give you the float in the pow but still get you around everywhere else. They usually have a nice wide nose and a taper front to back.

I've got a burton cascade 163 that I ride when the pow is really light and deep. It actually handles better if I keep the bindings setback just behind center rather than right back. Heaps of float, even landing big jumps the nose rarely digs in. It ploughs over the tracked out crud like a tank too. However because of the length, if the trees are tight, it is a bitch pushing the turns out. Which is why I've actually spent more time on my custom 156 lately which I can throw around in the trees no worries. I weigh 73kgs and the 56 still gives me enough float for most conditions. I've got a jeenyus 56 also but it sucks in powder so I think the shape of the board is more important than the length.

I think The next stick for my quiver will be a fish or swallow tail like montoya's talking about. The cascade feels a bit like I'm driving a bus around a rally car track when I'm in the trees.

[tsondaboy 0]

Thanks a lot everyone for the answers. I was also thinking of trying something like the burton fish or malolo from next season. I am not really sure if I wanna try a swallow tail for the time being, although I mast admit that lately I `ve started being attracted to them. I `ve also tried to rent a 156 board but it was not pure powder board so it was really bad. I will try next time to rent a burton fish and she how it feels. Any other suggestions for specific board-makers/models, to check before I do my shopping?