Off Season boards - Dirtsurfer Freebord Carveboard

[joanna danna 0]

~extending hand~ in Greetings.

 

First, you have a wonderful group and I'm happy to have found it. I've noted from reading previous post that there is a strong comradre and spirit amongst snow sport loyalist.

 

Normally I'm a sport aerial enthusiast; skydive, hang-glide, base jumping, flying..yada yada. but this past winter I've had the pleasure and pain of learning to snowboard. Double edged sword in many respects, however never dull and I'm now in love with the sport. Because of this I want to keep as much of the skill-set as I can with an off season board sport. I'm seriously thinking about purchasing a Dirtsurfer or Freebord or any other board that would offer a good snow board simulation. I would welcome all input with any of these boards and their comparison to snow boarding or one another.

 

Ride on,

joanna danna

 

NOTE: I have thought about purchasing a wing to use with either board, BUT the wind here in North Carolina is squirrelly and this might be a waste of money, as a wing is a lot of money. The areas in which I could ride any of these boards would be some moderate hills . Also, I am not into the speed as much as I am into the slide and carve aspect.

[fb_steve 0]

Hey mate, I own a freebord and highly recommend it for snowboard simulation. It is virtually the same as snowboarding but on concrete. It felt very weird the first few days but once you get the basic hang of sliding it immediately feels like snowboarding. Edge control, sliding, stopping,spinnning ect. I've tried other various boards but none come close to snowboarding like a freebord does. Carveboards and flowboards are cool but dont really feel like snowboarding.

 

The only downside in my opinion is if you stack on concrete it can be pretty serious. So always wear a helmet and wrist gaurds. I've never stacked in the few years I've had mine but many people have.

 

Freebords really do help with edge control. After freebording (and a beginner snowboarder) I went to the slopes and found I could do flatland 360 spins like no tomorrow and generally carve a lot better. Going from snowboarding back to freebording was weird though but soon goes back to normal. I guess the prospect of stacking onto concrete on a freebord makes you really learn how to control your edges!

 

Good luck with your descision - steve

[bushpig 0]

freeboarding huh? Sounds interesting FBSteve. I used to skateboard a lot, but haven't seen or heard of them. You have piqued my interest...

[joanna danna 0]

Here is a link to freebording.

 

http://freebordtest.dreamhosters.com/main.html

 

 

I am told that this is the closest to off season snowboarding. Reasons, carving and sliding switching and ease in which to stop. I don't have any direct experience with it and why I am inquiring further.

 

If you note the board has parameter wheels as well as 2 inner pivotal wheels.

joanna danna

[joanna danna 0]

Thanks FB. Have you any experience with the Dirt Surfer as well?

joanna danna

 

 

 Quote:

Originally posted by fb_steve:

Hey mate, I own a freebord and highly recommend it for snowboard simulation. It is virtually the same as snowboarding but on concrete. It felt very weird the first few days but once you get the basic hang of sliding it immediately feels like snowboarding. Edge control, sliding, stopping,spinnning ect. I've tried other various boards but none come close to snowboarding like a freebord does. Carveboards and flowboards are cool but dont really feel like snowboarding.

 

The only downside in my opinion is if you stack on concrete it can be pretty serious. So always wear a helmet and wrist gaurds. I've never stacked in the few years I've had mine but many people have.

 

Freebords really do help with edge control. After freebording (and a beginner snowboarder) I went to the slopes and found I could do flatland 360 spins like no tomorrow and generally carve a lot better. Going from snowboarding back to freebording was weird though but soon goes back to normal. I guess the prospect of stacking onto concrete on a freebord makes you really learn how to control your edges!

 

Good luck with your descision - steve

[firedog23 0]

I picked up a Carveboard and the few times I have used it have been fun. You use the same muscles for turning. The feeling is pretty close to that of a snowboard when you are making your turns. Yeah you are on concrete but the carveboard is not made for speed so once you get it down, going fast is not much of an issue, especially if you have to bail.

[bushpig 0]

thanks for the link JD! Looks quite cool. I'd like to check it out some time. Anyone seen them in Japan?

[Ocean11 0]

I've ridden and reviewed a selection of these boards.

 

 

Dirtsurfer

Dirtsurfer at Fujiten

T-board

Freebord

 

I sold my Dirtsurfer as there was absolutely nowhere to ride it here without driving miles.

 

I still have the T-board and Freebord in my garage. They're in reasonable knick (ie, they have a reasonable number of knicks in them). If anyone would like to purchase one or both for a small consideration plus postage, please PM me with an offer.

 

 

I'm keeping my Outback (heavy and dangerous, but amazingly drifty carving) and Stik (most snowboardlike to my mind, notwithstanding what many, many people say about the Freebord).

 

In June I'm going to go to this paragliding and mountainboarding place with my Outback.

 

(Hurrah for Australian design. Those marsupials certainly know a thing or two about making fun, semi-lethal downhill rides. And composting bins. )

[bushpig 0]

O11, which do you find more fun of the two you are looking to get rid of? Slightly interested...

[Ocean11 0]

Neither. Frankly.

[bushpig 0]

hehe, cheers. I might just have to pull out the skatey and get back into that for the summer.

[Ocean11 0]

If you're already at home on a skateboard, you might find either of them fun. I just find hurtling over concrete without complete control a bit unnerving so I'm not really into these boards. Only the Stik offers the kind of control that makes it seem like a pleasant diversion rather than a life-or-death issue - I don't even bother with wrist guards. For me, conventional skateboards fall into the latter category.

[bushpig 0]

how much you want for either of them? Just thinking out loud though right now...

[Yuki's Passion 1]

Id like to get ahold of a dirtsurfer, that looks really damn fun

[Ocean11 0]

5,000 yen plus postage for 1 board would make it worth my while putting it in a box and traipsing down to Lawson...

[fb_steve 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by joanna danna:
Have you any experience with the Dirt Surfer as well?

No I haven't but they look pretty cool. From the videos i've seen its more about going super fast down hills than snowboard simulation. They look awesome when they deck up in aerodynamic gear, the centrifugal (gyro) force of the wheels means the faster you go the more stable you are.

[Ocean11 0]

> the centrifugal (gyro) force of the wheels means the faster you go the more stable you are.

 

So they say. But you'd have to be a little bit daft to believe that. I was daft, I believed it, I went very fast and I didn't get killed. But just like you don't hear about all the people who have smashed in their teeth riding a Segway - myself included - you probably won't get to hear about those people for whom greater speed did not mean greater stability on the Dirtsurfer. A bump in the road, meeting a K-truck round a bend, a large stone - all could put a sudden end to that 70 mph stability.

[Kumapix 0]

after checking the freebord site I was tempted but then Ocean11's review was a welcome reality check. Thanks 011

[joanna danna 0]

Ocean:

 

Would you explain more about the Stik that you enjoy as far as a snowboard simulator? I was under the impression that a Stik didn't stop as well as a Freebord and that the slide was minimal but carve superb. This is one of the reason's why I stayed clear of the Stik. However a second look can't hurt and I would enjoy reading your take on it. Again my thing is the enjoyment of carving and **sliding**. In the same mindset I don't want to constantly battle the fear of bellying up to the pavement.

 

As far as the dirtsurfer and my experiences, I didn't come close to any significant speeds while at its wheels. Under 20mph the surfer was very stable. My balance blows and it was cake to ride on my 2nd -3rd run. My interest in the DS is more of a general all over ride. I was hoping my dog would be able to pull me on the dirtsurfer due to its stability and larger wheels. I'm seriously thinking about buying the dirtsurfer either way. But I also want to check out other boards as a go between to enhance and maintain my snowboard experiences. Please share your thoughts between the stik, (Carve-stik) and the freebord if you get a moment.

Thanks,

joanna danna

[joanna danna 0]

FIREDog:

 

The carveboard looks wild. I was introduced to it while watching the winter Olympics with a short commentary of one of the female boarders during off season training. She used a carveboard. Could have been one of her sponsors toys though. They didn't show her riding it but rather pulling it up a hill.

Would you share more about your experiences with the board?

joanna danna

 

 

 Quote:

Originally posted by firedog23:

I picked up a Carveboard and the few times I have used it have been fun. You use the same muscles for turning. The feeling is pretty close to that of a snowboard when you are making your turns. Yeah you are on concrete but the carveboard is not made for speed so once you get it down, going fast is not much of an issue, especially if you have to bail.

[Ocean11 0]

The Stik is made not to go fast and not to slide, although if you carve very hard it will start to drift. So the Stik doesn't really have edges to catch, although if you try to ride any board sideways the wheels will revolt. The difference here is that the Freebord invites you to ride sideways, and if you get it wrong, you will find that edge and catch it. Onto pavement.

 

The Freebord also doesn't claim not be made for speed as the Stik does. The way the Stik is made encourages swooping carves or wiggling runs, which scrub off speed. But the Freebord, if it isn't coming to a sudden stop underneath you, tends to run off in unpredictable directions, picking up speed as goes.

 

The Stik can be thrown on the ground and scooted comfortably up hill on left or right leg. Learning to skate the Freebord without it shooting off somewhere you don't want to go is simply not fun.

 

I never learned to skate the Dirtsurfer or the Freebord, but I can skate the Stik easily with both legs. I also never learned to ride switch on a snowboard (not that I bothered trying very hard), but I've tried it on the Stik and it went quite well. I would never have tried it on any other of my boards due to the risk of getting hurt. (I don't mind getting hurt in a good cause, but that wouldn't count).

 

I don't think the dog and Dirtsurfer thing is a good idea - it won't work. It'll be just like the T-bar I described in my Fujiten article. The Dirtsurfer is only really stable at a good jogging speed, and on a slight slope.

 

As for what best replicates snowboarding, none of the boards do it all. For me, all except the Stik and Outback feel like riding on ice. The Stik and Outback are more like the more forgiving flowing riding of powder.

 

As for stopping on a Stik, you're not going that fast anyway, so if you're in a real pinch you can just jump off. If you have room for something a little more stylish, you can make a very tight turn back up the hill. It's surprisingly doable. Footbraking is also possible.

 

But some people just love the Freebord, and you might too. I'm probably too tall for the board I got anyway. One of the longer ones might have been much better. Best to give it a go if you can.

 

If you want a Stik, Yafoo auctions is the place to look.

[joanna danna 0]

Hey thanks Ocean. Curious why did you opt for the stik and not the straight carveboard?

 

No kidding about the DS and dog idea. Hmmmm, I'll have to re-read your T-bar write up again. I was told that some guy in FL has his bull dog pull him with it. I have a pit bull who has some serious pull and can pull my GreenSpeed trike without a stroke on the peddles.

 

You have me dumb founded about speeds and the DS. I was going faster than a hard run and I had the feeling I could have gone a lot faster and it would have been stable. However I was on paved despite a few hiccups in the road. Maybe I am misunderstanding your post on the speed comfort of the DS.

 

Your note on 'ice' feeling. When I was snowboarding in CO I never felt as if I was riding on ice. However snowboarding here in the east is horrible. The word 'suck' falls too short to the conditions of ice. I did not as you can no doubt pickup like the feeling of traveling on ice. So this may be a huge issue for me.

joanna danna

[joanna danna 0]

Funny thing. Despite my ice snowboarding I never came away hurt. However I ended my snowboard season leaving CO with a fractured and dislocated elbow on a powder run of all surfaces. Over confident maybe....I'm still thunking head on that one.

joanna danna

[bushpig 0]

this all seems very interesting and I am kinda keen to try these all out. On the other hand I do have my old skatey sitting here which hasn't been used for a few years now, and this could be just the spur to get me back out on it!

[fb_steve 0]

Bushpig if you want some more info on freebords or links to good videos i can dig them out for you i owe you for booking my hakuba busses. For which I have to give a late thankyou, everything went very smoothly! I'm happy i made the descision to get the bus, great scenery, very comfy and almost empty suprisingly! Cheers