Helvetico

I ride both hardboots and softboots, so the transition shouldn't be too difficult. I will have a hard time finding boots wide enough for my 9EEE feet. Anybody have any thoughts on how to learn to ski most efficiently? I heard the French start you on short skis, like ski boards, then move you up every day until you're riding appropriately-sized carving skis by the end of the week. This sounds pretty rational to me. I certainly don't want to go through the bone-crunching learning curve of snowboarding again now that I'm middle-aged.

Just bought a new Tanker 200 and am set on putting softy bindings on it. I'm apprehensive about putting hardboot bindings on it because I delaminated my 182 Tanker last year with said bindings. (Maybe it wasn't cause-and-effect, but just coincidence, but I wonder about the forces those bindings generate.) Here's the problem: I love the way that board rode with hardboots, and really want to try them out on the new board, but do not want to destroy it. I know a lot of you guys run plates on Tankers, so let me put the question to you: Are my concerns well-founded?

Thanks for the feedback so far. I use the Bosu ball upside down, but maybe I haven't pumped enough hair into it. That extreme balance board looks interesting and minimally lethal.

I've been using a BOSU ball lately...squats, twists, etc., but it doesn't come close to replicating the instability a snowboard can attain on icy and irregular surfaces, or the floaty, ungrounded feel of powder. Wobble boards look challenging, but they emphasize lateral movement, not the belly-to-spine balancing motion necessary at low angles on softboots, and, to a lesser extent, hardboots. So now I'm intrigued by slacklines. Anybody have any experience with these or suggestions regarding other equipment? The one requirement is that I be able to set this stuff up in my basement.

I'll ride an all-mountain alpine board on hard days, so what I'm looking for is board mostly for powder and soft days. I guess it all boils own to whether the reverse-camber Tanker 2K is better on powder, which seems to be the case.

I need a new longboard, and this one is very shiny, but will it be any good in mixed conditions? What I've read so far from Sean Martin's post leads me to believe it won't. If the jury is still out on this technology, why has Rad-Air stopped making conventional Tankers entirely? http://www.rad-air.com/09/en/svt.php

I tried a brand new one in Vermont several years ago...the guy at the Starting Gate hooked me up with brand new everything on the rental. If I remember correctly, I was riding softies at 42F, 27R, or similarly high and normally unstable angles. It's a light, damp board that eats up bumps, yet has decent snap: this is behavior similar to that of the titanal boards you've seen discussed here. I wish I had bought it instead of the ultra-stiff BX board I ended up with. F2 has an all-mountain directional alpine board (with titanium) called the Vantage. It has a 22.8 waist, so it might be a possibility if you have small feet or ride high angles. I've never ridden one, and I have to admit that I'm attracted to it primarily because of its topsheet, which is a refreshingly minimalist, subtle metal design in a world populated with visually offensive, garish snowboards: http://www.f2-snow.com/htdocs/boards-vantage.php?setsub=12&setnav=22 If you're a powerful rider looking for a speedy metal BX board, the Brutale might be up your alley: http://www.f2-snow.com/htdocs/boards-brutale.php?setsub=13&setnav=22

Took the BX board out on the slush today. It's way, way too stiff. The medium-flex Tanker was a lot better...sort of glided over the slush instead of burying into it.

I keep nailing my ass on ice when my board skips out of hard turns on heelside. Already fractured my coccyx on my mountain bike a couple of summers ago: do not want to repeat the incident. Anyone used the Azzpadz? As I crank up my angles higher (running F45, R30 now), I might endure different injuries. Would impact shorts (with side protection) be better?

Rode my 182 Tanker on slush Sunday and it was great. It's not super-stiff board, though. I'll try out my stiff BX board in the same conditions, but I doubt it'll be as good.

They make a hardboot that can be used for both skiing and boarding, which I'm thinking of getting, since my feet are too wide for normal boots. What do you think of their products?

Looking for an on-piste board that can handle bumps, slush, ice, etc. Thinking of driving out to Soelden for the Carving Masters so I can try out different boards. Anyone?

So, after three width adjustments, my hardboots fit. Now I'm looking for a good hardboot board. I've got off-piste covered: I'm getting a 2m Tanker next year to replace my current, dying 182. I like hardboots on the 182 Tanker, which has a 24.6 inch waist. Fun, but a little unwieldy on pistes. Feels like I need something narrower and shorter. I also have a 164 BX board, but I don't really like the hardboots on it. WAY too stiff and not very damp. Strangely enough, I find the longer board more versatile. Maybe I'm just not athletic enough to handle all that snap. I'm 5' 11", 185 lbs. with small feet. I'm looking at the F2 Vantage and the Sigi Grabner SG Cult, as well as stuff from Coiler and Prior. Ideally I'd like something that handles ice, hardpack and bumps really well, yet can carve. One more thing: is this titanium stuff all it's made out to be? I tested a Burton T6 years ago and really, really liked the dampening. Is titanium superior to carbon fiber? Cheers

186 lbs

Rode hardboots for the first time on my 182 Tanker two weeks ago: practically threw away the softies when I got home. Rode my 164 Reto Lamm (stiFFFFF BX board) on hardboots and wanted to throw the hardboots away. The longboard has a thinner waist (24.6 cm) and is flexy. The BX board has a thick waist (25.5) and I've yet to feel it flex. I can go down bumps, steeps, you name it...more easily on the Tanker. What gives? Maybe I should toss the BX boards (I've got an extra, unridden Reto) and use the 182 as an all-mountain board and buy a Tanker 200 for powder. Anyone out there think Coiler, etc., offer a better AM board than the Tanker? I'd like to hear.

The Tanker is a 2005, I think: 24.6 waist. I'm at least an hour's drive from Pureboarding, but maybe I should make the effort to drive there. Would they do a better job of shaping hardboots than my local ski shop? I'm in Aarau, Kanton Aargau. It's roughly halfway between Zurich and Basel...closer to Zurich, though.

After a year of dithering I finally strapped hardboots onto my Tanker 182 and was amazed at how easy it was. This probably has to do with the fact that I've been riding stiff bindings (Nidecker 900's and the Catek FR2s) on all-mountain boards. I'm looking forward to trying out the hardboots on my 164 Reto Lamm, a stiff BX-board. I rode 45 F and 30 R: next time I'll move the rear up to 38 or so to see how it feels. Everthing improved: control, precision, stopping ability, performance on ice...even the T-bar was easier to negotiate. The only drawback was the numb toes: I've got 9EE feet, so molding the heat liners wasn't enough. I'm planning on finding a bootfitter to stretch them out ASAP. Anyone have any recommendations on footbeds? Stance angles? Thanks to everyone on this forum for providing this channel of information: it was, and remains, invaluable to my boarding. If I can return the favor to anyone with tips on resorts in the German part of Switzerland, where I live, just let me know.

So I bought new hardboots and bindings last year but I've yet to use them. There's been plenty of untracked off-piste here, so why bother? At least that's what I tell myself. To tell the truth, I'm intimidated by the thought of being a beginner again. So now I'm toying with the idea of selling the unused boots and bindings and getting a Donek Razor, which is a carving board for soft boots. Is this enough to make groomed runs interesting again or do I have to suck it up and put on the scary hard boots?

Looks like the 187 is the way to go. I actually bought a used one on Ebay.de (Germany), but got ripped off by the person selling it: he never sent the thing. It's funny you should point out the 177W's float: I rented one three years ago and it was just astonishing the way it glided over deep, deep power. I bought the 182 without thinking much about the width, and was surprised at how much less float there was.

Thanks. I like the Tankers because of the speed they can generate on and off-piste, with the secondary being a greater concern. If I were to move up in price I'd probably talk to Radical in Zurich about a custom-made board.

My feet are 9 wide, and I ride 30 F, 15 R. I'd take the 187 off your hands, but I live in Europe, so the shipping is a no-go...unless you've still got it on your hands this summer. I might go to the States to buy a car, what with the great exchange rate.

Felix, The Powderequipment type B looks very interesting. It reminds me of the Pogo longboard...the long nose and squared tail, that is. You feel you get more float of out one of these than a 200 Tanker? Impressive. I live in Switzerland and will actually be in Austria this week, but I doubt there are any demos available near Pitztal or Soelden...too late in the season. How do these do on-piste in between powder runs? Swallow tails are notorious for breakage; are these capable enough to make it all the way down the narrow Talabfahrt at the end of the day? Oh...you wouldn't have any idea of the price on the board, would you? Thanks

I've been riding a 182 for three years now, and it's a great board, but it's just not wide enough off-piste. I have to lean back to keep from burying the nose. I'm 5' 11" and 180-185...190+ with my hydration pack, helmet, etc. on. My feet are small, but here's the thing...what if I put my Catek Freerides on a wide board? Shouldn't the power plate transfer more than enough...what else, power?...to the 187? The advice of anyone who's ridden both boards is especially valued. Thanks.

Wow, this thing looks like a good match for my Catek FR2's...just bought 'em, but haven't ridden them yet. I wonder what length would be best: I ride a 182 Tanker and a 164 Reto Lamm. Height: 5' 11", weight: 183 lbs. The 182 looks like a true piste/powder, all-mountain machine. Thoughts, anyone?

All you have to do is keep it running, and keep the employees on. Would make a great private resort: http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/multimedia/index.html?siteSect=15002&video=yes&url=http://real.xobix.ch/ramgen/sri/en/2007/freeski.rm&ne_id=7680644&stopit=y〈=eng