Istvan

The Kessler is the new baby. Thought it would make a nice couple with my Berserker - one is devil, other is an angel.... :lol:

Thanks!

Thank you all.

Thanks, still better than what I have in front if me now... what I got is in the neighborhood of $700.... Anyone else?

Hey, do you know what is the least expensive way to ship boards from US to EU? I'm about to order 2 slalom water skis from a US vendor, but the quotes he got from DHL and UPS are just nonsense.... Thanks ps.: A slalom water ski has similar dimensions as an alpine board, 170 - 175cm long.

Moderator pls ban Pogo. I'm sitting in my office in a bank, in suit, shirt and tie and I have to watch pics of Zylon Gladiators, Curacao beach etc.... ps.: Flying to NYC on Friday, party in Manhattan Friday and Saturday night, so US beware! :lol:

@Pogo: Buying a Virus Gladiator II Zylon Evo III + living in Curacao = decadence :lol: How worse can this get? :lol:

Holy crap.....

On the left: http://sg-snowboards.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/SG-Pro-Team-Riders_Manabu_Kobayashi_Roland_Fischnaller_Sigi_Grabner_Masato_Katayama1.jpg

I liked the UFC Narrow more than the UFC, but both are great boards. Most probably because the sweet spot form me in width is around 17-18cm. Both feel like they have a longer effective edge than they seem to have. Both feel very "sticky" when coming out of the turns. I also have to admit that I prefer the traditional Virus nose over the new square one, not because of the looks, but because of the feel. I feel the traditional nose leaves more room to make changes to the turn and also the release feels softer. Can't define it more precisely, but if you tried both, you'll know what I mean. @Ladia: sure, the progressive / changing sidecut of the Virus boards gives you a great feeling, you can easily shorten the turns if you want. Question: the Scalpel does not have a too big camber and pop, right? That's what I can recall from testing, but I tested it 2-3 yrs back in Zinal, so I'm not sure. Also, I remember that it had a terrific edge hold, I felt it didn't even want to release me when coming out of the turn. @Like Carving: Virus has many great boards and all of them are different worlds. Even the ones that look alike, e.g. a Gladiator and a Berserker are completely different. Now the X-treme and the Scalpel are very differently behaving boards and both are pretty far from the traditional narrow poppy Virus feeling. Given the price, it is really worth testing before buying to make sure that you buy something that you really wanted. Or you may want to buy both :) Later,

Agreed. EC is typically done on boards around 13-14m radius. Also saw people doing it on long GS sticks with radius above 16m. Short radius will not let you go down and fully extend as they turn too quickly. I'm not saying it's impossible, but way more difficult than on an optimal radius. If you feel that bigger radius hinders you to make the board turn, most probably there is some room for improvement on the technique. If the body position is ok and the timing of the push is accurate, you can turn a big radius board around a glass of beer. :) Later,

I bought it from Frank / Virus. When something catches my eyes I try put my hands on a demo board first to test it and then if I like it I order one directly from Frank. He is very helpful when it comes to figuring out what you really need. But he's usually quite busy, so it's not easy to catch him :) Compared to the Prior WCR (which I never rode, but checked out the specs) the X-treme will feel very wide. Wide boards will help you mastering EC, but there is also a flip side: edge-to-edge will be much slower. Also, the X-treme (and if I correctly also the Scalpel) are kinda flat with a de-cambered nose. Again, this comes handy for EC, but there is a price you have to pay for it. Again, the best advice I can give is to try to demo one so that you know what you gonna get. Other than that, no need to say, both are great boards, the usual top Virus quality. Later

I own an X-tremecarver Titanal and also tested the Scalpel. My preference for EC is the X-tremecarver. Anything particular you want to know about these boards? Maybe if you tell us your level of experience and also the boards you own / ride / like, people here will be able to give you feedback more tailored for you. Until then here are 2 pics of my X-treme in action Later

@Hans::lol:

Measured 126km/h with a gps device. I do not know how accurate that stuff is. But it is quite easy to get to 80-90. Above 100 you need an empty slope with perfect grooming. Feels more scary now than before I measured....