Dr D

Time to thin the herd a little this ones up for grabs simply because it can out turn me. Its an incredible ride great for tight runs and traffic. IT has seen only 2-3 days on the snow. If you know what it is then you know what to expect. IT has a cosmetic blem in the nose that does not affect the ride or durability in any way. It has the factory tune on it which was a little heavy on structure in my opinion. Great board with technology years ahead of its time. Brian at Old snowboards can probably tell you more about it than I can. I got the board unridden from one of identities sponsored racers. PICS to follow I don't have any on this compute Make me an OFFER!

with a new never seen snow BLEM Garage

Here's an email I got from wayne today. looks like its time to keep an eye on a rising star and one of our own. SZ NEWS UPDATE_ OCT/NOV 08 Surf-Rodz was called yesterday and OUR OPERATION has been reviewed and we have been invited to submit to ISPO...... http://www.ispo-brandnew.com/en/Home.aspx The ispo BrandNew Award is the world's largest start-up competition in the sporting good industry and is seen as a barometer for the latest progress. Every six months an international jury meets in Munich to award the best and most innovative products of young entrepreneurs. ---------- SZ will also be featured in the next issues of Max magazine. MAX Ukraine is a lifestyle unisex monthly magazine well-known in Italy and Germany. http://www.max.ua/ ----------- Outside magazine to feature our longboard skateboard decks soon.... Outside magazine, America's leading active-lifestyle and adventure-travel magazine dedicated to covering the people, activities, gear, art, and politics of ... ----------- DAVE KALALMA_ to receive Surf-Rodz 72” TEAK OLO GUN longboard skate deck. SZ believes this is the best longboard deck to match Dave’s amazing surfing style. ...”Dave is an all around Hawaiian waterman who comes from a lineage of surfing champions. He is a master wave rider, who began as a world champion windsurfer, and has evolved into one of the pioneers and premiere big wave, tow-in surfers of our time. Dave has become a key team rider for Quiksilver and will be seen in upcoming feature films, television and video/dvd programs....” http://www.davekalama.com/ ------------- Surf-Rodz is currently working on a completely well-needed new website, online store for 2009....we are expanding into new areas and more product development in our snow and soon a surf-board design. ----------- Surf-Rodz is taking a different approach for 2009..... To bring new products to the market, Surf-Rodz formed as a collective design company. This has allowed the SZ operation to work with individuals and other companies whose vision and products match or even surpass Surf-Rodz' own. By not settling for a mass-market or an easy way out, and by focusing on relationships with riders first, and with the industry second, Surf-Rodz will be living up to its goal: To give every Surf-Rodz user, the ride of his or her life. 2009, SZ will offer complete, web, design, film/video and manufacturing right in our own backyard. The SZ collective has been a hard long road in finding the right mix of individuals and other companies to understand it's mission of working in a collaborative way.....2009 we look forward to expanding in all areas of riding pleasure...SNOW, ROAD AND WATER. Look for updates as they happen and thank you for your support and interest. As always enjoy your ride. Wayne Wayne Gallipoli Surf-Rodz, LLC http://www.surf-rodz.com 203.530.2668 mobile 203.937.5722 fax 162 Bellevue Avenue West Haven, Connecticut 06516 USA SURF-RODZ® Surf-Rodz is a registered trademark. ©2008

there is also a seller on ebay using the kidwell roundtail moniker. hes got a kessler listed currently but has had several swallowtails on lately.

http://web.mac.com/surfrodz/Site/SZ_ASB_System.html

I have several of his demos. The design is unique and for a purpose not generally sought by the hardcore HBer. They are specifically designed for soft conditions. They are also designed to be ridden with softboots They are an absolute blast on days when the groom is to soft to be safe in HBs. They are a fantastic ride in soft boots. They require much less power to carve and are a good way to learn to carve in an alpine stance for those who are thinking about getting into the sport but aren't yet ready to spring for boots and bindings etc. check out his longboard offerings as well. The guy builds some sick skateboards

What I really like about the 4807 ride is the individual tail flex it actually gives the board the feel of a round bottom side to side. I can surf it and never feel the flat base as I transition from edge to edge. I think the tails flex at a 45 to edge instead of a 90 if that makes any sense. each tail tip flexes toward the centerline of the board as it flexes linearly. I don't notice the tail in powder so much but the huge soft long rocker boat hull nose sure helps:biggthump

:lol::lol::lol: once the gear bug bites its all over :lol::lol::lol: I think the gear hoarding is probably a symptom of the same problem. Its hard to find stuff so we keep it in the garage just in case even if we have moved on to better sticks. I guess every sport has its quiver issues but this one has it in spades:eplus2:

Same deal with the k2? hows the ride?

We are growing again for sure. From 1% of snowboarders to something like 3% thanx in large part to folks like Fin and boards like this. the other points you make are all true but entry level skiing costs about $150 and its available everywhere and you can rent before you buy etc. Most of us have to buy our gear sight unseen and we go through 20 setups before we are happy. Its a lot of hassle if you haven't got a reason other than curiosity. Bottomline we grow if people are willing to try it and finding ways to get more people into carving iw where the interest comes from. they will naturally gravitate to better gear as we all did.

I notice lots of newer members are still on softies. Whether due to finances or lack of conviction I can't say but its certain that if we cultivate the stoke in these people our sport will grow and become more accessable for all.

Until rental shops have hardboots and good alpine boards the only exposure most people have to our sport is watching the 2 or 3 of us that exist on most mountains. They look at our gear and say wow I want to try that but then they find out what a set up costs and how hard it is to get it to fit right etc etc. They decide its to hard or to expensive and they walk away. Clearly Hardboots are the pinnacle of snowboard genetic development however there is a huge range of gear in between halfpipe and hardboot. Many people already have this gear and some of it will give them enough stoke carving to get them to move up to Hardboots. It is the feel of the carve that we are working towards not some elitist BS that one cannot exist without hardboots. The idea is to get them into our sport via baby steps. A directional board three straps or sme other combination that approximates the control and feel of carving. Most of us old timers progressed with the sport as the gear progressed. I started out in sorrels and duct tape:freak3: How did I end up here today? I bought three straps and tried them. I put skiboot liners in my sorrels etc. when plate bindings came out I bought them and used my rear entry ski boots. etc etc ad naseum. Our sport is dieing because our elite gear has priced itself out of the market. If we don't find a way to build a bridge between ourselves and cheap jibber gear we will become extinct when the last guy my age dies. So FLame away and contribute to the problem or become part of the solution and contribute dialogue that might be helpful to the cause or at least shut the hell up:smashfrea

We had so much snow last season that the groom never really solidified. In my mind it takes 3 nights of grooming to really firm up the groom. IT snowed nearly every other day all winter up to closing. HB carving conditions weren't that great a lot of the season. We never really had any boilerplate days either. Come to think of it we never had spring conditions either just soft squishy groom and tons of POW I had a blast running alpine boards with softies and never went over the nose once. soft groom is a killer especially if its in pockets and surprises you. With a surf rodz or an all mountain carver it was dreamy and I ran full on GS alpine boards the same way with good results.

I have been just wrapping the booster straps around the boot and the high back. It works good but the back foot is a pain to take on and off. I just loosen it and slide it up off the highback in the lift line. I like what you've done I might try that with my Ntypes. how did you attach them to the boot?

The OSIN is the early model with breakage problems FYI definitely not worth $500:cool:

Read the title this is a soft boot conversation. The above statement you quoted is referring to soft boots only. Please allow dialogue to grow on how to do this. When they are ready they will want to try hardboots too:biggthump

For those of you who can't wait to jump into this conversation, please realize that if you are a hardboot zealot this conversation is not for you. No offense but we are talking about soft boot alpine applications. Jack put it nicely its a niche that will help bring more people to our sport. They won't come if every conversation centering around soft boot applications includes some idiot telling them they are stupid for trying it:smashfrea Some of us like to be different and just wear softies to piss you off And some of us have discovered that when the snow is to soft to use hardboots without hooking the nose and killing yourself, an alternative exists that is unique and a real hoot. so butt out This concludes my rant for the day:biggthump

what he said:lurk: YOur angles will be higher using softies to. IF you subscribe to the heels and toes on the edges school of thought any way. See above pictures. you'll notice very high angles. The cateks don't have locked down highbacks but the angles are near skwal territory so its lateral stiffness that the straps are providing.

The Ntype boot has an internal highback and several models were quite stiff. So the third strap just tightens up the top of the boot which is the highback. The higher harboot liner also helps in this regard. There is no high back to lock down since its already locked down inside the boot. Its a special situation that does not translate well to other setups. even other step in softies with internal high backs aren't as stable. the switch interface is a four point lockdown rather than just a two point so it is much more stable than two point lateral or two point front and rear step in systems. the xtype boot and binding does not work the same either. most of the vans boots N type that have the ratchet strap over the arch and the third strap are stiff enough.. some have adjustable forward lean mechanisms built into the ratchet strap on the boot.

I have tried that and with the boot you have it feels really awkward. to stiff in one plane and not stiff enough in the other or something. Maybe its just me and maybe its just the rental boot bit it didn't work for me.

Ever wondered how useful the standard Velcro strap at the top of your boot liner is? Very useful for strapping your boots together, but how much support does it actually provide? Velcro is notoriously inconsistent when wet or infused with snow; Velcro also slips under tension. · Do you already own performance specific boots and want to make them firmer? · Do you want to add a little spring and support to your softer boots? · Do you suffer from shin bang? You may want to consider a Booster power strap. The Booster power strap dramatically increases your performance. By using specially woven elastic webbing the Booster creates an elastic bond between your leg and your boot. You'll get a quicker start to your turn and more rebound by using the Booster power strap. Preloading the Booster also allows you to control the response of your board. The Booster strap is a power strap that adds stiffness to your boot. It attaches (using a post screw) to the plastic cuff of your boot, behind your calf, and two ("Standard" - FIRM) or three ("Race" - EXTRA FIRM) elastic bands provide active stiffness to the front of your boot. The Booster strap is especially compatible with ThermoFlex liners, as those liners come without the standard Velcro top straps. Comes in Standard ($27.95) and Race ($38.95). <FORM action=http://www.cart32.com/cgi-bin/cart32.exe/BomberIndustries-AddItem method=post> <!--Item 1-->Booster Strap <INPUT type=hidden name=PartNo> <INPUT type=hidden value="Booster Strap" name=Item> Qty: <INPUT size=3 value=1 name=Qty> <INPUT type=hidden value=27.95 name=Price> <INPUT type=hidden value=.5 name=Weight> Model: <SELECT name=p1> <OPTION value=Standard selected>Standard</OPTION> <OPTION value="Race add $11">Race add $11</OPTION></SELECT> <INPUT type=hidden value="d-Model;Standard;Race add $11:price=+11" name=t1> <INPUT type=submit value="Add To Shopping Cart" name=submit> </FORM>

I am hoping to get a similiar feel from my Dupraz (recent purchase) PLUS I have opened a very definitely nonprofit orphanage for poor neglected OSIN and DYNASTAR shorty swallowtails! Please donate to my habit, oops I mean the cause. need knows no season but prefers winter LOL

I also highly recomend a surf-rodz for softie carving. Wayne has it nailed for soft boots carving accessability. They are actually better than hardboot gear on soft days. you can carve even if the groom is to soft without hooking the nose.

Alternatively go with catek freerides and the bungee around the top. solomon malamutes preferably

I ride that boot here's a few tips 1) replace the intuition with a tall hardboot liner. 2-3 inches above the shell is ok. 2) replace the third strap with the bungee straps ski racers use. I like the double thick ones but triples may be better for you. 3) get some old small ski boots and put the hard tongue between the laces and the existing tongue of your Ntypes. ( I seldom use this last trick anymore but it helped with the transition) I think you get stronger and don't need the tongue thing anymore after a while. IF you decide its no good all around send them to me and I will find them a good home:eplus2: