Sinecure

Sorry Arnaud. That was directed at the original poster. 36° is definitely steep. And needs winch-cats to groom it. I love those slopes. I wish I could EC on them. Hell, I wish I could EC at all. But I love going fast and steep usually = fast - especially if you don't turn too much.

Only if it means the shell is going to cut into your leg. Otherwise, go for it. You might try carpet surfing it first.

I wish I still had that outfit.

Those are almost as cool as the ones I have with the pink built-in gators. Someone needs those for retro day.

You are definitely NOT riding 30-35 degree slopes. 35% maybe. I can easily touch the snow on 45 degree slopes. But 'carving' is not the term I'd use for the turns I make there. Jump turn would be much more appropriate. :p

Probably Prior 4WD (basically a BX type board). Most versatile board I have. I had mine built with an extra set of inserts rear of the others so I can turn it into a powder tool if necessary. Otherwise. Donek 210 Super G cause its fun to have a bigger board than any skier on the lift.

Do yourself a favor and get some new boots. Old boots, and especially old liners turn to crap after a while. Boots are by far the most important component of your interface/connection to your board and the snow. You won't make the jump from intermediate to anything more advanced if you can't feel your board. This is true in skiing and true in boarding.

Dang! I've broken every powder board I've ever had, but never broken a carving board. Definitely call Sean at Donek.

I have a Volkl RT 163SL I'd consider parting with. In excellent condition. Only ridden for SL races around Tahoe. Probably has 20 days on it. Let me know if I should bring it up with me this weekend. You can come look at it at Alpine Meadows.

If you decide to come to Alpine Meadows, shoot me a message so I make sure to ride that day. Wish I could offer a free ticket, but they haven't doled them out to us yet. Oh, and the GNAR movie is showing Friday night at Alpine Meadows. Its going to be freakin hilarious. Definitely worth showing up for. Channeling Shane: http://www.unofficialsquaw.com/index.php/home/4/6035.html

What's the company? Maybe some BOLers have experience.

I haven't taught a kid on one of these yet, but it seems like a great idea to me. I'm hopeful that it will help eliminate the heelside to toeside transition. Kids have trouble grasping the idea of twisting a board (pedaling, whatever you want to call it). I'm thinking that the beveling will make this a little easier, and will certainly eliminate some of the heel edge catching when sliding toeside.

I've raced in beer leagues for years. First of all, you're most likely going to win. There won't be any other competitors on boards with hard boots. So just take it easy and you'll still be faster than all the other schmucks out there. That said, JJ and Neil have good points. You may want to get a cheap soccer shin guard and strap it to your leading forearm. Like it or not, you're going to be racing with ski gates. They hurt when you hit them. You can cross-block them with your forearm pretty effectively if you armor up. Wear a helmet even if it isn't required. Sometimes you miss the gate and take it in the forehead. 1000 vert? McIntyre? Pats Peak? Crotched? You'll be surprised how much fun it can be racing at these places.

It'll be fine for what you're using it for. Must have been a flawed core.

Its too bad there aren't any threads on here about this subject. :rolleyes:

OK. I already covered this. But here are the places I'd go in Tahoe. #1 - by far #1. Elite Feet at Squaw Creek Resort. They stock Head hard boots. What more do you need to know? A place you can go in and try on the boots and be sure that these guys know their stuff and will guarantee the fit. Personnel don't change from year to year (same three guys at this shop for the past 4 seasons and 2 of them for 7+ years). #2 - Starthaus. Don't stock hard boots but these guys are good. Plus it is the number one place in tahoe to have a board tuned. All tuning done by hand. Amazing tunes. I routinely see racers carving boards in there, not to mention all the Tahoe area ski racers. #3 - There's a guy named Kosmo at a place called Footwerks. But you have to make an appointment. He does a great job on ski boots. Don't know anyone who has had snowboard boots fitted by him.

I wanna see that Chihuahua snowboard! Mt. High? WTF? Get outta Socal and come to Tahoe.

No offense Loo, but SF can be really hit or miss. I had my old pair of boots fitted and footbeds made there years ago at the shop in Squaw when they first opened. Guy named Brooks helped me. He was great. My kids have footbeds from Surefoot also. The kid deal is the only decently priced thing they have. Pay once for footbeds and they'll remake them every year until their feet stop growing. Also includes some basic bootfitting with the new boots. I've bought boots from them for the kids, as well as elsewhere. So all tolled, I have spent upwards of $1000 at SureFoot Squaw Valley (probably closer to $1500). Last week I went to the Squaw shop for help with my daughter's snowboard boots. It wasn't crowded in the shop but there was only one guy there. I was basically told "we don't work on snowboard boots but if you want to leave them overnight we'll see what we can do". I ski and snowboard. I'm used to skiers mocking snowboarders. But doing it to paying customers is NOT acceptable. It was the first time I'd gotten a bad attitude from a Surefoot employee at that shop, but I really wanted to punch him. I solved the problem by yanking out the SF footbeds. My son's foot will stop growing very soon. I'll go back once more to have his next set of footbeds made in his next boots, then I'll probably not go there again. I'm a ski and snowboard instructor at the ski area next door to Squaw. In the past I've suggested to clients that SF is a good place if they need custom liners/footbeds and can afford to pay high retail prices. That won't happen again. There are at least 3 other places I can send my clients where I know they'll be treated right and not get attitude from punk-a$$ 20-somethings who treat clients poorly. If you know the Squaw manager, feel free to tell him that whoever was working solo the morning after Thanksgiving really needs a lesson in customer service and attitude. He screwed things up for someone who has been a customer of theirs since the Squaw shop first opened. Sorry SureFoot, but kids and snowboarders count too.

So you keep it there so you can rub in your special wax?

Liftopia is a great site, run by some cool guys who love to ski/ride.

If Mike T sent you there, you don't really need other opinions, IMO. In Tahoe (all of Norcal IMO): Elite Feet at the Resort at Squaw Creek. They stock Head boots and do great work. Only other place I send people is Starthaus in Truckee, but they don't sell hard snowboard boots and Elite Feet does - and I like to support anyone who stocks our gear.

If you want to schlep up to San Carlos one day, I'd be happy to help you mess with them. I've had the same boots for years now and been messing with hard boot setups for decades. PM or email me. Just plan to bring your board/bindings, although I have some here as well. I'm here during the week and in Tahoe on weekends.

This made me realize. This season will be my 25th season riding a snowboard. 23 on hard boots. I feel old.

You'd have to pay me a lot of money to ski/ride the areas around DC/MD/NC. Plus its way to f'ing hot there in the summer. 500ft of vertical is OK if that's all you've got, but if you have a choice, it is a horrible one. Outside LDS land, the only two on your list that make sense are Boston and Bay Area. Bay Area has the longest and best season BY FAR. Six solid months of lift-served skiing/carving, plus June and July if you are willing to hike. I grew up around Boston, have spent a fair amount of time in the DC area, and now live in the Bay Area. Tahoe has amazing snow and Bay Area weather is incredible. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else (except maybe IN Tahoe - something I'm considering once both kids leave for college).

If you want to venture up to the north shore or down to the Bay Area, I'd be happy to help you out with this. It should be really simple, but I can understand your hesitation if you've not done it before. I have lots of spare t-nuts in my tool box if needed. The other thing you'll probably want to do once things are installed is to heat the liners. I doubt the UPZ have a channel in the shell for the release cable, so molding the liners will create a channel in the liner so you don't get a pressure point. I know some north shore shops that will do it for you if necessary. I hope you got out and enjoyed the best opening weekend I can remember. The snow was incredible. I'm at Alpine Meadows most weekends.