Aracan

+1 for hi-viz colors. I don't know if you are already used to crossing the fall line on your SB setup. If not, you will be surprised at how many people on the slopes will be surprised that you do that ANOTHER time after they watched you doing it five times already. Less politely spoken: When you make wide turns, sooner or later a moron is going to turn up who misjudges both your speed and their own. If you are lucky, it will be a narrow miss. Day-glo seems to lower the frequency of those incidents.

I think the Titanflex was F2's way of addressing the issue of Intecs being rather stiff laterally. What with standard bails offering more flex from the start they probably didn't see the need for that version.

I also use the ToolTonic set, because I like the Rotofinish, which helps to keep the edges sharp without removing a lot of material.

The new CC bails available from Carver's Paradise are notably different from the old ones. I am no expert, but they look a lot more trustworthy.

Given the fish-eye effect in the full picture, I'd say TimW is right.

I broke a more recent, thick F2 bail two seasons ago. It had been used by my skinny self (about 165 lbs in socks) for four or five seasons at that point, and I never get more than 30 days per season, if that. So you may have been lucky, but bails do break occasionally.

If you ask me (and many others on this board), the boots are most important. If they don't fit, the most beginner-friendly board and the flexiest bindings are not going to help you. This is a problem because there are hardly any shops were you can try the different models. The good news there are only four different shell shapes: Deeluxe symmetrical (325), Deeluxe asymmetrical (700), UPZ and Mountainslope, the last of which are rather expensive for a beginner. In my experience (others might disagree), the 325 has the widest heel and narrowest toebox, the UPZ is the other way round, the 700 is more or less between them. Before you pull the trigger on a new pair of boots in which you may or may not suffer like hell, I suggest you buy secondhand and see how you like the shell shape. Liners can be tweaked much more easily. Don't forget to do the shell test to ensure proper sizing: Remove the liner, step into the shell so that your toes touch the front inside. You should be able to fit 1-2 fingers behind your heel. Less is too ambitious, more is too loose. You can play around with spring systems later on. I wouldn't recommend the BTS. It was an excellent idea in its day, but there are better systems around now.

Hardboots can be made quite soft, at least fore-aft. I run the softest tongues (the red ones) on my UPZs, and the softest springs in the spring system. I have had to replace the center two buckles a few times, because they rub on each other so much when I really flex the boots. That said: 1. It is probably still not what you would call "surfy". 2. Step-in plate bindings (which basically means Intec these days) are extremely stiff laterally, as the heels are held by retractable lateral pins. If you want surfy, hardboots and step-ins are probably not the best way to go.

Just finished re-reading Raymond Chandler's novels for the umpteenth time. That stuff never gets old. And the Library of America edition is a pleasure to hold in your hand.

I had the BTS when I rode Deeluxe. I did notice a difference. But the difference Drupi's system makes on my UPZs is far bigger.

As far as the boots go, I would agree with Wolf: A failure will end your day, but it's unlikely to result in injury. The bindings are a different matter.

Spare parts for your bindings are available (they are called "Carve Company" these days, as the then-OEM manufacturer for Burton still makes them under their own brand), but once you have replaced both sets of bails, you won't have saved much compared to the F2 Race Ti, especially if you can find a deal somewhere. If your Burtons have the clear baseplate, definitely get rid of that one way or the other. Personally, I have suffered too much in that model of boot to even consider them, but feet are different.

Not to mention that time I rented a board which came with strange, unpadded cable straps bindings. Somehow I still managed to attach my (rear-entry, natch) ski boots and ride.

Been there, done that

If it works, it works. But I am not quite sure if the combo of ski boots + super-stiff bindings is the most promising one, fun-wise.

I cannot reproduce it, but in high school physics we did the calculation for two skiers, a lighter and a heavier one, to see which one would glide faster. Bottom line: Since friction does come into the equation (unlike Galileo's experiment), the heavier rider will glide faster, all else being equal.

If you cannot reach Dan Yoja, try Wolfgang directly. It's the Austrian e-mail address given on upz-boots.at

I suffered something fierce in Deeluxes. Switched to UPZs and never looked back.

If you can find Keprotec fabric anywhere, have someone who is good at it sew patches on the affected area. Keprotec wears very, very hard.

I learned that climate crisis hits a lot faster and harder than I had suspected (or hoped) a few years ago. This was a pretty shitty season, and it looks like it's over already. Didn't even scrape the storage wax off the Coiler, I rode only the old Bastard.

+1 for the DGSS. Drupi is a pleasure to deal with. The systems slots right into UPZ stock holes and works very well. The only thing you have to watch for is when you walk down stairs: Don't catch the bottom screw on a step or you might bend the threaded rod.

Even if you drilled an extra hole, why would it have to be so big? I don't know the diameter of the hole in the sole, but it is maybe 2 or 3 mm in diameter.

I had a hole-in-one once, but never from zero to solution in one step. My starting word is "stray", because "stern" was the hole-in-one already I prefer starting words that contain many common letters, and the final "y" often comes in handy.

The UPZs have a rather steeper inbuilt ramp angle than is desirable for most riders. This is especially notable on the front binding. I use a wedge under the front to partially neutralize that angle. My bindings are F2 Race Ti (bail type).

Same here in Austria. The local mountain is closed except for a short quad at the top. Temperatures continue above freezing. Welcome to the new normal, I guess.