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I'm looking for a store so I can try them on in-store and work with a boot fitter to get them right. I bought UPZ boots online 10 years ago and my first day on them, I thought I'd never walk again. Trying to avoid that mistake.

Anyone know where I get Head Stratos Pro boots in Canada preferably Southern Ontario? I'm due for new boots and I'm thinking I might try Head this time. Deeluxe has never fit me that great but it seems to be the only thing available. I'd go online if the seller allows returns.

My friend, do not diss Canadian IPAs until you've tried Black Oak's Ten Bitter Years. Black Oak is a micro-brewery in Toronto. Ten Bitter Years is a limited edition double IPA and one of the finest beers I've ever tasted. 8% but it doesn't taste heavy. A pine/citrus nose. Even my lager-sipping wife likes it. http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/black-oak-10-bitter-years/113477/ Tough to get outside of Ontario, I would think.

Got a new Dupraz in July. Been taking it outside to make sure it gets the required dose of vitamin D. The topsheet on this thing is gorgeous.

Not a swallowtail but I ride another powder specific board, a Dupraz, in both hard boots and soft. When I get out on soft boots I almost always regret it. I have way more control in hard boots. BTW, if you want a powder board that works well on groomers, don't overlook the Dupraz.

Sunsurfer. I was intrigued by the Anton Glider system also but if you look closely at the photo, you will notice that the bindings are attached to the ski just below the boot as well as at the tip and tail. The Anton system appears to be more of a dampener for the tip and tail as opposed to a decoupling system.

A little PSA for Toronto peeps. I was killing time at Winners on the weekend and found a nice selection of Kombi gloves and Lorpen ski socks. Gloves were $39.99 and the socks were $12.99. If you dig around, you'll find the high-end Gore-tex gloves.

Not sure where you are Bobby but I'm in Colorado in December. I can bring you some chocolate.

Neil: I own a 2005 Toyota 4Runner V8 and it's quite possibly the best vehicle I've ever owned. I had the starter go on it last year but that's the only non-maintenance item I've had to fix. The nice thing about the V8 is the fact that it takes regular gas. It will also probably outlast you or me. It's on a full truck frame, as you know, but it has a very comfortable ride. Power and braking are great. It came standard with a full tow package (trans. oil cooler, hitch) so you know it's made for towing. I tow a 17 foot fibreglass boat and I forget it's attached. I like the Pilot but it's not a real truck and the towing package is an option. I'm thinking of selling it because I don't own a cottage or boat anymore. I'm not sure how I'd get it to SK but it would be really cheap. You'd have enough left over in your $40k budget for another car. HK

World Junior Snowboard championships going on in NZ in a couple of weeks. A lot of teams there training now. Must be tough to train alpine when all you want to do is hit the pow.

Thanks Chris for the encouragement. Yes, I started talking to Gerry Kavanaugh at Apex Composites after the Olympics about helping him take their race plate to market. One thing led to another and I ended up acquiring the world wide distribution rights to Apex's snowboard and paddle sports products. If you're not aware, Apex is very big in the dragon boat racing scene. Out of respect for the fact that this is Fin's site and he and I have competitive products, I'm going to avoid discussing our products on BOL. That being said, I think there is room for the two of us in this town. We are focused on the racing market and the Apex race plate is designed with only one thing in mind - getting around a set of gates as quickly as possible. I'm having fun so far with this gig. There aren't many businesses where you hang with Mark Fawcett or Bruce Varsava and then get to write off the cost of the beers. One day, I hope to make money at this. All of you buying two or three plates for your quiver would really help that cause. See you on the snow this winter. I'll always have a demo board with me so you can check out the Apex system in person. In the meantime, if you have any questions or want to talk plates, you can find my contact info at: www.apexsport.ca www.apexsnowboard.com or check us out on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/apexsnowboard And if anyone's driving through Burlington, drop by the shop. I'll buy you a beer. I can expense it!

Burton ain't coming back unless Jake himself mandates it for purely altruistic reasons. Burton is, first and foremost, a fashion company. They sell a lot more clothing than gear. And alpine riders aren't exactly driving the trends in snow sports fashion. I've been doing this for 10 years and our niche hasn't really grown or shrunk in that time. What I do see is a lot of kids with interest but totally lacking the access to equipment or instruction. If the gear isn't available, they just won't take it up. I'd like to see all the alpine equipment mfgs participate and contribute to an advocacy group that will promote the sport. Loaner gear, lessons, etc. I see it in telemark. There's a group that does that rounds of all the ski hills with a van full of equipment. They advertise well in advance and then loan out the gear and give basic instruction. I think they do a lot to promote the sport. Don't know who would do this in alpine. Any volunteers?

Check this out: "An interesting move for Burton has appeared in the development of it’s channel binding system, The central mounting channel for binding screws has swollen to 6mm in diameter," http://www.documentsnowboard.co.uk/news/gear-news/next-winters-gear-snowboards-boots-and-bindings Hmm...

That sort of reasoning sells a lot of golf clubs. Meanwhile, the club pro is twiddling his thumbs instead of giving lessons. Case in point, I thought I was one hell of a skier. I always check off "Advanced/Expert" on the rental forms <G>. Then, this season, I spent 4 days skiing with a Level 4 instructor. Holy sh*t, Batman! Did I ever have faults in my technique. At the end of the 4 days, I was skiing at a whole different level. Now, I just gotta find someone to help me with snowboarding. Look, take it from a gear whore. I have 10-12 snowboards. I'm always looking for "The One". But the problem is not with the gear. It's me. Late Edit: I don't mean to say metal won't make a difference. It certainly will for an intermediate, advanced rider. I absolutely believe it. But, it sounds like the OP is having a technique problem and he needs to solve that before going shopping.

I'm with C5 on this. Waste of money at this point. I own a Volkl and it's a damn fine board. I also own a metal Coiler. The Coiler is my go-to board but it doesn't make me a better rider. Work on technique. If you can find a qualified instructor, one day of lessons, even just pointers would be a better use of your money. With regard to trusting equipment, I've folded the nose on every board I own except my old, beat up Prior 4WD so C5 might be onto something.

The one thing that puzzles me about this whole debate is how Americans, both for and against, are always comparing against the Canadian system. What about the rest of the world? The chart below shows green and blue for countries with some sort of universal health care. The grey is without.

What about snowboarding, riding motorcycles and cheating on your Swedish wife?

I bought a couple of those Burton lift ticket vouchers off Craigslist but realize I won't be using them. I'd like to get $30 each to recoup some costs. If you Paypal me, I will send you the code. They are redeemable until April 30, 2010 at the following resorts: united states alaska Alyeska california Sierra-At-Tahoe® Resort Big Bear Snow Summit Homewood Alpine Meadows colorado Durango Copper Mountain Telluride Winter Park Steamboat Ski and Resort connecticut Mohawk Mountain idaho Sun Valley illinois Chestnut Mountain Raging Buffalo Indiana Paoli Peaks maryland Wisp massachusetts Butternut michigan Cannonsburg Pando Boyne Mountain Boyne Highlands Swiss Valley Shanty Creek Timber Ridge Mt. Holiday Apple Mountain minnesota Elm Creek Winter Rec Area Afton Alps Buck Hill Ski Area Spirit Mountain new hampshire Ragged Mountain Waterville Valley new jersey Mountain Creek new mexico Taos new york Hunter Mountain Gore Whiteface north carolina Appalachian Ski Mountain north dakota Huff Hills ohio Mad River Mountain oregon Mt. Hoodoo Ski Bowl Mt. Hood Meadows pennslyvania Liberty Mountain Whitetail Resort Roundtop Resort Camelback Jack Frost Big Boulder utah Powder Mountain Sundance vermont Bolton Valley Jay Peak Ski Resort Burke Mountain Stowe Stratton washington Mission Ridge Stevens Pass west virginia Snowshoe Mountain Resort wisconsin Tyrol Basin wyoming Grand Targhee canada alberta Rabbit Hill Snow Resort Castle Mountain Resort Canada Olympic Park british columbia Kicking Horse Revelstoke Mountain Resort new brunswick Mont Farlagne Crabbe Mountain newfoundland Marble Mountain nova scotia Ski Wentworth Martock Mountain ontario Snow Valley Boler Mountain Horseshoe Resort Chicopee Ski and Summer Resort Glen Eden quebec Mont Saint-Sauveur Edelweiss Mont Sainte-Anne Mont Orford Station Mont-Tremblant Vallee Du Parc Stoneham

Ya, that's a bit of overkill. I think a goodwill gesture like some clothing or schwag would have been more effective. Reminds me of my '88 Dodge Caravan with the transmission that went bad after 40,000 miles and after the warranty expired. When I reported it to Chrysler, they expressed surprise. So I downloaded about 50 pages of transmission complaints from a site called "dodgesucks.com" and faxed the whole stack to them every hour. Took three days but I got them to pay for a new tranny.

softbootsailer: Can you tell us how Burton responds to this? Their customer service is second to none and I would think they're gonna do everything in their power to make you happy. This kind of breakage makes for bad press. If this is a real problem, we could see a massive, Toyota-like recall.

Thanks for posting Dave. This one really hits home. I knew Jackie well. Ran races with her at AOS. We're also the same age.

What do you think is the size of the racer market? I know it's small but if someone is serious about making it to the World Cup level, they're not going to let $1000 get in the way. I know one Dad who installed a rope tow on a hill on his farm.

Nre?...

The first time I got stuck in waist deep powder in Utah, I nearly had a frickin' heart attack trying to get up. My buddy's face was so wet from the effort, I didn't know if he was sweating or crying. What we figured out: - On flats, lie on the board and paddle out. - Anywhere with trees, roll downhill until you can grab a tree to help pull you up.

Guys: What's the price on the Hangl, F2 and competing systems? What plate is Benjamin Karl using and is it available to the public? From what I have heard, the Hangl is too stiff and too heavy for lightweight riders. Does the Apex overcome that? How are any of these plates sold? Do you have to call some secret phone number and give them a password?