John Bell

Yup, I did a search, but the results were inconclusive--generally positive, however. Just realized I may have misunderstood your advice: When you said that width was one of the things that made a difference, did you mean that greater or lesser width made learning easier?

Good to know. Sounds like you're saying that the Speedcross, like the Pilot, is too beginner-oriented to be useful to me later on. Guess I'm just being impatient; at least one local resort opens this weekend, and there's a shot I may be able to scrape together the whole alpine setup by then. Hi to Buell!

I've also heard that the Never Summer boards are nearly indestructible--but heavy. Also heard good stuff about Glissade (thought their site has said they're sold out for months now), Unity Dominion, and of course the Tanker. I can tell you about boots firsthand. I have K2 Raider Boas and think the inventor of the Boa system should get the Nobel Prize in physics. It's so much easier to get the boot tight than it is on the lace-up boots. I think Vans also make a Boa boot; maybe other brands do too. I briefly owned Flow bindings but returned them before even getting on the slope. They didn't seem to fit the boot very well; I think they were too narrow in the metatarsal area. That said, a lot of people love them. One thing: I believe that any board you take into the park is going to get torn up pretty fast, so you may want something cheaper but less durable for that. Good luck!

I hear Donek makes great stuff, but is it the Donek reputation or the specs that make you say I should go with the Pilot?

Just kidding. Good question. I'm 5/9", 170 lbs., 30-in. inseam. Mondo 26.

Looking at an F2 Speedcross 161 for use with TD1s and Deeluxe Suzukas, on mostly groomed hardpack and ice. This will be the board I learn to carve on. Good idea? Bad idea? <TABLE width=300 border=2><TBODY><TR><TD>Sidecut (m)</TD><TD>Eff.edge (cm)</TD><TD>Tip/Tail width (mm)</TD><TD>Waist width (mm)</TD><TD>Setback (cm)</TD></TR><TR><TD>8.6</TD><TD>135.0</TD><TD>27.465</TD><TD>22.4</TD><TD>2.0</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> Is this board too short? Keep in mind I'm on the East Coast, however. Thanks for any thoughts! (BTW, I'm also considering a used Donek Pilot and a used Generics 160.)

So from what you're saying, Jack, it sounds like I really got them at a slight discount! Well, I'm definitely gonna try to ride 'em into the ground. I actually paid $183 for them, plus shipping. Hopefully the seller really needed the money. Interesting points about the "shilling" thing. Not sure if this auction was infected by shillers, though it's possible. I assume by "shilling" we're talking about elderly Austrians who refuse to switch to the euro, right? The truth is I got impatient to buy bindings, then thought I'd oh-so-cleverly bid at the last minute--and then my competitive impulse kicked in. But I will make the best of it.

Thanks for the words of reassurance, guys! Helps me keep it in perspective. Yeah, fitty bucks ain't a whole lot, all things considered. I'm still chomping at the bit to get on the slope with the alpine setup, once I get a board. Thanks to Bob as well for the warning about metal boards!

That's what I figured. Oh, well. Yeah, I should've known better to try to bid at the very last, and after a couple glasses of wine. At least it wasn't poker!

I just paid $195 (including shipping) for a used pair of TD1s on eBay. I got caught up in the final bidding, I guess. Seems a bit high. Did I get screwed? You can be honest. I'll still be excited at being 2/3 of the way into an alpine setup. --John

I'm eyeing one on eBay as my beginner board. What's the word on these? I love the pig graphic!

Don't know how I overlooked that.

Thanks. BTW, I wouldn't take PayPal either; don't they take like 2% or something? I'm intrigued but unsure as to whether that length is too much for me, a newbie, on East Coast ice-rink narrow runs. What say the Greek chorus? John

Thanks, Buell! Looking forward to slicing trenches with the rest of the gang here. John

Wish I'd found that how-to page before posting this query. 'Preciate the patient answers, guys. John

So when people on eBay advertise the mondo size, I assume they're talking about the shells, right? So if I buy a mondo 26, but my foot is 26.7 cm long, won't my toe be banging up against the shell of the boot?

So I'm thinking of buying hard boots for the first time. Stratton is too far, so I'll have to buy them online, and I'm confused about the sizing. The alpinecarving.com site says to buy the boot whose mondo size is equal to the actual length of your foot in centimeters and to round down any fraction thereof. My foot is exactly 26.67 cm (10.5 inches) long. Thus by said rule, I should buy a mondo 26 boot. I wear a size 10 street shoe. And yet every chart I can find and every boot I've seen for sale on eBay or here that gives a regular shoe-size comparison says that a 26 is a US 8, a 27 is a 9, and a 28 is a 10. Of course, Firestone's site says to ignore all these. Should I *really* buy a mondo 26 boot? Going strictly by Firestone's advice, it would seem so--and yet my gut says that can't be right. (My foot is slightly on the wide side--3.5 cm across the ball of the foot. But I don't buy shoes extra wide.) Thanks for any help! --John

Looks like I'll be getting my nuts buttered. (Butters is also closer to the interstate.)

I'm strongly considering buying an early-season pass to a resort within 2 hours of NYC. Topping my list are Butternut and Plattekill. Anyone have any firsthand experience with either one? Or should I be looking at the Poconos instead? I couldn't care less about shops, lodging, restaurants, etc. I just want as many long ripper runs (blues/blacks) as I can get. (I realize Killington is there, but it's double the distance. Same with Whiteface.) I'll probably be able to get away during the week fairly often, so crowds aren't a big issue. Thanks for any info. John

Sounds like a great deal, and I'm very tempted by the offer of free bindings, but what are the graphics options? I've looked at your site; would a buyer be restricted to only those options there? Could I just get a solid-black topsheet and base? (The "sad boy" just doesn't do it for me--no offense.) Also, by "standard" bindings, are you talking TD1s, TD2s--what specifically? And what's the shipping charge to the East Coast roughly? Thanks! John

I wear an old fleece full-face balaclava under my Salomon helmet (which is not full face). It works great. Without it, my face would get too cold. I've also tried one of those neoprene "Masque" things, but it was uncomfortable. Make sure the helmet you get has ventilation slots; that way if the liner gets too warm, you can let some air in.

Thanks a lot, Sean. That does clear things up perfectly. You're one of probably a handful of people who can authoritatively comment not only on the riding characteristics but on the manufacturing methods as well. So I appreciate it. I just wish all the various brands would use the same terms. Or that there were some objective scale of slipperiness, as there are for hardness (Vickers and Rockwell scales). --John PS--Does anyone know what the difference is between DuraJet and DuraSurf? (Sean probably knows but may be tired of typing.)

Interesting. OK, I'll fess to something really stupid: I once waxed my board with paraffin, thinking wax is wax and that special ski/board wax is a marketing gimmick. Well, guess what. It ain't. The board was slow as a piece of cheese moving through an octogenarian's intestine. Fortuantely, most of the wax cracked off by midday.

Does anyone know? This site says it's P-Tex 4000, but it doesn't address the 7200 and 8000 I've also heard about--not to mention Burton's "WFO", Whatever the FO that is: http://people.bath.ac.uk/cjht20/Advanced%20Engineering%20Materials%20for%20Sports%20Equipment.htm And what about DuraSurf?

Thanks, Bob--and BlueB, Jtslalom, Hans, and everyone who spoke up before. This is a very helpful group. I probably will hold off a bit. It's just tempting to buy something now, at the start of the season--and my current board (a twin-tip) is completely not what I need. (I bought it 'cause it was on sale at Sports Authority.) I'd been leaning toward a Never Summer Titan or an Arbor A-Frame--and then after I learned of Tankers, I started thinking, "Why not get some beast of a carving board?" But what I got'll do for now. At some point I'll have to hit Stratton. Despite living in VT for over a year (including a winter working at Killington), I've never been. I'll definitely visit Starting Gate. Let's hope for a long, snowy winter!