Bruce Varsava

I'm afraid you are an outright liar as you may have more insight here than the rest of us. You own the board that I broke my ankle on . The reason you own it is after I did the full front flip, I landed on the tail and bent it upwards a bit. So you are riding a semi decambered board for the last couple seasons. Since you ordered a new one, I guess it sucks. Thats it, proven, I'm right , may as well end the thread right here;)When you get the new board, I'll take a trade in and bend the front and Voila! Instant proto. This was an AM board that by todays standards had a very stiff tip and tail so we may be onto something here. If nothing else I can get back in the park and pipe with it BV

No sure it would ride that much better in turns as not even sure what kind of stiffness it would have to have. Too may variables there to comprehend without beer. When making few protos for the Cdn team, the ones with less rebound did not stand a chance and they really struggled with them. One issue is that you really don't see the winners struggling in the turns and they have good rebound to get to the next turn. I could understand it a bit better if they were sketching out regularly but the guys on the podium can make it through pretty clean almost every time. I love this speculation stuff, its a hell of a lot easier than building a proto:)

Unfortunately the site is on the to do list but I never get around to it. Its just a matter of being booked up solid for as long as I can remember so its not like I need the exposure at this time. Understandably it would be a great help though. Since the Titanal boards are so new, everyone kinda wants their own design and so far this season I have yet to charge for any of the customization. There really is no " stock" sizes as of yet as a few for sure are popular but by allowing many to design their own, I am amassing build data much faster than otherwise possible so it gives me a great advantage in the design side of things. I don't pay much attention to names as I can make a board look like one thing and ride like another if I wanted to. The names are generalizations but talking to me is the way to get things sorted out best. Must say that from my perspective, the names are kinda funny sometimes so if it puts a laugh in the day, I'm OK with it. BV

After you spend about 1.5 days building it and then it vanishes, of course it is a bit of a bummer. I must say you took it like a man and all was settled up to everyone's content. One very good part about it is that having a recently broken board in the shop does allow me to do destructive testing on other parts and disassemble things to make sure all is good. This really helped me sort out a few gremlins that always seem to creep into the process. You will be glad to know the new board is definitely stronger due to a new material I sourced to better fit the application in the board for which it was being used. In bench testing of that specific material, it took about twice as much bending for failure as the old stuff. However even if the board in question did not break, the camber was flattened out of the tail so it was kaput anyways. All you can really ask for is to have the materials to hold up till the core fails as by then it doesn't matter what happens. The T boards are definitely a bit more fragile than glass but the performance is addictive so its worth the extra bit of caution that should be exercised. I would love to make them totally indestructible but do have to make tradeoffs for performance and weight savings to make them fun. Continuously working on it:biggthump

She took some nasty unexpected crashes on it as it seemed to have little room for error. True enough that I did have a few friends with them and they were doing well. What I remember thinking about after looking at in in the shop was it was hard to initiate but once you got it turning, it really finished off super powerful with the wider tail. I think she kept getting sprung off the wider tail.

Board builders and designers UFC cagematch:boxing_sm Fin, can you get an Octagon ring for SES? I'm going out to run some stairs now with my walkman ( can't afford an Ipod) playing Eye Of The Tiger. Sorry, just a thought I couldn't keep to myself:)

I was flattered with the quote from Dave. Not like I haven't taken ideas from others for almost every board I make, it makes progress faster and more effective. the Stub is also a fun free ride stick with race board soul as the materials are almost identical to race stuff. With the very positive feedback I get it would be surprising if similar designs didn't pop up. I didn't know there was a big separation going on? I freecarve on race gear all the time. Just don't like to see anyone disrespecting another riders style. Not that you were but since we are pretty much all using gear that is similar to a certain degree the technique seems the part that is most easily differentiated .If you want to lay your body down every carve or if you want to stay upright and angulate, its all good. The gear is so different now its hard to compare anymore. For freecarve I like softer gear as I find it more versatile. Once you learn to solidly carve that blue run on a stiffer board, you can do it with much less effort on a softer board, not as exciting( unless the snow is soft and you lean forwards) but use that blue run to get to the icy black run and you'll have all the excitement you want and the softer board will do wonders:) From what I understand now, the race gear, especially tail sections are getting pretty darn stiff again. Didn't you just say a few sentences above that needing stiffer freeride boards was false:lol: What most people don't realize is it is reeeeealy tough to make 2 boards pretty much exactly the same especially the overall stiffness. Production boards vary considerably and even when I was working with racers it took a lot of effort to get duplication process sorted out close enough for them to be happy. The techniques I developed on them, I now use for every board I build so it allows me to set the stiffness with great accuracy. Does it mean that the customer gets a board that does exactly what they want, not always but it is a great deal more accurate than no system. If there is a benchmark to work from where they have ridden one of my boards , then it is a very effective tool as the first board I do for anyone is calculated off previous data and the more data the better. This is the huge advantage of getting a properly built custom board. Since I have never built you a board, you can't really say if my design suits you or not as part of the process is asking questions and coming to conclusions about what and how to build . You no doubt have very specific needs to match your abilities so that of course would be factored in and surely a lotof the boards I build would not be to your liking. Its very personal and I try to treat it as such. I can totally see it for freestyle but part of racing is the rebound of the board for acceleration especially on flatter sections of a course. I feel that would be tough to get out of a flatter board. If I'm proven wrong, I'll buy you a beer, hell maybe even 2. BV

Not as nasty as I sounded upon hearing of its demise as it was built for me:eek: It was a standard X2 stubby

I actually won one at a race and let my wife use it. Dangerous is a proper word for it!! It was a production board as I did see a few around The reverse taper and flex pattern was designed to end ones life rather than give a good ride. She was complaining about the ride and then I took a close look at the dimensions and got rid of it pronto! BV

Billy Billy Billy, You know I love you too but must put in my 2 cents here. The above statement makes it sound like you are riding on edge all the time. last time I went out I had to ride flat on plenty of occasions so tip/tail pressure was nice to have to make that easier and safer on the type of snow we experience the majority of time. . Its a balance of not having too much but enough to make the board perform in all situations. I have been and always will be an advocate of lower camber boards. It gives a nice balance. If you want any decent rebound energy from a board with less or no camber, you need to make it stiffer and by doing so you decrease the ability to bend it in a wider range which will limit turning capabilities. Been there, done that with lower camber. Alpine riding is different for everyone. I have seen racers who cannot even carve a turn but got the biggest cheers from many more experienced racers as they came across the finish as just getting through the course was a big success for them . You cannot compare everyone to riders of your level who have the skills to execute the "current level of alpine". Many need different designs built in to accommodate the fact they are not superhuman and maybe can only get out a handful of times per season. Maybe it should read: "Top level racers are freecarvers who have perfected the art of riding a board around sticks quickly" From my perspective the equipment a racer uses and a freecarver uses are becoming more and more different each year so eventually you would think that also considering them a different aspect of the sport would somewhat make sense Again, at your level you may find some of the boards I build , which many people have given great reviews on, too boring as you like more demanding stuff for your skills. Ummmm, didn't I see a post somewhere by one of your team where it was stated about the Bsquared and I quote: " Billy Bordy has designed a board and Prior has built it to his specs. We had a run done and believe it to be a nice version of the stubby, in which he also had a hand in laying out". About 3 years ago I started using the "current level of the sport" construction in user friendly shapes, 5 distinct board lines as of last winter anyways. The original Metal Stubbies were out at ECES 3 yrs ago. NSR -eased off race boards Monsters- big freecarve boards Classics - first gen Titanal race board designs for freecarve and rec race use Stubby- short and fun freecarve All Mountain- tweaked AM designs to suit the metal construction. Certainly something from these must sit in " current level" status. Of course most of these are just me assembling good ideas from other builders and tweaking to user friendliness. All utilize up to date technology designed for their own end use. I think your perspective is quite high end and currently I am getting old, lazy and like the easier stuff to ride a lot of times. Hey bro, no hard feelings and correct me please if I have misspoken any of the facts. BV

I think I have enough to easily keep me busy till SES so deliveries for new orders would probably be mid Feb. Will soon be building a couple Stubs to 177! Not sure if the name still qualifies as they will have 162 effective:freak3: These are for guys who like the idea of the shorter nose but want more effective edge. The boards similar but with more effective are the "classic" designs which are similar first generation Titanal race models. Tested a few classics last night , some with the lamination I use on the Stubs and another with a more race oriented lamination. When you start getting longer effective, the race lam seemed to be more to my liking. Very small difference as I had to switch boards a few times to really feel the difference. Snow had a few soft areas so the higher rebound race lamination helped there. Less experienced riders would probably like the easier lamination as it scrubs speed more due to the higher ability to bend when pushed. I better get back to work as I want to test those new 77s! One rider already named his the " chubby" Please, enough names already:) BV

Bordy The picture of the board looks quite interesting. I have been avoiding snowkiting despite living 1 minute from a big lake as I really didn't like riding the high sidecut twins and just haven't had time to build anything different. Rocker and straight or reverse sidecut, damn, sounds just like the board I use for water! Come to think of it, when you look at what this entire thread is about and compare to what we use in water for kiting, it provides an easily understandable perspective depending on the medium you are riding in/on. I wouldn't consider riding a cambered/sidecut board in the water although I think it has been done for a certain ride. For most applications I wouldn't think the rockered board would be to my liking for snow however certain conditions and ride it would certainly be a good idea. How does that thing turn on harder snow? If you could just get rid of the highbacks next, I'm all over it!! My idea was somewhat to build a jumbo snowskate, very much like those little skateboard things that have a mini ski underneath them. Just make it much bigger and have the platform wider than the actual board that touches the snow so you could just use footstraps as the leverage from being above and out would allow it. I was still thinking a board with camber and sidecut but with a 20 m or so on the heel and a 10m on toe, titanal of course:) A guy up here builds these things called "Snowfer" and it utilizes the same leverage idea but for use with a windsurf sail. This application might be a good place for the snowstix as the lakes/fields you ride on are real variable so the adjustability would be a benefit. I have built skis to 270 cm for the dudes who windsurf on ice and know they always seem to want something different for different conditions as on any one day it can really vary from ice to pow. So someone please build me a board with the deck on top so I can use footstraps, straight heel edge with maybe a bit of sidecut on toe side and rocker/ camber adjustability similar to the Pokkis board. I seriously think it would really be a decent ride:biggthump I knew something positive would come of all this! Titanal of course:1luvu:

I think a lot of riders here have some idea of what the outcome might be. The point which I am somewhat wondering about is when on the hill riding with the stix set in a certain tension how can the effect be much different than a board with internal construction to get that tension into those areas? Carbon laminates, core adjustments etc. The stix will allow adjustment of course which would make the board feel different in different conditions which to some is a desirable but when set, if a mono board had the internals to somewhat duplicate that would it really be that different? My prediction is that it would be not that different but you would only have one setting so you would try to set it to optimum for the conditions you wanted to ride in . That would be pretty limiting so I can't see it being of value to anyone. With the stix it is of course a different story. My experience would say no tension and the ride would be " skatey" and very easy to roll into turns. With the sticks tensioned, a somewhat more regular tracking ride but as you know there are a ton of variables in each board so that would affect how the turning felt depending on board stiffness etc. How much energy coming out of a turn is hard to predict but could easily be felt with a test ride as again plenty of variables. Just some honest questions. Bruce

As Donald Trump would say YOU"RE FIRED:eplus2:

Yeah, tweaking the press is paying off! Very very little material removed to get it there too so nearly full base is still available. BV

Correct you I must! That was a 184x 19.8 x 14.2m early version Classic without tail decamber and a nasty aggressive grind that buzzed when you slid it a bit. The Classics are derived from the first generation of metal raceboards and have more mid and tail stiffness. This actually inhibits the extra bending as it forces the nose forward to accelerate you instead, thats the feeling of acceleration you describe. Good for racing at provincial levels and a good call for a dual duty race/freecarve board. Tougher to use on steeps for the acceleration reasons. One other thing you have to keep in mind is the higher sidecuts are great when the snow is reasonable but get to be scary when you can't set the edge due to snow you cannot trust . The order for scariness is something like this NSR, classics, monsters,stubs, AMs. At ECES I used the Monster with good results in the morning but when it stated to get real soft it was a bit too fast as you couldn't " sink your teeth" into the slope to bend it and slow down. Testing an NSR in frozen granular spring nasty conditions last season was too fast so I switched down to the Monster which was a bit better but the AM was the hero that day. Another thing is different manufacturers boards have always had different bend characteristics. My glass models rode longer than the sidecut indicated while I have heard that Doneks ride shorter and could turn pretty tight per sidecut. Lots of factors involved and each design has its strengths and weaknesses so its a matter of choice and always neat to experience it all. So for me to go to metal, it was a large change in flex type so they really are quite different from my glass boards. Chew on that for a while:) BV

Give it a bit more mid stiffness and a bit more carbon:) The classics do have those small tweaks to give a bit different of a ride. Stop that snow and get me some feedback, although you know Ive tested it already:)

There are not too many out there yet and I have yet to build a fair number still on order. I'll give a decent report on how mine rides. I have thge 188 x 23 x 15/16m which is a pretty much exact copy of James' board Firstly I must give full credit to him for kicking my ass to build it as it was so far off any previous metal design I had done it was a bit intimidating to take on the project due to unknown design considerations. I was not a "wide board liker" to that point and had the opportunity to test his as I do that with all untried designs during snow season to make sure I get a feel for what is going on. On a side note, I test a fair amount of customers boards as my production method will allow me to do it before the board is totally finished off. This is a huge advantage in the design advancement as I have a real good feel for testing and each new design or any board which has a small tweak can be tested head to head against my personal boards, demos or other customer boards. I live about 20 mins away from a 300' hill so taking half a dozen runs on varied hills really lets me know how things are going. To test larger or race boards I drive the extra hour on occasion to get to a more formidable hill. As for the monster, took me a few runs to get used to it as I had not ridden a wide board much but once I got over that I really started to like it. So much so I built myself one but just a bit stiffer as I am a bit heavier than James. Initially I found it easy on hill when being aggressive but didn't like the feel at the bottom of the hill as the width simply took more energy to get up on edge to slow down. Got over that soon enough too. The conditions that day were typical hard underneath with a layer of softer stuff on top which got clumped up . Seeing as I had my bindings set to allow for about 1/2" clearance on each side, it was not concern booting out! The boards are actually real soft for the length and I found I could really wrap turns quite tight when needed. With mine I can carve a pretty clean 360 almost anywhere on a moderate hill . I originally thought the tail was a bit too soft but then after getting bounced around and put in the back seat a few times, I found the board just kept on carving! I know jokingly refer to it as the " save your tail, tail!" Stubbies and AMs are very similar. You do give up a bit of rear board energy but I learned to really like it and surely others will too. On real steep hills I can get away with throwing the body towards the snow and hoping the board comes around, which it does.Was testing it last week on real steep ( no skiers can do a solid carve on those hills) and it was not as easy as the stubs or AMs of course mostly due to sidecut as I did have to jump a bit sometimes to get the direction changed before setting the edge but I knew I was at its limit which was expected. On that day we had hills solidly covered in death cookies and that is where it outperfomed the shorter effective length boards as it gave more of a Caddilac ride. Had a very short opportunity to ride it in some soft snow blown into the side of a hill and pushing it through that was fun too as the board softness and decamber allowed for pretty easy manipulation. My favorite move to pull on that board is to find a banked run with solid snow and get the board up higher than your body in a carve, the metals hold and boot clearance really make that a fun turn to try! Riding aggro in soft snow it has let me know I was reaching the limit by bucking a bit when the nose started to really bend but it has snapped me back each time with just a warning so I consider that stiffness just about right on mine for my weight as it allows for the widest range of usage. The metal also lets them come in at a very reasonable weight as mine is approx 8.5 lbs which when you look at the size and then pick it up, it is surprising as to the light weight. If you are considering it as your first and only metal, you really should like wide boards as if I had the choice I would probably go with a 176 AM x 21.5 or a stub with 20 or 21 waist as my favorite for a do all board. BV

You dream it I build it! With the new titanal board tooling I made sure it was super flexible to accommodate a lot of ideas easily. Working well so far and I have still a few accessories to add for even more options.

Get it at home in the new year. Has anyone on this site known me to ever be on time?:)

http://windzup.com/news_twisted.html He sent me a link and heres the site but its not too informative as the pic is an artists conception . Interesting to see something different though. Looks like maybe good for learning or tricks. I've only done it once on snow despite getting 40 or 50 days usually per year on water

A friend was asking if I make boards for kiting on snow and he sent me some info on what available. I do plan on doing them eventually but read this and one line in particular will make everyone smile and go home happy:) His timing was perfect as I just got the message! Rob Whittall - “We have developed a specialized board for the dedicated Snowkiter, designed specifically for the rigors of Snowkiting. This unique design incorporates many new features, which allow the board to ride and feel smoother on the snow. Delivering a feeling that is closer to Kitesurfing, less fatiguing than a traditional snowboard, and allowing the rider to enjoy the Snowkiting experience even more.” The technology inside the Velocity – * Posi + Rocker – The Velocity has a positive rocker, and this upward curve across the board helps with initiating turns at slow speeds and prevents edges from grabbing when riding flat. * Posi + Side Cut – The positive and progressive side cut gives the Velocity its unique shape while providing plenty of contact between the edge and snow. The Posi + Side Cut allows the board to cut through and float over the snow efficiently while tracking very directly. * True Flex – The Velocity has a constant flex pattern that extends from tip to tail allowing the deck to flex extensively, giving a natural and progressive carve to every turn. The constant flex increases the pop for improved freestyle, and acts like a shock absorber when traversing unfriendly snow conditions. * Shovel Nose – The tips have been trimmed down in width to reduce the tendency for them to grab when on edge. These tips slice through the snow keeping the board above the snow and tracking directly, resulting in less vibration and a smoother ride, unlike a traditional snowboard that is constantly plowing and crashing thru the snow. * Phat Ass – The Velocity has a 30cm wide Ass preventing toe and heel drag. It is also one of the reasons the Velocity feels so good in powder, due to the increased surface area the board rises to the surface easily to float on top, even at slower speeds. * 164 cm Length – With the thinner nose and wider body, the Velocity rides like a smaller snowboard, despite its impressive length. At 164 cm, it offers the perfect size for eating up rough surfaces, cutting cleanly across ice, and staying on top of deep snow. * Materials – The Velocity is a high quality snowboard built in the USA. Constructed with a sintered base and a solid wood core laminated to our specifications. Triax and Biax laminates mixed with resins designed to reduce weight while retaining maximum strength. High-grade stainless steel inserts and carbon fiber stringers round out the Velocity adding up to one of the most well built boards on the market.

Have to wait and see how the owner likes it but I am sure it will do just fine! I also changed the materials a bit to get a bit more liveliness without any noticeable ill effects on ice, That was also a success! The reason is the metal boards do not ollie very well so just trying to get a bit more of the ever popular "pop" into its characteristics as you would need it to be bouncing back and forth from regular to switch. For me it was a pain in the ass to work on as I often did not know which end was the front:) The nose was 2 cm longer than the tail but as you can see had exactly the same shape BV

The Schtub and AM are extremely similar in design and materials. I am in the process of setting up my press to do twin tip stuff at which time I can do all that easily as it was only originally built for shorter alpine tails. Check out this Titanal twin carve model 165 x 23.5 x 13.2m 151 effective. Tested and worked great but I didn't have the skill nor balls to ride it backwards. Also too lazy to rotate the bindings and ride it forwards going backwards:) By hand flexing it I am sure the tweaks I made for reverse initiation will work fine. This is the model I tested which has additional tail decamber and it indicated to me that it was a bit tail happy compared to a more fully cambered model. Not so much that after a run or two, it felt normal. Difference was about 2mm so it is slightly noticeable even at that small increment.

X23 has hi camber nose and reverse camber tail. Production date due Dec 2047:lol: