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Heres a short video taken at PMRC yesterday. Hope you enjoy it. For those of you wondering, I am on a PGS from Hardbooter with vist plate, f2 bindings, and UPZ RC8 boots (the black ones). I will be making a PMRC alpine snowboarder review, I hope sooner than later :). Enjoy

I have a pair of of Deeluxe Tracks 700 in 25.5 that I can sell you.

Just rode up at Park CIty and the snow is great and it looks like its going to keep snowing! See ya this weekend. Dave is posting more info on the hardbooter forum http://hardbooter.net/forum/index.php?board=2.0 Loc--Hopefully you and Neil make it up here. See everyone next weekend!

nekdut--That sounds very cool. I noticed you are in LA, I will be in LA County tomorrow thru saturday, if you had one you wouldn't mind showing me I would like to see it. I will buy the beer.

Michael--I hope this isn't too long. As for your first question—I have absolutely no idea other than what I can see and touch. It seems stiffer when I flex it in my house and also appears to be thicker under foot. If any of that is right is anybody’s guess. Most of the time I have no idea what my stance width or angles are, not to mention specs of the board I am on. I have never been a stickler about specs, just get me on a board and I’ll try my best to make it turn. Sorry not much more help to you with that. Now on to your next set of questions. I am riding a pair of last years Deeluxe Track 700 with red BTS kit and Booster straps. These boots are very nice boot but I do think they are a bit soft. I have noticed on the Kessler when I really crank down they don’t seem to have the support (stiffness) that I would like. I will get my hands on a pair of UPZ and when I do I will let you know which I liked better and why. I will try not to go on and on about the Vist but I must warn you I do think plate systems are a real and tangible improvement to alpine riding, so much so that I would like to test traditional glass board (with the new shape and rocker of course) with a Vist plate to a metal board without a plate. I remember a long time ago we used to dream of having a plate system. Anyway, what I like the best about having the Vist is the amount of leverage it allows me to gain. That leverage puts so much more pressure over the entire length of the edge that it completely changes how you ride. Talk about making it easier, there is no way to compare it, doing top to bottom runs doesn’t wear me out like it used to. I would like to think that I am not wearing out because of all the cross training I do in MMA and racquetball but I honestly don’t think that is the full reason why. Secondly, it allows me to run lower angles. By doing so I feel much more stable and I feel I can react more quickly to changes in the terrain. Just don’t ask me my angles…I would have to go look to find out but the last time I rode the PGS they were 55 in the front and 50 in the back. Lastly, like you said the Vist lets you stance stay the same no matter what the board is doing. I like this because your stance stays canted or not canted (mine doesn’t have cants) to what you like. Without the Vist I am always fighting my knees to stay apart because the board is bending and making my knees fold together. This coupled with the free and natural bending of the board helps with edge pressure (again) and my balance. This is just my humble opinion and for all I know it might be wrong but I can tell you without reservation that if at all possible I will only ride with a plate system and I am in no way a racer. This has made me think, maybe I should/will do a video comparison on one board, a few runs with the Vist and a few runs without it. I hope this explanation was clear…if not or you need me to explain something else just ask away, I am more than happy to answer anything I can.

WinterGold--Anytime you get over to PC let me know and we will go out and rip some turns for sure. The more to join our sessions the better. Michael Pukas--Not to sure what the differences exactly are but I do believe that the amount of rocker is quite different. Yesterday I got to test both the Kessler and SG SL boards. It was my first day on a SL board since 92. Between these two i thought the SG had a softer nose but a more solid tail. The Kessler seemed easier to wash out some speed at the end of the turn if needed. Again this was my first day on those boards so that is really just a first impression. I know Billy will be doing a good write up of both soon so check over at http://hardbooter.net/blog/ as well. The next comparison I will focus on is Kessler stock vs. Kessler custom. Glad you guys liked the video...We will be shooting a lot more especially after next weekend for me (I am out of town next weekend). We have a guy that is going to shoot for us with some really good equipment so the shaky cam stuff should not happen.

Kelvin, I just got down from PC, the snow was great for alpine but a lot less than we are used to. I think that the forecast is calling for snow the next 7 out of the next 10 days or so. Where to stay is really best answered by someone else as I couldn't give you the best advice. Hope this helps. Will

For me its Park City for a few reasons one of which is the grooming. I have a pass there so next time you are coming through shoot me an email and we can get out and make some turns.

Here is some footage of the Kessler plus some extra stuff like Billy on the SG. Sorry about the shaky cam but I hope you like the video. Will post more as soon as we get more footage. http://www.viddler.com/explore/HardBooter/videos/23/

Michael--I agree this board loves to go fast down the hill. I do not do a lot of crossing the fall line so it really fits me. I am jealous of you riding hardpack, that is the one thing I really miss about Whiteface. Fastskiguy--I couldn't agree more, these high end boards make life much easier!

stevo--I haven’t seen that picture in years—thanks for the memories. Comparing my setup in that picture or any glass board to today is completely different so where do I start??? I guess I will start with the boots. Back then I was using race stock Rossignol ski boots that were modified to allow more ankle flexion. It wasn’t softer just more movement. Back then I needed a much stiffer boot since the boards were a lot narrower and stiffer themselves. I do still miss the solid sole on those boots; I wish a snowboard hardboot manufacturer would make their boots with a solid sole. Now I am using either Deeluxe or UPZ, whichever I can get my hands on. With the softer boots I have been able to widen my stance as well. I have always been a big supporter of wide stances, in that picture, if I remember right; my stance width is probably about 19”. Now I ride anywhere from 20.5-21.5. I like having a wide stance for stability while carving and for landing big jumps. Also I always rode flat, no cants or lifts. Now I have been using slight heel lift on the back foot and toe lift on the front foot. Again for me this has to do more with the having everything a lot less stiff. Before I would have to really have a lot of fore movement to initiate the turn whereas now, between the shapes, flex, and plate systems you can stay centered and the boards initiate very easily. This property combined with the dampness of the boards is, in my very humble opinion, the best thing to happen to alpine snowboarding in a very long time. The ease and energy efficiency is revolutionary for me. Makes alpine riding easy and fun. Well it’s always been fun but it used to be a lot more work. As for my angles, I have always used the same principle, as low as I can without overhang. Most of the time I don’t know what angles I ride, just happened for this review I made sure I knew. I hope this answered your question. If not I will try to clarify.

SilverBullet--Not sure what Catek are selling but this is the KST blacktop board (Got mine over from Dave and Billy at Hardbooter.com) koldo--I will make sure and keep in touch with you for next year, as soon as I know our race schedule I will let you know so you can plan accordingly. Sounds like Slovakia has good bars

koldo--I don't know where my mind was but the Deaflympics will be Feb11-20, 2011. Sorry about the wrong info before.

Buell--I will make sure and let you know if I make it up there but I kinda doubt it except if we go up for WTC. Just too busy with teaching plus we are hosting a very big Deaf Studies conference this April. I do get up to PC 3-4 days a week though so let me know if you come down. One of my athletes has his pass at the Basin. Hes a ripper you would have fun riding with him, his name is Jeff. Let me know if you want me to introduce you two. WinterGold--I will try the SL stick soon...I have heard nothing but great things about it and if it is anything close to the PGS it will rock for sure. koldo--Yes we have PGS plus three other events, PSL, Boardercross, and Halfpipe. We will be competing at Vysoké Tatry, Slovakia from January 19th-25th. Come on out and introduce yourself..we will go riding. Maybe you can show me a good bar too! pow4ever--Beefy, I guess what I mean is that this is the first board that I have been on that I didn't feel I could just overpower at will. I just feel that whatever I bring that board will take. Does that make sense? I wish I was still getting that amount of days on snow but a 16yr old daughter takes up too much of my time now haha. I just talked to a guy that will film me and as long as he doesn't get called out to work he will shoot me on Saturday so I should be able to get the video up this weekend. John--As always it was my pleasure to get out and make some turns with you. I tuned it with .5 base and 2 side with no detune. I never detune my boards. The structure is what it came with, I didn't get a new stone grind. Wax is whatever LF or HF fits the day. Lee--Shoot me an email and we can set up a time to VP. You coming to PC for the tryouts?

Buell--Yup I still coach the US Deaf Snowboard Team. We have our Deaflympics 2011 in Slovakia. My goal is for the team to medal 9 of the possible 18 medals for snowboard. Japan is our biggest competition. You going to come to PC anytime? Jack--I have had the chance to at least take a run on all those and all of them are great in their own right. I thought the Donek (it was a prototype) was real nice especially for a lighter rider. The Prior is what most of my team right now is on. I have always liked how Chris makes a board, maybe the best all mountain race inspired board. I will be riding the Prior PGS board soon. Unfortunately I haven't taken more than 2 runs on the Coiler. The two runs I did take I really liked the way it rode. Will be looking out for your review.

Finally after a few seasons of listening to the hype about Kesslers I got the chance to use a 185 (thanks Billy and Dave at Hardbooter.com). My first reaction by the time I got down to the lift was “Holy Hell!” Here are my stats so you can gauge this review. Riding alpine for over 20 years, 5’8”, 165lbs, goofy foot, with angles of 55 in the front and 50 in the back. I have raced at all levels but much preferred to freeride. I used to get anywhere from 250-300 days a year on snow but now down to about 50 depending on work. The board was set-up with a Vist plate and F2 bindings. Now on to the important part: the review. I have been riding this board now for about 6 days on snow and this is a beefy, powerful snowboard. Carving performance was unreal, to say the least. Power, energy, no speed limit. For those who are looking for tremendous “pop” from the tail then this isn’t for you but if you really load up the tail then you do get that sensation, just not like an old school glass board. I am not a huge fan of “popping” off the tail and getting sent into the woods so I like softer tail that gives some forgiveness. This is a straight up race board but not like the old race boards that kicked your ass every time you weren’t spot on, it is very forgiving. This combination of power and forgiveness lets you ride anything with confidence. On the first day it was perfect groomers and this board I could relax, or be aggressive, and it responded well to both styles. We ripped race inspired GS turns top to bottom and even through in some Eurocarves for good measure…not to mention some switch riding. The problem with such perfect conditions I can’t fully put this through the paces and it left me wishing that I was back at Whiteface on a blue ice day. On New Years Eve we got up to Snowbasin, which is usually perfect but that it definitely wasn’t that day. My friends from out here said they hit some ice but I just called it good ole hardpack. Coming down the “iciest” part of the run this Kessler didn’t skid a bit, made me feel like Jean Nerva in Chill “you carve, you carve, you carve, you carve…no skid even if it’s icy” If I hade to have one board this would be it, no doubt. This is especially true with the Vist plate on it. I am going to throw that Vist plate on a Prior very soon to see exactly how much of the feel is influenced by it. I know some freeriders don’t want to ride the Vist or Hangel due to the weight or for whatever other reason but I can tell you that I love the Vist (easier to move from one board to the next) and don’t want to ride without some type of plate system. This weekend I will be shooting some video to go along with this review and a Park City Mountain Resort review. I was supposed to get some videoing done last week but that didn’t work out. Look for the video being posted over at the Hardbooter.com blog site plus I will try to post it here. Again, a huge thanks to Dave and Billy. See ya on the snow. If you are riding Park City look for me and we will go out make some turns.

The alpine team for the US Deaf Ski and Snowboard Association will be having our official tryouts during SES. Please come make some turns with us. We are looking forward to a great week at Aspen! Will Garrow Snowboard Team Coach

I recently got the new Deeluxe Track 700 T (thanks hardbooter.com) and I must say they work great. I originally was thinking about the UPZ but they hurt my ankles. So far the Deeluxe flex enough but at the same time when I really step into them they right there. Thats just my 2 cents. The most important thing in my book is that they fit right, nothing worse than boots that don't fit.

You too Buell! Look forward to making turns with you in the future.

Until yesterday I didn't any experience on a metal board and thanks to Billy and Dave at WTC all I can say is that anyone on a metal Prior or Kessler (sorry no Coiler to review) has an unfair advantage. Those two boards ripped turns through everything Park City had to offer yesterday. The last board I have been riding is a 205 Donek (which was a lot of fun) that was built in 2003 but in no way does it compare with the metal boards. Is metal the "Holy Grail"? I do not know because I am sure boards will change a lot in the next 5 years but until the next best thing comes out metal is where its at period. Also Bruce I want to reiterate what others have said, Thank You very much for your insights on the constructional issues with using metal.

"Where in Utah are you based? It would be nice to meet you at WTC in February. All the big names should be there: Fin, Michelle, Billy, Tille, and others." Mark, My family and I are in Orem and yes I will be at WTC for sure tomorrow but not FRiday (can't cancel too many classes to ride). I ride at Park City every weekend so If you want to make some turns let me know and look forward to meeting you tomorrow. Dave, Long time my friend. Yes I need to get to montana, I love it up there plus my my wife has never been. If I don't make there this winter how about some biking in the summer?

Thanks for the welcome and thank you Pat for the very kind words. Good to see the alpine community has a place like this to share knowledge. Anytime any of you are in Utah and want to ride please contact me.