SunSurfer

Just done a Google search for "EVA thermal properties". Intuition build their liners out of EVA foam. Long story - read the attached pdf. Long story to short. 1/ EVA foam gas bubbles lose volume if the foam is heated too much. The foam then shrinks. Minimal gas loss occurs at 60C, but shrinkage is measurable and greater with higher temps and longer time exposed. 2/ If you want to heat mould EVA then even heating through the foam is the key. EVA is a good insulator so achieving even heating takes time. For me that adds up to a slow & low temp warming in an oven I've checked with a thermometer. ultralon datasheet.pdf

I agree with him! Skwal stance OR forward of 60 degree binding angles make soaking up the bumps easier. An isolation plate makes an amazing difference to make afternoon snow conditions carveable.

or on the position of the observer(s).

Depends how many degrees direction change is required to call it a turn.>:)

Like you I rode my HSPs till they broke. I have narrow heels and a widish forefoot. I'd tried Deeluxe shells and not liked the fit. I'd read that the UPZ shell would likely fit my foot shape but didn't have the chance to try them in New Zealand. I took the chance, taking advantage of Dan Yoja's UPZ off season sale in 2016 and bought a pair of RC10S in the same mondo size as my HSPs. Fit out of the box was good, but I found that to control heel lift in my rear foot I had to modify the angle of the middle strap. Note that I generate so much heel lift force that I also tore the baseplate of my rear TD3 apart ( see the Bindings Review section for TD3 metal fatigue) during ATC this year. 18 days straight riding at ATC produced some rubbing points and rear leg shin bang while using the standard liners so I've just ordered a pair of Intuition liners. Have to wait till August to try the result. Overall, I'm happy with the change to UPZ. Flex control is OK with the inbuilt spring system and there is an aftermarket Italian spring system thread on Bomber if you want more. I ride with my rear boot with as much fore and aft flex as possible, while I keep the front foot pretty stiff, and I've ridden the UPZs in walk mode in powder with no issues. Happy to talk more about the mods I made if you want.

Technique will get you onto your edge, and as technique improves you will stay on edge on steeper and steeper slopes. As technique improves so one's riding becomes more efficient, less forced and awkward, and more graceful. And YOUR style will emerge. But all along the way, it should be fun.

Some of us ride with that 90s body position (body facing forward heelside and toeside) now, but with wider stances. (this video is not intended to be inspiring ;-))

That's Rusutsu at it's best. It snows so much there it's blue sky only rarely. Flat light with your fresh overnight powder is much more common. When I visited in Jan 2016 I swear it was snowing 70% of the time, day & night, seriously cold, and often a good dose of wind chill. The trees are well spaced, but these days the Aussies and North American's en masse have discovered the inbounds tree riding. The pistes aren't bad for beginner/intermediate carvers either, but only a few steeper pistes for the advanced carver.

Bigwavedave, love the video, chatted to Joe Turner. (Purecarve team rider video 2) at the top of the Tiehack chair the week before ATC 2017. Love the forward facing stance, both heel and toeside, almost all of the riders use. I aim to ride the same way.

It looks like the guy with the spinal collar on got more than coaching from you! You're entitled to feel proud of your team!

The key phrase is "my riding style...". I ride with my body facing the nose of the board for both heelside and toeside, weighting the edges out of the sides of my boots. With that stance, as I lower my centre of mass, the angle of my front lower leg needs to change much less than the back lower leg. Don't have any video of me in my UPZs, but the Heads in video above at SES 2015 were set up the same way. These two photos were shot on Ruthies at ATC 2017 (Nirvana Energy 174, 0.4mm Titanal). They show the front and rear view of my heelside stance, whereas many riders face their body across the board for their heelside turns. Despite the soft flex in the rear boot I still stress the hell out of my heel of my rear binding, see the following thread link to see just how much. I'd modified the Heads to change the angle of the ankle buckle, just as I've done with the UPZs. Despite being able to generate enough rear foot heel upward force to tear a TD3 Intec apart, I don't get heel lift inside the boot!

The lower nut controls forward flex on the UPZ. For my riding style I want my front boot to have minimal forward flex. This allows me to more precisely control pressure on the front part of the edge, critical to turn initiation. I want my rear boot to have lots of forward flex so I can bend that knee to get my centre of mass lower as I turn. To easily adjust that nut I had to file down a small spanner so it would fit into the space.

ATC 2017 - 6th Feb - Riverside Drive Run - not the usual suspects ATC actually attracts riders of a very wide range of levels of skill. I've always found video of my own riding helpful in making progress. If I shot you as you rode past, including some riders I think from the Intermediate Clinic(?) I hope this helps you. Corey Dyck, Richard Knapp & Dave Redman towards the end show how it can really be done. John, I hope you are able to do some more editing of the other footage you've got.

This pair of 2016 RC10s have 26 days riding on them. After 8 days I resorted to some serious modification to minimise heel lift in my rear (Right) boot. Then I rode them for 18 days before and during ATC in Jan-Feb 2017. Rear foot heel lift no longer a problem. Nor does the lower cuff buckle crunch the heel buckle any more. If you're inclined, play spot the differences, both from each other, and from the original RC10s! The first photo is in walk mode only to show the spring system.

My answer to that comment is "You can, but would you drive a Ferrari backwards?"

Oh no! Big Mario's backside! He has got a problem!

I'm an obsessive first into the carpark guy just so I can switch boards around or just try different settings. With the cord cut up and lumpy within an hour or two of opening time my later in the day board almost always has an isocline/isolation plate on it.

Nate, they were right where the cracks occurred. I had almost always ridden that binding at 60 degrees, regular stance, cant disk and binding plate axis aligned (no cant). The screws were always tight, never found them loose after riding. Our collective impression that TDs were unbreakable gave us a false sense of security. This event should reset that. I don't blame Bomber for this, but I am of the belief I have a personal responsibility to keep an eye on my equipment. That may reflect my Kiwi mindset and a completely different tort law environment in NZ.

Tape around front bail is over 1mm thick PVC tubing. The toe shape of my UPZs contacts a naked TD3 toe bail at just 2 small points. The tape/tube is significantly more worn at those 2 points but the effect overall is to spread the toe loading over a larger area. The toe bail of my F2 Intecs fits UPZ boots like a glove! When I order a new base plate I will be ordering extra screws for attaching my base plates to the cant discs.

Amen, brother!

THANKS! To the nameless carver I saw from the chairlift at Mt Hutt all those years ago who flowed down the mountain like liquid mercury. To Nigel C who critiqued my turns at Turoa and opened my mind to body angulation. To Fin Doyle for this community with its' collective wisdom, and for SES/ATC. To Corey Dyck, and Richard Knapp for the teaching sessions I've had and learned from. To all those who've shot stills and video at the Sessions and given me glimpses of how I actually ride, in particular Johnasmo, Riceball, Trent, and OhD. To all of you who I've had the pleasure of riding with over the years.

If you decide to come to the Southern hemisphere, understand we have the same problem. August is the most reliable time for riding in NZ. Central Otago ski areas are your best bet. Starting to warm up by the beginning of Sept last few seasons.

Bubbles in liquid topsheet.

Props to Ryan Knapton & to Russ Britt for this video out of ATC 2017. Russ was the guy with the soda-pop Donek and the crazy, narrow stance. Russ tells why it's that way, and shows what he can do. (Subsequent post in this thread from Russ explains what the top sheet really is! Russ is full of surprises!) When I found this, having heard from Russ that Ryan had shot it, it already had nearly 6,000 views on YouTube. (1st March 2017 - 11,000+ views)

Regular, 60 degrees rear foot, mondo 29 UPZs. Drive both knees, especially the knee on the outside of the turn ( Left knee toeside, Right knee heelside) down towards the carving edge, both toe and heelside.