michael.a

The problem is that most of these tire kickers call dibs without knowing they want to buy the board. First email the seller to find out what you want to know and THEN call dibs.

I found a small clothing manufacturer who works with goretex to remove the hood but leave a high collar that would tuck just in behind my helmet. Best part is they took the leftover material and replaced the worn parts around the hips, basically doubled the life of my jacket. Professional job, used the OEM stitching pattern and altogether it cost $20. i think a local tailor could even do it if familiar with fabric membranes.

Very easy to do. Consider the ACSS if you want longer travel and better rebound (check out the extremecarving forums, Arnaud makes them)

Depends. Im sure someone is more knowledgeable about this than me, but the late Raichle/early Deeluxe TFs had two versions, the ones with a red cuff were soft and the all grey stiff. Then Deeluxe updated the liner and introduced that all black with the cross hatch pattern, I think those were quite soft. Then they came out with a black model with a fuzz inside, also soft. Recently they introduced a stiffer liner with no fuzz typical foam build. edit: so I took the bait, I thought west carvens post was ingenuous. nonetheless i hope i helped someone out with the difficulties in nailing down a liner that works for you

Could the threads from the review subforums be reintegrated into Hardboot Community? As a mod myself I know how much of PITA it'll be but I'd be sad to see that info lost for good.

You can use the stiffness of the liner to customize boot flex besides the usual mods of adding a spring system, cutting plastic, changing tongues, etc. I own two pairs of liners at the opposite ends of the spectrum that I swap out depending on terrain, condition, and riding style. Share a link, cause Im not coming up with anything

Just check out the extemecarving or frozen backside forums, traffic is way down from a peak in 2013 or so, summer or no summer. Attendance in European carving events is also stagnating. Dunno if its a cyclical thing or what, kind of unnerving though

Generally, yes, boots that are loose severely impede carving performance. My 2 cents on the advice above, foam injected liners are an incredibly expensive and poor solution for a beginner (way too stiff) while a Booster strap will not cover up the amount the slop you are experiencing. Definitely remold the liners, with added padding at the area of discomfort, lightly buckled boots, and remember to stand on a 2x4 at the toes to drive the heel back into the boot. If this doesn't work it may be that the liners are too low low volume for your feet.

Hey man, welcome to the sport! You wrote that you only get to ride in 2-3 trips per year and that's what's got me all hot and bothered. While the advice being posted here is very valuable and a goldmine in itself, I think it's overfocusing on the equipment side and not on one really really important issue: learning how to ride in a HB setup. You might get the tools nailed down to a T but without the technique you're going to be falling over every... single... turn. And forget about hitting the trees or powder deep steeps as a beginner. You might kill yourself without knowing how to control the bloody board. I think that's what i want to reiterate, when starting in hardboots you become a beginner again, and that's a tough nut to swallow especially if you've been riding for a decade or more. I'd save the pennies and get used equipment and invest in getting more time on the snow with the best instruction money can buy. After two-three years then i'd be looking for the most versatile all-mountain setup and more ambitious terrain.

I agree with Neil. The Hazelwood and Tanker are big mountain boards perfect for those who frequently see pow, not groomers and hardpack. You didn't even mention hitting Colorado once a year, just a rare Vermont trip. I also ride in East Coast conditions and my 200 cm Tanker saw just one day on the snow this year.

New board porn 2016/17 is gonna be juicy :)

Anyone know how senstivie ptex is to UV radiation?

Actually I find the cause environmental. Those who ride in the fluff and hero snow ride high and aloof, hands up high. Those who ride the frozen hardpack that within an hour thaws out to a rutted out mogul mine field ride low, compact, with hands always pointing downwards ready to correct loss of balance. Case in point: racers. Every single one directs his hands on the snow. Bad technique? Arguably yes, as it breaks angulation and dips the shoulder. Necessary? Yes.

I on the other hand have been riding for 8 years and have severely impinged my wrists, particularly in the first 2 years when falling over every other turn as a beginner. I also ride touching the snow (inadvertently first putting pressure and later as a failsafe measure during balance loss). In hindsight, I should have been using wrist protection from the outset. Now I have a number of chronic issues at age 32 that later down the road will require major serious surgery and/or face disability. Wrist protection. USE IT.

Unfortunately, they did not. In fact, I would say the quality of the metal and plastic ankle rivet (in both SB and AF series) has degraded over time.

Let climate change dictate your choice. For example, banks no longer are giving loans to resorts below 2000 m inthe Alps. Id follow the same logic and look at general weather patterns to see where you get the most consistent snowfall.

Which base plates? 0, 3 or 6?

Wow Keenan, you are my hero! We need less passivity in dealing with those who have seriously wronged us. I used to wave it off, but the next time someone runs into me and hurts or damages something, Im suing. Its costing me way too much time and money to have to fix other people's mistakes. Just last week a friend got taken out by a skier, knocked unconcious, broken wrist, badly injured all around. Besides ski patrol, the on-hill police were called who faulted the skier. I dont know if any criminal charges are going to filed, but its already looking messy.

As to the differences I cant say, I only ride in Intuitions. But the backstory is that Thermoflex is sold by Deeluxe (formerly Raichle) as its own brand of liners. However, the OEM is Palau.

What the fuck. These are firsthand reports from my parents and friends as well as everything I've read online which confirmed their accounts. Just reading this thread pretty much concurs with what I wrote, including your post. Jackson Hole is not a good place for carving.

I have 29,2cm feet and ride MP28s and am actually looking to downsize to 27s in the future

Can anyone else who's been there confirm? As just about everyone who's been there told me just the opposite. Overwhelmingly negative reviews especially from a carving perspective. Very expensive, few lifts with long lines esp during the weekend, few groomed runs, if it snows the whole mountain gets tracked out within an hour, the majority of the mountain is extremely difficult off piste terrain, i.e. no bowl cruisers just 10 ft wide chutes, etc. I was told if carving is my game then forget about it, Id have 10x more fun going to Grand Targhee. Pretty disparate opinions...

I'll share with you guys an interesting observation I recently made. Regardless if I ride by myself or with a big group of friends, as long as Im the only hardbooter I always get strange looks and overhear the same standard comments. Very rarely does anyone ask me what the hell Ive got on my feet. Similarly, among my friends no one has ever cared to take up my offer to try the sport out. Doesnt matter how I frame it, use positive and negative reinforcement, whatever. But then when I meet up with a couple of hardbooters (three minimum) then all of a sudden the banter increases, questions are asked, interest rises, and friends who were on the lam not only tried it then and there in the group setting but really enjoyed it. All of that energy disappears when I go out riding alone again. Im guessing that its all connected with crowd psychology, if you see an individual doing something strange you treat it as an oddity, but you see a group railing hard carves all of sudden it looks like its something worth considering.

Phenomenal video, could this be alpine snowboarding's big break? Is this the start of something new? Dont underestimate yourself Ryan, I totally agree with jng that you'd be or even are a hell of an ambassador for hardbooting :) Not in the sense you have to be a bible-thumping converter, just simply proclaim its existence!

If anyone also has any opinion on Apex alpine decks it would be greatly appreciated.