Freezer

Yep. Said another way, for a given speed and turn radius, there is a required bank (inclination) angle. That bank angle will produce a certain G load. As noted by TimW, that applies to an unsupported carve, so if any part of your body is touching the snow and therefore supporting some weight, the G you’re pulling will be reduced.

None of the listed options applied to me. The biggest impediment when I started carving in the early '90's was finding instruction or competent carvers to emulate. I looked idiotic for a couple of years trying to carve based on still shots of carvers, and it wasn't until I got Cliff Ahumada's first video that I finally could break it down and copy what I saw Cliff, Phil doing on that video.

Ha! You forgot to mention chronic hemorrhoids from straining against all those Gs for year after year.

The best measurement would be to put the watch on his helmet. The head is naturally stabilized and isolated from bumps. Regarding the zero G between turns, that is entirely possible.

Your friend's G meter is registering instantaneous G from bumps/vibration, not steady-state G. I'm an ex-Air Force pilot and a current aerobatic pilot with a lot of experience with G forces, and I can tell you that at 4.5 G it's very hard to lift your arm up, and if you look down you can't lift your head back up. At 4.5 G without using an anti-G straining maneuver most people start to go grey (loose color perception). If you're pulling that kind of G in repeated carves you'd be physically exhausted and likely pretty disoriented after one run. I'd be shocked if the real steady-state G is above 2.5.

I transitioned to F2 bindings a few years ago after Bruce Varsarva recommended them. I was on Burton Race Plates for literally 20 years prior, and kept with them for the flexibility and the mobility on the board they allow. The F2 Titanium Intec bindings have a fair amount of flexibility and I've found them comparable to the Race Plates. Every time I tried a stiffer binding, from Catek, to Rat Trap to Bomber, they seemed to work great in one fixed body position, but took away all fluidity and riding style, so I found those stiffer bindings to not be fun at all to ride.

Good input- thanks Corey.

I recently got a new board from Bruce which is a EC 173x22, 10/12/11 sidecut, and it's pretty different from the previous Coilers I've been riding for the last 10 years, so I'm looking for some input on technique. My previous Coilers were a Stubby V1 with something like a 13/14 sidecut, and an EC 168 12/13. I ride mostly in NorCal and the runs tend to be on the steeper, narrower side, and the snow conditions can be variable. I got the EC 173 to be able to make shorter turns to keep speed under control and make carving on steeper, narrow runs a bit less exhausting. Based on my previous boards and the terrain I ride, and in order to make tight turns, I've gotten into the habit of weighting the nose heavily for turn initiation, then feeding the board forward, and then weighting the tail heavily to almost wheelie the board to switch sides. I angulate a lot and reach for the front of the board with my outside hand on steeper runs to keep the turn tight and keep from skidding out of the carve on choppy snow. The problem is that I've found that technique doesn't seem to work so well with the 172, I'm assuming because I don't need to shift my weight so dramatically fore and aft to get a tight turn. If I do, I almost go over the bars on turn initiation, and on turn finish get a bit jammed in the back seat. So I believe that I just need to ride the board more centered and be more judicious with weight shifts. What do you guys think? Any body with experience on a board with similar sidecut?

Hey Cliff, Michael Lloyd from NorCal here. You may remember you filmed me for Carve On at Buttermilk back in the day. I'm not here online much, so it's pretty random that I see a post by you. Question- do you have a link to Carve On online anywhere, or can I buy a DVD? Would love to have a copy in non-VHS form! I watch Ride the Edge once in a while and it still gives me goose bumps. The first time I watched the film it blew my mind just like Endless Summer did when I was 5 years old. The carving community in the US owes you a huge debt of gratitude for depicting carving in such an aesthetic and compelling way. Hope all is well in Aspen; deep trenches brother.

I rode these boots for 7 days total- they're in near new condition. I did modify the left boot (see picture with yellow highlight) to allow more aft flex for additional carving flexibility and off-piste use. NOTE: includes the stock flex locking system only (not the BTS system per the photos). $150 Paypal + shipping. You can text me at 415 218-3100. Michael in Norcal.

Yeah, it’s a Yak 50. It’s an awesome dogfighter.

Done for the season in Norcal. Time to carve up the sky.

I have the DGSS on the rear boot only, the black tongue in front and the softer red tongue in the rear. I find that a stiffer front boot doesn’t limit my mobility on the board and gives me a lot more edge pressure than a soft front boot. Conversely, a fairly soft rear boot is key for getting in a good carving position and for dealing with varied terrain.

Yeah, I think you've discovered a dirty little secret of carving: stiffer and harder isn't better. Or to be more precise, locking yourself into a relatively immobile body position with super stiff bindings and stiff, locked boots may work really well for a very narrow set of snow and trail conditions, but once you're out of those conditions because the pitch is different or the snow is too soft or hard or choppy, you're screwed. Riding with a relatively softer setup and/or in walk mode allows you a lot more flexibility in your body position to compensate for changing conditions. For most conditions in the west, I'll lock the front boot and leave the rear in walk mode.

I have the Titanium, weigh 165, and can flex them easily, so you'll be fine with the Titanium. I have the Intec heels and have had no problem with sticking. The ability to click in on the fly is a huge benefit, especially if you're riding with skiers. What Technick said about the lifts. Hey Technick, my little girls think my Tintin Coiler is the coolest they've ever seen. Thanks again for the awesome design! :-)

I rode Burton Race Plates then Carve Co. bindings for 20+ years primarily because they allow a good amount of lateral flex, which lets you move around and get in an optimal position for hard carving and EC. After a conversation with Bruce about bindings a couple of seasons ago, I tried the F2 Intec bindings, and found them as laterally flexible as the Carve Co. bindings, and I absolutely love them now. An advantage of the F2 bindings is that you can set them up with heel/toe lift but without canting, which for me is optimal. I know the Euro EC guys preach flat bindings, but I tried that and found that unless I had my boots uber-loose, I couldn't get into a good, relaxed body position to carve aggressively. Front toe lift, rear heel lift and no canting (to keep knees apart) works great for me.

I have both and prefer the EC profile and tip upturn more. The Stubby has a longer, more rounded nose and larger transition from the sidecut to the tip and tail, resulting in a shorter effective edge than the EC. Similarly, the nose is more upturned with the Stubby than the EC. Overall, the EC looks like a slightly more modern design. Other than those points, how you spec the board with sidecut, length/width, and rider weight overrides any other differences between the EC and Stubby, IMO. Either way, prepare to be amazed; Bruce's boards hook up like you will not believe.

I've got a Coiler EC 168x22 I could be persuaded to part with. It's a 12/13 radius and too stiff for me at 175 lb. Bruce built it for me in 2016 and it has 5 days on the snow. It rails like crazy, but I had Bruce build me a softer version earlier this year. It's white with red Canadian maple leafs. PM me if you're interested.

Just arrived from Bruce at Coiler. 172x22, 10/12/11 radius. Thanks to Stephane (Surf Quebec) for letting me use the design, and to Nicolas (Technik) for designing the topsheet. Another stunning example of Bruce's work, and a cool homage to Herge and Tintin. Let it snow baby!!

I was there about a 15 years ago and had a great time. The pistes are all above treeline, and the grooming was good. A lot of European and US ski teams train there and the resort caters to their grooming needs. Most people stick to the designated pistes, so the off-piste skiing is really nice because it doesn't get tracked up much at all. In addition, it seemed like most skiers didn't start skiing until around 10am or later, so if you hit the lifts when they open, the pistes are deserted. There are several contiguous resorts close to Valle Nevada, so you can spend all day skiing round robin to the other resorts like you can in Europe. In addition, there are heliskiing options by the day or half day, and while the terrain isn't Valdez-gnarly, it's fun with some really long glacier runoffs at the bottom of the runs. I will say that the resort is pretty expensive, even by Aspen or Sun Valley standards. PM me is you want additional info.

As a former Air Force pilot, this conversation reminds me of a salient quote pertaining to air combat: "Beware the lessons of a fighter pilot who would rather fly a slide rule than kick your ass".

Agree about incorporating eccentric lifting. My plan for the off season is to mountain bike, skateboard, concentric lift legs in the gym to build muscle mass, and eccentric training for boarding-specific training. Then a couple of months before the season starts, ramp up the eccentric training. A number of years ago I lifted legs really hard in the off season and mountain biked a lot, and that season absolutely crushed it carving, so my takeaway is that the benefits of basic leg strength can't be overstated!

Interesting article I ran across earlier this season about eccentric training vs. concentric training. I tried out the workout and can attest that it is brutal, but in my subjective opinion, really helped out for carving conditioning. https://www.backcountry.com/explore/train-eccentric-leg-strength-for-alpine-skiing

Thanks Jack. I just got the UPZ ATB boots yesterday (shipped from the Czech Republic!), and I'm pretty impressed with the quality and finish. I installed the DGSS system and the fit inside the boot feels great. I'll probably try them with both the stock liners and the Palau liners next year, but they both feel good in the boot. The UPZ definitely seems to be better for a lower volume foot/ankle and the fact that the boot flexes nicely seems to prevent the whole liner lifting up at the heel like it was doing with the Deeluxe. I measured the ramp angle of the footbed, and it's 3/16" higher at the heel compared to the same sized Deeluxe. It feels fine on the board, and I think that as long as you can get the angle of your lower leg comfortable, the angle of the footbed is sort of trivial.

Just got the EC 168x22 12/13 to compliment the Gen 1 Stubby 173x20 13.2. As always, Bruce's boards have astonishing edge hold.