JRAZZ

Yeah, tough when you get to ride with your family. What a drag... Seriously, can you look at the positive or are you trying to see the negative in every opportunity? Get a softboot setup and ENJOY riding with your family. I know I do with mine.

I think the intent of my original post was somewhat missed. I really like the Talon/Intuition combination and thought to point it out because I think it's unusual. I was more curious on how others are setting up softboots.

If you've never been there then you really should go. One of my favorite CO mountains. That being said, March is spring break and the place gets kooky. Have no idea how it will play out this year but it's been busy through January so I don't expect it to reduce. Worse yet, with COVID restrictions on lifts you might have some serious lines on popular lifts. Steamboat is really great on pow days. The trees are really good and the snow can be epic. It does, however get tracked fairly quickly and can get icy, not East coast icy but definitely hard and not very grippy. Lay of the land: If it's not too busy the south side (Sunshine lift) can be nice for carving. It's generally less steep and gets decent grooming. Flintlock, Quickdraw, etc... are all fairly wide and easy and Sunshine is a very nice lift. I've had excellent runs on Sunnyside trail under the Elkhead express lift. It's moderately steep but generally not very busy, neither is the lift. I also like going through Heavenly Daze and down to Thunderhead Express. Again, wide, not too terribly busy and the lift is nice. Ditto for Buddy's Run/Bar UE. The trails off of Pony Express can be quiet but they are not groomed so well and the terrain is not as even/consistent. YMMV. I like the area. Burgess Creek area can get BUSY. Avoid unless you're just going through. Avoid Morningside and Christmas tree bowl. Not for carving and usually full of moderately inebriated skiers and snowboarders. If you're into trees then the Closets and the Shadows are two areas/runs that are absolutely epic, especially after a serious snow dump. If I'm there on a pow day I usually try and lap Sundown, take a left off the lift into the Shadows. Possibly my favorite place in the world. If it hasn't snowed in a while it can get bumpy and hard but I love that area. Don't let the map fool you, it's an enormous place! Keep something in the legs for getting back because getting down from the top to Gondola Square can take 30 minutes of some fairly steep pitches.

Maybe the original title is wrong... What I care about is support (strength) not stiffness. Played around with the Talons and they aren't hardboot stiff but they do provide a lot of support. Speaking of, I think, in general, that hardboot provide a lot of support with a lot of stiffness while softboots tend to be less stiff (duh) and less supportive. My ideal boot is not too stiff but really really supportive. Does this make any sense?

Well there's your problem. 27.5 Raichles are more equivalent to size 9. Also, I use NX2s for bindings. They don't have a heel loop which makes them even shorter. On my 24cm waist Contra I could get about 35° on the rear foot while with the softboots I get 21° with similar bootout. For me that's a huge difference and makes the softboot version much more comfortable to ride.

Can't speak for the others but for me the short BSL allows lower angles, so does the lateral flex. However, I still want hardboot like support. So in reality it's not re-engineering hardboots it's using softboots with their inherent advantages and removing a limitation.

Plug liners. They're a bit thinner and take up less volume. They're similar to power wraps in terms of stiffness.

Those were my main complaints with the Malamutes (big, not stiff enough, sometimes quality is not great) but yes, they are superbly comfortable. The wrap liners make the boots significantly stiffer. The difference is VERY noticeable. The problem with them is that they are really thick right above the bridge of your foot. This is a problem for me with high arches. The Talons have a lot of room in that area so overall the setup is vey comfortable. I also like the lack of strings, straps and velcro on the liners. All this being said, I would much rather have a "pull" system like the drivers. Though Boa is cool it's never as convenient and I always feel like I'm going to break the wires.

Though my experiment with hardbooting is over (for now, who knows what tomorrow might bring) I still need a stiff setup. My Burtons are "OK" but not really up to the task. Every time I lean into the tongue they pretty much let me fall forward and don't support toe side turns. I managed to find some NOS Nidecker/Flow Talons and stuffed a pair of Intuition wrap liners in them. The result is really really stiff, like hardboot stiff but with a much shorter BSL. I hope this will allow me to ride at the angles I find comfortable while giving enough support. Just out of curiosity, for softbooters, what setup have you been using?

Or..... It makes it absurdly easy to hold a carve... I am absolutely not an advanced rider and I find the Contra super easy to ride... Maybe I had different expectations. For me, experimenting with binding location (with some help from more knowledgeable riders) really brought this board to life. FWIW, I find this type of sidecut (long, short, long) really intuitive to ride while the more traditional (short, long, medium) I find to be really hooky and scary. It's nice having the option. All I can say is don't discount it based on other people's experience, I think it's very personal and you really have to try it to make up your mind.

You and me both girl, you and me both. Besides, I got some snazzy new boots I need to test

Those boards aren't going to ride themselves...

That's really interesting. I've found that I had to move my bindings back in order for the board to track nicely. This might have more to do with how I ride than the board itself but for me I feel I have to really stomp on the tail and then it hooks up nicely.

I am a sinner... That's why they don't let me into Montana (I'll convert you all!!!)

Stay warm!

Day of irresponsibility.... I like the idea... Midweek days have been awesome lately... Tue/Wed/Thu I’m in!

Work sux

This Contra is wider than stock (24cm waist) and the flex is relatively soft. It's stiffer and less playful than the Alloy DO but it's also noticeably softer than the NFCB. I would say it's ever so slightly stiffer than the BXFRs that I've seen. I did ask Bruce to make it soft. Don't know if that answers it... Stiffer than DO, very close but stiffer than BXFR, softer than NFCB.

Hardboots are dead! Long live Softboots!!! I liked the Contra the moment I got it on snow but the boots were holding me back. I got out yesterday on some fairly hard groom (I think I even saw ice!! ) I'm getting there with the setup but there's no doubt in my mind that it is an EXCELLENT softboot carving board. If I could carve on it anyone could

Not saying but you might get your wish next year... I decided to keep it for now and experiment with softies and power plates. Everything else is goneeee. Hope they find good homes and get some good use!

It's just softboots I haven't given up carving. Far from it! I carve much better on softboots. To quote Slopestar: Nobody cares what boots I wear.

It’s not a rant. I fully agree with you. Sometimes stepping back to something simpler is sooo rewarding. For me it’s like me owning the equipment rather than the equipment owning me if that makes any sense.

Boots and bindings sold. Boards are still available.

Update on shipping costs... The bindings and boots seem to be ~$25 to anywhere in the US. The boards are $45-$50 depending on address. I have usually used FEDEX so let me know if you prefer UPS. My paypal is jvinraviv@gmail.com. PM ME BEFORE SENDING MONEY!

Can't go wrong with that one. It's fantastic. Please pm me your address and I'll let you know the total with shipping.