dhamann

i'd describe it as similar to a WC alpine slalom construction, but with a wide softboot directional freecarve shape and sendy geo. rails like a train. for the crazies only. playful if you like to push equipment and body to the edge. if that's what you're looking for, this one is tough to beat.

yep

well, is the rider willing to sacrifice the body or the equipment? looks like this base connection design could be a safety feature and intentional "failure" point for sake of saving the body from serious injury beyond what could happen if the binding doesn't fail. look forward to hearing your thoughts on performance after a few good rips. break em. looks like a nice binder.

Athletic prowess on any equipment is in the eye of the beholder. There’s no divide in the art of carving. Perhaps a unity. I think we can appreciate it all. Whatever works for the operator. Sometimes the flavor changes but goals remain constant.

it's fun to play around with and useful when chasing gates, but it looks like a skier trying to carve like a snowboarder. ie. out of control, yet need more speed and angulation. tough technique to balance (pun) and be fluid. traversing and finishing the turn/carve is more fluid looking, builds confidence with control and produces less spray/drag imo. that poor guy trying to film around all that spray. dragnatraction.

i could look past it 100% if i was fixed right the first time! Proctology or otherwise. cry once.

great review. had a 2018 164W xv (8.7m scr, 26.4 waist, 1230mm eff. edge). shovel nose, chattered at higher speeds and rode like a "fat/short". smaller hills and/or skinny trails. it's a great stock board for those getting into directional carving and most people i ran into who also had one said they loved it. effective edge and running length interpretation can vary between companies, but for sake of discussion, i sometimes consider them "equals" when comparing boards. while different in design and intentions, comparison to an SG soul 164xt, the running length is 1440mm (28 waist, 10.75m scr). the soul is a speedy directional carve focused (almost bx style) board that performs grades above an "entry level" carver such as an xv or any nidecker for example. perfect and playful for the experienced rider. the XV is also perfect and playful for a rider learning to focus on carving but also wants a freeride feel for dipping into the woods, etc. neither are jibbers or side hit wonders. ground control. both very fun in their own respects. thanks for the review.

OP only one post so don't know how valid this is, but IMO each of these boards have a little different focus within the common discipline of softboot carving. some may even say, completely different boards. Coiler Contra - freecarve all mountain, directional, playful Donek Flux -directional freecarve charger suited to race if need be Knapton - freestyle freecarve, duck duck goose or own. oes 162FR wide can be yours since i have one up for grabs if interested. SG soul is a keeper!

still available. for now.

i beg to differ, but perhaps i just have a cloud hanging over me. after five months with first ortho, guy tells me he doesn't do surgery for my particular injury. lateral process fracture of the talus ("snowboarders ankle") and suggests i get a referral to a foot/ankle specialist that can help. it took a month before i could get in front of next ortho. i'm six months from injury where only PT has been done. bone/fracture is crooked from CT scan at 4 months in, minimally displaced 2.8mm, non union. other things going on neurologically, etc. that are obviously underlying issues due to fracture (numb toes, etc). unfortunately, the doc's i've dealt with so far all have pinocchio nose. ER nurse sent me home with a "sprained ankle". likely not riding at all this year due to surgery. in my experience it's not about the patient, it's about the billing. sick world. sick industry.

that's a rabbit hole i wouldn't want to go down, but maybe this info can help you get started: starting with bsl (boot sole length at interior shell/ ie. UPZ shell size) is a good start along with a shell fit and a naked cm length of your feet. cm length of feet = mondo, but not exactly. perhaps use UPZ bsl lengths as a reference for sizing and compare to g-style. i say UPZ because that's the most readily available chart (north america) i'm aware of. i have no idea where to find a deeluxe sizing chart including bsl etc aside from may reaching out to a deeluxe supplier or deeluxe directly. g-style is neither UPZ or deeluxe so use for reference of bsl only. did you reach out to g-style for a full sizing chart that is in english? i do know that bsl for deeluxe sizes 29 and 30 mondo are 313mm and 322mm respectively. yes, UPZ mondo 28-28.5 bsl is 312 and 29-29.5 is 324 so most can drop a shell size with UPZ when compared to deeluxe. do a shell fit*: "What’s a Shell Fit? It’s the best way to know if any hardboot fits properly. Remove the liner from the shell. Put your bare foot in the shell. When your toes touch the from of the shell, check to see how much space exists between your heel and the back of the shell. Results: Racer/Performance Fit = 1 finger width space Comfort Fit = 1.5 finger width space Anything larger means that the shell is too large and you end up with heel movement." *from UPZ site when the stock liner doesn't work: if you're on upper end of spectrum for sizing to fit into shell, a low volume liner may help achieve a better fit. punching shell if that's an option with g-style is another road to explore. that's MY theory anyways and know some riders who have proven this. not sure you'd want to make a larger shell work, but using the same theory and a high volume liner may achieve similar results. not advised unless you're the risk taking type and are ok with pissing the cost of the liners away if it doesn't work out. then heat mold liners with a boot fitter at a reputable shop unless you're a DIY'er. ride em and go from there. got hot spots? need foot beds? prepare to invest some time to get the right fit for you. boot shopping is fun isn't it? hope this information helps you decipher the g-style bsl only chart a little better and have (or get) a boot that's right for you. cheers and good luck!

geeking out on UPZ. T700 has a wider fore foot, similar to UPZ. XC12 (110 special flex tongue) and RC12 (120 tongue) have similar cuff, so lateral flex is pretty much the same. RC12 is race oriented where the XC12 if free carve oriented and with softer lower boot shell. RCR (special flex tongue 130+?) is full on race oriented with an even stiffer upper cuff, lower boot shell, spoiler, etc.. Tongues are easiest way to alter flex, but springs help some. i've never ridden step-ins but comparing two less rigid bail bindings (F2 titanium and TD3 sidewinders) both allow for some lateral movement; not necessarily "flex" but forgiveness. i tested TD3 standards this past season which lock the boot a lot more while providing less lateral movement in the connection of the boot/binding. i liked this a lot while riding T325's w/ BTS blue top/yellow bottom springs that are less stiff than a T700. a stiffer and more rigid of boot/binding combo involves a more challenging ride, but also begs for further aggressiveness, precision and keeping things interesting. flex or adjustability within the intended engineered equipment, movement/play and forgiveness can be personal. IMO less rigid bails would offset a stiff lateral flexing boot. however, would it act like two things working against each other while creating more fatigue? depends what you're looking for and if you're set on riding step-ins than i would think a slightly more forgiving boot would offset that. i believe F2 CNC and SG bail bindings have a more rigid hold than F2 titaniums. i've heard the SG's hold similar to td3 standards. idk some folks need to unbuckle boots at least at lower buckles while getting on the lift because of cranking down for foot hold, heel hold or whatever the case may be. this seems to be less likely with the MS boots. however, when i watch WC racing i see many riders unbuckling. for most of us, our daily riding needs won't require riding a boot two sizes too small and/or riding such a tight fitting responsive boot. we all have different feet, tastes, styles and preferences. seeking out feedback and getting others points of view may or may not help in your decision of what's best. then there's the boards. what kind of boards to you prefer to ride? good luck with your decision @Chouinard cheers

yup. depending on the dave, it's probably not completely inaccurate though.

M28, 312mm bsl, must have single rivet tongue (std and/or soft flex) also M29 intuition pro wrap or plug liner please PM. TIA

waxing for winter glide, not just storage. it's probably been mentioned or discussed in previous threads, but has anyone "hotboxed" their boards in a hot car or truck in high temps? 122-131F in a hotbox for 2-4hrs = 20+ layers. use a thermometer to monitor temp in vehicle, iron a heavy layer of preferred wax and put board in the car. i put a couple boards out last summer in the 90's sun a couple times and it seemed to help. bad idea regarding UV, board construction materials, etc.?

must be a custom Eliminator. or the backpack of books to help with keeping upper body quiet while turning. books shift, bad. books stable, good. interesting. sure makes it look good.

a lot of helpful info here and throughout these forum pages for learning how to ride/carve and equipment. just gotta look around. start from the top. it's beneficial to be able to carve and hold an edge making consecutive s-turns with softboots while keeping your head on a swivel for surrounding snow sliders before even stepping into hardboots, nevermind a race course. as oddjob states, there's a significant difference between freecarve and race course riding technique/approach/etc. why is that? that's what you need to figure out and it's personal for everyone. although some basic principles apply, start there. keep reading and looking around for those principles and what works for you. eventually, it'll 'click'. practice technique with body position/weighting/etc. and board/equipment manipulation while riding. there's just some work to do and it's never too late to start. you'll get there with wide open trails like in the videos. some nice sections of trail! maybe ride shallower slopes and learn the basics all over or for the first time to better understand what technique is and isn't. sometimes you need to go slower in order to get faster. start over and keep it simple. don't 'train' all the time. make sure you ride for fun too. as you learn technique, you'll realize the bad habits you've developed. i for one realized my own bad habits after 25+ years of riding and now i'm 35+ years riding still working on techniques. good luck.

base plates (and any equipment fixed/joined/mounted/strapped/clicked/etc. together) that don't flex forfeit body fatigue and sometimes body parts. as the saying goes, pick your poison. or just ride modern hardboot equipment suited to your enjoyment... whatever that is.

i think it's called doing airplanes with only one wing, at high speeds, riding bomber style. it's an advanced technique for those still learning balance; not necessarily strict technique. as in golf, baseball, etc we must be the ball. same deal. seems to me there's just pure hyper focus on board control and nothing else. there are many programs in figure skating, each interpreted respectably. hockey players probably aren't very "correct" at figure skating either. this is snowboarding. the riding is mostly fluid none the less and beautiful to admire and interpret in your own way.

Prior 4wd, SG cult and OES all mountain come to mind. Nidecker

reading the terrain, fall line, etc is like reading a green when putting. or something like that. not everyone has that insight, naturally. ie. transitioning and carving up the hill. i think there's like three or four trails at each mountain that are carve friendly. we find those and rotate. the others are just the others, but also fun to explore and learn how to carve there too. crowds/conditions play a factor of course. the rhythmic feeling/zone on double fall line kills me every time. ah, the never ending pursuit and feeling of each turn... "deserving another".

it's difficult to make three carved turns down that pitch of sluice headwall, but jack does six. pfft. come get some. yeah buddy! conditions and timing must align for such turns and i'm definitely jealous for not being able to hit the spring freeze/perfect/thaw cycle this year.

Jones apollo has a 5 degree pre-rotated highback with a “lip” as well. Boa’s near top of some “soft” boots can be a possible hindrance with too much “lip” or a third strap. K2 Thraxis has boa’s at each side and front.

It’s all alpine steeze. A lot of younger ninjas demonstrate this at a high level in softboots. Rama tried in hards but you can see the struggle. Majority of hardbooters are more “mature”. I see less steeze in hardboot riding, generally speaking. All impressive in their own right and some do it extremely well. Some styles require different equipment to continue after those young ninja days pass by. Not impossible as there’s some 70 yr old guy in CO ripping softies with knapton still. Rare for most but possible for some. I’ll practice on my hardboots more before strapping into a metal binder of any kind given my empirical experience. Now how can I set up a quasi hardboot that meets my style and demands? And boards. We all do it. I can appreciate what Jason is doing. Not for everyone and a lot of factors come into play as with whatever works for you. Experimenting and progression is a good thing.

yes Neil. 90% at least. different composite makeup in the "hanger" of the base plate as well as the highback. nylon/fiberglass instead of nylon/carbon to make a long story short. the "post" of the base plate, skate teck design etc is the same. i believe i've listed the differences in the post you linked above. oops. this post, not the one you linked. like a said. a lot of redundancy, but all great info from some great riders putting this equipment to the test and giving feedback here.