SnowFerret

I think it's the angle of the photo giving it a sort of optical illusion.

I'm actually interested in getting into splitboarding and was considering going with a hardboot setup. Could you share some more insights on splitting with AT boots?

That reminds me, I should post a picture of my recently acquired Virus.

Just turned 30. I've been snowboarding for about 8 years now and regret not picking up the sport a few years earlier. I had an interest since I was about 12, probably due to this game: I liked the racing parts of the game, and you could choose actual alpine boards such as a factory prime. I guess I made a mental note of it as something (alpine snowboarding) I wanted to eventually try. After a few years of riding I finally decided to bite the bullet and jump into hardbooting and started to piece together my alpine setup.

Got something similar the other day. Heard a couple of kids in the queue talking about my setup: Kid 1: Woah. Do you know what that is? Kid 2: No, what is it? K1: That guys on a skiboard! K2: Woah. Is that cool?' K1: Nah, it's lame. :(

So, I ended up acquiring an old Virus Avalanche as my all-mountain board. Not exactly what I had set out to find originally, but I'm not complaining. I've only got one day on it so far but man does this thing rip. Sooooo much pop when transitioning from edge to edge and for launching over rollers and chop. I would love to put a few more days on it this year. The board felt really good in hardboots and I'm interested in eventually trying it out for a few days in softies.

I would love to add a Cayman or a Corvette to my garage in the near future. Both are fantastic driver's cars.

You know what they say: If it ain't a Type R, it ain't a tight car snowboard.

I started carving on softboots, working my angles up to around F30, R21. I have recently dropped them down to F21,R0 for more versatility. I have relatively low angles for hardboots at around F52,R44. I still feel really comfortable on toeside carves and I'm steadily working at improving my heelside carves with my softboot setup. Right now it feels like there's room for both technique refinement and dialing-in my equipment settings.

Ultimately, I'm looking to acquire a Donek or Coiler in the future but I would like to start out/progress on something a little cheaper first. I understand that I'm not going to get all the features by going with a mass-produced board and that's something I would have to live with. I've missed out on a few really good deals in the for sale forum since I've started looking earlier this year. Trust me, I'm always on the look-out for deals there .

I was looking at a few salomon bindings in a ski shop recently. Their heelcups definitely do sit higher on the highback. They were also felt pretty stiff by hand, in bending and in torsion but the heelcup is flexible. I'd have to try them with my boots on the see how they really feel.

I'm looking for a board that I can ride with hardboots in all kinds of conditions, not just pristine groom. I want to be able to carve up the groomers in the morning and still be able to use the same board in the afternoon when the ruts and bumps come out here on the east coast. Eventually, I'd like to bring my hardboots with me when I make some trips out west. The reason I mentioned a BX board was that I had been told that the construction of most regular boards is not sufficient to hold up to the stresses of riding with hardboots. Key word is "most." I'm assuming there are some exceptions, and so that's why I started this thread in order to get some suggestions. I would love a custom board, but I would like to get comfortable riding in an all-mountain style first.

I'm in the market for an all-mountain snowboard that I can ride primarily in hardboots but also in softboots if I so choose. While I would love to order up a custom board right now, I think I would prefer to try out a few different shapes, sizes, flexes, etc. before taking that plunge. The problem I'm having is that I don't know what to look for in a board that will tell me it can handle the stress of hardboots. Most of my direction is coming from the info found in the Carver's Alamanac. My searches have mainly been for larger, stiffer boards and boardercross boards but I don't know what else to look for. I recently came across a few boards for sale and was wondering if anyone could tell me more about them and if they are hardboot-capable. They are a Virus (model unknown), Virus Avalanche, and a Winterstick Severe Terrain. Does anyone have any experience with either the Avalanche or the Severe Terrain? Any recommendations for boards from more "mainstream" manufacturers that I would be able to use? Thanks!

I might try to do a half day at Mountain Creek this Saturday. I haven’t ridden there before and I’m still fairly new to hardbooting. What trails should I focus on if I decide to go?

I'm interested but I'll have to see if I can take the day off from work.

"Are you undercover ski school?"

Sweet car, Corey. I have a good family friend that got me into track days and he has a vintage Formula Ford. He and a few friends run a club called the FRCCA that races in the northeast/mid-atlantic region of the US. http://www.formularacecarclubofamerica.com/ While I've always been into cars, it wasn't until college that I got an opportunity to get involved in working and racing on them. I started with a few autocrosses and then got into track days and now time trials. I'm not very competitive in the latter yet but I'm still having lots of fun seeing myself improve each time I'm on track. I've currently got an Audi A4 as my daily driver and my fun car is a Porsche 944S. I've got a lot of things planned for the 944 to get it in shape for next season.

Thanks! It's actually Lime Rock. I love the Glen. Sorry to go off topic. Anyway, I second checking out Mount Snow. It's not the biggest mountain, but they have some fun trails on Sunbrook, North Face, and even on the main face. Plus, they have invested ~$30M this past off-season in snow making IIRC. I believe they have some of the most trails open in the east this season. I can't wait to go this season.

Would love some stiff bindings.

Sup, fellow Porschephile. I drive a 944S. Nice 930.

Same here. I also rinse the outside sole of my shells at the end of the day if they've collected any dirt/salt/grime/etc.

Yep. Since the late 90s/early 2000s.

That looks like loads of fun. The only downside is that it looks like some of the trails are super narrow so you would never be able to take a full stride. Speaking of crashed ice, that sport has gotten crazy over the last few years. I hadn't watched it in a few years but the features have gotten sooo much bigger. I remember when the hardest obstacles they had to face were like ~1ft drops and a few rollers; now its huge jumps and hammerhead turns on a quarter-pipe. Insane!

Sandspirit event from Germany