olshitsky

Well, first weekend spent on my setup. I was at Keystone last weekend (only a short 5 hours from DIA to the mountain. Got in at 3am!). And wouldn't you know it, we had 17" of fresh the next morning. Not really the ideal day for my first day on a HB setup. I had a tremendous times and my board wanted me to do things that I'm just not capable of doing yet. It's a beast and I was amazed at how much control I had at high speeds. A few questions to the community: 1. My feet hurt. Is this just something that I have to accept? I got my liners heat molded at my local shop. But they still felt tight, especially when I ratcheted them tight. I also play ice-hockey and I've just gotten used to the notion that if I want to really secure my boot to provide stability and support, I'll have to suffer minor discomfort and numbness. Of course, hockey is for an hour or so, not 4-5 that I spent on the mountain. 2. My stance is at 55 front, 50 back. On Saturday, I managed to get through some bumps but it wasn't easy. With that being said, they were soft and even on my softboot setup, going through 17" of fresh takes some horsepower. By Sunday, as the bumps were a bit deeper, I had a really difficult time getting around on them, especially kicking around to toe-side. My question is this: Is this just my legs not being conditioned enough, is it a technique I need to learn, if I want to ride bumps should I adjust my stance, or should I realize that bumps (and similarly, trees) aren't really what this board is for? Either way, I'm hooked.

All, Just wanted to thank everyone for the info provided in this thread. Got my board (Donek Axxess), bindings (TD3) and boots (Deeluxe 225). Many thanks to Jim Callen for the help setting everything up. I'm riding Keystone this Saturday, if you see a hardbooter with a lime green helmet, say hi. I might even try to make the event at Loveland on Sunday. Thanks again! Jeff

Just an update, I just ordered the Donek Axxess 167 (Sean said my height/weight probably deserved a 172, but I opted for the next smaller size). Also had him put a dampening layer on it. Bindings & boots being ordered this week. Can't wait for my first trip out west!

I'm 200 lbs, fairly athletic in build but as Neil pointed out, I rarely dedicate a full day to carving so I want as versatile of a board as possible. My perspective is that if I make a transition to a HB setup, my carves will be much more extreme than what I'm currently trying to do on my soft boot setup. This is what I want, even if they're not as extreme as what I could get with a race board. Sean suggested not getting a metal core as it may not hold up in all mountain riding, but he said he could add a dampening system. Any thoughts on that? I would imagine I'd want more kick (less damp?) if i'm going through bumps/trees?

Absolutely Not. My summertime outlet is sailboat racing, and it too has its own forum, very similar to this (well, in appearance anyway. newbies are promptly told to fuck off and post a picture of their gf/wife's tits. the lecherous sailor stereotype exists for a reason, but that's a whole other post). But just like this forum, the sailing forum can provide an unlimited amount of information, from newbies on to the top. Similarly, many wonder aloud if bombarding people just getting introduced to the sport with advance racing questions, etc, can intimidate and scare them away. I don't think so. Any activity worth doing is worth learning about in detail. So I welcome all the info...and the polite nature. Side note: my username is a play on my last name, and I used it on the sailing forum as well!

anything you'd recommend?

Thanks for the all the input. The value of a topic-specifc forums might be just the thing I need to restore my faith in the internet. b0ardski thanks for the links, will definitely read through those. philw I'm going to keep my current Donek which is a soft boot setup, though based on historical analysis, any trip I book out west will result in the absence of any fresh snow fallen for at least 3 weeks preceding my arrival. michael.a & workshop7 It may be stupid, but I've held off on buying a hardboot setup for quite some time and some new gear is in my (40th birthday treat to myself) budget. Unfortunately my time on the mountain is not so much a function of cost but rather free time. I will make a take a day or two at the midwest hills just go get the feel. BlueB I'd by lying if I said that I'm not concerned about the point you brought up in your post. I did rent a carving board last season and I liked it and got some great carves, but just felt a little limited with the angles soo forward, the narrow board, and the stiffness. Which is why I"m looking for what would be an all-mountain board. Sean also said something interesting in our most recent correspondence: we used to suggest people "ease" into learning to ride with hardboots but have since found that people that just go all in end up learning a lot faster. My personality goes well that approach. A couple of questions: 1. "high vs. low angles" this may sound dumb, but which is forward and which is perpendicular to the board (90 degrees, to me, is "high" but in context that seems to be low) 2. BlueB said the Bombers were overkill for bindings. In what regard? Cost? Anyway, thanks for all the input. Right now I think I'm going to get the Donek Axxess, the Deeluxe 225, and possibly the Bomber TD3's, unless I can find a compelling reason not to. Thanks again for the help.

Guys, thanks for the input. You've given me a sanity check that leads me to believe, while not common, hardbooting all over the mountain is possible. Workshop, I've given up entirely on midwest riding. the runs are too short and the lift lines too long, and the travel distance from Chicago to any hill worth it is just as long as flying out west. Charlie & Neil, if i'm going to use a hardboot setup for all mountain riding, any thoughts on board shape? I hear numbers for sidecut radius and they may as well be Greek to me. I get the concept, I think (shorter radius allows for tighter turns at low speed while larger radius allows for better control at higher speeds, but at the expense of low-speed control). Any thoughts, or is it really just personal preference? Also, I've read a little about the "kick" or "snap" of a board coming out of a turn. My old board had a bit of that, my Donek doesn't. I'm not sure how much I want that and what contributes to it? Apologies if my verbiage is unclear, until recently I've never thought so analytical about riding and lack the necessary vocabulary to articulate.

All, I've been directed here by a few people, but most importantly Sean @Donek . About 7 or 8 years ago, I made a conscious decision to really focus on carving with my soft boot setup. I angled my bindings forward and started leaning over as much as possible. In 2010, I bought a Donek (I believe it's called Ride...but maybe an Incline). I found the stiffest soft boots I could find and kept a real forward stance with my bindings. Since then, I've always focused on laying out carves as much as possible, but this is an all-mountain freestyle board with a soft boot setup, so I'm obviously limited. The thing is, I love going over bumps, popping in out and of trees, and doing the steep un-groomed stuff. I live in Chicago and only make 2 (maybe 3) trips out west per year. My friends that I ride with are also very "all-mountain." So I don't really have the luxury of dedicating an entire day to one type of riding...and realistically, I probably wouldn't want to anyway. I want to take the plunge and go hard boot. I'm thinking of the Donek Axxess. Per the website and some correspondence with Sean, it's the board to do all-mountain riding. A few questions: does anybody ride on those terrain types I just mentioned in hard boots? Am I being realistic in looking for a board/plate-binding/hard-boot setup that will allow me the versatility to carve really hard but still enjoy non-groomed runs? If that is the board, how tight should my sidecut radii be? When I bought my first Donek, the cuts were a little wider and I noticed I couldn't make as sharp as turns as I was used to (especially in the bumps and/or trees), but I eventually got used to it. What I've come to love is how it handles at higher speeds. Not sure I want to give that up, but I'm concerned the stiffness of the board and the boots will limit my maneuverability. Do I compensate by getting a tighter radii? Finally, in regards to equipment: any definitive binding that would fit my riding preferences? and how does one go about selecting a boot? I rented a carving board from Bomber 2 years ago, and though I liked the carving, the boots were not comfortable and ultimately caused me to cut my day short. If I live in Chicago, any suggestions on how to try them out? Any help would be greatly appreciated. jeff