Kneel

Probably more along the lines of what I do...now. Or somewhere in between. But a vast improvement over the old system of holding my breath through the entire length of the carve, a forceful exhalation then violent gasp before I would tighten up for the next turn. It was a totally dysfunctional system that I tolerated for years. Now I find if anything seems off, start by paying attention to the breath, then everything else seems to fall in place. My cerebellum has a better chance of relaying messages when it doesn't have to relay messages through it's neighbor the medulla oblongata which is banging pots and pans to get attention for oxygen. Dunno if there is any real science to that, but that's how it makes sense to me...

What are the dimensions? 1.5"x20" $16 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072KLYV2M/ref=sspa_dk_detail_6?pd_rd_i=B0721RLH3V&pd_rd_w=Gam9L&pf_rd_p=f0dedbe2-13c8-4136-a746-4398ed93cf0f&pd_rd_wg=pGN4y&pf_rd_r=9752YM7QKQVYZHEBSH67&pd_rd_r=1665a274-233c-11e9-9467-7d8fa144a26c&th=1

And they were NARROW. I remember those demos and they were 17-19cm waist. 21.3? I would have bought one back then if I knew they came that wide. Or maybe I'm thinking of when the FP started to appear with the same base design? 93' sounds right...

@pow4ever On Tuesday morning I spent an hour.5 at the Creek on Sugar Slope in purposeful practice just working staying relaxed in The Norm linking 5 heelside and 5 toeside turns together at 100% at slow speeds. The first half hour was shit and I was lucky if I linked a single pair of turns. Then I started breathing. It's amazing the change that occurs in your body when it has sufficient oxygen. The second half hour is where the real growth happened. The simple modification of inhaling the carve, exhale on the transition freed my brain up to think ahead to the next series of turns. Things get even easier when you can visualize the future. I started hitting 80, 90 then 100%. The final half hour I could link up to 8 pairs before I ran out of real estate. Probably the best and most fun practice session I've ever had.

He hasn't ridden it yet. I may get a vinyl topsheet sticker with the Hooger Booger Blaster graphics on it to lead him off the scent...

That's why I was questioning the overlap. My K168 was custom to my girlish 6'1" 200lbs and what I would consider stiff, compared equally to the off-the-shelf FC170, so my perspective is likely apples to oranges. But my 18yo son who is also 6' but 30lbs lighter can still beat the K into submission. He's just a better all around, certainly more efficient rider...

I would think the FRT163 and the K168 would be more similar, no? Don't know if you surf, but I equate the difference between the FC170 and K168 as surfing with a thruster or quads respectively. When I need predictability and have lots of room to move I use a thruster. When I need speed and control I switch to quads. I wish there was the equivalent to snowboarding as there is surfing with intro of the 5-fin.

Betcha @barryj's looking at the FC170.

That McMaster-Carr app is as dangerous as Amazon. All kinds of fasteners appear in my mailbox and I have no idea what I ordered them for...

That may be the best idea ever. Or a felt stomp pad. Works great for waders on algae covered stones. I remember having decent traction in winter on ice an snow covered surfaces as well. Or just the loop side of the velcro...

I know I'll eventually end up with one of each. But right now my guts telling me the XC will be the magic bullet. Interesting point on the flex index which will no doubt come up in the hour+ long conversation with Mark.

Can't speak about the UPZ, but the Intuition Luxury in the 700's, had 2 fingers, went with the high volumes, awesome...

I've never ridden it at the Creek. It doesn't act like 185cm, but you, well I do, need a good 10-15yds of room to feel comfortable, especially with all the kooks at the Creek. Unfortunately I don't have a good NE perspective yet as I haven't been able to time it right when I've been in VT, but on the few less than stellar days its's been ridden it was a game changer for me. I'm inherently lazy and act much older than I am., but once you get it sorted out, and there is a learning curve, it's almost effortless to ride. The Superconductor I believe will be perfect, the XC maybe better for smaller tighter hills. I hope to have one or both in my hands before the end of the season.

My 18yo son has taken a liking to it. Sometime we need to tell ourselves things in order to cope with the loss...

Oh no. I have a Flux with a base that looks like cats used it as a scratching post. I’m in the northeast. It was a warm wet December. I just picked up the FC170 this fall and have maybe 50 runs on it. It’s awesome. Better than I had imagined But all I think about is the 8RW...

I'm at the Creek M, W and most F mornings before I head to work. I can barely tolerate riding past 10:30 when people start to show, but at that point I have a dozen runs in and ready to go to work. From 9-10 I have the place practically to myself. Conditions are surprisingly "acceptable" and should vastly improve as they'll be at 100% after this weekend. I haven't ridden in PA or NY in 15+ years. The LEAST crowded is STILL gonna be crowded so I'll go wherever. Weekends can be a challenge with family stuff, but it's very easy for me to call an audible. It's also easier to ride smaller places when you have a crew blocking for you.

Lets just say I'm over the K168. But I also have an 8RW so I'm also kinda sorta over the FC170, but have been riding it more than I expected with the funky winter we've been having and haven't had the luxury of ideal trail conditions to really ride the 8RW as I want. That's all been changing though here in the NE as winter finally returned. But, the differences are tough to describe. The ways they are similar is how smooth, precise and predictable they both are. Point your head in a direction and the response is immediate, just the arc getting there is different. The main difference being that everything about the numbers on the K168 just make sense. Long soulful carves in The Norm to turns where you have to pick your head up off the stomp pad. It's a sexy bitch. The FC170 has the curves of a 2x4 and manages to accomplish the same. It has me rethinking the way I ride, or more likely I've STOPPED overthinking about how I ride. The 8RW plays a huge roll in that too as it's a completely different beast altogether. Bottom line is I know nothing about board geometry and I'm a mediocre rider at best, but I do pay attention to my gut. The K168 is awesome. No doubt. But the FC170 just feels so damn good...

Honestly, you can't really go wrong with any of present carve-specific vendors. Thirst, Donek, Coiler, SG, Kessler, Jasey Jay, etc. These guys have really upped the ante. Every time I think I've found the last board I'll ever buy, another one comes along. But I do have to admit, Mark is onto something special at Thirst. Once I got everything dialed in and learned to stay neutral on the 8RW...man-o-manaschewitz! I called and begged Mark to be back on the list for an XC and/or Superconductor. It also seemed to fix a lot, certainly not all, of the flaws in my riding style where OTHER boards feel that much better. I was riding the SG Full Carve 170 earlier this week and was in awe of how good that board really is. So, sorry! I've got nothing but more confusion for you. But if you look at them like potato chips knowing damn well you can't eat just one? Pick something that matches the conditions where you ride over anything else. I can pretty much guarantee you'll be happy with whatever you decide on until you try the next one.

Always Always interested.

Yup.

I'm socially awkward (at best), but certainly not afraid to talk. It's an AWESOME combination. A meet & greet on Sunday night is a fabulous idea...

FC170 at the Creek this morning. You're gonna love the ride, @SHREDSURF Don't let the huge SCR fool you. She can turn on a dime when you hammer it.

The first. Titanflex. Ti + Geckos. I've placed the Titanflex on top of the geckos. Once. Laughed at how high above the board I would be with heel and toe lift. Never thought about it again till now. I do want to try swapping out the center rigid plastic puck for a hd rubber one, but I suspect that would be bad as the rigid one probably prevents the M6's from flexing and warping the inserts.

This is why I prefer the Titanflex and standard Ti's with geckos over the SW's, while riding 700's which are far stiffer than the SB's. My feet like to be busy, probably to the detriment to my riding. Though it has peaked my interest to try my standard tongue 223's with the SW's. I thought that was with the TD1, 2 and Catek receivers, but could be wrong. I've seen both in TD3's and Intec receivers without issue

Believe me, I get it. We should be ashamed of ourselves. Distance is your greatest asset up there.