Jarcode
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Posts posted by Jarcode
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Blackcomb, with @roch again on hardboots. Snowing at higher elevations, rain on the rest of the mountain. Produced slow but very carvable slop that was ideal for the 23cm waist boards were were trying. Tested the F2 El Diablo, which I found fun and very versatile but wasn't hooking short radius turns as well as I would have liked.
Then I tested the Pure Boarding Bastard. Unbelievably fun, carves like an SL board while retaining a very playful flex profile that makes it great for non-carving applications. This board really hits the sweet spot in the category of all mountain alpine boards. I ended up buying it! Only downside is the incredibly tacky topsheet graphic. I may cover it in stickers and censor the name as this is likely to become my instructor board.Might head up for one last day next weekend...
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2 hours ago, SunSurfer said:
Binding lift could achieve the same result without having to compromise boot fit.
F2 standard wedges give about 4 degrees. Bomber TD bindings can have 6 degree cant discs. I have custom wedged the toe and heel pieces of my TD3s by an extra 3 degrees as part of experiments with 9 degrees of rear boot heel lift, and for combos of lift and cant for skwal riding.
I'm already running the standard heel lifts in my F2s. I just like to have my rear leg quite bent at higher binding angles... I can go with less forward lean but I feel like it compromises how aggressive I can ride.
Installing heel lift in my 700Ts was also beneficial for my boot fit because the heel hold in that shell is pretty bad on its own. With the .951s I will be attempting to use smaller lifts (and perhaps just one in the right boot). -
@Carvin' Marvin good to hear. I might have to do two punches though, will be attempting to ride with only the right boot punched once along the entire fifth metatarsal this saturday. In my 700Ts I only ever had pain in my right foot, so I held off on the left for now. I'm also going to make another attempt to use a footbed to prevent any foot pronation in the boot.
Part of my problem is also the high forward lean I opt for in my rear (right) foot. On my 700Ts I actually installed a heel lift inside of the boot so I could use more forward lean without straining my ankle... but that setup likely applies even more pressure to the front of the foot. -
Blackcomb, with @roch on his first time on hardboots. It was snowing on most of the mountain, and the snow conditions were tolerable, especially as things softened up through the day. Grooming all of a sudden became horrendous at certain sections though... I'm suspecting staff shortages.
Ridge Runner was still a joy to carve up. Tested out the OES AM 167 from Boris... did not enjoy the board nearly as much as I hoped to. -
6 hours ago, MountainSlope said:
Hi Jarcode, thanks for your message. Mr. E is correct. Our boots are Grilamid. Which shell size do you have? How wide are your feet? We suggest you stand in the shells without any liner. Are your feet too wide just standing in the shells? If not, then it would be better to work with a thinner liner before strething or milling the shells. If your feet are too wide, have you tried one shell size larger? Hope this helps.
I ended up taking the boot to an experienced fitter, and left them with the right boot for immediate shell work. They recognized the plastic immediately.
The typical "foot in shell" test reveals typical clearance behind the heel for sizing, but some significant width constraints.
Due to the size of my tailor's bunion on my right foot it was immediately apparent a punch was needed. Sizing wise they had no concerns considering how well my left foot fit. If I went a size up I would probably encounter issues elsewhere because the rest of my foot fits perfectly. I'm returning later to deal with other requests I had (heel lifts, potential liner replacement), and will hopefully be riding with the boot next weekend.
Aside from the above fitting woes, the heel hold in these boots is an extreme improvement over my 700Ts, which is exactly what I wanted when I pulled the trigger on ordering the .951s.-
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Has anyone punched out their .951s? I just got a pair of these boots and instantly fell in love with the heel lock and extremely supportive cuff. Unfortunately my feet are quite wide and will need at least my rear foot punched out around my small tailor's bunion, was a problem in my 700Ts and I fully expected to run into the same issue in these boots. Just want to make sure there isn't anything too special about the plastic before I give the green light for a fitter to start punching out these very expensive boots.
Tagging @MountainSlope in case they have any input on working with the shells (RD130).-
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14 hours ago, RideGuy said:
I currently have a Donek Incline 164 x 23.5, 9-11 side cut that works really well with hard boots. I ride it when I'm messing around with the kids. I teach my younger two who are new to snowboarding and it works just fine. It's playful enough. It does well in soft snow and mush.
When I started instructing I rode soft boots. But I blew out my ancle and never rode soft boots again. Prior made me a 4x4 that was 164 x 23 for teaching. It was excellent. The 4x4 is a touch more playful, but does not carve as well as the Incline. I don't remember what the sidecut was on the 4x4 but it was good for demos because it could carve at such low speed.
The one thing I don't like about the Incline is that it's not stable at high speeds. I asked Bruce to make me a replacement. It's what Bruce calls a Contra All Terrain. 168 x 23.5 with 10m side cut. 144 effective edge (17 nose, 7 tail). It's ready, but I haven't picked it up yet.
Your Incline sounds like a shorter version of mine. I would be interested in what you think of the "all terrain" Contra when you get a chance to try it.
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11 hours ago, BlueB said:
He had a 19.5 version of that and it's mine now [vampire voice] mwahahahaaa! [/vampire voice]
I'm still not entirely sure how you were riding so comfortably on it considering how soft that board was. It felt terrible to me in comparison to my WCRM.
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@BlueB I would love to try them next season! Hope your wrist is healing well.
If you're willing to part with one, there's a very high chance I would buy one off you too.
12 minutes ago, BlueB said:All that being said, I still think you'd be the best off with about 25 waist. It would allow you to go about 45° on your front foot, with your boot size. I wouldn't go higher for teaching...
I was aiming for something like 55/35, I already ride at 45/25 with toe and heel underhang on my current freeride board.
I plan to keep the old wide board with the floppy burton plates for absolute beginners anyway, since that's just all skidding, no point in being picky about board performance there. But if things align for me next season, I'll be doing a lot more than just beginner lessons... and I also want a board I can personally enjoy goofing around with. -
@barryj That seems like the characteristics I'm looking for, minus the width. At 25.8cm it's not far from my current freeride board and I don't really want to have anything over 24cm when I'm looking for something I can comfortably run ~30-40 degrees on the rear foot with my m28 boots. I ride considerably worse at lower angles.
@dhamann I did not know about the OES all mountain... that is almost exactly what I want!
I'm also leaning towards getting a Coiler built, might actually be the cheapest option for me in Canada unless I get lucky and swipe something used. -
Next season I am planning on sticking to hardboots full time as I have been for the past three years... this time as an instructor. Teaching elementary maneuvers however required me to throw plates onto a freeride stick, which I found very fun, but just isn't going to be a long-term solution since the board itself doesn't perform all that well. It's too soft, far too wide (26.6cm), and rockered.
I sort of wrote off the massive difference between softboot and hardboot boards as their own domains until I rode an unusual Donek Incline with a 23cm waist that I got from a trade with @BlueB. It's wide enough that the board rides nicely along the base still, but narrow enough that I can ride forward angles that I'm comfortable with. The stiffness was perfect for hard carving. The only problem is that it's 180cm... far too large to pivot around which is a bit of a problem since I'm looking to take my hardbooting into the park next season.
So my task this summer is to find something that fits that niche. Problem is, I can't really find any non-alpine snowboard that really fits my requirements. Everything is either far too soft, far too wide, or doesn't have enough insert setback for my style of riding. At the some time, most of the "all mountain" options in the alpine world aren't of interest to me since the focus there still seems very carve oriented. I already have that category covered.
I think my only option is to custom order something... as a 23-24cm waist, ~165cm length board for someone of my size (195lbs, 6'3") doesn't seem to exist. The only exception seems to be the Thirst CC.
Thoughts? Ideas? -
On 4/21/2022 at 6:12 PM, BlueB said:
In the gondy, at Blackcomb, a softbooter started conversation with us, attracted to our hardboots. He goes "I'm a carver..." and from his comments, I could see he knows what he was talking about. We mentioned Cypress, then he goes "Hey, did you have a long ponytail, back then (15 years ago!)?" Umm, yes... "You are Boris!!!". Wow?! Later I remembered who the guy was - we used to call him and his buddy 'the Arbor Brothers', as they were always trenching on their A-frames with forward stances. A blast from the past!
and just before he came into the gondola at the mid station you were telling me about how you used to have a ponytail... crazy coincidence
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10 minutes ago, DMKW said:
I truly love the description of this board...just so hardcore and funny. I admire anyone bold/adventurous/crazy enough to take it out. Thanks for the laugh, and best of luck with the sale!
Having personally used this board last season it has to be stated to deter any inexperienced rider from purchasing it. It's still a blast to ride if you have the skills and athleticism to tame it, but the dated construction really shows when compared to modern alpine snowboards.
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@BlueB I was worried fractures were involved after seeing how severe the swelling had become at the end of the day... guess your tennis is going to be ruined for a while. Hopefully no significant tendon or ligament damage comes up later.
I'm also going to be chasing that feeling of carving up Ridge Runner next season. That run is amazing! -
Old school glass race board in all its glory. This was my first alpine board.
When I emailed Bruce asking for details about the board, he referred to it as a "museum piece" and discouraged riding it.
So, if you are purchasing this with the intention of riding it, be prepared for an extremely unforgiving ride. 14.2m sidecut, 184cm running length, 19cm waist, rider weight of ~175lbs if I had to guess from the original owner, and fiberglass construction. This means zero dampening, poor performance in less than ideal conditions, and a terrifying amount of pop out of turns. Asymmetrical construction, regular stance.
Some of the rear inserts are damaged but easily repairable, likely from removing the equally ancient bindings that were fused to the board when I got it. The topsheet construction is also unusually thick, so you may need longer screws to mount most plate bindings to this board.
100CAD plus shipping from BC, Canada. Also willing to sell locally in person at any resort in or near the lower mainland next season.
dog not for sale
minor scratches-
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Ah, you're right. I confused it with MS boots which have three liner sizes per shell size.
1 hour ago, BlueB said:I'm sure, with a bit of creativity, in-line hangers could be mounted to hard boots.
But do you want it that heavy and stiff?
I'm sure it would be miserable to actually skate on, but would make for a pretty comical hardboot review on pavement.
On the flip side, I may have to look at modifying my hardboot skates to deal with the cuff that freely swings forward... probably too soft for me. Having learned so much about alpine snowboarding makes me wonder if spring systems could exist in the inline skating world.-
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The liners were m28, but I'm pretty sure the shells are the exact same for m27 and m28. My liners were tearing from the inside out on the rear foot. The boots are pretty scuffed up, but considering the construction of the T700s I'm sure they could take a lot more abuse.
We'll see how long it takes to get the .951s shipped here... was not cheap. I also bought some new hardboot inline skates. If only there was a way to put wheels on my snowboard hardboots... -
@BlueB do you have any boot fitter recommendations around Vancouver? I'm getting some new .951 boots and would like to find someone who knows what they are doing so I don't have to put up with pain next season.
On another note, my m28 700T shells will be up for sale eventually, will sell for a bargain to any locals. -
Follow @BlueB's advice, especially the part about toe/heel lift. I made the mistake of ignoring lift at first which caused a lot of avoidable joint pain for me. It's crazy how much of a difference those little shims can make.
Also unmentioned is boot forward lean, which plays a pretty big role in establishing your neutral stance in addition to binding lift. Most people seem to have less forward lean on the font boot and more in the rear.
Alpine boards have also come a long way from the asym board you used to ride. I'm too young to have personally used anything like that but just knowing the construction differences, you're likely to be pleasantly surprised. -
It was a fun season. Next will be a very intense one for me, looking for full time work at a resort and likely riding a lot on my days off.
Unfortunately I won't be at Cypress nearly as much as I was this season, especially if I'm taking advantage of staff housing at another resort. The abysmal grooming doesn't help either... hopefully that improves next year.
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Looking at the unusual end of season weather I might come up once again this Saturday to Cypress. I'm also starting my hunt for equipment next season, since I will be teaching and riding a lot.
@BlueB hope to catch you this weekend, if you're heading up. -
Looking for a pair of MS boots in relatively good condition so I can bring it to a boot fitter, likely to get the shell punched out for next season. Ideally the WC or RD models since I enjoy stiff boots, coming from 700Ts.
My feet are just slightly too wide for my current boots, which I have ignored this entire season to my own detriment. The shells can't be punched out where I need space. -
One awesome day at Manning today. Very empty, close to ideal carving conditions for most of the day. No ice, just nice predictable hardpack with snowfall for most of the day. Destroyed a pair of gloves completely...
It's unfortunate their season is ending this weekend since they're about to get dumped on again, and actually had more snow since the last time I was up there. I'm almost tempted to head up again tomorrow.
@BlueB enjoy your trip! -
Trying to decide between Manning and Cypress for one last day of the season... @BlueB you going to be up tomorrow?
Personally I want to avoid the excessive slush from late season conditions, Manning is going to be colder and is almost completely empty... but their chairlifts are so slow I can take a nap on the way up.
Questions on finding a playful all mountain setup for hardboots
in Carving Central
Posted
Well, this has been resolved thanks to @BlueB selling me his PB Bastard. The best board by far of the three he lent me to try, and is pretty much exactly what I wanted. Also the worst topsheet graphic, by far...