weather_nerd

I think I should start keeping track of comments in an Excel sheet... right now, the "monoski" comments are definitely the most common, but I want some statistics to back that up. Yesterday, a skier followed me into the lift line and said "You snowboard beautifully". I'm not sure if he was complementing my snowboarding or my looks?

Agreed, I was lucky it was the back foot. I'm not sure if the screw was simply too short (canting + heel lift shims on that screw) or, as Corey said, the screw had actually loosened out to two threads. Yes, I am on the smaller side. But regardless, going fast on plastic bindings is not the best idea I've ever had... I bought these as "new old stock", only used four days so far. The screws should still be fine. I think it was either too short or it had loosened, as Corey said. I though of both of those possibilities too. All of the other screws have plenty of engagement, but I think that this particular screw may have been too short due to the canting and heel shims together. Either way, I'll be getting new hardware.

Today I had a binding failure (Nidecker Freecarves) on my last run. My GPS watch had me above 40 mph when my back foot came loose. I slid a few hundred feet on my back but I was 100% fine, luckily. I saw that my toe piece wad sliding around and figured a screw had come loose. I just took it apart to add loctite to each screw and was surprised to see that the offending screw had actually had a few threads sheared off. It looks like it was too short, despite coming with the bindings. Anyone see this happen before?

Earlier this season, I had a teenage-ish snowboarder say to me: "I don't know why you would want to wear ski boots on a snowboard."

I got a Tranny Finder in a 157 this year and so far I think it's great. Like the two posters above, my board does have wrap around edges and seems sturdy. I'd say it's not amazing in any particular area except for plowing through soft chunder. It feels rather heavy and damp, which helps in that area. I do think that it's a "good" carver on groomers - one of the better soft boot carvers I have been on. But not as good as my SG Force, or the Burton Vapor that I owned a long time ago. I rode it in waist-deep champagne powder and found that I did have to lean back a bit, even with the large nose. The shape of the nose made it want to hook and sink in the powder. So, next snow storm, I'll stick to my K2 Cool Bean. But, it was still "good" as a powder board when leaning back a bit. I recently shifted the bindings forward in the insert packs which made it feel more like a freestyle board as opposed to a true freeride board. It also gave me a longer tail, which seems to help with driving carves off the back foot. I'm happy with this as a daily driver softboot board. Is it the best board I have ever ridden? No. Is it a good, versatile directional softboot board that can rail carves and pop off side hits? Yes, especially after moving the bindings forward.

Will do!

I have a weekday pass this season so I can avoid the crowds, so some early weekday turns sound great. I'll also be there for the USASA races on Feb 5-6. Glad to see they are almost 100% open. Tuesday was easily one of the best powder days I have ever had. Consistent waist deep turns all morning!

I'll send you a message!

Is this still for sale?

Donek Freecarve! My first alpine board. 5 days on it so far. BTW, I changed my angles after this photo so there is no more overhang.

Softboot carver and soon-to-be hardbooter in Flagstaff Anyone get a pass for the 20/21 season? I'll be up there on some weekday mornings for an hour or so.

Agreed. My soft boots are a US 10. I used to wear 27.5's when I skied so I went with a 27 in the 325's. Thanks! I'm 160 lbs, so it sounds like I made the right choice with the 325's.

Yes, I'd say I'm a good carver on my softboot setup. I'm a smaller guy (5'8" 160 lbs) but I usually ride stiffer boards. I ended up going with the Freecarve! Conditions are usually iffy in AZ. Our storms are great, but they can be few and far between. I haven't thought about plates yet... I think I'll learn without them and give them a try if/when I get the chance. I ended up going with the Freecarve so hopefully that will last me a while. I used Heads and Technicas, but I never had them professionally fit (broke college student). I'm going to look into options to get the heels nice and snug if I need to.

Thanks for the comments! I ended up going with the Freecarve after talking to Sean. I also went with the 325's but I plan on doing some modifications (BTS kit and maybe snugging up the heel). I might swap out the tongue too if I want to change the stiffness.

Hi all! I just joined after lurking for a bit and figured I would introduce myself and ask for a bit of advice. I'm a 30 y/o guy living in Flagstaff AZ and I'm getting ready for my 22nd season of snowboarding. I'll be up at AZ Snowbowl on weekday mornings this season, hoping to avoid the weekend crowds (especially with COVID restrictions). I'm also hoping to do a UT/CO tour in January if it is safe. When I'm not snowboarding, I am an endurance runner and a climate scientist. I've always ridden a softboot setup but I've been interested in hardboots for a looong time. My dad even got his hands on a used Burton alpine board when I was a preteen. I think it was made before I was born . I never ended up trying it out (didn't have the right boots). My current quiver includes a Jones Aviator w/ Flow NX2 bindings for hard snow/carving and a K2 Cool Bean w/ Now bindings as a surfy powder/slush board. I also just got a Korua Shape T-Finder and Arbor Cypress bindings that I'm hoping will be a really fun freeride/carving board (not a huge fan of the Jones Aviator). My boots are DC Torstein Horgmo's, which are STIFF. I also skied up until a couple of years ago, so I'm used to a stiff boot. I've been chatting with Sean at Donek about a new board. We've discussed the Voyager as a good intro board, but I'm asking him about the Freecarve too. I'm thinking I'll go with the F2 Titanium Race bindings (not the step-ins), but I'm not sure about the boots. I'm torn between the Deeluxe 325's and 700's. For softboots, I bought the stiffest boots I could get my hands on. But I'm not sure if the 700's will be too stiff? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I plan on freecarving and maybe trying a USASA race if they happen any time soon. Sorry if I broke any unwritten rules of the forum . Looking forward to a fun season!