Atom Ant

When one goes through the process of attaining life insurance, they go through a mirade amount of tests / screens, history of smoking or current usage, and nearly everything else mentioned is accounted for and factored in... And effects the price. This is commonplace in a ton of other areas as well, and most public schools require vaccinations on a host of different viruses. How this is materially different seems an overly politicized debate. It's close enough to what has been a broadly accepted norm for a very long time, vaccine effectiveness is now established based on the largest natural science experiment of all time, the debate over long term effects is a wash given we also don't understand the long term effects of Covid infection either- however there has never been a large and horrific vaccine driven long term health crisis ever and the mRNA vaccine tech has been studied intensely for over a decade and has received full FDA approval. I'll put a finer point on it: there is a high correlation between Trump supporters and his rhetoric on this subject and vaccine skepticism, when in fact it is the Trump administration we have to thank for project Warpspeed which delivered these vaccines safely and in record time (and truly, I am thankful to that administration for that). You cannot square that circle, logically. He should have, perhaps rightfully one could argue, won reelection on this fact alone. Rhetorically, he went another way. Liberty ends at the bridge of your nose, the old libertarian saying goes. That has been a long held belief in conservative circles, circles I was proud to be a member of. Someone mentioned being able to sue another for spreading disease... Look at the legal backflips going on in Texas currently with outsourcing of enforcement via deputization of the public... Precedent matters, so we might get our wish! The irony is both opinions as to the justifications are held simultaneously, often enough, by the same voters. Its a fun time to be alive, no?

The virus absolutely has been isolated. Not going to bother providing a link here, as this is not a debatable point. If we like, I can try to contact JnJs vaccine team, many of whome I personally know. Or they are all colluding... Who knows?

Hey Jack, Question coming from a truly ignorant place: is your daughter does bumps and jumps (I believe)... Within skiing, is that considered the combination of a few disciplines (racing / moggles and jumps / freestyle)? We're kind of its own thing? II think where some of the confusion might be coming from here, is that for pure gate based racing... Hard boot should be used and are absolutely the superior equipment. For border cross soft boots are absolutely the superior equipment... What doesn't really exist is something in between. Some might argue Bank Solomon is the in-between, but I would argue it does not combine enough elements of each to count as an in-between- more its own thing. An event that combines reasonable features of like border cross with a gated section much like giant slalom would effectively nullify, or it's designed properly at least would nullify, the advantages of either set of equipment. Single Rider format obviously. Half baked idea here, please nobody treat this as a dissertation or grand thesis... Just an idea only. I've always thought something race-based that highlights a broad all-around skill set would be interesting to watch and participate in. Mitch

"That's kind of offensive. The talent has to be there. I get it, a kid with talent but no money is out of luck, but, life's not fair. A kid with money and no talent is not going anywhere either." Your interpretation isn't what I meant. I meant that while everyone will continue to progress... Those with the funds will continue from a (faster) starting point and flow upwards quicker, while the less monied children will also continue to progress... But not catch up. You won this one Jack! We get it! "Ain't gonna happen"... Message recieved / awknowledged / digested! This is a "wouldn't it be nice" conversation... Not something meant to change the world or really anything other than our butt-hurt childhood trauma! Wait.. might be that is just me...

Dave Winters, I am conceding the win to Jack, as reality is, well... what it is. However, the Slash and Burn rules and only particular gents agreement is what I'm talking about. Not hard to set limits for youth through, say, age 12 or whatever in USASA to level the playing field and allow talent to rise before further progression becomes a matter of money (primarily, in my opinion). I think it would help in the development of third party financial support, and maybe just keep the sport more about riding "fun" for a bit longer before serious competition interviens (or seriously competitive parents). Jusy dreaming here. This ship has sailed.

Sometimes I think this forum tends to be overly focused on the specifics of what someone might have written and perhaps as a result miss the overall message... or at least not clearly infer its understood in responses. Jack, you personally have done more for this sport than most anyone so I never, and never will, question your desire to see it grow and thrive. I think we can agree, however, that this sport is maddeningly expensive to participate in simply as a rec rider, let alone a aspiring racer. My comment was more geared towards an overall desire to reduce the cost in some way for youth to evolve into competitive racers. I personally experienced this as a youth-- my parents could not even come close to affording alpine equipment and told me to forget it. So I did. Later, when I graduated college I self funded and did pretty damn well. There needs to be some guard rails put up in my opinion, less this become a equestrian-esc pursuit. Your point is true about kids getting whooped at Nationals and then wanting alpine gear--my point is many of those kids have parents who are already stretching the budget as it is. Throw in plates to the mix... many just toss the towel in (and I know several personally). There should be a leveling, equipment wise, to whatever extent deemed appropriate (my suggestion--which isn't dissimilar to auto racing / karting, or some other... I am speaking to the overarching issue here more than anything). Make the sport more affording, if never "affordable" to as many as possible for as long as possible. Create a glidepath to an AllFlex beyond a parent's check. Much of anyone's success in a sport is mostly circumstance (Malcom Gladewell's book "Outliers" speaks to this well) and that will never change; in our case: living near a mountain or having a second home near by, having parent's who may meet the colloquial definition of "rich", access to a program--perhaps a private school, and so on... USASA should be creating a glidepath to FIS--they claim they do and are correct to some extent; my point is for sports where expense and the ability to overcome it play a large part in results, where possible, they should be looking at how to ensure access is at its greatest for as long as possible, or appropriate. I am not sure they are doing this to the extent they could. I feel we might be a bit closer on this, in a general sense, than is being recognized. I agree on the "hope" you mention, but absolutely will not even broach commenting on anything else regarding that in a public response as people are keen enough to connect the dots and that would be incredibly inappropriate.

I have long maintained but usasa should restrict hard boots through some certain age groups. It would allow the kids with natural talent to shine through the kids with richer parents, and probably end up attracting a broader range of children interested in trying it (racing in gates). Parents with talented kids would get an early heads up, since all age groups are represented in one race they get a look at the hard boots gear, and so happy opportunity to attempt at least to plan ahead. I only shake my head when I see kids below the age of 16 on custom fully plated boards and $1,000 boots. These parents want the best for their children, but they perhaps are ignorant to what they're contributing to; more at fault are the governing bodies who keep such a loose rule set as to allow such a thing. Always will be a rich kid sport.... But good God.

Incorrect. A broad stroke reference to all Americans, and people in general. We tend to remember only what we find convienient. Sincerely, The comments author.

First point--> my experience tells me there are 1) always idiots / rubs out there, 2) everyone wants to get rich and thinks real-estate is a great way to print money, 3) American's have no memory in general... always been the case, always will be. Buying opportunities are ample for those with memories, however. Second point--> "hyper" not so sure, inflation, sure. Not always a bad thing, however. We shall see how this all cooks up, as many causes stem from the pandemic and its impact on production and the supply chain. No one has the answer. Hey! That was a pretty good response that kinda sorta dodged outright politics, right?

I know as fact JJA (who I patron the most) does this... For his similar (my opinion superior) plate and Allflex (by type). Also with more traditional plates. I would bet a house Kessler, etc. Does the same.

Short answer: if you have not heard about, let alone know what boardercross racing is... buy the shorter sidecar, more rec orientated board.

Anyone actually used SkiMojo that can speak to it?

I mean it is a brand new board, never ridden.

Come on guys... this is a NEVER SEEN SNOW 185 GS JJA with all the fixin's; a carbon fiber plate with all mounts... for $550. Where is there a better deal?

Just the board and plate. Might have a few odds and ends for td3s sidewinders.

Price update! 550+ shipping for JJA plate and board.

50 front, 48 rear. 7.3 degree heel lift, 6.4 toe.

Agreed with @Jackm. Design looks sexy, and is probably a selling point for some, but overall it could be simpler, arguably more effective, and of course significantly cheaper. But how, exactly, should be a separate thread.

Apex, per my understanding, didn't go out of business due to a lack of support from customers... rather, it was a combination of terrible customer service and poor financial management. Supporting these companies is not a moral obligation, and as a component for any business to stay afloat the putting out of products that are correctly tailored to the actual needs of the customer base is key. Some of us don't need the F1-car of snowboard equipment--although it seems some of us are certainly prone to thinking we do. Therefore, I reserve my right to call a spade a spade. Regarding tooling, etc... agreed, it takes money to make money... I am not proposing these should cost $50.

Under today's exchange rates, the price comes out to around $577/set + shipping. I would encourage people to look at Donek's offerings, JJA's offerings, and a few others all of which are remarkably, dramatically cheaper and will be just as effective for the average rider on this forum. Correct, my opinion only. But my opinion is that is outlandish.

For what these do, the price is ridiculous. Was with Apex, and even more so with Virus.

Good to know on the Ride components working well. I have regular sized feet and rode size large El Hefe bindings on PP for two seasons... No problems. Ymmv.

Ok, I think I can add something to this conversation. First: I agree with @dhamann that 99.999999777% of softbooters and, frankly, softboot carvers need a stiff binding and boot set up, and that everything else is details not worth paying attention to. However, if you truly want to try this there are practically speaking two options: 1) Power Plates: heavy as all get-out, a pain in the ass to remove for waxing / adjustments, but they work with every binding on the market and most importantly work very, very well for their intended purpose of increasing edge pressure and control. Bonus is they are widely available, easy to find parts for, and not very expensive if bought used. 2) Catek FR2s: nice all-in-one package, but the kingpin centric design may cause a bit of stress. I found them to come slightly loose after hard riding, to you for sure need to keep an eye on them before and during riding. Highback is garbage, and straps are no where near modern standards even with the Nidecker version. Relative to the Power Plates, I would skip them. Both of the above options will allow inward canting and toe / heel lift. If all you want to do is carve up groomers that are in good shape... they are both damn good, with an edge to the Power Plates. If you want to do light-BX riding, trees, anything more than a little bumpy... skip them, please. The extra height will do you no favors as the boots will not be stiff enough to compensate. If you insist on toe / heel lift, buy a set of F2 RS plate bindings, or Carve Company, and a set of the softest possible hard boots and put that on anything thing you want (it will work very, very well). I have owned both, competed in both, done well in both, and now ride flat. It is a philosophical stance, but I truly do think if you are going to ride softboots (not softboot boards) you should be taking advantage of the versatility... if you aren't, what is the point? Hardboots can be just as warm, more supportive and performative / comfortable, the bindings last ten times as long and so do the boots (saving you a crapload of money over time) and you can ride them on any damn board you please so long as the boots / bindings are chosen correctly.

May be able to do a 1/2 day (8am-1ish) on Feb. 6th. Will be on softboots however, as I will have two new boards to try out.

I think it really is a matter of 1) what else someone has going on in general, and 2) how interested someone is in continuing to improve. If #2 is a concern, go as much as you possibly can. If it isn't, then I think it's perfectly valid to prefer quality, especially if your already "really good". I love boarding, and want to keep expanding my skills but I'm fine at this point with a slower pace of progression and so am trying to find a balance in terms of quality vs. quantity... But leaning more towards quality. I put my time in and have nothing to prove.