Jack M

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries 81,000 cases and 3,000 deaths in a country of 1.4 Billion just defies all reason. Some estimates put the number of deaths in Wuhan alone over 40,000: https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/wuhan-deaths-03272020182846.html The US (pop 327M) is now over 245,000 reported cases and 6,000 deaths. Those numbers are reported by state CDC agencies to the federal CDC, these are not political organizations. But the numbers for the US and probably many other nations aren't the full picture because tests are relatively scarce. They are only being administered to people with serious to severe symptoms. This causes selection bias when calculating the mortality rate from those numbers, 2.5% for the US. The US rate when estimating for people not tested is closer to 1%: https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/30/health/coronavirus-lower-death-rate/index.html

Do you believe numbers reported by China?

Kessler 168 for icy days, early season, crowded days, SL racing Kessler custom 175 general freecarving on good conditions Kessler 185 for hero days at Ludicrous Speed, and GS racing Winterstick Custom RS 166 for softboot days Was hoping to get out on my vintage Coiler 196 SG for the first time this spring, but everything closed before I got a chance.

Indeed most kids racing gates in USASA are on softboots, as is to be expected. The ones who are serious about getting on the podium at nationals* or going further with racing are on hardboots. (* that is, if there are other kids in their age group on hardboots. I didn't see any kids younger than 13 on hardboots this year) I've said this elsewhere but here at Sugarloaf at Carrabassett Valley Academy, there's a group of kids who went to nationals last year and saw that the fastest kids were on hb's, so they got themselves on hb's this year. They asked me to help coach, it was great. They generally cleaned up in the USASA Maine Mountain Series this year. I'm with BlueB and Neil, I don't think hb's are banned in FIS BX, and I assume USASA would follow suit. I do recall hearing that square tail boards were banned for safety reasons. Makes sense. I think hb's are a disadvantage in BX because they're not as good for recovery if you get into trouble, and that's part of why you don't see them anymore. Silver medal in the 2006 Olympics went to a hardbooter from Russia, and it was a very close race. I think there is a prize for overall USASA snowboarder, but I can't find it on their site.

SBS, I agree with you that it would be an interesting and worthwhile race, and that it's not going to happen. At least not in traditional gates. But don't despair, it IS happening right now, in Banked Slalom. The format is fun, growing, and it doesn't inherently favor hardboots, so there's no need to ban them. I think Banked Slalom is what you're wishing for. Traditional gates become unfun on softies once the course gets rutted or polished. BS doesn't get shagged in the same way.

Agreed. In the US, this happens in USASA. Some kids get into it as cross training for BX, and then take a liking to it. Other kids just want to compete. In USASA, there is greater participation in gates than halfpipe.

I don't think super tight gates are fun for anybody. The beer league I did for several years would run a tight slalom once a season. I don't think you could carve it even with an MK. So you skid and pivot and swim and it's just not a fun way to snowboard. This is probably why this race format doesn't exist already. I'm also reminded about how there are no snowboard mogul competitions anymore. Not enough people really enjoyed it. Right but if carving is involved, softbooters wouldn't be competitive, at least not at high levels. At the USASA or beer league level, sure.

F2 Eliminator anyone? Bueller?

An interesting idea. It kind of already exists in Boardercross and Banked Slalom. Hardboots are not excluded there, but they're not an advantage in BX. I'm told they're not as good for recovery and for mixing it up with other racers, and I'll believe it. I would have said hardboots are not an advantage in BS, but my own personal experiment suggests that whichever equipment you're better on you will be better on in BS. You race against the clock and there are no jumps. In 2018 I won my age group for the second time on hardboots at the Sugarloaf Banked Slalom, but I didn't feel like they were giving me any advantage as the course was not carvey. So last year I did it in softboots and got 8th. Granted some serious riders had aged into the group (40-49) but still, I was disappointed. Was going to switch back to hardboots this year, but... the rona. One year the course was really smooth and carvey, and I took 3rd overall. Some people grumbled about my unfair gear. That was fun.

People have been saying this sport is dying for 30 years, but here we are. The gear keeps getting better. WC racing is very healthy. Fin used to tell me how he would sell slightly more bindings each year than the previous. I'm confident I will never have a problem finding awesome new gear to buy, ever in my lifetime. Sorry, tangent alert. Back to mass produced boards...

Neither is this one.

I'm in US size 10 Burton Driver X. My mondopoint size is 28. That's a 28cm bare foot length, so it seems obvious to me that a 26cm waist like on so many "wide" boards is a dealbreaker. My Winterstick Custom RS 166 (recommended) has a 27.5cm waist, same as a K2 Fat Bob. I wouldn't want it any narrower. I'd like a set of Gecko Stealths for even more insurance against boot-out. I ride 30/15 angles.

I would say if your boot size is significantly bigger than the waist width of all mass production boards then there is no mass production board for you. (and me!)

That exists in every activity.

Got a peek at @Termin8tor's Ride Timeless and Commissioner. They look pretty darn cool, with full Titanal construction and carbon fiber - as much or more tech than a WC race board. The Commissioner is the new Timeless. The elliptical sidecut seems to tighten pretty severely at the tip and tail, I'd have to ride it to see how it works. However with a waist width of 266mm, I wouldn't be able to lay it over. Not sure if risers would fully eliminate the problem, so I'm probably not a buyer.

I agree the wording of the contract is important, as Corey said. If it said no refunds, then they probably think they're being generous. It does seem like they should be obligated to give you a full credit towards a future stay, if not a full refund. Kind of like how a ski area will give you a voucher for a future lift ticket if an act of nature shuts down the resort the day you are there. FWIW, Sugarloaf is giving full refunds. Guess they don't want to deal with the additional organization of credits. A lot of companies are in uncharted waters in these situations these days. If you think they're wrong and they won't accommodate you, I think your CC company is your best bet. Just before things got really serious, I registered my daughter for USSA Nationals for $275 and 12 hours later the event was canceled. They refunded $232. I guess my $43 is now a donation for the privilege of having been able to sign up. I guess I'm ok with that.

Bomber's thin lower assemblies for use with plates (mentioned by Lurch above) significantly reduce height while allowing cant/lift. If you don't use cant/lift, there is a flat version. Here is everything you need: Disks: http://bomberonline.3dcartstores.com/TD3-Cant-Disks-for-Plate-Systems_p_289.html E-rings, choose BP Only: http://bomberonline.3dcartstores.com/TD3-E-ring-Set_p_54.html Screws, choose 12mm: http://bomberonline.3dcartstores.com/M8-Screws_p_38.html The page that Lurch referenced warns against using these without a plate. I believe that is just because the only available e-ring is stiff, so there is no TD3-style suspension. These units do not damage a plate, so I don't see why they would damage a board. Alternatively, the TD2 lower assembly is almost as low as the BP version.

@John Gilmour, nobody should be looking to a snowboarding forum for medical advice unrelated to snowboarding. The Lodge is the appropriate place for this discussion. This does not mean it's not worthy of attention. The Lodge is not a lesser forum. It's simply a place to discuss anything of interest that doesn't fit into the other forums. There are many ways to use this website. Some people bookmark the "Unread Content" or "All Activity" links under the Activity tab at the top. They access the site that way in order to see everything across all forums. Others simply monitor the "Latest Topics" sidebar on the right to see new stuff across all forums except the Ride Board. If some people are ignoring The Lodge, that's their prerogative and they accept that they might be missing interesting discussion.

Merged. I am at Winter Park with my daughter for USSA Moguls Junior Nationals. They completed the singles events yesterday and today. Tomorrow was supposed to be duals, which is her better event, but the whole mountain will be shut down. A vacation to remember. We fly home Monday. Who wants a hug?

Fin created the Fintec for the specific reason that Intecs were failing under larger riders.

Photoshopped. There would be more spray particles beyond the obvious boundary of the spray trail here. Also I agree with lordmetroland, the nose is weird.

Oh man. I’ve ridden that “MK” 172 and it is awesome. I’d buy it if I thought I could get away with it!

It’s inappropriate to post this in any forum but The Lodge.

USASA Nationals are canceled. All USSA events are canceled after this weekend’s Junior Moguls Nationals at Winter Park, where I am right now with my daughter. @barryj, please try to use the organization of the forums appropriately, thanks.

Give them a little time. I found last year the only way to get a response from them is to order something. If they are truly MIA you can get a refund from your CC company.