Mike T

I run non-Sidewinder TD3's on a Coiler plate w/ Bomber hardware... and don't feel it's too high. Switch to Sidewinders, and it feels too high. The Coiler plate is a couple mm thicker than the Boiler plate.

Epic carving today... most of the day spent on Outback, alternating between Downunder, Kangaroo and "Kangarang" - Boomerang was last groomed Monday but by noon had caught just enough sun to be quite cartable. (Kangarang: upper half of Kangaroo and then cross over to Boomerang either above its headwall or just under...) Race all day on TBird but as once they took to gates down I went over there and holy s&it was it a special kind of grippy! Outback coverage has been helped greatly by the 9 new inches last weekend. Still gotta be careful as you approach the lift.

Definitely interested to hear how this progresses! Curious to hear how they do on bad grooming... Which was the Achilles heel of the admittedly well-used original 158 I had.

@breesomatic, my Monster is 21 wide. The other decks I mentioned are 20 wide or very close. I'd definitely take a demo ride a Torsion Plus V-Cam if given the opportunity! Having said that I've tried a few examples of Torsion Plus Energy, and I like mine better (without it). My NSR+/Angrry 180 has a healthy dose of Torsion Plus and on that board I love it. @That Guy - I've never bothered to look at a Kessler's camber, but I have ridden a few 180's and 185's over the years. If I had to guess I would think "rather little camber". None of them were in any way boring... if only because they were fast 0 - 60 ;-) but I'm also not sure I'd want that same ride in a freecarver that's meant for tighter turns and lower speeds. I could be wrong of course!

I've got an assortment of dual and tri-sidecut Coilers in my quiver. They are all different but rarely do I think to myself while riding "oh yeah this is a tri-sidecut" or "oh yeah this is a dual-sidecut". There are other characteristics of my various boards that are more obvious. For instance I have no trouble getting my 14/17 NSR to finish turns and I have no trouble getting my 14/20/17 NSR to not finish turns... the same could be said about my 12/14 Nirvana Energy and my 10.5/12.7/12 VSR. The only time I really notice the difference is if I get way back on the tail... the tri-sidecut boards ridden from that position tend to dump a little speed while the dual-sidecut do not. I rarely make a turn that way so in the end, little difference. @bigwavedave: Yep, I'd agree with your characterization of the Nirvana Balance. The Nirvana Energy is an entirely different animal... my 174 is the best board I've ridden on ice. (Plenty of data points... the NW gets real ice in spring and in low-snow years such as this one... yeah, I've been on an admittedly well-used original Madd 158.) The Nirvana V-Cam I tried a few SES's ago was yet different, feeling more like a really turn GS deck. @breesomatic: Careful with the "Balance plus V-cam" idea... part of what makes a Balance so easy-going... as well as friendly in bumpy or soft snow... is the low camber. The V-Cam has a higher camber in the cambered section (middle), more akin to the Energy. If you take the low camber of the balance and then add V-Cam I'd have to imagine the result would be rather lethargic and not very much fun for carving carving groomers. Would probably be more like a really skinny hybrid rocker/camber powder deck. Of course I could be totally wrong, best to ask Bruce... I've seen you ride enough to suspect that you want something with some life to it. Honestly if you want "all-mountainy, carvy, and a kick in the pants" all in one package, the Monster 2 is what I'd recommend... but then you're talking an additional 10cm over a Nirvana which violates your length constraints and makes it more work in *certain* AM situations like firm bumps. The Monster and Nirvana Balance both have elements of the AM flex pattern in them... the Nirvana Energy is sort of a cross between the Nirvana Balance and the longer Angry... the Monster is a big AM/FC board that can, amazingly, both surf off piste and EC on the groom. The Monster might just be the most versatile of the bunch for those who are comfortable with long boards. My Coiler alpine boards and how I tend to ride them: 183 NSR w/ plate (14/17 sidecut): GS racing, excels on poor grooming, ice, firmer hero groom - anything where there's a firm base possibly covered with crud, regardless of groom quality. Horrible in true off-piste situations or anywhere where contact with the firm base is lost. Fast. 180 NSR+ (14/20/17) "Angrry 180" (I call it that because it rides very much like a Madd 180 was described to me...) Smooth groom of any consistency, as long as something reasonably firm lies underneath. Big turns, but has a much more freecarvy than racy feel. Lots of pop, and edge-air-edge. Very precise. Fast. 184 Monster 2 (12.7/15/14): The most versatile carver in my quiver. Feels like I could wrap it around a telephone pole... very bendy, very forgiving. Holds its own on really firm snow but excels in warmer temps and variable snow. Great off-piste in open windpack, slush, corn. When carving, I probably get lower on this board than any other... EC, Pureboarding style both doable. Moderate speeds (but can do slow and fast with relatively little coaxing). 174 Nirvana Energy (12/14): My go-to board for firmer groom and ice. A ton of fun on any groomed run... while it truly shines on "just this side of ice", it's a boatload of fun on any groomer. Lots of pop, edge-air-edge. Very easy to tighten turns on. Not quite as versatile as the Monster but more energetic, more fun, when the snow is less variable. Holds its own on soft groomers but doesn't excel on them like the Monster does. Moderate speeds - carves slowly very well, capable but not excellent at higher speeds. Doesn't require constant attention... but it definitely rewards you for being "on". 170 VSR (10.5/12.7/12): Not as grippy, fun, poppy, easy to ride as the Nirvana... but fun nonetheless. Slow to moderate speed carves. Not as good on really hard or really soft snow as the Nirvana. Fun to get back on the tail and play with the trip-radius sidecut when I'm in the mood. 161 SL (not sure dual or tri-sidecut, average 10m) SL racing and when I feel like riding something super-turny. My most difficult board to ride... requires precise inputs or it starts to run away. The only SL board I've really enjoyed. Does have some pop on edge changes but not like the Nirvana. If I could do it over I would have gotten an even turnier Angry 160 instead... since I seem to SL race about once every two years... I have ridden pretty much all the models listed on coiler.com although certainly not in all sizes... if I had a Coiler shopping spree at my disposal I would get: 1) Clone of my Nirvana Energy for when mine becomes a rock board 2) Clone of my Monster for when mine becomes a rock board 3) Angrry 160 with tightest sidecut Bruce thinks is wise The Nirvana clone would win just 'cause my Monster is newer and has less mileage :)

Bump...

"Neener neener" to those who decided to skip the trip down... better carving snow over the past 4 days than any of the official OES's. Nice riding with Mark, Dane, Dan, Keenan, and Rick - sorry I missed you Evan! I'm a truly sucky photographer armed only with an iPhone, but here are a few from today:

I may show up late morning today. I plan to ride tomorrow. Watch those wind-chills!

Mods: How about moving b. Free's post, #6, onto the FAQ?

Pretty awesome day today - PM groomed runs (Skyliner liftline, Leeway, Ed's, Kangaroo) were firm, smooth and grippy. Portlanders other than Dan, you're missing some good carving. See you at Sunrise bright and early tomorrow!

I too will be there 9:15 - 9:39 ish. Five four one three fifty twenty two fifty five Is my cell. Texts appreciated if y'all head away from the sunrise area

Hmmm... 10.5 hours from Bend... maybe!

The Energy without Torsion Plus will give you all the edge bite without the little bit of harshness, at the expense of a nose that is slightly more likely to fold. Even so, I confidently ride my Energy in soft snow and it's never spanked me the way some of my previous boards did in such conditions. In the end, a lot of great Nirvana choices!

Rode for a couple hours today 10:30 - 12:30. Best carving was on Kangaroo and Leeway. Coverage off the Pine Marten chair was excellent, as is the top 2/3 of the Outback runs. The bottoms of the Outback runs... are showing quite a few bare spots. Death cookies on TBird, never made farther east than Coffee. I expect the grooming to be smoother with the colder temps... albeit firmer snow.

Looking at your existing quiver on your profile and seeing Mammoth as your home resort... I'd suggest a Monster 2 in whatever length suits you. There was a reddish orange snakeskin one in the SES demo tent... I was riding my blue one during most of the session. Why? It's quite versatile and a lot of fun, and there's nothing in your existing quiver that's quite like it. It's the one board I've ever been on that carves aggressively and likes powder. My 2nd suggestion would be Nirvana Energy, no torsion plus, 12/14 scr (which he typically does in a 174). There was a blue flame example in the tent that had the torsion-plus treatment and was somewhat stiff. I tried out the demo and enjoyed it but when I got back on my own Nirvana Energy without the torsion plus I was immediately reminded just how fun and playful mine is. I've ridden numerous versions of the Nirvana and the Energy w/o torsion plus is still my favorite. Yes, I'm essentially recommending the two boards I brought to SES with me... you likely saw me on both... bottom line is, over the past two years, I really haven't demoed anything that I like better than these two decks. (Well actually... I rode the Monster demo last year and pretty much ordered my own on the spot...)

Highs in the low to mid 30's? Sounds like smoothly groomed firm runs to me... I have a good feeling. And yes, I'm posting pictures especially if it's good

Brand-new, never-molded size 25 liners that came with a pair of Track 700's I purchased from Bomber during SES. These are sweet liners... unfortunately my extremely spoiled feet are only happy when I use a size 26 liner in my size 25 shells. Fin has been gracious enough to grant me permission to sell these on the forum (who are we kidding... I'll need a new set of 26's later this season or next, which I am also likley to buy from Bomber :) ) SOLD

@Keenan... where are folks meeting for SNOES and on which days? Back in the OES days we used to meet in the Sunrise lot/lodge/lift. I might recommend we do the same for SNOES... much easier to find each other than if we meet at West Village. Looks like nuthin' but sun and warm temps. We could do worse.

I was at SES all week so cannot chime in. I'll report back once I ride Bachelor again... may not be till Tuesday.

Regarding the Coiler Skwal... I recall Bruce saying it was a 174 loosely based on the Nirvana Balance in the same length

And much like last year, SES is the charm!

I'll take well-groomed ice over 4 inches deep death cookies any day!

I find SW annoying heavy in powder... if you have another lighter set of bindings, I recommend bringing them along too

Boo brown spots! How are the usual carving runs at Ajax holding up? Guessing I will want to have a grind done after SES and not before...

Yep, putting heavy hardware on a board (even just TD3s) can affect how it lies on the floor.