Steve Prokopiw

Sad to say that I may not make it as I am newly employed down here in Utah-where we need more snow-damnit.

Thanks Fin! That motivates me to keep tinkering-(you should see what's next for the camera mount) @Beckman;Thanks for the suggestions.The application actually screams for Sidewinder SI uppers (possibly with simple toe and heel lift spacers for my own preference).Another benefit of the direct mounting is that it enhances the feeling of twisting the plate like a board,since the flex of the stock base plate is eliminated. On the subject of boots-whether or not the plastic is not as lively as other brands the boots work great for me and my feet. I've tried a few, and I know what I like.:-)

@Lowrider,this setup goes on my THIRST 8x 188 board that was custom made for me by Mark Miller.It is what I would describe as a reasonably forgiving, bad ass beast of a carving board.The lower I have made stack height(I have also experimented with TD3 Sidewinders using my own pads and center discs to lower them by nearly an inch)the better 'snow connection' I have felt on this board.So,I would conclude (for me,anyway)that stack height is a major factor,for reasons similar to what have made softer plates more popular for riders who were not turned on by the earlier stiff plates that limited the rider's ability feel the board and 'snow connection'. @pokkis,I'm looking forward to seeing what you've come up with.

I took the plunge and followed through on an idea for mounting SnowPro bindings straight to a bomber plate.I have since ridden this setup on man-made in Utah(we need snow in UT) and on hero groomed in 'North Idaho'. It works.Really damn well.I am thrilled with the new connection I feel to the board.very slight difference left between this and binding to board mounting when at slow, harder to balance speeds.The clearance from board to boot sole is 2-1/8" at it's highest(rear heel) and 1-3/4" at the lowest.That's about what some traditional setups are without a plate.It helps that I have size 25 ski boots but as it is,this setup can accommodate a 26 as well as going easily down to size 20(not much use there I know).With the right placement I think up to a size 30 boot (with at least 60 degrees forward angle) is possible.The angles on the pictured plate are about 58 and 54 from what I could figure (I was shooting for 57-54 ) in my 'less than precise' mounting scheme. Next time I'll use a precision template.The stance width is 20-1/2" center to center. I used low profile nuts wherever possible,including a few not shown in the pics.I did tap and thread all 16 M5 bolts into the plate,so the nuts are just precautionary,since the threads hold a high amount of torque.I believe I can drop another 1/4" from here-but I do wonder about a 'through mount' method of mounting bindings to a plate for even more direct connection to the snow.

Small foot helps...I have size 25.5 ski boots and can easily ride 55 front and 51-53 rear on a 20 waist width.(currently at 58 and 55) I use Technica Phoenix Air 90 boots with two very functional, pump up bladders in each boot shell-allowing riders to use their own liners;sweet boots.Probably starting at size 27,there will be limitations to how sideways stance can be-I would think 60 up front would be necessary with a ski boot and size 27 and 20.0 waist but each half centimeter board width allows about a size larger boot at a given stance angle.

Merry Christmas Bomber Community! May your Holidays be groomed to perfection and your New Year filled with fresh powder and sweet cord!

Since we're waiting til tomorrow to ride Canyons resort so that more powder accumulates as well as waiting for others to pack down the still new base a bit more,I'm at home with nothing to do but tinker with my setup and post my 2 cents.:-) Here's my 2 cents; If you look at the trees rather than the spaces between,you are sure to hit them.

Since we're waiting til tomorrow to ride Canyons resort so that more powder accumulates as well as waiting for others to pack down the still new base a bit more,I'm at home with nothing to do but tinker with my setup and post my 2 cents.:-) Here's my 2 cents; If you look at the trees rather than the spaces between,you are sure to hit them.

Welcome,Gben ! I checked the Goltes link you posted and looked in the 'outlet' section and that 164 is a great deal.It also fits Hans's advice for a smallish turn radius for the narrow trails you'll encounter,while being long enough to be fast and fun.Lots of bang for the buck.

I hope it's a success Corey.I love tinkering and 'redneck engineering'. It's part of the fun of any sport or hobby, or life in general!. In fact,I can't wait to show what I'm testing on the hill tomorrow.

I'm not an engineer but I am results based when it comes to learning an activity.I find that the more I concentrate on movement patterns and fundamentals in the early stages of my own learning, the better my future results. I coach my 8 year old's wrestling team and I find that it works similarly with him and his team mates when it comes to tournament time-the tactics are more instinctual when the kids have made practiced movements into tools for getting the job done.

The most frequently requested stat I don't see here is waist width-one of my first considerations when helping with a design or buying a used board.

I'm having buyer's remorse for getting Canyons Epic passes.After riding there for the second time today, I can see why Vail wanted to operate it;it's so poorly laid out and has so few decent carving runs that it is mostly catwalks connecting to other catwalks-just like Vail. At least Vail usually has a few carveable runs even with early season conditions.All Canyons has is a bunch of stupidly narrow pathways connecting to other stupidly narrow pathways.I'm holding out hope for more snow that will make the steeps rideable,at which point I'll forget about my dismay about the lack of carvable terrain. But ironically,little old Silver Mountain,North Idaho has way better carving from what I can see at Canyons so far...and Schweitzer blows it away.From the looks of the runs I can see from the town of Park City, I guess we should have gotten Park City passes.

Bindings have been SOLD.

@dragonrider,as per my original post,if someone paypals the money they will get the bindings,and someone inquired by pm an hour before you.However,they have not paid yet and if they (or anyone else)don't paypal by 12:00 noon mountain time tomorrow(Saturday) I will remove the 'first come first served' requirement and accept your request to pay by money order.

@dragonrider-I just added that that both bindings have three degree cant discs. Thanks for looking.

Tis the season of giving and I'm selling these to enhance my ability to do some giving.I loved these when I used them last season for about 12 half day and a few full day sessions.I liked the look enough that each time I tuned the board they were on, I used a red sharpie to cover the small/tiny scratches that would occur from normal use.Those touch-ups are very small and not visible in the photos.The set screws for the toebail clips are missing because I left them in the mancave up in Idaho.They are listed as in stock in the bomber store for 2.00 each.I did not use them as they marked up my ski boots and were not functionally needed. EDIT;OOPS forgot to mention that both are 3 degree cant discs. :-) I will probably get another pair of these awesome bindings in the future but have other priorities right now. 360.00 FIRM includes shipping via US Postal Priority Mail and paypal fees in the Lower 48 United States only. first come first served by payment to paypal payment address; stevepro 65 at gmail.com (all together w/no spaces)

Bryan,we bought Epic passes because we plan to visit friends in Vail and Summit county.The pass is even good at A-Basin.Unfortunately,not a single one of the Vail operated resorts does Nastar,which hadn't occurred to me before buying the pass.Not quite a deal breaker but I might consider other options next season since the boys and I like rec racing enough(ie,cheap) we would do it every week if it was available.Can't beat the bang for the buck with Epic pass otherwise. Canyons looks like it will be fun to carve when more opens,which will happen this week.

My youngest boy,Nathan and I did Canyons for the first time yesterday,while big brother stayed home sick with his mom.We were able to ski/ride to the base via Doc's Run.Not much open, but it was fun to go there for what we called a 'recon mission'.Our commute time from Spanish Fork turns out to be about 1hr20 min without going above speed limit,not bad.The 'Orange Bubble Express' will undoubtedly be one our favorite lifts on cold days for our family of four.In other news-I told Nathan that daddy will not pay $8 a slice for pizza,even if we win a lotto.The Epic Passes we have are a great deal;but only if we do not succumb to the 'loss leader' lure aspect of pass price and pay the insane food prices at the resort.That's why mommy and daddy have backpacks. :-)

I'm just a Regular guy. Everything I do feels better left foot forward,for example,track standing on a bike. Even my left turn when carving on skis feels more natural than the right.

I like to do lunges while holding dumb bells anywhere from 5 to 30 pounds depending on what the objective is.I do a number of variations from slow and high speed lunges(with a jumping movement to switch leading legs)while doing curls and presses or flys and punches (lightest weight for those), and also explosive squats with curls to overhead presses (heaviest weights for those).All these movements linked together recruit most muscle groups as well as enhancing core strength and balance. Plyometric exercises are great too.The more like the real world movement the better. ps;I like to warm up for the above movements on my spin bike by pedaling while standing (climbing) so my arms and legs get a head start on the intensity of the dumb bell exercises.I also do plenty of focused work on the spin bike as it's 'direct drive' and highly adjustable resistance provide plenty of work load.An advanced trick is to stand up while pedaling no-handed;much harder than most exercises and very effective for core and balance training!

The internet knows us so well.I just saw the ad while reading an unrelated article. If they really knew me it would be followed by,well, nevermind ;-)

Looks like the land of BlueB is about to get slammed! http://snowbrains.com/monster-storm-crush-whistler-w-4-25-feet-snow-next-4-days/ Haha,I just saw the date.Looks like this started a couple days ago?

When I've explained bicycle track racing on a velodrome to non racers, I've had success in relating it to Nascar racing. The tactics that include drafting of other racers,efficient energy expenditure and position in the pack are all things that a race fan can relate to. When I compare the attributes of my own hardboots and boards to mainstream boards and boots,I tend to use comparisons to Corvettes or Ferraris,or to a 4x4 or atv (Prior has board models called the ATV and the 4x4 for example)depending on the explanation I'm giving at the time. For a motivated rider (and writer) it should not be too difficult a task to help the uninitiated understand the performance and mystique of the Kessler.

Point taken BlueB. I was just unsure.I guess moderators would have said something if it was a no-no.