darko714

You won't hate life on that Speedster unless, as a custom built, it's too stiff. I borrowed a stock 186 Speedster of about the same vintage in 2011 and really liked it. It was fast and easy for me to decamber, and got edge to edge quickly and easily. I'm hoping to buy it off the guy who lent it to me.

Pat, That's great news. Chris Klug showing up to paceset, and the introduction of snowboard gates at the Nationals, are signs that NASTAR might be giving snowboarders a little love. I won't make it to Nationals this year, but I'd like to get out to Okemo before the snow is all gone and throw down with you and some of the middle aged hardbooters out there. Problem is, I'm committed this weekend. Are you going to be packing it in with NASTAR after that? Also, I'm glad I can still find this: http://www.nastar.com/articles/race-of-champions-video-non-alpine-male It's some of the top snowboard racers from their age groups at the 2010 Nationals - you're in it near the beginning. Very instructive for a rider at my level. Can you put some of the snowboarding from 2011 and 2012 up? Are they up? I can't find them. All I can find are the lame "TV" promos.

Atom, your NASTAR idea is really good. For five bucks, they give you "three runs", but if the course isn't busy they're happy to give you a lot more. This can be a fantastic deal as these are electronically timed runs and NASTAR keeps a record of them on their website. I practice on the NASTAR course at Holiday Valley, in Western New York, and have mostly good things to say about it. The gate sets are interesting and variable. One day they will set a turny, technical course, and the next a straight, fast course. The pacesetter is fast and consistent. You don't see a lot of platinum medals there, but on the other hand, you don't see everyone getting skunked, either. The run itself is gentle enough for beginners, but presents some challenges in that there are a couple of steep 'drops' where you can catch air or pick up excess speed. Like the rest of us, I'm not thrilled with the ski gates and the skiers' double ruts, but the opportunity to get 10-12 timed gate runs under my belt in a day makes it worth it. Also fun is being able to compare yourself with the other riders in your age group. While their handicap system has been a subject of some debate, it's useful for tracking your own progress day to day and season to season as you try different equipment, setups and techniques. I'd take patmoore up on his offer to go out and do NASTAR at Okemo if I lived anywhere near there.

==================== Probably quite a bit. And sold quite a bit of it, too. "Clifford" may not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, but at least he was smart enough to turn the board over without an argument and give a plausible explanation without convicting himself. He may have some ummm . . . past history in regards to these sorts of matters. My guess is that "Clifford" is a familiar character to local law enforcement officials and has cooperated (i.e. snitched) often enough in the past to buy himself some leniency.

======================== The photo of only the bag, the lack of knowledge of the product by "Clifford", and the low price all tell me he is either the thief or selling it on behalf of the thief for a "commission". A smart investigator won't let this go. Charge him with possession of stolen property and see where it goes. Maybe probable cause to obtain a warrant to search his abode . . .that might just turn up a few other stolen items. Certainly he's not a hardbooter, and only a hardbooter would have bought the board to begin with. I'm just hoping that he hasn't gotten tipped off and unloaded the evidence.

Bet you'd be very happy with that Prior 4WD. You might also want to check these out: http://www.pureboarding.com/index.php?id=601

Not being able to find Andy the owner is a handicap. I would say give it a few days, then . . . Someone from the Seattle area needs to contact "Clifford" and try to make arrangements to buy the board in person. Then immediately call the cops and see if they can meet you there. Make a printout of this thread to take to the police, along with a photo of the board. When you call him try to dicker the price down a bit so he doesn't get too suspicious. If no one can find Andy the owner there will be no way to convict "Clifford". In fact, the police may not even agree to come along based on the (still) anonymous post. But $120 (or less) for that board is a good deal. If he agrees to meet with you, be sure to get as much of "Clifford"'s personal information as possible in order that someone might be able to pay him a nice, friendly visit in the future, and give him a just reward.

======================= Dave, this is a variation on what I was taught by a coach who is a former World Cup racer. I really think it will work for an intermediate rider like me who needs to get the board at a steeper angle to keep from washing out in the middle gates when I'm building momentum. It makes perfect sense and I can't wait to try it (once we get enough snow here in upstate NY!). You shouldn't get flamed since your advice is sound, orthodox racing technique.

srodeo I have the same problem. Only worse. I'm nearsighted and wear glasses (tried contacts, can't stand 'em) and had a huge problem with fogging whenever I wore goggles over the glasses. Finally I got a pair of prescription goggles (basically wraparound sunglasses with a foam insert to seal out wind) and it was better, but still had fogging issues. I removed the insert because the fogging is a worse problem than the eyes watering. They still fog up, but I can control it by rubbing the inside of the lenses with a special anti-fog lubricant called 'Cat Crap'. ($5 for a small container, sold in finer ski shops) You might have to strike a balance and put up with either the watery eyes or the fogging. I'm afraid this is as good as it gets.

==== The duck stance! You must have a wide board. I salute you. I've ridden about 35/25 on an all-mountain board with the HBs and it does make for a more tractable, late-day scrapyard setup. My hardboots were murderous on my feet for the first season and a half. Then I saw a bootfitter-the kind that knows his art-and the HBs are way better, but still not quite as comfortable as the softies.

AcousticBoarder: Great idea. For years I brought my softboot rig to the hill for exactly the same purpose. After lunch, when the groom has become a crapshow, and your legs are shot, it can be a relief to slip on those softies (which feel like bedroom slippers after a morning in hardboots) and grind the crud with the kids until dark. You get to use different muscles, too. My question is, why don't you just use your old softboot board? Mine was (and still is) a mid-nineties vintage Burton Supermodel 159. An old school freeride cruiser like that shouldn't cost you more than $250.

I need that 'National Snurfing Association' Member patch.

NoirX252: I've seen you walk away from worse wrecks. I'm worried for the snow maker.

tex1230 I was going to mention Skrillex Bangarang, too! It's awesome. I've been listening to some David Guetta. This is "Titanium"--very commercial but very good. Loved old school punk back in the day. Trance & electronica make good carving music.

---------- I've been to Mount Hood Summer Ski & Snowboard Camp as an adult for two years running and intend to go again this year. In 2010 I went to the "adults only" session, which runs the last week in August, and it was awesome. Every morning we went up to the top of Palmer where there is groomed snow until early September. (technically maybe a glacier and maybe not). Most of the attendees were ski racers and ranged in age from 19 to about 75. I was in a class with only 2 other riders and we had expert training from a Slopestyle and BX coach (the late Mark Steagall). He had ridden alpine and knew a lot about it, but I was the only alpine rider in camp that session. Because our class was small I got a fair amount of individual attention. I stayed in the dorms with other adults and we basically had a blast. During the afternoons we went out surfing, hiking, and mountain biking, and after dinner we usually headed over to Govy, knocked back some brewskis and talked riding and racing. In 2011 I wanted a more alpine experience so I signed up for one of the "kids" sessions. They only do "snowboard racing" camp through Session VI, which is early July. The other sessions are all freestyle. Not wanting to be in the dorms, I signed up for the "housing upgrade", which puts you away from the kids but is quite a bit more expensive, especially because you will want to rent a car for the week, too. But I had 5 days on the hill in bluebird weather with an expert coach (Billy Bordy). Once again I was in a small class and this time it was all racers and we did gates and a little freeride carving. Bordy is a dedicated alpine rider and has a lot of knowledge to share. Jon Winslow also coaches for MHSSC but wasn't there for my session. We did reviewed videotapes or our riding immediately after our gate runs and it was fun and informative. There was also better coverage in July and the snow stayed hard a little longer than in August, so I did more riding and finished each day exhausted. We also waxed and tuned our boards in the afternoon in MHSSC's excellent workshop. I really can't decide which experience I liked better. I think being with the adult session is better if you're an adult and a first-year camper. It's more laid-back and you have time to get familiar with the area. But, I highly recommend both. Take your choice. Here is a link to their site:http://www.mthood.com/

I rode a borrowed glass F2 Speedster 186 last year for about 6 weeks. It was probably a 2003 or 2004 according to the owner, definitely not an asym. Great board. Damp, smooth, & forgiving. It did well through the gates, too. Owner sold it for $200 to someone else who saw me out riding it. If you can pick one of those up for $200-$300, get it.

"Kessler Japan states that for silver model the durability is around 80 days, 50 days for top racers." Thank You leeho730! This is the sort of information I need, especially when considering buying a used board. Bordy is right, of course. Eventually, all boards fail. The problem with a Kessler failing is that it costs twice as much. I wonder what the durability is for the black model.

I finally got around to pulling hangls. Even though they appear to be the older version, underneath the mountings the board already had the additional holes drilled and tapped!! Also, the holes in the plates are beveled on both sides. Therefore, mounting brackets can be moved and the plates could be swapped to accommodate a regular rider. Removal was not easy. After taking out the screws, I needed a hammer and a cold chisel to get the plates unstuck from the rubber grommets. Then, of course the mounts were secured to the brackets by eight (2 per mount) of those little steel tubes with the Torx (#25) on both sides. I only had one Torx but a 2mm Allen wrench jammed in worked to secure the back and I got them out. Once one side was out a hammer and small nail was used to tap the tube out the other side. The brackets were a problem, too. Each was attached by a single Phillips screw. Three came out with Herculean effort. Five did not succumb. I needed my Giant Phillips Screwdriver of Death for four of those. The last one was so stubborn that I tapped the bracket counterclockwise with the hammer and chisel until it made almost a half circuit, and it still wouldn't budge. The next day I bore down on it with the GPSD and finally got it. The semi-clear topsheet was slightly damaged but not from my efforts, but from the bracket having been on so tight. There's a total of forty-four mounting holes in this board (Prior WCRM metal top circa 2009) so without bindings it looks like it took a couple of bursts of machine gun fire. I put my brand new F2 Race Titaniums on and rode it for a couple of hours on the "hero granular" after work last night. The board feels light as a feather and switches edges quicker, but seems to have more of a tendency to oscillate and chatter on the rough stuff without the Hangls. Which leads me to consider re-mounting them in the future. I'm sure that could also be solved by getting steeper when I initiate my turns . . . but that is a whole nuther issue.

Never lock. I always figure any potential thief will take one look at my rig and think: "WTF?" Also, I know just about all the hardbooters who ride around here, no one has had a board stolen, as far as I know. If they ever did, the word would be out. Whoever stole it would have to take it far, far away.

-------------------- Ha ha! Billy is on my list, too. 1. Jeorg Egli Pureboarding Clinic. Powerful new techniques that are fun to practice and have me on the verge of becoming a legit carver. 2. Mount Hood Summer Snowboard Camp - 7 days of bluebird riding in July! Bordy was my coach. His advice, and enthusiasm, were priceless. Cleaned up my stance . . . Keep your shoulders level with the slope! 3. Season Pass 4. A longer board. It won't help everyone, but I was riding a Donek 162 Axxis and had plateaued. Another hardbooter lent me his old F2 186 Speedster. It was stable as a jetliner at speed and gave me new confidence. I ordered a used Prior 183 WCRM the next week. Now,when I go back to the Donek, I ride it a lot better. 5. NASTAR racing. The handicaps may be suspicious, and the skiers ruts sketchy, but the times don't lie. 10 bucks to challenge yourself in the gates all afternoon is a bargain.

==== On the subject of Hangls, I bought a used Prior with a set like that last year, and they are set up for goofy. I want to switch them to regular, but I can't get them off easily because the top plates seem frozen to the mounts, and the mounting brackets use Torx and the screws are impossible to access with those top plates attached. So; two questions: (1) are the top plates attached to the rest of the rig by anything other than the four screws on top of each plate? (If not, I'll pull the screws again and try and knock them off with a few gentle taps from a hammer.) (2) When I go to regular, will I have to drill new holes in the board to accommodate the new position for the mounting brackets, or can the mounts simply be swapped left to right, and use the same holes? From your board it looks like they can just be swapped. BTW, I want that exact board, and I'm the right weight for it. Now all I have to do is justify the price.

I don't worry about my board getting stolen. (Prior WCRM 183; the color of oxidized aluminum, with 1st gen. Hangl plates) There can only be a handful in the world like it. People look at it like it's from Mars.

"Is that a ski board?" "No, it's an alpine snowboard" "What's it for?" "Laying down high speed carves" "Cool . . . is it hard?" "It's totally hard, like hardcore" "Whoa, that's sick"

Bomber's forums are great for finding recommendations on gear. The more you read, the better your perspective. Only problem is, the more you read, the more you want . . .

60/59. I tried a lot of lower angle combinations (55/45, 55/50, 50/45) because I'm a little duck-footed, and my feet were hurting, but a racing coach said my stance was a mess, and set me up at 60/60. It took some getting used to, but it's surprisingly worked a lot better for me, and has been more comfortable. I just went to the 59 in the rear to be contrarian.