Slow Eddie

They both offer the same type and amount of support. The green ones take up more volume underfoot than the blue ones do, so that might make a difference in your decision. Hope this helps. Eddie

Follow the "...more" link on the top page of the Metal Series to a popup. It looks like the copy has been modified throughout the day. As of this posting, "Unfortunately, damage caused by bindings with metal baseplates does not fall under the coverage offered by warranty."

"...We will not warranty the board if used with a metal baseplate." Guess I'll be sticking with Physics for a while. I wonder if Bomber/Catek designs qualify as metal baseplates. After all, they are sold through the Prior website...

My wife and I have two comp tickets to Bolton for MLK day - unless it gets cold and all this rain turns back to snow that actually sticks, I don't think we're even going to bother. All the lawns in my 'hood are green, too. Ugh.

I must have missed the discussion about round vs. square tails. What is the benefit for decks that don't put a high priority on riding switch?

1. & 2. "Happy Friends" & "December's Bicycle", by The Greyboy Allstars (from the PureCarve video "Carve On"). 3. "Take California", by Propellerheads. Very complementary to surf-style carving, IMHO.

The Carrier designation refers to the Carrier baseplate (all plastic, 2 degree medial canting) and easy adjustment (quarter-turn with a big flathead screwdriver or a coin for the toe block and infinite adjustment along a long bolt for the heel receiver). The Race designation refers to the Race baseplate (plastic with a metal sub-plate, no inherent canting) and more robust toe and heel-block attachment (two bolts that thread into nuts with shoulders that engage in slots in the metal sub-plate; interlocking teeth on the toe block and heel receiver mate with similar teeth on the plastic baseplate to provide discrete, but finite length adjustments - similar to the toe block on the Carrier Physics and, I'm assuming, toe and heel blocks on recent versions of the non-step-in Race Plates). The Race Physics binding should have included a toe block and bale assembly as well as Speed Hooks and toe receiver assemblies for use with newer Burton boots (Earth, Wind, Fire, and Ice models that had moveable toe/heel ledges). About the Pam: maybe I'm being a little too cautious, but the whole reason this system works so well is because of friction between the rings and the posts (hence the name of the system). Spraying Pam on your topsheet to minimize snow buildup seems reasonable; spraying it on your bindings may have the effect of reducing the coefficient of friction between the rings and the posts and may affect the performance of the binding. If you're that worried about snow buildup, look into some of the solutions found by our telemarking bretheren: with a little modification, I bet you could get Anti-Ice Tape to stick where it is needed. Hope this helps. Eddie

I agree with BD about the "wet, packy snow". But in my experience, snow packed in the rings of the heel mechanism gets cleared when you step down into the binding, and it never packed up elsewhere to the point where I could not get the release cable to actuate. What I do notice, however, is that snow packing unter between the boot toe and the toe block can affect binding performance. With Speed Hooks, it can wreck the positive engagement between the hooks and the receiver and cause premature toe-release (the heels will stay engaged, but will be super difficult to disengage without external leverage from a screwdriver or similar instrument acting on the rings). With a toe bale, it might lift the toe and consequently affect the quality of the interface between the heel and receiver. Using Speed Hooks allows you to set the distance between the toe and heel receivers right the first time, but frunoblax's advice is sound - most Physics users can safely ride the heel receiver at two, sometimes three different "clicks" relative to a fixed toe block, but there is generally one "sweet spot". But if the problem is intermittent or progressive throughout the day, it could be a snow buildup issue as well. Hope this helps. Eddie

It would be good to have a Northern VT crew.

Almost as good as Omeletteville.

Riding at North (Mt. Ellen). Going to try and get there early and be done by the middle of the day. Eddie

If you're the type who can get on the first chair, the Nidecker will serve you well for much of the morning. You can switch to the FP later in the day when your legs are rubber and the hordes descend. However, if you're the type who rolls into the parting lot at about 10 AM, stick with the FP. Depending on what's groomed and where you're comfortable, there are definitely options to let the 183 rip! Hope this helps. Eddie

Kicked around on the website a little and didn't see anything specific about alpine riding. If not, too bad - they produced standouts like Fawcett and Greenwood in the early/mid 90's. Can Waterville PD really send undercover officers to on-campus parties? Wow. Then again, it shouldn't be too tough to spot one - the guy standing by the keg who isn't drinking and nobody knows. With only 2K kids, you get to know everyone pretty quick.

Sounds like the same old thing, except the local constabulary can't turn as blind an eye nowadays as they did in years (decades - *shudder*) past.

Not fast, but the best breakfast in the area, IMHO - unless you want to go to the A1 Diner in Gardiner. Andrew: C4 is a pretty informal group; We thought about commisioning a custom board graphic, but none of us have the money ;) I can think of six of us who graduated between '93 and '95, including the oft-mentioned Erik Beckman, who I believe is still teaching at Sugarloaf. Blow the dough on a private lesson with him, and I guarantee it will be money well-spent. I'm sure other BOLers who have attended ECES clinics with him in the past will agree. Eddie

Don't forget your studies, boy! Is Bonnie's Diner still around. Past Big G's a bit on the other side of the road. Those ladies were getting pretty old when I graduated in '94.

Those Chocolate Sea Shells are about the only Guylian product I've seen over here, and if the European stuff is even better than the "made for export" stuff...mmm.

Does Nutella count?

Any other New York Times readers out there?

I really like the solid feel of the Speed Physics interface - no lateral slop at all between boot and binding. I like using the softer elastomers that came with the bindings to soak up vibrations - the color changed between different model years. The Speed Hook option is also nice in that it gives you a visual indicator of the correct amount of forward pressure on the hooks via the lateral hole in the receiver. That way, you know that the heel receiver is in the right place, as well - not as much guessing as with the toe bail. As far as durability, I've spread out the last four seasons on three sets of bindings and one set of heels and Speed hooks, and haven't had a problem with anything - baseplates, cables, rings, nothin'. Maybe I've been lucky. I also believe that using the fixed 7 degree cant/lifts front and back, using aluminum versus plastic disks, and frequently checking the tightness of the biding screws has decreased the amount the plastic in the baseplates can deflect and develop stress risers (or whatever they're called in plastic). Unfortunately, when my Winds wear out, so will my opportunity to use the Speed hooks. Anyone know of a way to retro fit them onto other brands of boots? UPZ boots make the most sense because of their replaceble sole blocks, but maybe it can be done with boots that have replaceable toe pads as well. And while we're at it, does anyone have a photo of the physics toes and heels mounted to Catek baseplates? I would love to mount this interface on a more robust and adjustable platform. Hope this helps. Eddie

A new member in C4 (the Colby College Carving Club)? If so, welcome!

Looks like it's going to flurry on and off for the next couple of days, but it will be consistently cold enough to blow snow until, and probably all through, Sunday. Base is going to be that wonderful melt/refreeze slush with the lovely snowcat tread pattern, which might help hold the manmade snow for an extra hour or two before it gets totally skiied off. Which, because practically everyone in town is talking about Foodbank Day, will probably be around 11 o'clock. Oh well, a $15 ticket at Stowe is still a $15 ticket at Stowe; just don't think you're going to stop at the supermarket in town and pick up two cans of anything come Sunday - bring your own tuna to this one. Drop me a line if any y'all think you're coming up.

I was Killington that weekend they were open in October, but since then it hasn't been cold enough long enough for the resorts to put much cover down. This week, Monday and Tuesday set some record highs around lake Champlain - I think it was 69 in Burlington on Tuesday. It was a little colder on Wednesday, and definitely cold enough to be blowing snow 'round the clock yesterday, today, and tomorrow. The storm that was supposed to put 8 inches in the mountains today is moving too fast - looks like Jack and mirror70 are going to reap the benefits of that one if it sticks around long enough to drop real snow. I don't think Stowe had to close like Sugarbush did - they're about the same distance north of 89 as the Valley is south of 89, but between the spotty temperatures and the hordes of peeps, I think if I go I'm going to go out on tele gear and hang with my wife. I'll try and get some more beta toady and see if that might change my mind. It's hard to reach past the carving gear to grab the tele sticks, but you do what you gotta do in the early season. Anyway, I'm glad Foodbank Day is Sunday - one more day to blow snow. Will update if I get better intel.

Bring two cans of tuna (any canned food, actually) and ski Stowe this Sunday for $15. Just read it in today's Free Press.

Thanks, Randy! Although, it has been a while since I thought about that SNL bit. No one can resist my Schwetty Balls.