Unicorn Poop

I agree with most of the points made in that article in regards to being more prone to injury and increased reaction times. Motorcycles are incredibly unforgiving and I've seen too many much younger riders turned into wet piles of hamburger meat. I see nothing wrong with older folk out riding around as long as you know your limits, be realistic in your expectations and accept that your final ride will happen one day, either by choice or by fate.

Too much to list, so here's a link to my favorites on YouTube... And before anyone says anything... So sue me, yes Gangnam Style is on there; it's catchy and fun to watch after a few. It's my one guilty pleasure on there. :)

So I did some searching and couldn't come up with anything about this... I have a set of F2 Titaniums and judging by the pictures, the only difference between it and the F2 Intecs are the toe and heel pieces. Can I order those pieces to convert my bindings, or do I need a whole new set of bindings? If this has been covered, can I get a link to the thread so I can further my knowledge? Thanks!

I would rather spend three grand on a "sled" with an engine.

I've been up and down it on a bike in the summer; it has a really nice rhythm at around 75 MPH. ;)

Interesting op/ed... http://sports.yahoo.com/news/lance-armstrong--arrogant-and-unaware--did-little-to-repair-his-image-in-mea-culpa-with-oprah-062222144.html Full interview here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43EE9I8ZMFc

Truth is often stranger than fiction... http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=18299091&title=dog-shoots-man

Bone stock, over 170 for me, but today was my first day in them. They seemed a bit stiff, but I have nothing to compare them to. Dumb question so I don't have to take my boots apart- is the black tongue stiffer than the orange tongue?

Of course dirty bikes count. :) I had a '97 CR250 for a season. The bike itself didn't scare me, but riding on the dirt did, so I sold it. As for the Ninja 250, if you're looking for a 250, try to find a '90 VTR250 like mine. I say a '90 because it's the only year with a legitimate front brake and 17" wheels. The Ninjas are a dime a dozen and have been around since '86, but a friend of mine's '12 250 (the one in the picture above) is a turd compared to my VTR. Seriously, it's a bull**** bike. The carburetion is FUBAR, the suspension is both excessively stiff and vague all at the same time. It wanders when going straight, wiggles around when leaned over, has no low and midrange (even for a 250), the brakes are wooden but acceptable for the (lack of) performance and on par with the rest of the bike, the seat is comfortable for about two minutes, and the gauge cluster needs to be tapped on start up in order to get the fuel and tach gauges to work. Mind you, this bike has about 4500 miles on it. Those Pac Coasts are very interesting bikes. How is it to perform general maintenance on? Is that 'Blade really as clean as it looks? Beautiful.

Haha, Buell... that must have been before the afternoon rush; there were probably about ten people there at one point. It was crazy. Even on an old board in flat light turning into a blizzard at the end of the day, I had fun, made some great improvement throughout the day, and look forward to a better board on a sunny day. As the day progressed, my feet became more and more comfortable, so I think this is going to work for me. I had a little shin bang towards the end of the day, but as I sit in my living room typing this, I have no residual pain as I had with soft boots. I did have to remove my custom molded insoles, though. They took up too much vertical room, which caused my feet to be crushed when the boots were clamped down. When I had the boots fitted, the fellow did it with the insoles out because they're plastic and he didn't want them to melt, then I stuck my feet in the boots, and then after they cooled, he trimmed the insoles and put them in. I may go back to have them reheat the liners and immediately install the insoles and then stand in them. Luckily, I didn't pay for the first fitting.

Just an update... I got my boots fitted and picked up a set of f2 bindings from Buell, and am taking a break during my first day out. Wow, what a different experience! My feet still hurt, but not as bad, and I'm attributing it to new boots not being broken in yet. Its a **** flat light day, but that's OK because I'm just doing laps on the green trails. More to come as I keep riding and process my experience tonight. :)

Just curious who's got what... I know a few of you have race bikes in your avatars... '00 Honda RC51. Almost literally, the only thing stock is the VIN... '71 Suzuki T500R Titan. Just a Titan with vintage period cafe parts; nothing special... '90 Honda VTR250. This thing is a riot to go squid hunting on because it's a 250, and it looks like an early '90's Waverunner. '03 Yamaha YZ85 sumo. This one is just a **** eatin' grin all day long. And of course, this is where the '51 winters, along with the previously pictured Titan and a friend's EX250. I have a few more, but they're not picture worthy/ ready. '77 Honda GL1000 GoldWing and a '76 Kawasaki KZ750. Both are garage queens/ perpetual projects.

Email sent as well.

Jeff- thank you for the offer; I will definitely take you up on that if you're available either Thursday or Friday of next week. As for the poop part, it's just a name I landed on. You can call me unicorn or UP if you'd like. For reasons pertaining to my work and personal security, I prefer to keep my name off the internet and remain anonymous as much as possible. Bordy- '93? Holy crap, I didn't know they were that old. OK, they're on their way to the garbage. Since Jeff has been gracious enough to let me borrow a pair of his bindings for a day, I'm no longer concerned about making the bindings I have work. Thank you for the link; had I known there was a brick and mortal locally, I would have gotten the boots through them as well. If/ when I'm ready for bindings, I'll be talking with them about those F2's they have. :)

I don't want to spend any more money than I have to because I'm not sure if this is going to work (see my original post). I'll know in a few runs if it will, and at that point, I'll spend money on good bindings and a better board. Hell, if someone wants to let me ride their board for a few runs, that'll let me determine if this is going to be viable for me or not. :)

FWIW, that picture is not of my actual bindings, but one I found online of the same model.

And it gets better. The F2 bindings that came on the board look like this: And the plastic lever on the toe bail broke on one. I can't find any replacements online. Does anyone know if this part will fit the bindings I have? http://www.yyzcanuck.com/store/F2-Toe-Plate-Complete-Large-Small-6mm.html

I'd take you up on that, sld12dy, but I work weekends. Thursday and Friday are my days off. All my stuff came this week, and I'm currently dealing with boot sizing issues.

Great recommend! I just called them and spoke with a nice girl who took the time to answer my questions and went into detail about the process and what they can do to make sure my feet are happy. I'm impressed, especially since I didn't order the boots from them. It's looking like Friday is going to be the first day on the snow with this setup; I can't wait! :-D

Interesting how the physics is very similar to what goes on with motorcycles...

NSSage- I've been absorbing the info on both those resources for the past year or so. I'm very much a visual learner, so I've been watching lots of videos. Mick- I've been here a little over seven years. I've done PowMow and Wolf a few times, but never Basin. I'm down to go ride once I get my stuff squared away and have acclimated to the different gear. I'm free Thursdays and Fridays. As for Wolf- it's quick and cheap and usually not very crowded. However, there's nothing there that will surprise you. If I recall, half day/ evening passes are something like $25, and that's hard to shake a stick at. I cut my teeth on small, three lift hills back in Vermont, so Wolf is familiar for me. Question- what's a good shop to have my liners heated and fitted? I've read the DIY tutorials and it seems straight forward, but since my feet and footwear are so critical, I'd rather pay someone with experience to do it.

Hi guys and girls, Long story short, after an injury resulted in soft boot snowboarding being EXTREMELY painful to my feet, several knowledgeable people aware of my situation and circumstances suggested hard boots as an alternative. So after damn near 19 years "carving" in soft boots, I finally treated myself to a hard boot setup. I decided to play it safe, money- wise. I'm not above spending big bucks on quality gear, but I'm not sure if this will relieve some pain or not, so I didn't want to drop a ton of money on a "if." I picked up a Nitro Blazer VX59 with F2 bindings off Ebay for $210, shipped, and it should be here Monday. Since my feet are the critical part of the equation, I decided to buy new because I have found with other things, spending good money on proper footwear will pay big dividends down the road. I just ordered a set of Head Stratus Pro boots from Bomber, and they should be here on Thursday. Any tips for a hard booting noob? For the past 15 years, I've ridden a Supermodel 81 with a 33/30 stance, so I'm not new to an alpine-ish stance, and I rode an Alp 5.9 back in '95 or '96, so I'm at least vaguely familiar with what will be different. Also, any good carving mountains in UT?