kipstar

Sorry guys, seems like they are both sold (to the same person); unless something unforeseen happens, in which case I will update and let you know.

Hey Centsless not sure which person you are, but there are 2 in line now (one of which is you) for the oxy....nidecker still up for grabs!

Have a few things for sale, and thought I'd sell on Bomber. UPDATED NOW WITH PICS!!!! ** BOTH SOLD ** Oxygen Proton 185 I've not seen this board in a long time, I believe it is brand new, currently sitting in Reno, unused. Good GS board and fun to ride (I rode the 178 version a bit, but not the 185). $100 USD plus shipping. Negotiable. Nidecker 177 Custom I bought this on Bomber again a while ago, and have never ridden it, it's been sitting in Reno, unused, I bought it second hand. I believe it is a Nidecker Custom 177 but equally it might be a 178. Has been used, but would imagine not so much, I bought it as a back up board in about 2007 and never visited west coast again since then to pick it up, and so it's been sitting gathering dust. Would be $80 plus shipping. If you buy both boards together that would make my life so much easier, can pick up in Reno (my friend lives in the place in Reno) - can probably line up some pics of both boards no problem. I paid more than this for both of them, but it's time to get rid of them since I'll likely have no way to get them over to where I ride in Japan for the value of the board. hit me up on Bomber, or email me kipsanbeck (at) Hotmaileeanino dot com. Without the eeanino part.

From what I can recall of that era, Masterpool was somehow linked up to Burton's raceteam, they then ditched him for some reason, and so heset up his own race team under the cross M brand, and Mike Jacoby and Tara who were with Burton both went with him (Jacoby originally had been a freestyle guy, then turned himself into a racing machine and switched to Hot since it wasn't possible for him to stay with Burton and keep training with Cross M). That was kind of I guess when Burton were looking to Europe for their racing with PJ and I want to say Frenadamitz or some name like that who came in the mid 90s. It used to be on TV, and in the 93/94 season the sym boards were coming on strong, back then they did race some dual and some against the clock stuff; the only asyms by this time was in slalom and the ocassional one in the GS. A lot of the Europeans were still very quick, Thedo Remmelink was pushing the sym board style for nitro along with various others, and the very weird looking Aggression Stealth was from the (guessing) 1991/92 or at the latest 92/93 season, Dave Dowd was still racing on that in 93/94 from memory. There was a very very quick guy from Mammoth who was an amateur, Tom Tuttle I think, who raced like he stole it, back then the whole grass roots of racing was pretty strong in USA...so it was a big surprise to leave in 94, then return in 1996 and suddenly racing was a tiny part of the sport and hardbooting seemed to have fallen away. Back in the early/mid 90s, a few of the USA racers were using the specific race boots from their sponsors, but many were on ski boots, heavily modified, particularly the Americans, some of the Europeans and the Japanese were still happy to ride softer hardboot set ups. There was some concern as to how narrow a snowboard could be and still be raced successfully, people played all around the place with odd foot angles, I recall vaguely a few Americans riding the rear foot steeper than the front foot (a recipe for bad biomechanics and torn ACL) but I guess in hero snow you could get away with it. The board Tara Eberhard rode would have been a MOSS which yes, is a very narrow Japanese board, probably good for her as she was quite a small person. Some of the Europeans still riding the asyms tended to rotate quite a bit when they rode, that really disappeared once the modern style similar to how ppl race now started to emerge as the quicker way to ride. What was a surprise to me back then was how successful the racers could be on very rutted courses in those stiff boot set ups with narrow stances; they would sometimes lose control, but often were able to stay in control surprisingly well given the way they rode. In some cases like Jacoby they were very big powerful guys. The early hots were also horizontal laminated, so tended to not hold their shape particularly well, mine ended up like a boat from side to side with a big convex base. Lots and lots of boards back then, including most of the USA brands who were making race boards OEM out of Europe. It was leading into about 96 when the whole FIS ISF thing happened, and so a lot of the racers who hung on in ISF were then replaced by the people who went to FIS, I don't quite recall how it all unfolded but was tied up with who would run snowboarding in the Olympics.

Gut feel is probably less impt than an mri and expert opinion whether it is a grade 1/2 tear (no surgery) or 3/4 (surgery needed). Mine was a grade 2, good friend was grade 4 she lost a season and has definitely more mental baggage from her surgery than I do from physio alone. I was in extreme pain for a while but persevered until I now am doing triathlons again and running mostly without pain. Lots of strengthening exercises. Lots of drills. This is something u need an expert to help u with. However it may hurt a lot now....but it does seem to get much better, I am stronger now than I have ever been. Fingers crossed for ur assessment. Once partially torn as I am sure u know it doesn't grow back. Sadly. But u may be amazed how the right exercises can help. I box so I know about cutting motion on the knees, I haven't lost much after the rehab. I am as useless as I ever was LOL

lamingtons + steak&cheese pie + UPZ = happy Allee. I will note that for future reference :-) Unsure of your status on pineapple lumps, burger rings (aka a south Auckland breakfast) and L&P.

Thank you listie. It's an excellent board, highly recommend it.

That picture of Cardrona reminds me how we get so spoiled in USA/Japan with good grooming/snow.....and north island grooming is even more variable. Looking forward to another trip to NZ maybe late August, it's a great place to do a little snowboarding, but really it's better to spend the time for a fun holiday and checking the place out; in my case.....trout fishing and eating fush and chups as well as steak & cheese meatpies. Not all at the same time.

Well Mr Adas, I certainly would say mittens are warmer, and because they have fewer small panels they often last a little longer. I would buy you a pair of mittens, particularly if I could find some nice hello kitty pink ones, but as I was unable to locate, all I can say is "here is a pair of Thor gloves which I am not going to give you" You might like to consider the longer cuff ones in North America, I like the mid length cuff, but I would not go shorter than that. Strangely enough I DO have a pair of the Peter Bauer gloves still, and believe you can still use them if you wish :-) My brother found them recently, along with some other old gloves, including my 20 year old levels which I fixed up and they still work fine (although they leak ink so you end up looking like you had some sort in intimate relations with a black ink squid which is fine, unless you happen to be riding and come across a squid, in which case they might take offense). Also it is a devils of a job to scrub the ink out from your nails, I looked like a gothic for at least 3 days. A gothic with a squid girlfriend.

I have a pair of these Thor gloves, and have found them to be warm, well made and waterproof, the only issue being if you get snow into the cuff then it of course works inside the glove. Have had no issue with cold hands (come from Levels which were a bit cold) and the surface is fairly well made, and robust; I know where they will wear out (around the wrist where the stronger material finishes) but I don't expect gloves to last more than about 1-2 seasons anyhow; the exception being my levels from 1995 which are still going strong now :-) (made with rubber finger tips and stuff, but now are starting to fail).

I saw a fantastic Ogasaka while in Japan, really nice board - guy riding it was ripping too (typical Japanese style - very stable, very solid core, not much rotation, good technique for racing and free riding but certainly not EC style) P-Tex top sheet; Japanese branded step in bindings. no plate though. I have some friends there though that say the Euro boards are a little better in terms of performance though.

Hello all, as we get to the end of another season, I had the pleasure of receiving a new coiler stubby, which replaces my coiler stubby 168 where I had a bit of a prang and popped some of the top sheet off (hopefully Masahiko's repair will make the board riding well again). The cool thing about the Stubby is it is a mid sidecut style board with a fairly long edge length in a relatively shorter overall length; for an older rider like me, that means slightly less weight up the lift, slightly better maneuverability in other snow types (steeps, bumps, trees) and still with enough sidecut to enjoy wider turns. The first Stubby I have was a 168, made for a lighter rider, titanal, and was one of the easiest boards I have ever ridden; just jump on and go. So....when I discovered the 168 was damaged, getting a new one from Bruce was simple; the new process of partially built boards means you can get a board you want in just about 2 weeks - as long as your request fits with the blanks he has in stock. For me, that meant a 172, hybrid nose, carbonium custom topsheet (the red dwarf named after my favourite TV show and fitting given it is a stubby) waist 200mm and 13.5m sidecut.I am about 80kg and a bit older so not as powerful when riding as when I was young, this was meant to be my go to board for everything. Jumping on the board, it is nice to ride in everything; we were at Kiroro in spring corn, which of course has an ice layer under corn, and is fairly variable late in the afternoon, with some slushy ankle deep corn off piste - in everything the board is predictable, super simple to ride, you can ride cross through cross under cross over turns in anything from a slalom type diameter up to a tight GS while pushing it, or draw the turns out further with GS gliding turns. The nose is not so stubby so would be quite ok to ride in variable conditions. Interestingly, if you push it a bit, the board has a satisfying pop to it where you can definitely get some life from it with a bounce out of turns, more so than the older stubby (partly because it is stiffer too). I am no EC rider, but it seems to handle being able to lay out some EC style turns pretty easily as well. Built really well, and very light. I am riding it with an apex gecko plate and TD3s, which are a good set up, helps the board to ride well in variable chop. Early morning was quite firm and frozen over, not a problem to get great edge hold; not raceboard level edge hold but certainly more than enough. Also still has that very satisfying quality of being able to adjust the line of the board very easily; it doesn't lock into each carve and not want to skid, you can effortlessly transition from carve to skid to carve again in a single turn, no problem at all. For a rider who wants just 1 board to do it all, this is the one IMHO.

I also put the red tongues onto the UPZ; for me using the rear spring system and correctly tensioning the buckles plus riding in a more centered style means I don't have an issue with the softer flex; I fine the red a bit soft and the black a bit stiff so better a little soft I think as I ride at medium speed now - if I was riding a longer stiffer board at higher speed I might prefer the black tongues. The UPZ seems less temperature sensitive than some have said; I've used them in the balmy 100 degree heat in Thailand in my living room and in very cold temps in Japan and it seems like no real difference in flex (at least with the red tongues).

I have an oxygen 149 proton and a pair of almost new snowpro bindings that would likely work quite ok. Board is brand new. I can chuck in a 2nd pair of cheap bindings as well if you want. I don't expect much money for it, maybe $75 by paypal. However the shipping is from here (Bangkok) meaning it could be as much as $125 for you. However I can find out more if you want, or if you have anyone flying through Bangkok in the next month I can give to them and they can hand carry to you.

riding in Japan is a privilege and a delight; the code of conduct is respectful and the standard of riding very solid on the mountain. Most foreigners (like me) are enjoying the snow, conditions and terrain too. Too bad that a minority of foreign idiots (some from Australia and NZ) seem determined to f&*k it up by acting like total morons. But hopefully it won't end up like some parts of NZ and USA where you have to be constantly watching out for people bombing runs.

Best wishes; if you have the opportunity to video it again (after you have tried riding a bit) then we will offer further advice to confuse and confound :-) similar to the conductor in Whiplash :-). A lot is finding a rider style you like, and choosing and getting that style sorted first; however for me I think the style used in modern racing style (face across the board, very stable, centered) is the universal starting point from which you can then start playing around with EC and push/pull, rotational, cross through turns, etc etc. Once you really learn to be able to pressure the edge by dropping the hip inside the turn while keeping your body stacked over the edge (and not leaning out) which both angulates the board more and also loads up the board so it bends in a tighter radius, you learn how to really be able to adjust the turn radius tighter and tighter, which in turn enables you to ride steeper and steeper slopes. If you are starting to wear through the seat of your pants on your right 'bum' cheek and your left hip then you will know you are getting somewhere, that to me is the part that should be touching the snow with the upper body basically vertically above it, not leaning. Then from there, you can start to play around with the EC style which is as above, but with a lot more rotation and the upper body is no longer over the edge, instead it is inside the turn and the board carves up under you through the fall line. I must admit my own EC riding is awful as it feels quite odd (I can lay it down but only a turn at a time and not able to link them, the heelside feels very unnatural).

I have taken a long break from snowboarding, and got back into it, and after spending some time with a decent coach, I have an inkling of some of the things you might like to consider on improving your riding. In general you are using the edges, and looking reasonable, but a few things will help get you 'to the next level'. In terms of set up, widen the stance up, as when you ride, think in terms of if you were jumping up onto something or jumping down into loose gravel/uneven surface; you would have your legs apart, arms apart to ensure you could handle whatever the surface ended up like. That's a good sort of mindset for snowboarding; don't ride with your arms at your sides, don't ride with a really narrow stance, keep them spread out and with a wider stance; your balance will improve a lot as a result. For alignment (where to face), I don't agree with facing the nose with your hips is necessary; instead you might like to think about aligning your hips and shoulders at the same angle as your front bindings as Beckmann recommends; this is a more stable position. When you turn try to think in terms of (to start) 3 basic positions. the centered position (align shoulders and hips to face the same way as your bindings, weight centered, arms in the 'ready for anything' position meaning angled outwards at about 45 degrees at your shoulders); the heelside position - weight drops to the inside of the turn with only enough rotatation of your hips and shoulders (and your arms follow) to basically matching the radius of the turn or less (meaning the rotation movement is very small); weight centered, arms still in the ready for anything position); the toeside position opposite of the heelside turn (rotate your hips and shoulders and your arms follow) with a rotation again matching the radius of the turn); weight centered arms in the same position. As you start each turn, think in terms of the steps being going across the slope; start the turn by dropping your weight into the inside of the turn downwards and pressure the edge it feels down into the snow; the harder you drop and press the tighter the turn. You are not leaning out and your upper body doesn't break (like in EC). You don't need forwards backwards movement, don't need rotation, definitely don't need counter rotation, you just keep it all simple. There are more types of turn but this is the simple and basic starting point and things stem from there; it is close to what you are doing, but you have developed the addition of a few other movements which aren't so necessary. Specifically, you might like to think about the hand position as outlined above, you are doing an odd movement in some turns where you kind of use your upper body to start the turn in heelsides you are pulling your right hand across your body and in toesides you are letting your right hand drift way out to the right almost like a slight counter rotation; maybe you don't know what to do with your hands; please look up (for some reason I cannot post it here) the video called Ride With Me Sigi Grabner.look at 0.36sec or 1.15; you will note how little extraneous movement is needed once you have a stable platform (wider stance, good arm position, centered stance, minimal unnecessary rotation, no leaning in just edge pressure and dropping the hips into the turn with a nice quiet and fairly vertical upper body). If you can also look up a guy called Marc Cirigliano on youtube, he has a series that breaks down the modern way to ride the board in a racing style which is (IMHO) the most effective all round technique for riding in a variety of conditions, and opens the path to EC and other styles later on. He has a series starting with Midweighting 1 all the way to 16. Also look up a guy called Masaki Shiba on youtube, his riding is very stable and powerful and also you can look up a thing called installer 15 which has the Japanese style of riding (strongly derived from basic modern technique used in racing) when they free ride. In all of these you will see the much less 'busy' way to ride the board; simple works and is more efficient. In terms of drills you can try a few this: start with a centered stance and practise dropping weight into the turn: choose groomed intermediate slope without excessive slope and no people; ride straight down the falline, arms in the correct position as you pick up speed drop your weight downwards until you can touch the cuffs on your boots on the outside (left hand left side of left boot, right hand right side of right boot), facing same angle as the bindings and the bending down should occur at your knees and hips so that the alignment of your upper body is basically the same standing up as when you are dropped down, think of almost arching your back so your butt pokes out (don't break at the waist to get down there); stand back up again weight still centered and no rotation in either direction arms back to the neutral position; then drop your weight the same way into the inside of the turn with weight centered between your feet (either toeside or heelside), no counter rotation no leaning into the turn with the upper body and arms in the neutral position rotation only aligned with the radius of the turn; and as you do the board will turn under you and across the slope. Ride to the point that the board is traversing, think of what you did, then point the board downhill, and repeat again with the opposite turn; in effect you will only be doing half the turn at a time (from the falline through to the end of the turn) and it teaches you to quiet effective way to turn I go through this drill first day now for each time I ride at the beginning of the season, as I picked up a lot of bad habits when the swiss rotational style was what was taught; this drill really helps to lock things in for my mind.

Perhaps you can change out the buckle with another buckle that has a greater length with a longer wire loop? Many ski shops would have buckles that you can just purchase.

great to see; everywhere I am hearing snowboarding is suffering in freestyle against skiing (NZ, Japan, US media, Europe) - you can see in the numbers of younger guys how many are getting ski set ups now rather than boards. To get the feeling of the carve snowboarding absolutely is the dogs wossits, and all the gear and the fun you can have on modern gear means our niche may be tiny, but at least we are growing (I hope). Well done BOMBER!

It attaches with a screw type I have used a similar sort to in yachting; it looks like a large hex nut with an m6 thread poking out the bottom; then inside the hex portion is another thread (also m6) with a round shape sticking up (as the thread is narrower than the diameter of the screw. You use the 4X4 pattern, so the hex nuts screw into the deck, tightened slightly, then the plate fits onto the round holes of the thread, and then the binding mounts onto that with the M6 screws coming with the bindings; there is a definite front and back with the hole pattern slightly off centre front to back so the points with the urethane bumpers are close to the edge of the board. There are a variety of holes in 3 rows, so it is possible to find the row which gets the bumpers closest to the edge without overstepping the edge; you can also mount centered or asymmetrically (I did asymmetrically). The binding bolted down is what stops the plates coming off, although they are sort of held on through the tight fit around the hex nut heads anyhow. I believe the reason for the hex screws is so that it is stronger than using a long screw from the binding throught the plate, as that way the plate is having a large unsupported area between the bottom of the plate and the inserts of the board. This hardware from APEX the plate is sandwiched between the hex nut portion of the screw underneath and the binding clamping down on the top and the holes are a tight fit so nothing is wiggling around and there is no unsupported spans anywhere. Apparently it is the same hardware used by Kessler for other things as well. The bumpers are simply a metal thread inside the urethane and you can screw them on and off with the plate on or off the board. They are not attached to the board. Its pretty simple and all works well. no moving parts. I must say maybe it is a mental thing, but I swear the board soaks up a bunch of stuff that would otherwise have me getting out of position; in fact I took one huge slam on my front side because I had gone into a day dream while I was riding and wasn't watching what I was doing at all (not the plates fault, totally my own); there is basically no learning curve and the plate seems like it shouldn't do that much since it is not got an axle....but it really does seem to help.

I have seen various GStyle and other boots here in Japan, but recently, saw this pair of boots called an Alpina Hardcore Snowboard boot, and then I looked them up on the interweb. I am drawing a blank what molds were used to make it, it doesn't look like any of the usual suspects. Anyone have any idea? Surely it is not the Northwave moulds (I don't think it is).?

2Purpletiesto I have not ridden solely a riser plate so cannot comment 100%, but according to my mates who race a couple riding with the geckoplate, somehow the geckoplate is more than just a riser plate; it is able to absorb some of the chop and chatter to smooth out the ride, while also giving the additional leverage and height of a riser plate, but without taking away the feel of the snow. In Japan a number of the racers use for slalom now instead of a full plate system. I think it's like a better lighter version of the conshox type systems from F2 in the past.

I agree with NickG; I don't know if you have ever managed to destroy a binding (I have a few times) and it is by the grace of god that I didn't end up with a snowboard ending injury each time it happened - you don't want to be riding through a turn with only one leg attached to the board at speed. Having torn my ACL grade 2 (with both legs attached to the board) and then spending about $2000USD on physio (would have been more like $10k if I needed the operation) plus 6 months of pain and recovery.....just buy some new decent bindings.

BTW here's a pic of the set up on my oxess 162. Since it has 10 fingers, it should be called a ten-tackle. A mutant octopus Ten-tackle. Very very catchy, it sells itself.

Seems I might have already sold the 180, but anyhow I will keep you posted, it won't be expensive though; will let you know mid next week. The oxygen 149 is a pretty soft small board how tiny is your daughter, maybe the 146 is more powerful board than the oxy?