jim_stoll

Dano - I was kind of wondering if there wasn't something I could do to snug things up a bit. I'd thought about wrapping the little tab with some metal shim material, or even just duct tape or such. Epoxy is a good idea, since I have the angle set to where I like it - its not like I need to be changing it. It just seems to have gotten worn over the years - either narrowed down the tab and/or widened out the slot a bit. Definitely way more noticeable this year though. I saw that used one on eBay for $70, and thought 'no freakin way', but by the time I've purchased the Ibex one, shipped it w/in Canada, then shipped it to the US, I'll be past that. :-) On the plus side, my current cant is on the 3rd board, over the course of at least 10 years, and I originally got it used, so I should expect to get a whole lot of use out of the brand new one. Curious why they won't ship the Universal Cant to the US... Seems to clearly be a liability thing since its just that one item they won't ship here. Anyone know if these are/were prone to catastrophic breakage or such? I've never had any problems w/ mine (up until this recent sloppiness, which is still rideable, and as pointed out, likely fixable). The old Burton stuff isn't real sexy, but I've got to say, my RacePlates and Universal Cant have served me very well over the years! (I suppose being a 135-pounder probably helps a bit. :-)

Thanks to All for the offers of help! I was able to find a very kind and helpful Canadian boarder to receive the item for me and forward it on once it arrives. Looking forward to my rear stance angle not changing while I'm riding! :-) Jim

My old Burton universal cant is developing some rotational play and I need to replace it. Only place I can find online that sells the Ibex clone is yyzcanuck.com, and they apparently won't ship the universal cant to the US. (Undoubtedly some dip-wad US lawyer led to that policy...) Anyway, I'm interested in purchasing one with some help from a Canadian fellow carver. Anyone willing to receive the cant plate for me and forward it on? I could pay via credit card and have it shipped to a Canadian address, then PayPal you the shipping costs to send it to the US. Please PM me if you're willing to help a fellow carver out! Thanks, Jim

Mark - I responded to you via email - just to let you know in case you don't check that account very often. Thanks! Jim

I popped a bale on my Shadow boot - broke right at the 90deg angle that goes into the buckle. Looking to replace it - any possible sources that someone can recommend? Any other(s) out there using these boots? I've used mine for years, and am reasonably happy w/ them, but one complaint that I have is that the bale catch is in a bad position relative to the boot shell - invariably, the middle buckle's front edge sits right against the edge of the overlap part of the shell when I clamp it down, and I think this is why it finally popped - when I flex the boots, the overlap part of the shell moves a little, which pushes directly on the front edge of the buckle, putting a good bit of force on the bale (and also slightly deforming the boot, which does nothing to enhance the foot hold). Anyway, if anyone else has experienced this and has some suggested remedy, I'd sure like to hear it. (I think probably a longer buckle would do it - then it would ride up over the edge of the shell and this wouldn't be a problem, but I'm no boot mechanic, so am reluctant to start hacking away at an otherwise-decent pair of boots...) Thanks Much!

So how do we get the cants from Burton. (I don't even need free - I'd pay for it!) I tried Burton and Chris Klug, but with no luck. I have a cant w/ a 3-hole insert that I used to use on my Alp, but now ride a 4-hole board. I can't find a 4-hole metal insert for the plastic cant to save my life. I bought a uni-cant from someone here on BOL, and its currently holding up, but I've been warned by multiple folks that it will eventually crack and break (it is quite brittle), so if I could go to my simple/strong unadjustable cant, that'd be nice! What's the secret?!?!?

Well, the other thing to consider in this though (ie, the drag on the toe, but not the heel) is that I don't know about everyone else, but I'm much more aggressive in terms of the amount that I rail the board over when I'm on toe-side than when I'm on heel-side, so its possible that I'd get the same effect if I had the board as far tilted up when I'm on HS as TS. (added to that, I have more hardware on the toe, what w/ the flip up lever and the fact that the toe bail sits out more from the boot than the heel bail, which sits right up tight against the boot heel). But, all of that aside, it certainly won't hurt to try it out, and I'll definitely do so. Thanks!!

Thanks Frank - the advice sounds unanimous - get rid of the drag, whatever the source. Thing that scares me is that I'm going fast enough as it is, even w/ this 'anchor' dragging... ;-) Thanks!

Thanks for the info Jim - I can't actually feel the toe drag, but there is most definitely a small line in the snow inside of the edge arc, and I'm guessing it has to be my toe bail . I'll try moving another 3deg step steeper and see if that takes care of it. I need to measure the angles, just so I know what they're at, but I'd guess its somewhere in the upper-50's currently (I can't carve worth a darn at shallower angles!) I hadn't considered moving the boots more to the heelside - is that a pretty standard practice? I've always ridden smack over the centerline of the board. What would be the effects of this? (clearly more heel-side control, but any other side-effects?) Yeah, the pressuring the nose is definitely a fine line... :-) I haven't folded this one up yet (I used to do so periodically on my Alp). (I also weigh all of 140lbs fully dressed for the slopes, so that helps... :-) There have been 2-3 close calls on the new board in terms of going over the handlebars, but this board is defnitely less prone to ejection than the softer Alp and its responsive enough that you can feel it happening and back off a little bit. At lower speeds though, its still amazing the turns this SL board will carve if you really work the nose. At higher speeds, there's definitely nose involved in the initiation, but you can't stay on it long or you start losing edge. So it sounds like staying at my current centered stance (ie, front-to-back) is probably the best plan (vs moving forward) Thanks for the info and tips Jim - I'm having a blast on this board. Its definitely breathing some new life into my riding!!

Since you're talking about a 158... I just got a Donek 158 SL board this winter (coming from 8 yrs on a burton alp 156, which followed 5 years on an my first ride, a Checkered Pig 164 GS board). I've been out on the Donek 3 days so far, and it is absolutely daggone thrilling! Like nekdut says about the Madd, you have to actively ride this board, non-stop, and making tight turns every 20 or so feet is a serious workout. :-) (and that's not even factoring in the calesthenics involved in the transition between turns...) What an incredible ride though!! Anyway, its going well on the new board - I'm not having any particular problems, but am definitely seeking some advice/experience from other SL riders about setup, technique, etc. I'm using the inner-most set of mounting holes on the board (centered), but find that I really have to concentrate on the nose of the board when initiating turns, then need to center once into the turn if I've got any real speed (and if I get on the tail toward the end, there's a pretty serious pop in the transition :-) It is amazing the turn that this thing will hold though - I spend half my time laughing about the turn that I've just 'survived'. I'm running a mild lift/cant on the rear foot (don't have numbers), and am running the front foot flat. Not sure on the exact angles at this point, but its a 19cm waist board, and I have size 9 boots, set with the boot edges right over the board edges. I get a bit of toe or toe bail drag on the toe-sides - you can see a little line in the snow just inside the arc the board carves (which is pretty surgical BTW - not too many huge trenches, which surprises me given the tightness of the turns), but this small amount of drag doesn't seem to be hampering the turns at all, and I want all of the edge control that I can get, so am reluctant to steepen the angles. (The current setup is the result of some on-hill tinkering, so I haven't actually measured anything aside from the 16.5" stance width, and I know I've got the rear foot either 3 or 6 deg (1 or 2 clicks on my raceplates) shallower than the front foot. I'm also finding that a bent-knee, flexible-leg riding style is key on this board - it doesn't tolerate stiff legs very well. I'm not the EC, body-dragging type, but I've found myself scraping my knees on the snow on several occasions - from the combination of the insanely tight turn and the bent knees needed to drive/control the board. At any rate, any input, thoughts and/or suggestions from anyone out there who rides an SL style board would be welcomed - I'm loving this beast, and am having about the most fun I've ever had on a board, but definitely want to learn to use this board to as much of its potential as I can manage (its way more capable than I am! :-) Thanks!

Interesting to see that you guys are advocating putting kids in ski boots on a board - I've actually pondered the same approach - I got into hardbooting originally because I, as an adult, didn't have the foot strength to edge the board the way I wanted to (coming from a SL/GS skiing background, granted), and have wondered how a kid would actually have the kind of strength needed to effectively edge a board at all, much less for any period of time.

So what IS a realistic age to try a kid on a snowboard? I put my 3 yr old on skis several times this winter (in the moderately-sloped front yard) and he absolutely loves it. He's able to do some snowplowing to slow down a little, and has the basics of turning down (ie, which ski turns him in which direction). Being a reformed skier (for 15 years now, thank you! :-), as much as I love boarding, I don't see a young kid finding a board nearly as natural a setup as skis. My son can 'walk' on the skis and can pick a ski up to reposition it when it gets out of whack, etc - the board just seems a wholly-unnatural thing for a kid. At what age can one realistically expect a kid to be able to deal w/ the effects and realities of being strapped sideways (ok, at 60 deg... ;-) to a board, and actually have some control and enjoy the experience? I'd rather wait a little too long and make sure he (and his younger brother eventually, who of course HAD to ski this winter, too :-) enjoys it, rather than overwhelm him w/ it and spoil it for him.

Hey, I've got a base-high Alp, maybe we could get our boards together... ;-) Sadly, mine is so worn that its no longer even base-grindable - the guys at the local shop made a single, light pass over their finest stone and chickened out. (The edges need some work, but w/ the base as convex as it is, taking anything off of the edges will make it look much like a canoe. On the plus side, it doesn't often catch an edge!! :-) Grind it flat and try it again - I loved my Alp and am sorry to see it go - great for lazy carves on moderate slopes (as long as you don't get too aggro on the nose or the edges), and skids the steep stuff w/ the best of 'em. Actually does reasonably well in moguls too! (carving ice isn't its strong suit though...) Don't give up on it yet though - its a fun little board if you're a lightweight and have the subtlety to ride it w/o overpowering it!!

To any and all who will listen: I just returned from a trip to CO, one purpose of which was to find a board to replace my old Burton Alp. I contacted several manufacturers to try to arrange demo/test rides on their equipment while I was out there, and for various reasons (ranging from complete lack of response to "we're too busy"), Donek was the only place that made the effort to get me on their boards (and they put me on 2, in fact). Granted, everyone is busy, but these folks made it happen anyway. After demoing the 2 boards over the course of several days, I talked to Sean about my likes and dislikes of the designs, and he spent the time listening and discussing my needs (each board was awesome in its own right, but neither quite fully covered my overall set of goals). As a result of our discussion, we were able to come up with a solution that addressed all of my needs. I just want to give a big THANK YOU to Sean and Jenifer for making the effort to get me out on their boards, for taking the time to listen to my feedback and for their willingness to work with me in finding the board that is right for me. (One manufacturer, in response to questions actually told me, "Just buy the board...") Sean and Jenifer are exactly what "Customer Service" is all about. (And they make absolutely rockin' boards, too!) These folks stand out from the crowd - I just can't say enough good things about them. I would encourage anyone looking for a new board to contact Donek and talk to them about their line. If your experience is anything near what mine was, I can pretty much guarantee that you'll be very happy that you did. Thank You Donek!!! Jim Stoll

Bumpyride, Please check your email for a quick question. Thanks!