uku

I've read much. But your information was useful as well. At the moment I'll probably choose proton. Good reviews @ carver's almanac (stabile, good hold, yet bit poppy). Also highly regarder in BOL by some aswell. Am I correct? :) In case of all-mountain boards... i still think i'd prefer something more to the racing... besides those models mentioned are kinda hard to get in europe.

Hi! I'm a softbooter, been carving for 2,5 seasons and now looking for more serious equipment. My dimensions: 77 kg (178lbs), 188 cm (6,2 ft), 28,5 mondo Goals: Bindings: Looking for preferably non-step-in bindings, as they are recommended for more beginners.(?) Does step-in system require anything special from the boot? Board: In case of board I got inspired by Rossignol z9 skis that are versatile and good skis. They are quite wide, have 15m radius and are stable at higher speeds. When I tried these i could carve easily & fast slopes that i really had to concentrate on with my current setup. So my main goal will be carving pistes, but as I'm gonna ride all day long I'm not looking for a board for perfect conditions but one that forgives some bumps etc that the masses generate on the slopes. Thus I'd like to have stability as well. Guess the ideal radius could be around 13 m. That wouldn't give me slalom turns and also wouldn't require very high speeds for laying really low turns :). Ideal setup would perform like those skis and enable me to get really low. I have no idea about liveliness/dampness. Guess that if i get an old board, then i can afford experimenting different types. With a new one I have to stick to it for some seasons. If you can tell a style from the videos, see 2 bottom ones here: http://www.bomberonline.com/VBulletin/showthread.php?p=83571#post83571 Boots: I need good ones :) Due to my location (Estonia) it is not easy to find equipment, but I've found some stuff over the internet. I need to have a full setup by 24.02 (going on a trip the next day). Also some stuff mentioned here are sold via ebay auctions and are ending pretty soon (16h) so fast feedback is appreciated. Options: Bindings: F2 Intec Titanflex, 125 € F2 Intec Titanium, 110 € F2 Intec Titanflex step-in, 150 € Boards: new: F2 silberpfeil, 168 cm/70+kg , 10.5m, 390 € F2 Speedster RS - 177 cm, 15m, 04/05 edition 1€ :) (6 day auction @ ebay); 05/06 edition 450 € Hot Blast GS, 178, 13m, 05/06, 385 € Völkl Raceboard RT 168 GS, 320 € Oxygen Proton GS, 168, 13m, 05/06, 350€ used: Oxygen KR172c, 172 cm, 13.8m, 97/98, 120 € Virus Black Death Team Edition 2002/2003, 173 cm, waist 15,1 cm, effective edge: 157 cm with : F2 Intec Titanium Step-in bindings. 300€ and rising Oxygen GS Proton 168, 240€ HOT BLAST, used, with Burton 4x4 bindings, http://cgi.ebay.de/Snowboard-HOT-BLAST-guter-Zustand-m-Burton-4x4-Bindung_W0QQitemZ8762420126QQcategoryZ59756QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Rossignol XX Alpinboard Carver/Racer 168cm http://cgi.ebay.de/Rossignol-XX-Alpinboard-Carver-Racer-168cm_W0QQitemZ8761466892QQcategoryZ59756QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Boots: http://cgi.ebay.at/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8761495737&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1 DeeLux Suzuka, 390 € @bluetomato DeeLux LeMans, 280 € @bluetomato UPZ. Price should be around 400 $, not given at European page (rabanser) If you feel like commenting any option, go ahead. Also you can comment on my goals, maybe i have logic mistake somewhere. The quicker the better ;) P.S.! If you have anything I could buy or recommend me smth that'd ship in Estonia in 2 weeks, go ahead. P.S.2! Sorry, if this thread belongs to a different forum Big thanks in advance! Uku

I must thank you all for your feedback once more. For this trip I read throughly all the material available at bomber articles and here... and this time felt much more comfortable on the board. Carving rules video (unedited this time) http://uku.nb.ee/italy.mpg Right now I'm seeing to issues to fix: "flying" hand and too high stance. Anything else?

can anyone comment on the stability of this board (Nidecker) at higher speeds?

Soo... i'm back with some footage again :). Man was that an awsome trip. Though it was a 40+h strait drive there, it was definately worth it. Mayrhofen rocks! http://uku.nb.ee/carvingftw.wmv Feel free to express your feelings. I'd love to have some feedback on the technique, as that is the main point of this movie. But you can bash the whole movie aswell :) Thanks in advance! ...and I'm seriously considering to get myself a hardboot setup.

Thank you for your feedback! Gonna try those tips out in three days @ Mayrhofen. I've been thinking about changing to hardboots.. but I'm gonna miss the powder. And I can't really carry 2 sets of boards with me all the time. Those videos were shot in Dolomiti Superski, Italy, in late March. In the morning some slopes were in excellent contition. But when the Sun and the hords of people showed up...then...this happened what you saw. on some days the temperature got as high as +14 C PS! Sorry guys, but I'm male. (: When I'm not carving I do brazilian jiu-jitsu. It doesn't stress legs much but overall I feel I'm in pretty good shape. Will see in three days... Cheers!

It's been a while...and it is time for a new season! :) But the topic remains the same: Here are some clips of me riding on the last day of the last season. If you bother, I would be very thankful if you could point out any serious issues I was having. Would be nice to know, otherwise I'm gonna relearn my possibly wrong techniques. As we all know changing habits is much harder than creating new ones :) http://uku.nb.ee/ride Thanks in advance!

that situation would suck alot especially if it was a chairlift

it should be possible with soft boots aswell. at least i manage to carve in those conditions to some extent (until my feet get tired). but i guess it is not that good for knees, as mine started to hurt a bit in the evenings.

thanks. didn't do it :)

hey i'm facing a dilemma, maybe you can help me out. i have been a softboot carver so far. but now i'm in italy, dolomiti where i have an opportunity to rent a hardboot alpine board. at the same time however the guys at the store told me that at wet conditions alpine board is no good. the temperature is around 14 degrees celcius at the moment so the snow IS wet ;) my question is that is softboot carving really better at these conditions so i shouldn't waste my money just to feel how hardboot riding is? thanks in advance

Very deep feedback, thanks a lot. I'll be boarding to Dolomoti next week so I'll print your notes out, take them to the mountains and read them between refined turns :D. And yes, that is me riding there.

Hi again! Though you are mostly hardboot riders I hope you know something about carving with soft setup aswell. If you have time, check out those two clips and help me to strive towards excellence in carving ;) http://uku.humare.ee/kitzbuhel/videod/uku_carv_1.mpg (N/A) http://uku.humare.ee/kitzbuhel/videod/uku_carv_2.mpg (N/A) Vahur already pointed out some stuff to keep in mind but I'd like to know what do you think, too. Thanks in advance! Uku edit: newest videos are lower

After measuring my board and using that sidecut radius calculator I found out that the sidecut radius is 10,3 m and it is pretty hard to find another board like that. Also I haven't had time to find myself a good hardboot setup so I continue with my old board and focus on the tehnique instead :). Just wanted to say thanks to everybody for their input.

thanks for all the answers. after spending half a day surfing around bomberonline.com,extremecarving.com and numerous other sites my head is getting really dizzy because of the opportunitites out there. at the moment i'm not sure anymore if i want to stay with softies. progress, eh? :p anyway i figured out that first of all i should set down the dimensions. i'm 187 cm (6.1 feet) tall and weigh around 80 kg (176 lbs) can anyone recommend me an approximate length or refer a site i could find it out by myself. Alpinecarving.com says, "However, it is important not to buy a board based on your height - the slackers at the board shop seem to have the misconception that height corresponds to length." Does it mean that I should pick the biggest board possible as in most places 150+ lbs seems to be the largest number.

Hi! I have been doing some softboot carving for 2 years by now with my old Rossignol Leviathan (4 seasons old) and would like to take my riding to a new level. That board just doesn't carve on higher speeds + is morally old :) My new board should be with bigger sidecut radius and stiffer(?) but still for softies as I wouldn't want to specify purely on riding on the slope. As I live in a country called Estonia, it is pretty hard to get a decent board here as there is no demand for such products. The only options that I have found on sale are: Nitro Suprateam series Salomon Fastback + I probably could get a Neversummer T5 aswell. Has anyone had any experience with those boards? I know that their sidecut radius isn't that big (around 10 meters) but how much does it matter? If anyone has another board to recommend then just shoot. Though ordering from US is pretty expensive due taxes and postal costs unless I find some good discounts. Thanks, Uku