kmartshopper

The boot price just gets you warmed up for the $800 boards and $300 bindings Such small production and relative high quality of this stuff does warrant the high cost - but it still the least fun part of it. Taking a shot with used stuff, and maybe having to resell them, might be a good bet in the long run. I had to return one pair I bought for a good deal, then I ended up getting the right size on second try for $100 for some SB324's that I just had to glue the cant adjusters on. The shipping is childs play compared to what you save vs. a new pair of boots. There's a really nice set of AF700's up for $225 right now even.... and some nice 224's just went for $150. ________ Lovely Wendie99

I bought some SB324's off the classifieds that look like Moses must have been the original owner. Aside from the known issue with Raichle can't adjusters, they seem really no worse for the wear. I'd second the advice to at least get fully heat-moldable liners... definitely as good as advertised, especially if you have non-standard shaped foot. BTW, I wear 11.5 street shoes and a 27.5 boot (27.0-27.5 shell). If you're trying to buy something or get advise, and someone asks you what size street shoe you wear - DON'T TELL THEM! ________ Extreme Q Vaporizer

I wish I had run into him over the years. I did shares at Killington for 5 years and rarely ran into any carvers (I only did a few days/year on the hardboots myself until things started clicking and I finally eclipsed my soft carving abilities this year). I even more rarely saw decent soft carvers. I haven't been there in two years though. I'd love to see that though. I'm not much of an athlete, so I know there are people that can do what I can do, but much better... it's just statistics that are working against me running into them (ie. such a small % of boarders actually carve turns) I think (specifically) the superstar headwall and Ovation endwall are the steepest pitches... OL is just longer more continuous pitch. I'd carve OL in softies in groomed nice snow, but not chalk - also, not as tight of a radius that I'd like. I saw a guy - once - popping tight hip to hip SL turns, speed perfectly controlled, down that superstar headwall in chalk, and that's what actually made me try hardbooting! I can lay one or two big S's down it, but that's not *really* carving, as I aspire to do it. Plus I'm too chicken to go that fast. :rolleyes: ________ AVANDIA LAWYER

You'll be in good shape if you don't let the downhill edge get under the crust. So simple! :rolleyes: That's actually a good example day for what I've been saying - I'd ride hardboots and pull the big G's in the AM on what will likely be hero cord. Switch to softies after a couple hours after it gets broken up a little and cruise the soft snow - and still be able to carve (a little less hard) when I end up on a groomer from then out. ________ Curvy Webcams

Hmm... sounds kind of interesting. What condition is the base/edges in, and how much were you looking to get with the TD2 plates? ________ Medical marijuana

If no one ever asked you "Is that a monoski?", this may be your chance! Seriously... is that just a narrow small radius alpine board? Why does it need "skwal plates"? How would it compare (stiff, lively) to something like my only real frame of reference - a Donek FCII? I always thought it might be fun to have something that length with a big cut... Hmmm.... ________ Zoloft Withdraw

I was there last winter and wasn't terribly impressed. Ironically, at least midweek, groomers on the east coast almost seem less crowded. Peruvian gulch has a decent path down. Not really a great carving mountain, but still a few decent ways down. I always went to Brighton to carve, and actually wished I tried Solitude, because it looked awesome (from the road... I never actually tried it :(). ________ HERBAL VAPORIZERS

I think that's all that's being talked about in the thread... I know I want softies in the chop and powder, and I think that's what others are saying in previous posts. I'd even concede that if I could only have a single board, it would be a freeride board. I just find it interesting that if someone really likes carving and you have the means - why wouldn't you ride hard gear when you have that carving jones - just like you'd ride a powder board in the powder? I contend that a lot of it - for many riders - is image. Alpine snowboarding doesn't fit in with the all-to-ironically labeled 'counter-culture'. I read a lot about Vin too, and have even seen pics... I bet he really can carve the hell out of softboots, but I wonder if he can carve chalk down the headwall of Superstar? I'm willing to eat my words to see it, but I have rarely seen that done in hardboots (not by me of course :rolleyes:) - I am awaiting the day I see it done in softies. Vin is also (to my possibly faulty knowledge) the head snowboard guy for Basin Ski's snowboard side (Surf the earth?). They are RIGHT across the street from the most fashionable, most popular snowboard shop in town - Darkside. From a business perspective, maybe 5 years ago, for a well known Ski oriented shop to contend with the coolest of the cool snowboard shops directly across the street, one could argue that pushing Alpine was not the thing to do. This was roughly when they dropped alpine gear (to their credit - I believe they were the last around Killington to do so - and you certainly lose $$ on product that doesn't sell). ________ Nexium withdraw

I definitely agree with this theory. Filing base edges will screw with the 'effective' bevel. If we're haggling over 1/2deg increments - then you can bet your butt that raising the edge with respect to the base via filing will have a very noticeable impact - regardless of bevel angle. That's why if you are really-really-really cheezy and want your boards to last forever, you could start with a 0deg base, then after some time when the edges get chewed up a bit, you could file to a 1/2 get nice clean edges without having to get reground. Repeat @1deg. As long as you do it right, this won't affect the relative height of the edge w/r to the base.... it will be like a fresh tune @that base bevel. BTW, I always mark my edges with a sharpie before I file so I am sure I'm getting it right - and so I stop when I've gone far enough. I know... it will ride differently, but in the interests of squeezing every last penny out of your wallet and making the board last forever... it's not a bad bet. ________ Zx14 vs hayabusa

"So.... How's your girl?" It is a funny little dynamic though... It's fun to get looks or comments cuz you can rail is softies. You do tend to get more of a skier response on alpine gear though... and that ain't cool! Interesting how much activity there is lately on bomber about softcarving (many people making it clear right in their user names that they ride softies - NOT HARDBOOTERS - THE HORROR!) Fact is, if carving wasn't fun as hell, softbooters wouldn't do it at all. So you might ask yourself - if it's so damn fun - why the hell wouldn't you want to amp it up a bit - at least part time (I wouldn't give up softies myself). Limited $$ is a good excuse - but I know that's not really the issue for most posters here. Driving a EVO VIII is fun. Drive Michael Schumachers F1 Ferrari for a year, then see how thrilling the EVO seems. Sure, I'd still love an EVO for a daily driver - but if you'll let me, I'll take the F1 out for a spin when I get the chance. Carving softies is way fun.... after you get it, it's just no fun riding when it's too icy to get an edge. But the simple fact is that no soft boot setup is going to buckle your knees and pop your punk a$$ into the next turn like alpine gear (ew! The "A" word!). It's simple physics. Nothing like a few good hours of groom in the morning, then switching over and chilling with the rest of the world. Get there early while your friends are still hungover and won't see you, and give it a try it some time. I was wondering too about it blowing out in softer snow with the short running length. I'm trying to thin the herd and replace two freeride boards with a single all purpose one - and this was one concern. I'm taller, but about your weight. I ride a bigger heavy old stiff board that I can carve on softies really well with - but is too heavy to swing around well in the bumps. Then there's a light quick board that doesn't hold an edge terribly well. I have a separate board for powder mornings, so I've been eyeing the Donek Wide/MaddBX & Prior AMF... looking to go short as possible for a tight radius and low swing weight. Good to hear it's working for you. ________ GAMO MATCH GRAINS WADCUTTER 500CT

+1 Mr. Gilmour... I share your sentiments on when and how to get the best of both worlds. Cool that you found a powder board that could satisfy you all around too... Can I ask how big of a guy you are on that 159 swallowtail? ________ ULTRAM REHAB FORUMS

Anyone have a Donek Wide 161 in good shape that they wish to part with before I buy off the rack? ________ WENDIE 99

Eric, do you have higher resolution version of those pics? I love that! (no I wasn't there though :() ________ Slovenian cooking

I have an old Salamon Precept 167 plank I soft carve one. It's a 26.5mm waist and I run malamutes at 30/24 give or take. I've had them up to 40 before and thought they still worked OK... starting to change how you turn a little at that point though. Just blew the wad on some catek FR2's from my Salamon SPX Carbons. Although they are excellent bindings, honestly... the difference probably doesn't justify the cost, except for the lift and rise I can get so I can rail on heelsides without booting out now. Ditto BlueB... I'm too chicken to take the hardgear into bumps... softies there and on powder days for me. Maybe as I continue to get more skilled in the alpine gear... I know I've finally gotten over the hump that I enjoy carving on the hard gear more than on softies now - but only on good groom with low crowds. Softies still super fun, but far more fatiguing on less powerful IMHO. ________ Paxil Side Effect

"Looks like I'm going to need a bigger backpack." ________ Prilosec help

It looks like it could double as a traction support frame for your full body cast after that square support beam impales you in a crash. Seriously - does look a little fun - not pleasant to wreck in. ________ XTZ 750

I've been riding my Donek FCII at the delivered 0 bevel cuz I am hard-core Actually - my theory is that you can get more life out of the board between grinds, because when the edges get skuffed up enough, I can file to a 0.5deg, then 1deg and get nice edges each time without touching the base. It seems to me that regardless of your bevel, once you've filed the edges higher than the base, you're going to end up with an effective bevel with regards to grabbiness - then you'll need a grind. I do tend to transition back and forth between edges on flats though - probably because subconsciously I know I'm asking for it. I have an old rock board (softies) that I like riding in bumps that I call 'the spoon' which must have 5deg or more of free-hand file beveling. Very swooshy and fun in soft snow. ________ Lovely Wendie99

Email sent. ________ Emillia

Hope no-one's offended... I know absolutely nothing about this website, but stumbled across what seems to be pretty good deal if you happen to be a wee boarder. http://www.the-house.com/snbd-f2speedster.html ________ Iolite Portable Vaporizer

I wonder if Ron Baar got the flu from all the germs collecting in the trenches. http://www.bomberonline.com/VBulletin/showthread.php?t=19870 ________ VAPORIZER

I've got about 5-10 days on a new set of TD2's now and today I noticed that they have gotten quite loose (the bail/boot clampdown). Everything is still tight, and they haven't shifted from the initial settings I made. Only thing I can see causing this is that the front toe clamp is wearing these two 'vampire' impressions into the front of the toe of my boot, since it doesn't contact all across it's width - just at the two endpoints. This is right above the toe flange on the vertical surface of the toe. The dents aren't deep yet, and it's not a big deal as long as it doesn't progress to far with time. These are old Raichle SB324 boots. Is this typical? ________ Lexus Lf History

Skinsuit! There are so few instances in life where you get to wear a skinsuit, why pass this one up! Seriously, pumping does work on downslopes to some degree... running a traverse/cat track with whoops all along it can prove that quickly, as you can actually accelerate on a gentle incline. Throwing your arms up sounds pretty useless though. I never raced, but I always view traverses as time where you want to be as efficient as possibly.... always seem to go faster if I get my weight back on the tail. Might be a friction thing. Doesn't work well through turns of course, but maybe on the hole shot. Seriously though... I repeat.... SKINSUIT!!!! ________ ZX14 VS HAYABUSA

I've been using that pad for a few years now and it helps a TON. Ironically, I was just recently wondering how that shintronics thing compared. Looks like it doesn't extend down over that area between your shin and top of foot (front ankle?). I'd think that would leave space above your heel and induce lift. It's more $$$ too. Sometimes simple is better... but I never tried the shintronics. Anyway... eliminator fills a lot of space for me with my super skinny legs. If you have skinny legs and have trouble filling the upper boot, you're going to wonder how you ever got by without these. I use them in my softies too. I actually use the power strap too... which helps, but not nearly as big of an impact as the pads. ________ Kitchen Measures

I just upgraded mine to TD2's very recently. I'll probably use them on a second board. Basically everything BlueB said... plus I'd add that it could be a pain to get shims if you want a lot of lift. People often say you can order shims from Dan Yoja (?), but I was cheap and cut my own - quite a stack of shims, but not as much as I wanted. I don't know if the OEM lift shims give you forward tilt to the boot surface, or just raise the rear block (as my way did). I was worried about going higher than I did due to how the boot sat on the now uneven surface. I now have a 6deg disk on my TD2's which is much more than I was able to get on the SPs. Again, check on the OEM shims if this is a question for you. Also, getting new bolts to match the lift takes a little searching - and if you go to long, they will dig into your topsheet. (my boo-boo) They also wobble side-to-side more than the TD2's, but maybe some people may want that (BlueB mentions the lateral flex below). All just inconvenience stuff though... they never gave me any trouble in use, and they were CHEAP in the classifieds :) ________ MATURE SEX

God bless single digit temperatures and modern outerwear. Even with those light crowds - I still get too scared to carve w/hardgear after about 10:00am though... but that's just my lack of control. ________ R1200gs