Soft Boot/Freestyle Board Begginner Suggestions...

[Speedzilla]

I'll be heading to a ski swap with my 15 year old neighbor this weekend looking for a softboot set-up. He's a beginner.

I really don't know much about the soft boot scene.

Is there anything I should be looking for, or looking to avoid?

I'm assuming that if I can get him set up with something that is the right size that should be good enough. He just needs something to skid around the local hill for a season or two.

[lonerider]

I'll be heading to a ski swap with my 15 year old neighbor this weekend looking for a softboot set-up. He's a beginner.

I really don't know much about the soft boot scene.

Is there anything I should be looking for, or looking to avoid?

I'm assuming that if I can get him set up with something that is the right size that should be good enough. He just needs something to skid around the local hill for a season or two.

Yea pretty much anything will work just to start off, but it better be pretty chea. With a ski swap, you aren't going to get much of a choice of anything. Only buy board/bindings (boots should always fit extremely well and that chance of that happening at a ski swap is almost zero). Length guidelines ~150cm for 100 lbs, ~155cm for 150 lbs you can estimate between... but don't be afraid to go longer as he is growing.

[Speedzilla]

Yea pretty much anything will work just to start off, but it better be pretty chea. With a ski swap, you aren't going to get much of a choice of anything. Only buy board/bindings (boots should always fit extremely well and that chance of that happening at a ski swap is almost zero). Length guidelines ~150cm for 100 lbs, ~155cm for 150 lbs you can estimate between... but don't be afraid to go longer as he is growing.

I've always been told to go about chin high on length for beginners, is that correct? He's a skinny dude, maybe 120lbs?

The "ski" swap should have plenty of board gear, they usually do.

[lonerider]

I've always been told to go about chin high on length for beginners, is that correct? He's a skinny dude, maybe 120lbs?

The "ski" swap should have plenty of board gear, they usually do.

People use that because it is easier to "eyeball." Weight is better measurement factor (but difficult for a salesman to know at the store). Ok, so 120... he will probably gain some weight... so I would recommend 152 to 156 range.

Aside from that, just don't get a damaged, worn out board and you can't really go wrong for a beginner. I would avoid anything extremely flexible (not as stiff as your alpine boards, you have to put a little bit of shoulder to flex it) or doesn't have much camber left (middle should still sit above the ground with laid base down).

[Strider]

For a beginner I would try not to get too long. IT is kind of like the old school way with skis, the longer boards usually will be harder to run becasue they don't have the technique to make flexing a bigger board easy and they have to rely mostly on the sidecut and edge. It is also easier to do sideslips and make corrections with a shorter board becasue you won't have as long of a lever arm and the board will swing back to the neutral position quicker.

As for what to look for, just like looking at a hard board. Basic condition of the board is most important. If it was someone who had already been riding a little bit you might want to consider things such as core material, and riding style. I hate foam core boards, but for a beginner they work great becasue they are softer and easier to flex, but in the long run they lose their camber a lot faster. I would also look for a twin tip freestyle board as he might not figure out which direction he wants to ride, and its always a good idea for beginners to ride switch early on and its much easier on a twin tip than a directional board.

I hope some of this helps.

[Neil Gendzwill]

There are some really trashy cheap brands like Firefly, usually being dumped by ski shops. So try to have a few quality manu's names in your head to look for, and also a length.

These days it seems like there's a lot of shops dumping old stock, and not so many bargains. The bargains go fast, so get there early. When the doors open, don't screw around - head straight to whereever it is you want to go. You'll need to decide quickly. Having an accomplice to hold onto prospects while you scout helps.

Boots take longer, so grab your board first and then see if you can find boots. I personally don't think finding boots are out of the question, especially as the kid is old enough to tell you for sure what fits and what doesn't (try this with a 6 year old).

[Speedzilla]

Thanks for the tips everyone.

[RDY_2_Carve]

My only tip with softboot equipment is buy the same brand boots and bindings. Since you can mount any bindings to any board then you don't necessarily need to buy the same brand board. I have Head softboots and Head bindings that I got very cheap and they work great-mostly because they are the same brand/year/model/etc. No slop in the boot/binding interface at all...

[Pow]

Quality control: avoid DBX boots/bindings! the cheap crap isnt even fit for toddlers in the training area:nono: My first time off of rentals i was riding those... the bindings broke on the first run down the bunny slope! and the boots give about the same amount of support as your fuzzy slippers.

[Phil]

Quality control: avoid DBX boots/bindings! the cheap crap isnt even fit for toddlers in the training area:nono: My first time off of rentals i was riding those... the bindings broke on the first run down the bunny slope! and the boots give about the same amount of support as your fuzzy slippers.

That is good to know. I have probably had at least a hundred students on that equipment and I tend to recommend it to people who otherwise could not afford to get into the sport. This is the first time I have heard a complaint. I will be more careful about recommending it in the future.

I am not sure about the toddler in the training area thing, though. It seems to work well for the little kids. Is it possible that light and unaggressive riders may not tax that equipment like you did?