MUD Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 Hey all, Does anyone actually do this? I think it would be fun in soft conditions. I like to play around and this sounds interesting......... I think my feet are to big to actually do it, so I am just curious really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin A. Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 My first season on an alpine board was in softboots. I can wholeheartedly say that it's not a great idea. I was fairly light (160?) and I was riding a Burton Amp 5.3 with duratech bindings and vans boots. Not a good ride at all, the edge control sucked. It was a step up from my Morrow Sky board though. I still ride the Amp with my hardboots today, just never with softies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 Rode Burton Comps w/three-strap flex bindings on an asym M6 during 1991/1992 season. Did it a for a little bit until I was able to save up the $ and bought plates and Megaflex. Night and day - never went back to softies on an alpine deck after that. And this was a deck with a wide enough waist to accomodate a soft boot binding with moderate angles. For modern alpine shapes, I would say NO! Even IF you were able to rig it to eliminate overhang (unlikely), I think you'd be REALLY disappointed. You want to tool around and carve softies, get a nice stiff freeride/BX shape and go for it! Plenty of riders out there railin' on soft set-ups with the right deck! My .02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MUD Posted November 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 For modern alpine shapes, I would say NO! Even IF you were able to rig it to eliminate overhang (unlikely), I think you'd be REALLY disappointed. I have 12 1/2 feet...... No WAY!!!!! That is why I was just more curious than anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pokkis Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 With modern (=wide) alpine board, decent shoe size, stiff boots and supportive bindings there is no problem carving on softies too. Setup last time used was Swoard 175, F2 Hurrcan boots and F2 HBX bindings but i personally prefer hard setup (due my bad ankles) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor VonRippington Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 I hadn't thought about it until I read this thread... but I have never worn real softies. I learned to ride in sorels because no one had made snowboard boots yet. Realizing quickly that it sucked... bad.... I started putting ski boot liners in the sorels to replace the felt liners. Still not satisfied... I cut ski boots apart and duct taped the stiffer pieces to the upgraded sorels. This worked pretty well until... ALAS!!... plate bindings! And the rest is history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MUD Posted November 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 I hadn't thought about it until I read this thread... but I have never worn real softies. I learned to ride in sorels because no one had made snowboard boots yet. Realizing quickly that it sucked... bad.... I started putting ski boot liners in the sorels to replace the felt liners. Still not satisfied... I cut ski boots apart and duct taped the stiffer pieces to the upgraded sorels. This worked pretty well until... ALAS!!... plate bindings! And the rest is history. It's funny to think back what we did back in the beginning....... I stopped with sorels and ski boot liners....... I really am a freerider with soft, soft boots, at heart. I ride with my Burton reactors in walk and the ankle cant loose pretty much all the time, in MN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crucible Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 I did it for the first 5 years when I started snowboarding because that was all I had- Koflach plastic mountaineering boots and Rad-Air plate bindings. It was not ideal, I had very little ankle support on push-pull turns and a very small sweet spot in terms of balance on the board's center of gravity- but I was younger and more flexible then so I made the best of it. I still use this set-up occasionally when I use my splitboard for backcountry trips when I'm going with telemark skiers as partners- the lightness, versatility and tourng comfort of the soft plastic boot makes up for the compromise is stiffness and fore and aft control. But bear in mind, I have beefed up my "soft" boots considerably and have been riding on this type of set-up for over 20 years- so I know its limitations. I would never attempt steep and icy couloirs with soft boots and plate bindings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 might be doable on a Prior ATV or Swoard, but at size 12.5 you're pushing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor VonRippington Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 I have a buddy in Monarch that rode hard boots for many years and recently went soft. He thinks some of the new softies are plenty stiff and supportive. I doubted this until I saw him on my Donek Axis with his soft setup last year. He absolutely railed it. I don't know what the boots or bindings were.... but keep in mind... he is a small but strong guy with little feet. He couldn't weigh more than 170lbs. At 210 or whatever I'm tipping the scale these days I don't think any softies could support me if I was ridding hard. Deep stuff maybe... but I still like my hard booties in all conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest motopilot Posted November 28, 2006 Report Share Posted November 28, 2006 Hey all,Does anyone actually do this? I think it would be fun in soft conditions. I like to play around and this sounds interesting......... I think my feet are to big to actually do it, so I am just curious really. If you are in soft boots, ride a freestyle and have more fun. I ride both and today's freestyle boards carve plenty, plus you can ride all over and switch. Race race gear and hard boots are cool, but they have a place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullwings Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 might be doable on a Prior ATV or Swoard, but at size 12.5 you're pushing it. definitely doable on a Prior ATV. that thing has a 23.5 waist. size 12.5 boots might be a problem though. I actually did it on my atv and i have size 12 boots. i ran anywhere from 45 to 25 on my angles. i finally settled on 36-39 front and around 27-30 rear. i still had overhang, but there wasn't too much i could do about it. felt uncomfortable going higher than that. i think some catek freerides with a little bit of lift would have been helpful, and probably narrowing my stance a bit. anyway, you can still carve some really mean ruts with an ATV on a softy setup, but you won't be able to compare to plates. rode my first day today on plates, and even with my inexperience and lack of skill, i was able to carve harder, lower, and deeper lines compared to my softies on the same board. also, try searching through some of the past threads with the search function (use the advanced search), lots of info on softboot carving here. i've seen a number of good threads on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mopoet178 Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 my second board, on which I learned alpine, was an alp 5.6 with softies. It tought me just fine. I couldn't get away with that now that I wear size 12. I dont know if I ever really carved in that setup but it was cool to think I was a carver when I was 12. My sister now rides that setup and doesn't carve for fear of the brutal learning curve. Yes it is possible to carve a race board with softies. No it is not as rigid and strong IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaamport Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Yeah, the first board I ever bought was a '94 K2 FatBob and I got big ol' K2 soft boots (size 11?) and 3-strap bindings. Needless to say, I ditched the fatbob after 2 seasons and got myself an Oxygen asymmetrical slalom board. At the time I couldn't afford hard boots and plate bindings also, so I ended up riding with my K2 boots and 3-strappers for a year with my race board. It was a fiasco. I had to ride at SUPER high angles to avoid toe and heel drag because of the footprint of the softboots was just too long, and the boots and 3-straps didn't have nearly enough response. I'd lean into a turn and think, "shouldn't my board be turning too?-oh there it goes..." Given my experience, I would go the other direction. Spend the money on the hardboots and platebindings first, THEN buy your alpine board when you've whetted your thirst for speed and response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor VonRippington Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 <TABLE class=tborder cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=4 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR title="Post 113961" vAlign=top><TD class=alt1 align=middle width=125>spaamport</TD><TD class=alt2>Spend the money on the hardboots and platebindings first, THEN buy your alpine board when you've whetted your thirst for speed and response.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> I think that's good advise for someone on a tight budget or just getting into the sport. You can get accustom to the interface on just about any board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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