twelsch42 Posted November 9, 2007 Report Share Posted November 9, 2007 zoltan - why is the incline not a great powder tool for you? too stiff? twelsch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoltan Posted November 9, 2007 Report Share Posted November 9, 2007 I find it just does not float well. I hit powder and even getting my weight on the back the board wants to submarine. When I bought my Phoenix I compared it's shape to my Incline (they're both 160cm) along with the setback, and I was very sceptical about it being any improvement, but it works soooooo much better. On a related note, the Incline is also a lot stiffer, which tends to beat me up in the choppy conditions which you usually side by side with powder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonerider Posted November 9, 2007 Report Share Posted November 9, 2007 I find it just does not float well. I hit powder and even getting my weight on the back the board wants to submarine. When I bought my Phoenix I compared it's shape to my Incline (they're both 160cm) along with the setback, and I was very sceptical about it being any improvement, but it works soooooo much better.On a related note, the Incline is also a lot stiffer, which tends to beat me up in the choppy conditions which you usually side by side with powder. Those were EXACTLY my experiences with the Donek Incline 155 and the Phoenix 155. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted November 10, 2007 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2007 I know I'm a little late to this party, but I purchased a Phoenix last year and have been nothing but happy with it. I wanted it as a do-it-all board and slot in between my Donek Incline and Burton Malolo. Well, it does a lot more and a lot better than I thought it would. As it is, the Incline ended up getting less riding time, and I'm thinking of selling the Malolo since the Phoenix gives up so little to it in the powder and is just much better on piste. It's pretty much a board I can grab when I don't know what conditions will be, and not be thinking all day I should have brought another board. All that said, I only weight 160 with gear, so a board doesn't need a ton of float for it to work well in powder for me, though my Incline sucks in the powder. nope, u'r just in time :). i'm a couple of weeks away from sealin the deal with the phoenix. just need to work out a couple of details with my friends who will take the board with them when returning to Poland. i'm more than happy to read ur posts cuz they show that this is the board that i was lookin for - best fit for me :) zoltan, lonerider - u'v talked me into buying the phoenix, once again thanks for ur help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted January 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2008 i'm just here to tell u that my phoenix has just flown in and arrived at my home an hour or so ago :) so once again thanks, especially U, Lonerider, for ur help deep insight and valuable input. can't say that i would decide to go with the phoenix weren't it for ur advice. hope u'll have one heck of a season this year. if u'r by any chance in Warsaw let me no - i'll buy a beer. peace :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fastskiguy Posted January 12, 2008 Report Share Posted January 12, 2008 i'm just here to tell u that my phoenix has just flown in and arrived at my home an hour or so ago :) Congrats on the new addition and don't forget to write about it here in the future once you've ridden it awhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted January 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2008 i will, i will, but truth be told i think that Lonerider has said it all :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted February 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2008 ok, my friend is lookin for a similiar board to mine - the newly bought Donek Phoenix - and i'm recommending him this board also but quite recently i came across some opinions that the burton custom (or custom x) and ride timless are just as good or even better - what do u think? has anyone ridden the donek phoenix and the burton custom/ride timeless? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoltan Posted February 5, 2008 Report Share Posted February 5, 2008 Where did you read these opinions? I've never ridden the Custom or Custom X, but I have spent time with the Timeless. This is only my opinion, but the Phoenix is much, MUCH better than the Timeless. - The Timeless was slow and get up on edge and need more input to do so. I had to lower my angles to get more leverage. - Once it got on edge, it didn't hold it nearly as well. - It felt heavier. - It wasn't as stable at speed. Considering a new Phoenix sells for about as much as a new Timeless, I don't even see the debate here. In regards to the Burton, even if the Burton rides nearly as well, the Donek will still cost close to the same, and you won't be stuck with Burtons 3d inserts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonerider Posted February 5, 2008 Report Share Posted February 5, 2008 ok, my friend is lookin for a similiar board to mine - the newly bought Donek Phoenix - and i'm recommending him this board also but quite recently i came across some opinions that the burton custom (or custom x) and ride timless are just as good or even better - what do u think? has anyone ridden the donek phoenix and the burton custom/ride timeless?The Ride Timeless was a decent board, it is a bit damper and smoother than the Phoenix, but the Phoenix has superior edge hold, better manueverability, better float in powder, and does feel a lot lighter. The Timeless was replaced by the Ride Concept TMS.I haven't ridden the recent Custom or Custom X but I have a hard time believing it would have better edge hold than the Phoenix. It might be as maneuverable. The X will be stiffer. I dislike the 3D pattern. I have yet to hear knowledge people gush about the Custom or Custom X much. I personally would still go with the Phoenix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted February 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2008 i came across these opinions merely by surfin the net - there was this 1 thread entitled "best all mountain board" + i heard that the customs are pretty darn good boards as well from several sources. anyway it's nice hearin all the things u'r sayin provin that i'v made the right choice. ps - i'm leavin 4 italy the day after tommorow and finally will get the chance to test the phoenix. once again thanks for the input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LegalRider Posted March 29, 2008 Report Share Posted March 29, 2008 i came across these opinions merely by surfin the net - there was this 1 thread entitled "best all mountain board" + i heard that the customs are pretty darn good boards as well from several sources. anyway it's nice hearin all the things u'r sayin provin that i'v made the right choice.ps - i'm leavin 4 italy the day after tommorow and finally will get the chance to test the phoenix. once again thanks for the input. Fresh-Vario, how was your trip on the Phoenix. I am seriously considering this board after riding my Burton Custom 162W this past season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fresh-vario Posted December 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 25, 2008 Fresh-Vario, how was your trip on the Phoenix. I am seriously considering this board after riding my Burton Custom 162W this past season. i'm probably comin way late to this party but i felt that i had to write about my donek experience from my last 3 snb trips. well, since my previous board was a Santa Cruz rsc 158 the length change to 163 (plus this the donek phoenix comes in this size only in a wide version) really got to me at first. but then after a couple of rides i just gradually got the feel of the board+adjusted the bindings and had a great time riding it. since i'm that well rounded a rider as Lonerider my experience, and thus my opinion also, on the phoenix is somewhat limited. the thing i can tell u about this board is that really rides well in powder, has a good amount of pop to it and the edges and hence the edgehold also are great. where other ppl washed out i managed to stay on my board. but thru all the time i rode donek phoenix 163w i had the nagging feeling that the board is simply just too big for me. i couldn't cut turns like wanted to, couldn't manouver it like i was used to when i rode sc rsc 158. perhaps this is because i'm not that good a rider. regardless i decided to buy another donek phoenix, only a size smaller - 160 - and get rid of the current one. this was the perfect move. i recently came back from livigno - italian alpes, one of europe's absolutely best snowparks + all this is located in a duty-free zone - and i have to tell ya this is the perfect board for me. this is the IT ;). not until i rode this board i really pushed myself and my way of riding the way i did on the phoenix 160. the board is great. it is a really forgiving board for doing kickers, and the amount of pop it has allows u to literally jump from anything, anywhere, anytime. even on flat snow while riding slow u can do a decent mini-grab. u can cut between larger bumps, u can go to the side of the groomed piste i try anything there on the snow "barriers" (heaps of snow made by snowmobiles grooming the groomed) - u can sorta rail it - boardslide it - or jump on it and jump back from it onto the groomed sometimes making 2m in height jumps (for me that was really sth). this board helps u do that. u can catch the bumps on these "barrier heaps of snow" and try to spontaneously jump a little. that was all i was doing the first 3 days and then... it started snowing heavily and for the rest of my stay in livigno we rode fresh, non-adhesive, sandy powder. that was when i came to know first hand why it is commonly believed that powder is this board's natural environment (apart from the park/pipe). to my surprise it rode perfectly well, smooth and gentle. i have to say i was surprised as logic would suggest that a wider and a longer board (like my previous donek - phoenix 163w) would carry the heavy me better in fresh powder. this was not the case however. the smaller donek floated my in this snow and allowed me full control of the ride. with long streams of snow "splashing" from underneath my board while doing smooth turns there were times i felt like i was riding a waterscooter and not a snb. as for the manouverability in general - it proved to be also a step forward as i felt i had more control than i had while riding the bigger donek. if u still have any doubts or should have them whether to buy the donek phoenix - don't. trust zoltan, me and mostly lonerider - this is a really great board that allows u to push urself and excel in the park and powder, have fun offpiste cuttin thru trees, catch and cut between bumps and jump from any kicker-like shaped snow form u find on ur way or at the side of the groomed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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