Donek Razor

[serge]

Hello all!

I have just joined the forum, and wanted to report on the time I had on the Donek Razor

This is coming from someone that has never been on hard boots before.

Where do I start... well, I am a 20 year skier that put my skis away after I set my feet on a snowboard 4 seasons ago. I was quite lucky as I picked up snowboarding easily as I was doing my first linked turns after a few hours of the only course I have taken so far. I am 5'6" and 165 lbs.

I live in Ottawa. We don't the big mountains here, but the slopes are very accessible. There are 4 within 30 mins of downtown. My favorite in the Area is Mt St-Marie, and Edelweiss. There is Tremblant within 2 hours, and Le Massif/St-Anne near Quebec city.

I started with a friend's freestyle Rossi, but got tired of the board fairly quickly, so I picked up a Burton super model 159 with a set of Flow NXT AT...It was a nice setup at the time. It carves nicely at low/moderate speeds, but too soft for higher speeds and the steeps.

And then, after doing several searches on carving, I discovered bomberonline and carver's almanac.After seeing the pictures and the video's on youtube, I definitely know that "alpine carving" is something I wanted to do.

After some reading and thinking , I decided to go for a all soft boot setup for the rest of the season. I took a leap of faith and ordered Catek's FR2 Pro limited and a Donek Razor 164. I got the FR2s first and decided to put it on my Burton. All I can say is "Holly crap". These bindings are definitely THE freeride binding. I have not ridden on anything as responsive. I have tried older Flow binding, Burton Cartel, the Flow NXT-AT, and they do not even come close to the FR2 pro. These bindings turned my Supermodel in a decent carving deck. The adjustments that can be made are awsome, but the Catek's are a bit more high maintenance at the beginning. The only complaint I have is that the buckle on the ankle strap are not very solid. I broke off the ratchet on both ankles by the end of the season. I don't think I was over tightening them since they still felt comfortable without any pressure points , but eventually, the end of the pin ratchet would break off.

While the feeling on the Flow bindings felt "vague", with the FR2, I know I was carving, and confidently felt when the board was on its edge. The angles that I was at were 42/32, with a set of Burton Driver X boots. Edge to edge was lightning fast, helped by the tail propelling me on the other edge when going from one side to the other.

After impatiently waiting, I finally got the Razor. Sean recommended the 160 or 164 and I opted for the 164. Comparing specs, I was going from a 8.2 to 9.1 m SCR, and 122 to 141 cm effective edge. The board was noticeably stiffer than the Supermodel

When I got the board , I was impressed with the quality of construction (compared to Burton) of the board. I opted for the stock (blade) topsheet.

First time out, I had problems riding the board ,but figured out that my stance was too narrow, and increased it to 19.5 inches. It took me a couple of runs to get use to this board, but I was doing cross under carves no problem. The carving felt strong, and never had I felt losing edge.

The next thing was to do full carved turns. going on a moderately slope, I shifted my weight to the front, turn my shoulders were facing the board's nose, and pinching my outside hip and rib cage together to get angulated as I llet the board ride its edge. I don't know how low I got, but it felt much lower that I have ever been. I don't have a video, but it sure felt low, because I could touch the snow with my inside hand, dragging the snow under me I don't think I was breaking at the waist because I could stilll feel the outside hip/rib still crunching.

With the right body position, I never felt like I had to force myself to lean in the turn. It just happens.

The Donek Razor definitely does the job when it comes to carving and I am confident that that I will be able to "extreme carve" as I know I am not using it to its full potential yet. I managed to get the hang of setting my stance to 45/42 and felt comfortable. Setting the lift/can on the Cateks to 3 degress helped alot. The feeling of carving is just unbeatable!

It is amazing how I see so few people carving on their snowboard. Sometimes I feel like the black sheep at the resort I go to (i.e. Edelweiss in Ottawa) :). I still am not used to seeing some people staring at me when I get to the chairlift :) ahhh.. it sure feels good

This board handles speed and steeps well. I am no expert yet on the steeps, but I feel more confidence going down steeper slopes that I am used to with my Supermodel.

It is fast, I don't have to worry slowing down on flat trails. As long as there is somewhat of a slope, I am gliding past other boarders and some skiers.

I am still getting used to the extra speed and learning to controlling it, but progressing well.

I have to sincerely give kudos to Sean and Alex for such a great board and making me discover what carving really is. Also thanks to all you guys that have been contributing to the forums and tech articles on Bomberonline and Carver's Almanac. During the season, and even now , I re-read the articles and threads . It was not obvious at first, but after a while it clicks and I think "Ahhh... that is what they meant"

So, to sum it up:

Pros:

- Definitely a fun board, but not so if you are into hanging out at the Park :D

- Fast...

- Stiff

- Long effective edge (141 cm vs 122 cm) for good edge hold

- Stock base is rock solid( not like the Burton)

- Holds well on ice, but did not get too much of that this season...

- For the times I went on powder (twice this season), it felt good, but without extensively riding on powder, I can't say it is excellent.

Cons:

- Not quite as friendly when it comes to bumpy conditions or chopped up terrain, but I think it is my problem. I just want to carve all the time, not considering terrain conditions :)

- A bit more work to get into a skidded turn than I am used to.

- I feel compelled to wax the board every time I come back with it :)

- The season is over

So, if you are going to get a Razor, you should also get stiff bindings and boots, or you are just not getting the most out of the board.

Having ridden only on soft boots, I get the crave for a hard boot setup which is my goal for next year. So a Donek FC or Axxess might be inline for next season :)

For what it is worth, this is pretty much all the feedback that I have. If you guys have any questions, I will be pleased to answer them as best as I can. And if your are in the Ottawa area,and want to try it out next season ( it sucks that we are 8 months away), let me know. I'll definitely post a reminder next season.

By the way... I wanna say hi to "Dave*". He noticed the Donek Razor as soon as I got off the Gondola at Whistler and chatted it up a bit. If you are reading this, we briefly met at Whistler on the 16th. I think you misunderstood my name though. You called me George instead of Serge (no worries) as you were off on your WCR metal prior (you sure know how to make a guy drool :D )

Unfortunately, I could not make it for the session on the 20th, as the 16th was my last day.

[Fastskiguy]

Having ridden only on soft boots, I get the crave for a hard boot setup which is my goal for next year. So a Donek FC or Axxess might be inline for next season :)

You've got a soft setup, I'd go FC or Blade for a hard setup. I have both...they're different but I love'm! I've got an axxess too....it's good but will be on the selling block next season.

[jetkin]

Hello all!

I have just joined the forum, and wanted to report on the time I had on the Donek Razor

. . .

Many thanks Serge

[RDY_2_Carve]

Thank you Serge!

The Razor is quickly rising on my next season priority list.

I owe myself a new board for next season. Hrmm a softie carver or a schtubby? What will complement the AM-T better? :)

[Biio-hazzard]

This board is siiiiiiiiick!

Best board ever. Like Sean last year, I jammed it down all of Aspen's mtns for an entire week. You ask? I tried it.

Evvvverywhere and it passed with flying colours. I took the 170 thru the park with a 20.5 alpine stance in soft boots and technine Mark Frank bindings you don't get much more freestyle steeze than that. daha anyway, hit every last feature of Buttermilk's infamous terrain parks on that thing. Rails, kickers, wall rides, tables, jibs, bonks, everything. Great board.

Then, I decided to tackle the 45-degree steeups of highlands and do some extreme backcountry-esque maneuvers on it. I live at Mary Jane (not literally, just work) - so it goes without saying that I have a love affair with bumps. The 170 was surprisingly maneuverable and oh-soo-steady at high speeds, in the pipe, park, steeps, trees, bumps.

Lastly, of course being there for SES, I really did try to keep up with Fin, Brian, Mark, Sean and all the manufacuterers. The boards did so well railing carves that I didn't even get that tired. It may look wide, but it has an incredibly rapide edge transistion and holds the turn with the best of them. You can really get up very vert on that edge too.

Overall - Sean, thanks for helping me improve my riding, style and mechanics more exponentially than I ever dreamed possibly after just four and a half days of riding!

10/10 - buy yours today - Donek.com Razor board

[Biio-hazzard]

for two days, I rode the razor at +35 and +20 and it was more freeridey the finaly two days, I rode the razor at +45 and +25 = much better overall and I stayed with the same stance width of 20.5 inches and a six-inch setback

[zoltan]

Could someone please do a comparison of how the Razor rides versus the Incline? My current soft boot carver is an Incline 160, which I am quite happy with. While the Razor really interests me, I'm not sure if it would ride differently enough from the Incline to make the purchase worthwhile. Consider the spec for the 160 and 164 below:

Edge Sidecut Nose Waist Tail Stiffness

Incline

160 127 9.09 28.60 24.10 28.20 4.2

164 131 9.65 28.60 24.10 28.20 4.5

Razor

160 137 8.6 30.90 25.0 30.50 3.9

164 141 9.1 30.9 25.0 30.5 4.5

[rhaskins]

I know a guy - call Sean. He will discuss this with you. Huge amount of info in that guy. Worked for me before I bought my Razor.

Rick

[Mike T]

Note the 10cm effective edge difference. That's a lot. I'd expect different behaviors based on that alone...

[Donek]

Zoltan,

I'm actually typically recommending the 170 to someone on a 160. The ride is similar, but the added length provides a lot more stability and a more forgiving ride in the carve.. It will of course be a bit more to handle in crowds and in a slide. The 170 Razor is probably my favorite soft boot board right now. It's a dream to ride. If you're going to be in Colorado at all this season, I'd be happy to lend you a demo.

[snowboardfast]

Demoed 2 razors today-a 176 and a 170. decided to go with the 170 as I want to be able to ride all mountain and the 170 was a little eaiser on steeper terrain-blacks and double blacks. Both boards were real fun in the soft choppy snow today at Loveland. Typical Loveland day high of 16 or less with lots of wind and snow. I used the Catek free ride binding and Driver X boots. My bindings have carbon fiber high backs which work great. If I ride other soft bindings my feet hurt but I am pretty comfortable on the Cateks and I like the extra power that they provide. Will be riding this board most of the time for all mountain unless a big powder day-then i will ride my Dupraz d1 but it will have to be really soft and deep for that as i like the way the Razor rides better because it carves way better and has better edgehold. Probably the best soft boot deck I have ridden as it carves almost as good as a lot of alpine boards but the width is more stable for all mountain riding. It works well if you like to ride alpine style in soft boots. Demo one if you have the chance as they are a lot of fun to ride. Sean did a great job on the design of this board. I only have size 8 feet so the width is perfect to ride mellow angles. Of course after demoing today I ordered one and will have it soon!

[pow4ever]

hmm... so tempting

a donek rusty metal razor.

sounds very sinister in a very good way.

metal construction

rusty in this context is the cool rusted look

http://www.donek.com/04_graphics/metal_graphics_2.jpg

--

David

[zoltan]

I am now the proud owner of a Razor 164.

It is every bit the board my Incline 160 is, but holds an edge better, is easier to lock in, is more forgiving of bad technique, and handles chop better. In my book, it's a better board all around than the Incline. However, the Razor feels more mellow, like it doesn't need to be driven like the Incline, so that might not appeal to some people.

I was skeptical of the wider waist, but it worked really well and kept my toes out of the snow. I ride 39, 30.

It's just a gem of a board.