Drake Podium, Flow NX2 GT, Ride El Hefe...?

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Looking to upgrade from my (‘07?) Burton Missions to something more responsive and with more stiffness.  Boot size is 8.5 and I still use old school Palmer Power Plates for a bit of rise, but further eliminating boot out to lower binding angles is always a priority - currently I think I’m around 36-21 and can still wash out on heelsides easily with a 250mm waist.  So shaving a cm here and there would be great - I find the Missions have a lower plastic heelcup and an over-the-toe strap that serve to add drag material on both sides.

 

I’ve heard good things about the Drake, Flow and Ride, and can get them all fairly easily - but I can only check out the Flow in-store.  I’ve checked out the Cartels which may do, but they also seem to have a big low heelcup.

 

Has anyone compared these bindings?  I’m leaning towards the Flows but do read some mixed reviews about how well the straps secure boots.  Many thanks for all input!

[slopestar]

Flow all the way. If I did a standard heel cup binding, I’d use new soloman or old Nidecker. Their heelcup sits at a much different angle than burton or union or other brands

[JRAZZ]

Look here:

 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Thanks!  I’m leaning towards Flow for that reason as well.  I took a look through that topic but didn’t see anything about the Podium FF

[SnowFerret]

51 minutes ago, slopestar said:

Flow all the way. If I did a standard heel cup binding, I’d use new soloman or old Nidecker. Their heelcup sits at a much different angle than burton or union or other brands

I was looking at a few salomon bindings in a ski shop recently.  Their heelcups definitely do sit higher on the highback.  They were also felt pretty stiff by hand, in bending and in torsion but the heelcup is flexible.  I'd have to try them with my boots on the see how they really feel.

[ShortcutToMoncton]

For the Flow fans - I tried on in-store today, and got the feeling that the strap was running across lower on my foot, rather than a more supportive feeling higher up towards the lower shin.  It did seem like there was possibly a way to move the top strap attachment up a notch on the baseplate, though - has anyone else had this issue, and did that fix the problem?

 

Secondly, on my Missions I’ve adjusted the hiback attachments so that they are more parallel with the heel side edge - move them toe-wards on the left (for regular) side, and slide them heel side on the right side....it seems to give more support to heel side turns.  I didn’t see much of a way to do that on the Flows, though - and since they are aluminium they probably wouldn’t warp quite the same way as the Burtons - can anyone comment on whether that’s unnecessary with the Flows?

 

Thanks!

[Poloturbo]

Experimenting with boards and bindings .

The boots made more difference than the bindings.

I have stiff boots and it made worlds difference. 

Until we get a third strap stiff high back bindings, get the best stiff boot there is and stiff bindings.

Didnt try the Flow yet. But review as you said are mixed. Some say that if you have to re-ajust the bindings at the top if the hill the purpose is lost?

I don't care about the purpose of easy entry. I care about the stiffest most direct feel bindings with high connection and feedback. 

El Hefe are the best for now for me.

The Flow seems bulky.  Overweight. Not easy to adjust and not enough fell. Probably wrong... Got to try it.

Buy what you try and what works for you. 

 

 

 

[scottishsurfer]

I have tried the salomon quantom bindings they are fairly stiff and responsive heel to toe but the support/stiffness going nose to tail isnt there due to the lack of solid heel cup you can flex the binding quite significantly even with the carbon highback.

Personally i generally ride Rome targa's which are super adjustable and responsive. I have just put together a pair of what i term union ultra atlas(ultra footbeds suck) which I'm eager to try out and see how they perform.

[ShortcutToMoncton]

So since I couldn’t find out much about the Drakes (despite my positive association with the name) and, after checking out the Flows in-store just down the street and being impressed with the super short overhang, I grabbed the NX2 GTs (non-Hybrid) yesterday.

Spent a half-day at Mount St Louis today trying them out - super minimal setup time.  Initial impressions are mixed.  They are very responsive and stiff when locked down, and the toe and heel overhang is really astounding - it’s pretty much just your boots.

On the other hand, I really had trouble with the straps.  Like my first impressions, it does feel as though they are covering only over the top of the foot, rather than a more supportive feeling up around the top of the foot / lower shin like traditional straps.  Having said that, it didn’t seem to impact my ability to rip, except that after a while it really hurt.  The top of my front foot was killing me by the end - it felt as though to get the strap feeling supportive enough, I was having to crank it down too tight.  Either that, or my Malamutes have some sort of weird pressure ball on the top of the foot...?  Either way, I’ve never had that sort of pain with a soft-boot binding before, so I though it was pretty unusual.

The rear-entry feature I could take or leave.  As others have noted, I had to loosen my straps anyway in other to push my foot in enough to get the hiback cranked back up (especially my rear foot with forward lean on the binding) - so it didn’t seem any faster or easier, only different and somewhat unnecessary. The binding ratchets don’t loosen very well compared to my Burtons - very sticky and don’t want to let go, and in fact after getting home it looks like the plastic stepped ratchet straps are actually slightly warped and dented from the ratchets.  I’m not sure that’s a real concern, but it’s disconcerting after 4 hours....

Anyways, the amazing minimal overhang is a huge bonus to me in terms of not having to worry about ripping the board up on edge.  I’m going to fool around with the straps, and move the top one up a notch and see if that helps give a more supportive feel.  Otherwise, I’m seriously thinking about putting traditional straps on it....  

[ShortcutToMoncton]

21 hours ago, Poloturbo said:

Experimenting with boards and bindings .

The boots made more difference than the bindings.

I have stiff boots and it made worlds difference. 

Until we get a third strap stiff high back bindings, get the best stiff boot there is and stiff bindings. 

 

 

To be honest, I used the classic Burton 3-strap (Torque?) binding for years starting in ‘94 up to the early 2000s.  I wouldn’t go back at all.  They were like the worst of both worlds - few of the advantages of hard boots, and few of the advantages of soft boots.

I’m not pining for 3-strap bindings! 

Edited February 12, 2018 by ShortcutToMoncton

[Rob Stevens]

My Drake Poduim FF's have been a very long-lasting binding.

Minimum baseplate material at the heel loop and suitably responsive, as carpet fibres and aluminum are. Not the easiest binders to find, though.

Interesting to read the instep strap pain comments on the Flow's. I've never ridden a set, but your impressions are opposite to what I would have thought. A question... Does that eccentric cam, which allows the binding to open widely to give an easier step in, look like a weak link? That "feature" turned me off.

[trailertrash]

I found the Flow's to be pretty annoying to use in general. Once in they were fine but getting in and out can be a PITA. I found deep snow to be even more a PITA with the Flows.

I am using the Now O-Drives and they seem to work well.

[Rob Stevens]

4 minutes ago, trailertrash said:

I found the Flow's to be pretty annoying to use in general. Once in they were fine but getting in and out can be a PITA. I found deep snow to be even more a PITA with the Flows.

I am using the Now O-Drives and they seem to work well.

That's my impression, as much as I think I'd really like the non-existant heel loop. My long-standing objection (armchairing this one, as I've never even had a pair on) is that they seem like it'd be literally impossible to put them on while standing on a steep slope. How would you even get the mech open? I'm thinking of pitches too steep to even think about facing uphill and kicking in a heelside stopper.

I'd probably set them up on a dedicated board that wouldn't see much besides strapping on in the flats.

As for the Now's, I really had a hard time imaginging how that movement was beneficial. The guy who designed them is a pal. I should liberate a pair from his home the next time I'm over there.

 

[trailertrash]

Ironically, I bought the Flows to go to Revelstoke.

I am riding the Now's in that "Ditched" video with Ryan K. Not really a good test of them, Breckenridge is flat and the snow is great.

 

Edited February 12, 2018 by trailertrash

[skategoat]

I tried almost every high end binding I could find two seasons ago. Burton Diodes, Union Forged Ultras, Ride El Hefe, Drake and Flow.

I had exactly the same problem  you had with the Flows. To get a secure feel, I found that I had to crank the straps down so tight that I couldn't easily get in and out of the binding - which defeated the purpose of the rear entry system. At the end of the day, my feet were sore.

I ended up with the Drake Podium FF. Aluminum body. Traditional 4x4 insert pattern. Toe strap that stays in place. At Canadian Nationals, I noticed Maelle Ricker (coaching) and Kevin Hill both using the Drakes. Hard to find and expensive but worth it.

 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Yeah, I’ve read in several places now that the Flow one-piece strap may actually feel less secure than it really is - it’s an artificial comparison to traditional straps that causes newcomers to crank them more tightly than they need to.  I’ll be in Banff in a couple days and will try backing off the straps to see if I actually need them to be as tight as I seem to think.

I did move the ankle straps up to the higher placement....unfortunately that process involves having to remove the entire hiback (the eccentric pivot point) in order to get enough room to take off the strap screw - and to take off the hiback, you seem to need a super-short screwdriver that will fit into the heelcup (I have a short Dakine snowboard multitool but it was still a half-inch too long).  

I dunno.  It’s possible I’m missing something, but it was a super annoying process to go through for a simple strap adjustment. 

From an entry/exit perspective, as noted I didn’t really see much of a difference from regular bindings to be honest.  

For me, it’s still all about the toe/heel overhang. I kept the exact same angles as my Burton Missions from the week prior, and had far less boot out on my heel side in particular.

[John E]

I have very little comparisons but I've used Flow and K2 Cinch bindings almost exclusively. I really hate having to sit down to buckle in. Where I ride the lifts are quite short and I get in & out of my bindings 15 - 20 times a day. I think that I like the K2s better than the Flows but I don't have a direct comparison and I don't think the Cinch is available anymore. 

When I get off the lift I step in, pull the strap & I'm off. Just as quick getting out. I may have them clamped down pretty tight but it has been a long time since I have ridden traditional bindings so I don't have a comparison. 

I have some older Ride bindings with aluminum baseplates. They are supposed to be quite stiff but I don't know because I have never ridden them. 

I'd like to get bindings that allow me to softboot carve at my best but I am pretty addicted to the convenience of "step-ins". 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

I didn’t find it a big deal to get into the Flows without sitting down.....to be honest I don’t find the 20 seconds to strap in a big deal either way.

[Eric Brammer aka PSR]

On 2/11/2018 at 6:24 AM, scottishsurfer said:

I have just put together a pair of what i term union ultra atlas(ultra footbeds suck) which I'm eager to try out and see how they perform.

Franken-binders!