Carving technique on a Coiler 10/12/11 radius?

[Freezer]

I recently got a new board from Bruce which is a EC 173x22, 10/12/11 sidecut, and it's pretty different from the previous Coilers I've been riding for the last 10 years, so I'm looking for some input on technique.  My previous Coilers were a Stubby V1 with something like a 13/14 sidecut, and an EC 168 12/13.  I ride mostly in NorCal and the runs tend to be on the steeper, narrower side, and the snow conditions can be variable.  I got the EC 173 to be able to make shorter turns to keep speed under control and make carving on steeper, narrow runs a bit less exhausting.   Based on my previous boards and the terrain I ride, and in order to make tight turns, I've gotten into the habit of weighting the nose heavily for turn initiation, then feeding the board forward, and then weighting the tail heavily to almost wheelie the board to switch sides.  I angulate a lot and reach for the front of the board with my outside hand on steeper runs to keep the turn tight and keep from skidding out of the carve on choppy snow.  The problem is that I've found that technique doesn't seem to work so well with the 172, I'm assuming because I don't need to shift my weight so dramatically fore and aft to get a tight turn.  If I do, I almost go over the bars on turn initiation, and on turn finish get a bit jammed in the back seat.  So I believe that I just need to ride the board more centered and be more judicious with weight shifts.  What do you guys think?  Any body with experience on a board with similar sidecut?

[billyt.]

New boards always need a little time to get them figured out.  You should have plenty of snowpack there to get it dialed in this year.  Sounds like you know what is going on.

[Corey]

Your EC sounds like the XT VSR sidecut that I have on an AM board. Tons of fun on narrow runs, but can still open up if you get some more room.  

Tighter sidecut boards need less input to make a similar arc. I assume you're used to bending the bigger-sidecut boards into tight arcs. If you put that same energy into a tight board, it'll turn tighter and possibly buck you like you're describing. Reduce your inputs for now. Once you get used to the board and timing, you can begin to add that energy back in and make ludicrous turns even at slower speeds. 

Also, try slowing down a bit. Stuff happens quick on small sidecuts! That's magnified with speed. 

[Freezer]

Good input- thanks Corey.  

[Colozeus]

i've been riding a custom built AM this season and i also ran into similar issues that resulted in me adjusting my riding slightly. Mainly, like you said, don't throw your weight towards the nose. If i overdo it, it definitely bucks and i get ahead of the board. 

[lowrider]

Are you an upright rider or do you tuck your rear knee close to your front ?   Keep a low profile centered over the board and relax. If you  get too high on a tight arc your more likely to go over the handlebars. Weighting and un-weighting through the turn may help as well.

[Technick]

Same here going from a 175x22 ECVC 13/14m to a 170x20 Nirvana Energy 11m VSR... First run was on ice, put too much pressure on the nose and got thrown over the handles! Like Corey said, with tighter sidecuts, things happen faster, ajust your speed, timing and pressure... 

[GeoffV]

Stay centered on the board. Corey is right on with his advice. I have a 14m Stubby and have a Nirvana VCam 12-14m. I needed to stop loading the nose and adjust my weight to stay centered, it is so much more turny. There is no need to load the nose for a board that turny, stay centered and the board will hook up pretty quickly especially with a small 10/12/11 sidecut. 

[st_lupo]

The radius range is pretty much identical to my last NFC-E.  You can pressure the nose,  you just gotta get used to it (and the amount of pressuring might be different compared to a bigger board).

Your experience with going to 10/12/11 is almost identical to my experience with going from 10/12/11 to 7/13/9.  I’ve gotta focus on keeping myself more centered and staying there or I’ll find myself flipping over the nose or tearing my quads trying to get out of the back seat.  You can still adjust weight fwd/aft but smaller inputs have amplified results.  The neatest thing is that your bigger board will feel almost lazy after you get used to the smaller one.

[kipstar]

I have a stubby and Bruce specifically mentioned that it isn't meant to weight the nose, it is ridden centered, and to turn sharper seems to require more angulation and edge pressure centered then the board can turn as tight as you want, push hard enough and it will pop airbourne. In the words of Mr McDonald's "I'm lovin' it"

Edited March 28, 2019 by kipstar
Clarity