prior 4wd on soft boot setup

[dragonrider]

any one try use soft boot set up on prior 4wd? please feed back your finding, I am thinking help me friend to set up this system for soft boot craving,

[Neil Gendzwill]

I think that board is too narrow for soft boots. 

[BlueB]

Too narrow unless your boots are like 23... 

[Rusty Edges]

Having owned 3 different sized Prior 4X4's, 169, 174, and 183(custom).  I would not advise riding with soft boots and bindings. 

The boards are too stiff and too narrow for a soft boot set-up.  Soft boot bindings would not alllow you enough lateral support to carve at the higher binding angles.

Of course it could be done with significant mods to boots and/or bindings. But to what end???

[Mr.E]

If you/ they already own the board, you can certainly give it a go to try riding at higher angles. If they are not tipping the board particularly high and have a smaller foot, boot out might not be an immediate issue.

If you/ they do not already own the board, see the above reply's. There are better fits for soft boot carving decks.

[dragonrider]

thanks for all the reply, that is what i though due to the only 21 cm  but he want more two cent. 

[Neil Gendzwill]

I’m not sure what the purpose is. If the idea is to transition to an alpine style of riding he would be better off to simply try more forward angles on his existing soft boot board, assuming he has one. Trying something like 35f/21r would be a workable stance. On the Prior he would be forced to minimum 45 degrees which is not so good for soft boots. Plus as others have pointed out, much stiffer and way more effective edge than he is used to.  

[jtslalom]

I ride 57 degrees front and 60 back on my Tanker with a 17 inch width. Lateral movement against the sides of my k2 Thraxis boot is very much like riding in my old Burton Wind boots. These soft boots are the firmest I have ever ridden in. I think any board like the Prior 4WD can certainly be ridden in soft boots. It just depends on how you want to ride the board.

[BlueB]

I can get the boot stiffness, softies have come long way... However, how do you deal with roll in the binding itself? The strap bindings are not exactely designed to deal with high angles, unless one used 3rd straps, like @softbootsurfer. 

Also, why are your angles that high? Seems it's beyond what's required to eliminate the boot out? 

[Neil Gendzwill]

A negative splay for a 17” 60 degree softie setup has to be in the running for most unusual setup we’ve seen posted here. 
 

Unless you’re equipped with flippers for feet you shouldn’t need 60 degrees on a Tanker to avoid overhang. I run 40 on mine. 

[jtslalom]

For me its all about driving my back knee into the back of my front knee and driving them together towards the snow. In some sense I am still riding like I did in the 80's. I can ride flat, or 15, 15, or sometimes 15, 30 but when I am driving turns its got to be 60, 57. Those angles make it easy for me to place my hips over my board on heelside turns. It also allows me to use my knees to drive against the side of my boots and less ankle flexion to start driving my turns. It also enables me to really lower my center of mass on heelside and not place my hips so far towards the center of my turn. I have been told that my stance is very unique from many people and all I can really say is that it allows me to ride a very specific style of riding that looks and feels like I am hard booting but on softboots. Every hard booter I see that sees me ride will say to me, "man, I thought you were riding hard boots."