Interesting snowboard boot article from 2019

[lonbordin]

Soft Sells: How Snowboard Boots Got Stuck in the Past

https://www.gearpatrol.com/outdoors/a625668/snowboard-boots-history/

 

Edited January 24, 2021 by lonbordin
WTH to the link & Thanks!

[Hey John]

Nice read. Removed the spaces to get the link to work. https://www.gearpatrol.com/outdoors/a625668/snowboard-boots-history/

Not only are the boots stuck in the past, so is the clothing. It occurred to me when I was looking for a new jacket and walked into a board shop at Mammoth. Other than a few minor color variations, snowboard clothing has retained the same baggy gang banger look for nearly 20 years.

[scottishsurfer]

5 hours ago, Hey John said:

snowboard clothing has retained the same baggy gang banger look for nearly 20 years.

I need the baggy fit I'm 32inch waist i need to wear size XXL on alot of brands not to have them skin tight....

In terms of hardboots i get the feeling the ship has long ago sailed for them ever to return to being the mass majority none of your big brands are going to push a boot that will last you 10 years vs a boot that needs to replaced every year.

[Corey]

7 hours ago, Hey John said:

Other than a few minor color variations, snowboard clothing has retained the same baggy gang banger look for nearly 20 years.

I think you missed the skinny jeans phase of 5-10 years ago. 90's retro is coming back again, as per the neverending fashion cycle. 

[MountainSlope]

13 hours ago, Hey John said:

Nice read. Removed the spaces to get the link to work. https://www.gearpatrol.com/outdoors/a625668/snowboard-boots-history/

Not only are the boots stuck in the past, so is the clothing. It occurred to me when I was looking for a new jacket and walked into a board shop at Mammoth. Other than a few minor color variations, snowboard clothing has retained the same baggy gang banger look for nearly 20 years.

"Aside from lacking the all-important cool factor, hard boots have always been extremely expensive to manufacture. The cost of a mold for each size of each boot model can be close to $100,000. Why spend all that money on new tooling and injection-molded plastic when you can make cheaper, oversized sneakers out of leather, stitching and glue and pay pros to say they’re the best? Then they’d fall apart after a season or two of hard riding and customers would have to buy a new pair."

The best part of that whole article... and this is something we discuss pretty often. 

Softboots can be easily redisigned (style, color, function, etc.) every single season. Plus they cost next to nothing to produce. A product which is relatively inexpensive to produce can also be sold for a lower price compared to the hardboot counterpart.

[Hey John]

6 hours ago, Corey said:

I think you missed the skinny jeans phase of 5-10 years ago. 90's retro is coming back again, as per the neverending fashion cycle. 

You’re right, I never saw the skinny look on the slopes, at least not on boarders. 
And I seem to remember trying to ban one piece speed suits for all snowboard events, from SBX to Alpine. Something about respecting snowboard culture and marketing. 

[lordmetroland]

6 hours ago, Hey John said:

Something about respecting snowboard culture and marketing. 

Yeah, brah...mad respect for grandma’s skills.

[st_lupo]

"Despite all this garage ingenuity, the reality is that, according to the Snowsports Industry Association, 81.2 percent of the 7.8 million snowboarders in the US ride 10 or fewer days a season, mostly in-bounds"

Just reinforces that snowboarding has become more fashion and less sport.  May e we will wind up seeing Hot Topic branded boots?

[Corey]

I am definitely going to fall in that camp for this winter!