nekdut Posted May 16, 2005 Report Share Posted May 16, 2005 The season at Mammoth is still going strong, but it is VERY wet and slushy after noon. What is the best way to ride in wet soft slush? I went over the handlebars WAY too many times this past weekend. I could barely stay centered most of the time and I usually had to sit on the tail and pull up on the front of the board to get a reasonable amount of speed. I actually had to use a surfy rear leg style, one that I usually only have to use in powder. Any tips/suggestions on how to handle this stuff? How about beating the stickiness? I've put on some warm wax and Zardoz, but it doesn't always seem to be enough. Deep linear structure perhaps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted May 16, 2005 Report Share Posted May 16, 2005 I spend far too much of my time carving in slush. My personal tips: -aggressive cross-hatch structure. The cross-hatch gets the water out from under the board faster than a linear structure would. -a little binding underhang helps me. boots come into contact w/ less slush. -stay away from areas where tree debris gets on the runs, it compounds the stickiness problem. I definitely prefer AM boards on the slush. My Coiler AM 182 was in fact designed with slush in mind. Nice stiff nose, and big sidecut for an Am board (12.7) - it's easy to overturn in slush :) My axis 172 is also very good in slush but when I start turning it just scrubs too much speed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bordy Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Scrape and rewax every riding session! A deep structure works very well and is a must! Burton makes this great floro wax just for slush some of the best stuff I have used its called slush floro! Warm wax with high snow temp additives works well also Even a bar of soap (Ivory seems to work best) can slick you up mid day for some extra glide but only for a run then its gone). It is so very important to keep the oil (and tar )build up as low as possible with lots of daily scraping and rewaxing. Probably the best way to bet the slush. Of course you could just ride the super steeps all day then its only an issue in the flats!;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FTA2R Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 damn, this isn't what i want to hear, I'm coming across the country to go to this camp. The early morning conditions are OK? === Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slopetool Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 This is the best wax I've used overall. I was shoulder tapped by this guy and he ask me to try the wax. Then I contacted him and bought more. He describes it as controlling the "herky jerkeys" in the slush. Its not a miracle wax but it does work okay in those soft conditions. And it stays on for most of the day. Bringing two waxed boards is my habit. Its a two part process of rubbing on the graphite and melting in the violet. Give it a try. Heres his info: Barney Mystery Wax John Haddock 63406 Saddleback Pace Bend, OR 97701 mhadock@coinet.com 541-389-7220 for $25.00 I got plenty that will last me into next season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyj Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 damn, this isn't what i want to hear, I'm coming across the country to go to this camp. The early morning conditions are OK? Bring your moutain bike--- great places to ride. Hot springs and fishing are fun too ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FTA2R Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 seriously.... anyway, i dont' own mtn bike and am not a "fishing" type of guy. at least gambling / vegas is close by if massive melt occurs. we'll have to find something to do during the afternoons / evenings maybe if i roll sevens i can recoop the cost of teh camp... --- Barry ps I'm joking, i'm sure conditions will be fine and I'm psyched =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyj Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Vegas is a good 5+ hours. Reno only 3. Anyway, your gonna have a great time! Hope they can find another coach so I can attend. I havn't heard back from Gavin or Sean yet :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Ive always layed a good coat of wax and then cut a cross hatch pattern in it...guess thats basically a structure its always worked well. barry...its almost SUMMER, man. What were you expecting? Ill bet theyll do some icing up on their own tho so you guys can have some nice hard snow, but there's no way around the slush at mammoth in may or later Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nekdut Posted May 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Barry: Since you're flying in, I'm assuming you are going to arrive in Reno. Its not far so you'll see how long of a drive it is from Mammoth to Reno, if you do want to head there for an evening of gambling. Since the lifts close at 3pm (and I doubt the camp will run a full full day), you should have enough time to hit the tables for a few hours if you felt like it. Vegas would be a bit too far for a day trip from Mammoth though. Dont worry about the conditions though. I'm pretty sure we'll be first chair at 730, and it'll be firm enough. Slopetool: thanks for the wax suggestion. Im using some Toko yellow warm wax plus Zardoz notWax at the moment, but I'm running low. Perhaps I'll give that guy a ring when I'm out. Dsub: does a "manual" structure in the wax actually help? Do you not scrape/brush the wax as much and then just cut a pattern into the leftover wax? How long does that last anyway? Seems like you would just wear down the left over wax pretty quickly. Mike: I hear ya on the overturning in slush. My Madd 170 digs in and whips around way too fast. I have to consciously use much less edge angle, which is the complete opposite of what i've been trying to work on all season! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 I didnt scrape or brush at all, just even the wax as smooth as possible with an iron used to last all day. but of course that was before I became an overly anal tech geek and started questioning everything about snowboarding and subsequently seem to have lost my skills. if youre "that" it might not work simply because you believe its not the "right" solution. maybe you should pay $125 and have even more base material removed ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 oh...also...its SLUSH! surf it! whats wrong with that? carving works best on firm, packed snow. we all know that. cant expect it to work the same on squishy slurpees honestly at that point Id be on a freeride board ridin under chair23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 or another option is to ask oldsnowboards what his secret is cuz he rips right through the stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pokkis Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 slush and spring sucks, i dont need any comments about that :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Originally posted by pokkis slush and spring sucks, i dont need any comments about that :D some of my best days ever have been hot spring days riding slush with a big group of friends it sucks for full carving, but its pretty fun for the skate/surf style! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pokkis Posted May 17, 2005 Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Full carving in pow sucks too, but if i must select between pow and slush, hmmmmmmmmmmm... OK, i take pow :D I was originally refering feeling of riding and riding in slush sucks still even bunch of good friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nekdut Posted May 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2005 Has anyone tried a 4807 in slush? I usually only pull this board out on deep powder days, but given the soft boat nose and fairly stiff fishtail, it might help with a surfy riding style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 do you not own any regular boards? mike...stiff nose is better for slush? Id almost think the opposite damn. summer's comin. more time to think than ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Originally posted by D-Sub mike...stiff nose is better for slush? Id almost think the opposite My personal preference: Stiffer nose for carving in slush (less prone to going over the handlebars), softer nose for surfing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nekdut Posted May 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Dsub: Actually no i dont own any freestyle/freeride boards The closest thing I have would be a burton coil 162, but I've always found that thing a bit short and overly turny. Mike: I felt that the stiff nose just dove under the snow. This season I've been riding boards with a lot of forward loaded camber (Madds) so I've gotten used to REALLY driving the nose on each turn. I perhaps just need to back off a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 wow. no freeride boards, huh? seems odd to me yeah, maybe youre just too aggressive with your forward weighting... good time for experiment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Originally posted by nekdut Mike: I felt that the stiff nose just dove under the snow. This season I've been riding boards with a lot of forward loaded camber (Madds) so I've gotten used to REALLY driving the nose on each turn. I perhaps just need to back off a bit. I certainly ease into my turns rather than attacking when it gets slushy. The board will hook up without a lot of effort. I still ride hard - I just don't attack as hard at the very beginning of the turn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mats Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Had three great days on slush a couple of weeks ago. First I took out my longboard - Pogo - but it just folded and I went over the nose. My splittail carvedeck worked wonders though. Riding big hi speed turns with weight on the back so i didn´t dig the nose in. Fun fun fun and sun! So my precscription would be - a wide 20,5 waist - and not to soft board and not to short so you can ride through big lumps of snow. /Mats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Summer riding is unique in that the conditions can and often do vary from nice firm hero groomers all the way to the slurpees- all in the same day. I have been at summer sessions plenty of times where we started out well below freezing temps and blizzard conditions in the morning and wrapped up in a t-shirt and shades in the afternoon. Given the epic amounts of snowfall the hill has received (and continues to get) this year and the size of the mountain, I think we will find plenty of stuff to keep us happy. Af far as the skills needed to ride the soft stuff, there are plenty of great tips in this thread. I think Bordy's comments about board prep take on even more importance when things get really wet and grippy. Solid two footed riding- balanced over the center of the board without overly aggressive moves forward to initiate the turn- will serve us well when conditions get really wet. It will be very interesting to see how our plan of attack changes and how we modify our riding style to meet the varying terrain and surface. Bottom line- plenty of stuff to play in and lots of stuff to work on. I don't think we will get bored. If we do though, we'll just have to grab a blender, tunes, and libations, locate the biggest slush pool around and have some of our CA beach dudes demonstrate some surf style riding. Gary- Mike Jacoby is eager to join in but we cannot commit to bring him down from Oregon for the extra group until we have another couple of riders. I'm pretty confident we will get another couple of stragglers so lets keep our fingers crossed & I'll stay in touch. -Sean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddie Posted May 18, 2005 Report Share Posted May 18, 2005 Like Billy said, a good wax job with good base structure helps with 90% of the game. Wider boards float better in the slush. Staying centered and make a bit of technique adjustment (you can't ride the board like you can in the middle of the winter). For me, a stiffer board also helps with the nose folding, but it's still a technique problem for most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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