slabber Posted February 8 Report Share Posted February 8 I have gradually increased my stance width in last few years. IIRC, I was likely around 17 inches when I started and had gone to 18 inches in recent years. After getting my Coiler last year, and based on Bruce's advice, I am now running 19 (483mm) inches happily. I initially set up my softboot board with the same width but thinking I can probably widen it a bit further? I may be at 20" already after just checking. I may try going to 21" Ride Commissioner reference stance is 559mm (22") with -19mm setback. How much wider are you running softboots vs hardboots? https://www.jonessnowboards.com/content/313-how-to-set-up-your-snowboard-stance-like-the-jones-team-and-ambassador Jeremy Jones Height 5’8" (173cm) Jeremy’s High Performance Freeride Stance: Front +27° / Back 0° to +6° Width 22in (56cm) Jeremy’s Surf Series Stance: Front +27° to +30° / Back +6° to +12° Width 17.5-20 in (44.5-60cm) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunSurfer Posted February 8 Report Share Posted February 8 Both the question and any answers should make some reference to the relevant riders leg length. Inside leg length (pubic bone to floor in bare feet) is a reasonable proxy for the actual length of hip joint to floor. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slabber Posted February 8 Author Report Share Posted February 8 I had my height in there originally, must have cut it out. I'm 5'6", pretty standard proportions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slabber Posted February 9 Author Report Share Posted February 9 I'm going to bump it up, probably go right to 22" (56cm) which is reference stance on the board. This was also recommended by @Termin8tor who rides the Commissioners as well. I really enjoy seeing everyone's setup details in the Japanese ToyFilms clips. Lots of folks in the 55cm plus range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunSurfer Posted February 9 Report Share Posted February 9 (edited) 8 hours ago, slabber said: I had my height in there originally, must have cut it out. I'm 5'6", pretty standard proportions. Everyone thinks of themselves as "normal" be it proportions or opinions. Leg length is the key measurement, not your height. In my own experiments with hard boot stance distance I increased my length incrementally until I got to a point I was so stretched out I found I was having difficulty moving my centre of mass forwards and back. Then shifted back a step. What will be your limiting factor in soft boots? Be observant in your riding and think about what you feel and achieve. Experimenting is sometimes difficult cos it takes you away from the familiar. I enjoy the process of discovery. Edited February 9 by SunSurfer 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimW Posted February 9 Report Share Posted February 9 (edited) I normally ride 52cm / 20.5" on hardboots and 54cm / 21.2" on softboots. I am 191cm / 6'3" tall. Compared to common softboot stance widths that is very narrow I guess. I recently rode a splitboard which was setup to something like a 60cm / 23.5" stance. That seems more normal nowadays for my heigth. It felt stable but very rigid. I think the true reason for those wide stances of the softboot dudes is to prevent their pants dropping to their ankles. But I will experiment with a wider stance for softboots anyway, just in case the majority is not stupid after all. Edited February 9 by TimW 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slabber Posted February 9 Author Report Share Posted February 9 (edited) Thanks guys. I watched a couple Nidecker vids yesterday on stance, (the original and a revised version), and they use the distance from ground to center of kneecap as the base 'natural stance'. (vs calculation based on full leg length/inseam) They then add cms depending on riding style, as a guideline starting point. My 'Nidecker' natural stance is 18" or 45.7cm. Adding 4cms for 'freeride' still only puts me at 49.7 or ~19.5". I'll plan to experiment. Board was setup at 20.5". I'll widen another inch or so. I'll try 21" this weekend. This will be +2" (+5cm) over my alpine stance. Probably wide enough for my physique. My new bindings also have 2° inward cant built into the foot beds (Flow NX2 Carbon). Edited February 9 by slabber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimW Posted February 9 Report Share Posted February 9 (edited) My Nidecker freeride stance would be 56+4=60cm. So what I rode on the split. I'll give that another shot. Out of curiosity I checked my stance width on my kite surfboards. That is in the range of 75cm strapless, 70cm strapped (surfboard). So more mobility, wider stance. Makes sense. Edited February 9 by TimW 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jburk Posted February 9 Report Share Posted February 9 TL;DR, softboot carving stance is 4 cm wider than hardboots. I'm 5'8", and ride a 48 cm hardboot stance. I've experimented with stance widths up to 51 cm, and keep coming back to 48. Anything wider feels too restricted. This season I got back on a softboot board for the first time in almost 30 years and had no idea what stance to go with as a starting point, just knew that 48 would be way too narrow. The Flow bindings I picked up came with an insert that advocated the "natural stance" (makes sense, think they're owned by Nidecker), and I went with natural + 0 = 52 cm for a SB carving setup. Figured 52 cm would be a starting point, but from the first minute and still after 4 days it just feels dialed in, no temptation to adjust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunSurfer Posted February 9 Report Share Posted February 9 @slabber I've seen the Nidecker knee height recommendation. My reasoning against that is that the middle of the knee is not a hard end point, it's open to user interpretation. Floor to pubic bone has hard end points for the measurement. Secondly, while for the majority of people their lower leg and upper leg length will be in roughly the same ratio, not everyone is built that way. The whole of your leg connects your hip to your foot to your bindings. In the end the measurement is only a guide and a means for comparison between riders. Any riders stance needs to be comfortable, allow balance to be maintained, and allow centre of mass movement forward and back, side to side. Rider flexibility in the lower back, hips, knees and ankles is a crucial factor in effective movement and not easily quantified. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slabber Posted February 9 Author Report Share Posted February 9 Yup, understood, will take some more measurements to use as reference. I think NIdecker simply uses that for simplicity sake. Will look up the pubic bone measurement calculator to compare as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dropthebody Posted February 10 Report Share Posted February 10 There's a difference? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slabber Posted February 17 Author Report Share Posted February 17 Rode with 21" stance last weekend, so 2" wider than my alpine stance. Felt good / fine, didn't feel too wide. Will keep it like that for now. I am riding same toe and heel lift (3°F/6°R) on both setups. The only difference is the softboot bindings have an additional 2° cant built into the footbeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odd Job Posted February 17 Report Share Posted February 17 Yep. I do the same. between 1"-2" wider than my alpine stance. 49.5cm for alpine (50/45, just lifts). About 52cm or so for softboots, 12/3, 9/0, whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.