Update: Rad-Air's LSD rocks!

[Helvetico]

Note: I retitled this posting in order to get more feedback.

So I put my 164 LSD to use in Davos last weekend, and I finally realized its strengths compared to the 182 Tanker: its stiffness, carveability and shorter length made it ideal for cutting through fields of bumps and carving down narrow traversing paths.

Anyway, here are my questions: two snowboard store guys have told me it's a bad idea to ride the board with hardboots. One salesman wouldn't even let me try on a pair of hardboots, insisting that encouraging me would give his shop (Intersport in Kitzbuehel) a "scheisse" reputation. What gives?

• Is the only thing I'm missing out on the laid-out carving?
  
• Are the hard boots only for groomers, or will they allow me to handle rough terrain as well?
  
• Will any hard boots really fit my 9EEE feet as well as my Salomon Synapse Wides?
  

Thanks in advance for the advice.

[Galen]

I ride mine with TD2's, boots in walk mode. Lots of people ride the Tankers with hard boots too. I dont see a problem as the LSD is very stiff. Perhaps the store guys dont know a lot about alpine and have a knee-jerk reaction to riding plates on freeride boards.

[RJ-PS]

I ride mine with plates - 215 lbs.

Their advice is probably because the board is not alpine specific and they're worried about warranty issues.

Just be careful in the superpipe and parks. Since it is a stiff board if you land it on plates wrong, you're more likely to break your bindings or your board as there is less to aborb the impact with a stiff setup.

I'm glad you found the LSD! There really is nothing like the Rad-Air boards.