The climate may be getting crazier than ever but, when you do get good snow, board technology has never been more reliable or likely to improve your ride. But do you want a twin or directional twin with a reverse or zero camber? To answer this and generally give you an idea of what the new generation of boards is like, we sliced through the jargon and gave our verdict on this winter’s best sticks in our last issue. But in case you missed that, here’s all the advice again, with reviews of all the best boards of the season following over the next couple of weeks…
Words by Anna Langer
A good board is like a good friend. You don’t need many but one you can truly rely on – and sometimes it takes a while to find that one. So here are some ground rules to make the quest a bit easier.
The golden rule to getting anything you want is knowing what that actually is. In terms of snowboarding that means assessing what kind of terrain you actually ride and not what you dream of shredding. All the different shapes, base profiles and side edge technologies weren’t invented just to confuse us, but to offer the best possible ride, which is why taking the wrong stick out can often feel like eating soup with a fork…funny for everyone else but frustrating for you.
Another vital factor is riding ability, with an honest assessment of your skill set as paramount. If you start on too challenging a board you might send your riding backwards, while you’ll never experience the full heights of snow-induced nirvana if you stick to beginners’ models your whole life.
So approach your shopping a bit differently this year and pick out boards according to your favoured terrain and skill levels first – and then see which graphics and colours best match your outfit, bindings or bedroom walls, rather than the other way around.
Boards were tested at Shops 1st Try in Venet/Landeck, Austria
