Board Exam: 2010/2011 Arbor Cascade Snowboard Review

What the rep said: An all-mountain board. This board has the Mountain System: parabolic rocker (more rocker between the inserts, less rocker outside of 'em), grip tech (a sidecut that adds contact points underfoot) and other stuff that made my mind wander to the mountain. Also, this board is similar to the Arbor Coda, but a little softer flexing. Finally, the Cascade has base graphics done by contest winner Dan Burns and it's only available at REI.

Stats/Setup: I'm checking in around 6'1" and 165# wearing size 10.5, 32 Focus Boa boots inside Union Force SL bindings. I rode the board (a 161) at a demo day at Mt. Hood Meadows.

Conditions: Boot-top powder and soft groomers

First impression: Classic Arbor wood topsheet, average weight

The Ride: This is my first experience with full-length rocker and the first thing I noticed was the instant press-ability. This stick lets you get waaaay back. As a consequence, it's less poppy and the pop engages later. Once I adjusted to the rocker, I found this lively board at home with its fellow trees. With full-length rocker and some extra length on the nose, it should do well in powder. I didn't get a chance to dive into anything substantial, but it did fine in the few inches we had.

Rockered boards can get a little squirrelly underfoot and the Cascade is no exception. A nice longitudinal flex pattern kept this to a minimum while preserving turn initiation. 

Another sacrifice was stability at speed, which kept me from testing many high-speed turns. The one flat-out, toe-side turn I arced felt like riding a mechanical bull. The Grip Tech sidecut holds through short- and mid-radius turns and engages subtly without grabbing. I liked it better than a radial sidecut, but the runs weren't icy, either.

Bottom Line: Fun to butter and cruise around with. It might be an all-mountain board, if you live in the Mid-West. Otherwise you'd want to look for something a bit more damp that could handle speed better. The reps said that's it's bro, the Arbor Coda.

Similar Boards: Lib Tech Skate Banana

Arbor Cascade, available only at REI

Bud Fawcett Photo Gallery Showing

'Back in the Day' in Pictures

Tucked halfway between Portland and Salem is the small town of Aurora, Oregon. The hazelnut trees outnumber the residents, with antique shops coming in a close third. Hazelnuts, while high in healthy monounsaturated fats, can operate neither snowboard nor camera. That's where Bud Fawcett comes in. A resident of Aurora via North Carolina and North Lake Tahoe, Fawcett was the man behind the lens of countless old-school snowboarding photos. He's put some of his favorites together for his first ever gallery showing in Aurora's White Rabbit Bakery.

Follow the white Forester to the White Rabbit

Come for the shots, stay for the snacks (and a great gluten-free selection)

As a comparative new-comer to snowboarding (I started riding in 1998, Fawcett's photos start in 1985), I didn't see most of these photos when they originally ran. Nevertheless, looking at them today, I'm still filled with nostalgia. Those tweaks are impossible with today's bindings. That style. That personality. That power. Fawcett's photos illuminate these qualities unmistakably. There will never be another Shaun Palmer.

Photos of Palmer, Kelly, Brushie and Seoane joined photos of family and nature

Bud says, "I chose images for this exhibit that represented those special ‘ah-ha’ moments in my photo career. " He explains this moment with each image for a cumulative class session from a master in the field by the end of your visit. The only thing you have to pay for this course is attention.

If you do have some fresh holiday cash, now's the time to get an iconic print. The 7.5" x 10" prints go for $25 or $40 in-person at the bakery. Or you can order them online - anywhere from $50 to $600 depending on size or other options - at Fawcett's site.

The show runs January 4 - 30. See White Rabbit for hours. Don't be late!