Board Exam: 2012/2013 Burton Con Artist Snowboard Review

What the Rep Said: Aggressive powder board; high-end, Dragonfly core (same as in the Custom X); 20mm taper, only available in a 152

First Impressions: Not the best day to demo a powder board, let's see how she rides in a resort setting. What's up with the name? Lighter than average, but it's also shorter than anything I've ever ridden (besides my girlfriend's board).

Stats/Setup: I was 6'1" tall and 165 pounds when I rode the Con Artist 152 at a Mt. Hood Meadows demo day. I completed the setup with Salomon Dialogue Boots (size 9.5) and Burton Cartel EST bindings.

Conditions: Variable groom, some powder off the groom (boot-top at best), chop and chunder

Ask Burton for the whole story on this board. Specs on pull-down menu here.

The Ride: First, the paradox: you want to demo a powder board in real powder, but would you really want to risk a board you're unfamiliar with on a rare and precious deep day? Risk vs. reward. In this case I didn't have a choice. The demo day was not a pow day. I walked up to the Burton rep and asked him, "What's new?" This is what he gave me. I was intrigued and did my best to find some pow.

The Con Artist combines specs like a tight sidecut and 20mm of taper for the ride of your life through the trees. I found one grove that held boot-top powder and she was right at home, slashing mercilessly and floating effortlessly. It got back and forth on edge faster than some caffeinated ping pong pros.

Despite almost entirely lacking a tail, the Con Artist popped nicely. That's the camber and Dragonfly core talking. Burton calls it a 5 of 10 flex, but I'd say 6, especially torsionally. Lengthwise, there's so little board that it's easier to flex and even press on the nose and tail, but the waist holds firm through turns.

Even with the benefits of camber and all the carbon in the Burton universe, this is not a board you want to be blasting away on at high speed on hardpack. Unless your normal resort board is also a 152. Or you have a titanium skeleton. It definitely got squirrely on me as I pushed it. Interestingly, I've seen racers who are fast as hell through banked slalom courses on small tapered boards.

Bottom Line: The Burton site says it best, "Depending on your reality, it's a quiver board or a lifestyle choice, but either way this is for those days that define light and deep." I'd love to either make that lifestyle choice or at least be able to test powder boards in deep powder. Until then this will have to do. I still prefer a bigger board in the pow, but the Con Artist's deep sidecut and heavy taper performed better than some of its fishy kin. I don't fee like it conned me out of anything. 

Similar Boards: Jones Hovercraft (stiffer and less sidecut)

Board Exam: 2012/2013 Ride Berzerker Snowboard Review

What the rep said: Camber board with a little reverse camber in front of the front insert pack for powder float (nobody really rides switch in powder), urethane sidewalls for dampness, carbon fiber in the tail for pop, Jake Blauvelt pro model

Stats/Setup: I rode the Ride Berzerker 161 with Union Force SL bindings and Salomon Dialogue boots (size 9.5) at a Mt. Hood Meadows demo. I am 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed 165 pounds at the time.

Conditions: Variable groom, a few inches of fluff off the groom, the rest chopped up

First impressions: This scene from Clerks. Lots going on in that topsheet. Says 'Made in China' right there. If it made me ride like Jake in Naturally I would buy any board, no matter where it was made. Lighter than average dangling from my foot.

Let Ride tell you the rest. Some specific technology may be hard to find.

The Ride: Wow, I like this board. It may be my favorite board yet. It ate up the tree slalom course, popped like a champagne cork on a contest podium, and evened out the chop like you were riding behind your own personal grooming fleet.

This board gets edge to edge so fast, other DJs say, "Damn." This is owed partly to its narrowness (25.0 at the waist of a 161 board). Big-footers, fear not; the Berzerker is also available in a wide platform for the big dogs. The nose rocker also helps with turn initiation, while the camber powers you through and on to the next one.

Speaking of camber, this board pops. I don't know what Pop Rods are, but couple them with camber and this board want to get off the ground. Maybe that's the carbon in the tail the rep mentioned. I think they're in the nose, too (the website is pretty unclear). That would help keep you from going over the bars on pow landings.

Seeing how narrow this board was coupled with the nose rocker, I was surprised at how stable it was at speed. It blazed hard through some dicey conditions on a flat base or on edge. The edge hold was remarkable for a non-wavy sidecut.

The flex was mid-firm. Ride calls it 7 of 10 and I agree. The nose rocker helped out presses; the tail, not so much. It was just waiting to pop you.

I did not test in pow, pipe or on rails. The last two might not be it's bag, but it should rip the pow apart. Note the nose rocker and set-back stance. Things to keep in mind are its narrow overall width and long relative effective edge. This will translate itself better into high-speed pow applications. Not for beginners or the timid. Size up and step up.

Bottom Line: A damp, yet poppy freeride board. Straight-line aggro and fast edge to edge. Pow-friendly features and stable on the hardpack. I'd buy this board. In fact, I tried to find it in a 164 after the demo for a good price, but failed. My love for you is like a truck, Berserker.

Similar Boards: Maybe the Yes Pick Your Line

Board Exam: 2012/2013 Salomon Man's Board Snowboard Review

What the Rep Said: Camber and a radial sidecut, crazy right? More bamboo, less fiberglass.

Stats/Setup: I was 6'1" and about 165# when I rode the Man's Board 159 at a Mt. Hood Meadows demo day. Salomon Dialogue boots and Union Force SL bindings completed the kit.

Conditions: variable groom, some ice, some old fluff off the groom

First Impression: Beer and a scantily clad woman, I guess I'm a man now. Average weight.

Nothing says 'manly' quite like it. Just ask Salomon.

The Ride: There is no substitute for camber pop. If you want to get up like a pole vaulter, do yourself a favor and get a cambered board. I've got to say that the bamboo Salomon uses is legit. This board not only boosts, but it maintains stability at speed, too. It's pretty stiff though, a full 7 out of 10. 

That's the key to this board, speed. It wants to be ridden hard and fast (mmhm). Low-speed turns don't get much reaction. It would rather blast fast turns that spray everyone from here to the nearest green run (which is waaaay over there).

On edge, I prefer a board with some sort of augmented sidecut. I feel more confident on ice and other hard conditions with the extra contact points. Not that you're going to be riding icy slalom courses all the time, but it would be nice for this board's straight-line aggression to carry through the curves. The tight tree run gave this board fits (again, lower speed turns).

I didn't get to test this board on rails or in pow. It should be fine in pow with rockered tip and tail and a little stance setback.

Bottom Line: This board rips hard in a straight line, but not as hard on edge. Point it and let loose. If anything is in your way, don't turn, just ollie.

Similar Boards: Lib Tech Jamie Lynn C3 Phoenix

Board Exam: 2012/2013 Lib Tech Jamie Lynn C3 Phoenix Classic

What the rep said: C3 is camber dominant, banana submissive. The board is based on an overall camber shape with a small amount of rocker at the waist.

Stats/Setup: I checked in at 6'1" and 165 pounds when I rode the Jamie Lynn 157 Mid-Wide with Salomon Dialogue Boots (size 9.5) and Union Force SL bindings at Mt. Hood Meadows, Oregon.

Conditions: variable groomers, some ice, some ankle deep fluff from a couple days ago off the groom

First impression: Of course, Jamie's signature graphics. The base is as curvy as the sidecut. I wonder when Lib is going to make a board with C4. That would really pop... Average weight.

Move on over to lib-tech.com for more specs and Jamie Lynn videos.

The Ride: The first thing I always do when I demo a board is get up to speed and rail some mid-radius turns. This board handled those turns well enough to put a smile on my face that didn't leave until I gave the board back. Magne-traction is the real deal, people. With less banana than C2, this Phoenix was really ripping. While we're on the subject of ripping turns, this board got edge to edge pretty well for a mid-wide, though my feet would have preferred the narrower 160. It was at home in the trees, too, but its real element was laying down deep trenches with big, fast turns.

Going from C2 to C3 also rewards you with a welcome increase in pop and stability. This board had some spring that's been missing from Lib boards since the banana takeover. It's also less likely to rotate through turns and more apt to link them up with power. It handled speed and landings like a boss with that trademark Lib Tech dampness.

You're not going to butter this board around like a full banana, but it's not plywood-stiff, either. It has a nice, all-mountain, medium-stiff flex. It won't do your nosepresses for you, but it will give you what you put into it.

As with most demo days, I didn't ride any rails or substantial pow. I think this would be a capable board in either of those avenues. It has a relatively short contact length for its overall length, giving it plenty of nose to float. It's also set a half-inch back on a twin shape. Move the bindings back more for pow and closer to the center for optimal switch riding. If you want to ride switch in the pow, well, get a bigger board.

Bottom Line: More camber means a more snowboardy, less skateboardy feel than past Lib offerings. The pop is back. The flex is right. For me, this is where it's at. This is my favorite Lib Tech board since a pre-banana TRS MTX. And I'm not the only one who likes it. Snowboard Magazine made it a Platinum Pick this year. It definitely lets you charge the whole mountain. Can you cover the bill?

Similar Boards: Salomon Man's Board

Binding Review: 2012/2013 Now IPO

How much have bindings changed in the last 10 years? Not that much. 20 years?? 30!? A couple step-in options that came and went. A couple that stuck. Lots of small incremental changes, not much different thinking. Until Now. (The puns just write themselves.)

JF Pelchat thought the same thing. In 2004 he filed his first patent and in 2006 he began work on what would become the Now IPO. As with Jones and Yes Snowboards, Nidecker stepped up to the plate on production. With a quality team behind him, production dialed and six years of work into the product, it was time to unveil the IPO binding.

JF was on hand at the Baker Banked Slalom to demo his bindings. As such, he breezed through the setup with the speed and efficiency of someone who has been inside these bindings for six years. I have no idea how long it would have taken me, but I'd imagine no longer than an average binding. Now has one mounting disc to take care of 2-hole sliders, 3-hole and 4-hole insert patterns. The foot pillow that covers the disc gets out of the way without tools. Forward lean is tool-free as per usual. The highbacks are even pre-rotated a few degrees to solve a common problem.

I rode the Now IPOs on my Never Summer SL-R with Salomon Dialogue boots. My size 9.5 (US men's) boots went into a medium binding. Now lists 9.5 and smaller boots as their medium size and 10 and bigger as Large. JF set me up with the Medium bushings at the binding-board interface.

The fit was great. The first thing I noticed was how tight the heelcup held my boot in place. I couldn't just step out at the end of a run, I had to pull my foot out of the binding. Not difficult, but not effortless. JF mentioned that this is something they're still dialing in for future models. Once I got used to it, I liked that snug feeling. It was like having another strap that locked your heel down without actually having  to buckle it. Also, the highback is sandwiched between the heelcup's two loops. This makes it a snap to take out the highback and go no-back style without altering the fit. I'd love to try that, especially on a pow day. Imagine the Japan you could tweak out. Knee to the deck! With the highback in place, flexibility was still good without being gooey.

Speaking of the straps, they are standard. Not big and puffy, not bare bones, just medium. Comfortable enough. You can ride the toe strap up top or out front.

The vibration absorption of these bindings is next level. Between the 5mm bushings and the 15mm foot pillows Now has your dogs swaddled in EVA for a magic carpet ride through the most unforgiving chop. I'd like to see thinner foot pillow or bushing offerings for a lower ride with more board feel. Again, it could make for a rad pow day.

See the rest of JF and more IPO tech and specs Now

What about response? My main preconceived concern with these bindings was that taking the binding out of direct contact with the board and setting it up on bushings would sacrifice response. Not the case. My board responded as good or better than with traditional bindings. As JF explained, the kingpin and bushing system transfers energy more directly and eliminates the performance-robbing binding warp in other models. Translation, you say "Carve," your board says "How hard?"

The bushings bring about another question for me. What about the possibility of setting up the bindings asymmetrically? With snowboards again messing around with asymmetrical sidecuts, could a similar benefit be achieved by putting the hard bushings under your heels and the soft ones under your toes? What about using thinner bushings under the instep to create a cant?

One long-term worry I would have with these bindings is the extra moving parts. Add moving parts to a system and you add liabilities. As with any new product, it remains to be seen how rugged these parts will be. The next few years will answer the durability question.

I'm intrigued to see where Now will go next. They have some room for improvement, but their IPO was a solid offering. Freestyle, freeride, big mountain, all mountain; I'd say the next big thing in bindings is right here, right Now.

Board Exam: 2011/2012 Capita Charlie Slasher Snowboard Review

First off, I didn't demo this board. I got a good price ($240 after 40% off, late-season deal), so I bought it straight off. The difference with this board is that I rode plenty of other pow boards, so I knew what I liked and didn't like. Charlie is a good combo of the likes without most of the dislikes.

What the rep said: Take it straight from Blue.

Stats/Setup: I'm around 6'1" and 165# and I went with the 164. I generally strap Salomon Dialogue Boots (size 9.5) into Union Force SL bindings.

Conditions: Everything, but this board was made for powder. You'll have a better board for other conditions. This is a quiver board. Not to be confused with a quivering broad.

First impression: Big and gnarly. I'm so stoked it just snowed.

Uh, it's the one on the left.

The Ride: I was lucky enough to pull the trigger on the Slasher just before one of the best pow days I've ever ridden at Mt. Hood Meadows. Knee-deep and sunny in Oregon just doesn't happen. Enough about my luck.

My biggest concern about the board was that it wouldn't perform in the trees. The combo of not much sidecut and a wide waist had me even more scared than the graphics. This video calmed me down. Then I took it into the woods myself and it lived up to the hype. Why? My guess is it's taper and enough torsional looseness to steer quickly. The nose rocker also aids maneuverability in powder's 3D world.

The true test of a powder board is its float and you know Charlie is on top of that. The 6mm rocker from the front insert pack to the tip, the 20mm taper and the overall width and surface area keep the Slasher cruising like a missile. Ride enough deep pow and drop enough cliffs and you'll eventually find yourself too far over the nose. It happens to everyone. Charlie has an answer for that, too. The two, 30mm-wide carbon stringers extending forward from the waist to the tip will bring you back where you belong. I'm not sure I've fully exercised these yet, but I've definitely had the nose sunk and not tomahawked. At the same time, I'm able to center my weight to a point where my back leg isn't nearly as tired as it normally is on a deep day. All of this on a board with a real tail that has power through turns and decent pop. A tail that buries trees and skiers alike in tsunami slashes.

Negatives about this board have to do with taking it out of its element. This is not an all-mountain, do-everything board. The only time you should ride it switch is when buttering. Short-radius turns on hardpack expose that shallow sidecut and wide waist and make it feel a little sluggish.

This board is not called Charlie Side-Slipper for a reason. Open it up and crank out bigger turns and you will be rewarded. If you have to ride it on hardpack, say between your favorite stashes, point it straight and rip it hard. Bury a skier and disappear.

Bottom Line: Pow-specific board with a freestyle feel. This should not be your first board, it should be your second.

Similar Boards: If you take this another step towards all-mountain it would look like the Ride Berserker. One more step and it's the Lib Tech Lando Phoenix.

For a limited time, check Capita for the full scoop.

Board Exam: 2011/2012 K2 Turbo Dream Snowboard Review

What the rep said: The Turbo Dream is flat between the feet with an early rise nose and tail (slightly higher nose), Harshmellow dampens vibration underfoot, Carbon web stringers will pop your socks off.

Stats/Setup: I'm checking in at 6'1" and 170#. I rode the Turbo Dream in a 159 with Salomon Dialogue Boots (size 9.5) and K2 Formula Bindings at Mt. Bachelor, Oregon.

Conditions: Hardpack, ice, some slush

First impression: Some bright-ass bindings, but nothing else out of the ordinary.

The Ride: Right off the lift all systems were go. The board went edge to edge just fine on slow, short-radius turns. Pop was OK, probably due to its stiffness and carbon webbing and in spite of its reverse camber profile. Stability at speed and on landings was a high point. Nothing bothered the Dream on that front. Again, this board is pretty stiff longitudinally, maybe a little less so torsionally. Also not a board you'll be pressing too much.

Then, it came time to crank a turn. Higher speed carving was a sore spot as the board wanted to wash or rotate a little. I would attribute this to the camber profile and traditional sidecut. Reverse camber boards that carve best have some sidecut augmentation, whether it's magne-traction, grip tech, vario power grip or what have you.

Stolen from K2's 2011/2012 site. Check it while you can.

Bottom Line: I was disappointed in this board. It might serve well as a pow board, but I can't see riding it in all-around resort conditions. The stability was there, but the sidecut didn't lock on like some of the alternative sidecuts that are available leading to a looser turn than I'd like. Overall, I think this board might work better with regular camber.

I have a buddy who has an older model of this board, maybe I can get him to weigh in on it in the comments.

Similar Boards: Bataleon Omni

Board Exam: Arbor Wasteland 2011/2012 Snowboard Review

What the rep said: The System is how rocker should be. Parabolic rocker means more rocker at the waist and less at the tips and Grip Tech gives you four extra contact points. This all sounds so familiar.

Stats/Setup: I'm checking in at 6'1" and 170#. I rode the Wasteland in a 161 with Salomon Dialogue Boots (size 9.5) and some old Tech Nine MFM Pro Bindings at Mt. Bachelor, Oregon.

Conditions: Hardpack, ice, some slush

First impression: Another fine wooden topsheet from Arbor

The Ride: This is my second nose-to-tail rocker demo, the other being the much softer Arbor Cascade. The flex was stiff enough to maintain pop, but still soft enough to butter like a cheater. Not so soft that you just fall over the tail when you try to press, though. Maybe a 6.5 out of 10 (10 being your femur).
The Grip Tech sidecut held on through everything I threw at it and that included every size turn imaginable. When you're cruising a resort on a mediocre snow day, that's the one thing you have time for, lots of turns. The Wasteland got edge-to-edge quickly and locked in hard, like a ninja.
Stability was on-point, but I didn't throw anything huge at it. Speed wasn't a big issue and the air I got just wasn't that big. Speaking of which, the dampness was only moderate. Not as damp as my Never Summer, for example. This is a matter of taste, I know, as some people think overly damp boards feel 'dead.'

For all the blood and guts, check out Arbor's site.

Bottom Line: I'm impressed with this board. It does everything you could ask of it at the resort. It's as good as a rockered board could be. With the full rocker and elongated nose, it should perform well in powder, too. If that is the case, I could easily ride the Wasteland every day. You won't want to ride it in an actual wasteland, though; no water. 

Similar Boards: GNU Altered Genetics BTX (not C2)