Meadows Demo Day Sunday

Ever wonder how I ride all the latest snowboards before they're even on store shelves? Seriously!? It's all about demo days at my local resorts. These days you can try out boards as fast as you can switch your bindings. All for free! This Sunday (3/18) the Northwest Demo Tour hits Mt. Hood Meadows. Get there by 9am for first shot at more boards than a lumber yard. Rapid fire you're way through a dozen boards or pick one and give it a good thrashing. Reps will be on hand from K2, Capita, Never Summer, Lib Tech, Gnu, Arbor and maybe some more if you're lucky. Be sure to bring your own boots, though. Full details at Mt. Hood Meadows' site.

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)