Poster: A snowHead
|
Last month I was trying a splitboard of Rossignol and it was quite easy to go up, but to control it on the slope it was hard and the board is a quite heavy, I would like to know if, is there splitboard light weight and easy to control.
Thanks
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Did the board you tried have dedicated splitboard bindings on it or had standard ones been converted with the Voile kit?
The latter is pretty common, and makes the whole setup heavier and raises your feet quite far off the board, which doesn't help.
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
A splitboard is always going to be comprises – it will never ride on hard pack as well as a standard board, there is always going to be issues with the torsional movement [physics may not be accurate].
What bindings did you have? Sparks, karakoram or Voile pucks?
Compared to voile pucks I find the Sparks a big improvement in terms of board control.
I have an amplid milligram carbon spit that I got at the end of last season – took it away last year when the plan was to do 100% touring but the conditions were not suitable so ended up using it a lot on piste as I only took one board. Despite being a light weight split I found it very enjoyable to ride on piste, responsive and didn’t have the ‘pulling’ feeling some of the older splits had. Couldn’t charge as hard as my solid but not a big difference. Lovely to skin with, and in the soft stuff it was a dream. Haven’t used in super-deep pow yet but here’s hoping for BC next week!
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
Oh that amplid has the karakoram board clips which are a huge improvement over the Voile ones (imo)
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
I had a Jones splitboard in last week for service which had Sparks hardware. Superb piece of kit. Not sure of the model but the owner has riden the same board in the regular version and said he couldn't really tell the difference.
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
I'm still using one of the original Jones splitboards, and it gets the job done. Definitely heavier than a solid, and you can definitely feel the interface, but not bad at all. I took 2 boards to Japan, and used the Hovercraft split as my powder board - worked absolutely fine.
I'd spend as much as you can, as they seem to have got better and better each year, and don't even consider using standard bindings. I've no experience with Karakorum or other binding systems, but the Sparks work well.
Remember that you need 3 section poles to go in your bag on descent - 2 section poles will only strap to the outside of your pack and you'll have pointy ends hovering around your neck...
|
|
|
|
|
|
Interesting read thanks folks. Really fancy moving into this area so good info there. Just need to find a mate willing to spend a good part of their day 'skiing uphilll' as well as boarding downhill. I guess by the time you buy all this stuff plus transceiver etc. you are looking at well over a £1k to get started.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Albasnow, +1
Cheaper than decent bicycles which are my main hobby but earning my snowboard turns is an itch that I need to scratch
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
Don't get me started on the bike Leggyblonde. Pay £2k for a bike then you need to replace chain every few months, now another rear cassette, wear indicator on rear wheel nearly scrubbed off so new wheels, multiple tyres at £30 a pop, multiple brake pads, countless inners, new cleats, a winter bike so I don't dirty my carbon beauty so now times all of that times two etc. etc.
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Albasnow, I have 8 bikes at the moment. My justification is that it spreads the wear across them.... Hopefully I can apply that principle to snowboards!
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
I took my Nitro Nomad split out to Val d'Isere week before last and while it wasn't conditions I felt comfortable touring in, I managed to get some lift served off piste done, along with some piste riding in between/to get home, so now understand it a lot better. In the powder it performed really well, the weight and raised stance not being problems at all.
Basically - as should probably be expected from a board designed for off piste use - trying to carve this thing is asking for trouble. You can feel it is in two bits so charging along on an edge just doesn't feel right, and it takes some extraordinary commitment to get it leaned onto an edge in the first place, and it is correspondingly difficult to get it back off the edge and up onto the other one. I found I had to do powder-type turns regardless of the surface I was on.
@Albasnow - I think I got my setup including transceiver etc. for about £700 due to end of season discounts, so shop around and you might get lucky. I'd also look for second hand gear, there was some on winterhighland for a while.
|
|
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
Quote: |
I guess by the time you buy all this stuff plus transceiver etc. you are looking at well over a £1k to get started.
|
Yeah, well over.
Splitboard £600 min I reckon for some thing like a solution
Spark or Karakorum bindings, although maybe the voile lightrail has improved, I don't know. I really like the sparks.
Skins (surprisingly expensive!)
Ski crampons (needed for Europe, I didn't need them in Japan or BC)
3 piece poles (like black diamond compactor)
Metal shovel
Probe
Transceiver
Suitable backpack
Quote: |
Just need to find a mate willing to spend a good part of their day 'skiing uphilll' as well as boarding downhill.
|
No you don't - plenty of options available to go on split boarding weeks. Don't let not having a mate up for it stand in your way!
|
|
|
|
|
|