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Wedze / Decathlon boards comparison?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi folks,

Anyone either ridden some of the Wedze / Decathlon boards, or seen reviews of them for comparison with any of the more well known brands?

I've see comparisons of other sports kit from there - mountain biking, windsurfing etc against mainstream brands, and it often comes out very favourably at some price points - the Rockrider mtbs for example.

Google hasn't found me much on their snowboards though.

I've been hiring kit each time I go for a week away, and that's kind of been okay, but would love to have a board around the 166/168 size, and not many hire shops have those available. Price of hire seems to have gone up recently, so re-assessing buying kit for my one-trip-a-year habit. And the Decathlon boards are a heck of a low price... How are they gonna compare against Salomon / Burton / Rossignol hire kit or some of the standard intermediate piste boards?

Not sure there is a try before you buy option...

Thanks for any thoughts,

J.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Not specifically related to your query but i find that Decathlon stuff pretty much always competes pretty well with the much more expensive brands. I'd be happy to give one a go if i was buying new.

I bought a second hand board and bindings in anticipation of a trip last year, that got cancelled. Finally managed to use it on a trip this year and it saved me cash already given the cost of the board and bindings vs rental for the ten days of holidays. It's not a fancy board, but does me fine. Like everything, I'm sure there are much better boards out there but with my early intermediate skills i can't see that they would make much difference.

Bonus is that the bindings are SP quick release yolks and I absolutely love them over standard ratchet ones. Another bonus which will hopefully materialise will be that i will be able to hike the hills nearby my house when if/when it snows and have a few laughs sliding down some hills that no other fool has slid down before.
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 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?
I always say there is a time and place for decathlon gear. The price/quality ratio is good, but the price is low and so is the quality.

For alpinism for instance, your gloves are going to get wrecked super fast anyway, might as well buy 25eur decathlon that lasts 7 outings versus 100 eur black diamond that lasts 15 outings. Hiking socks for leisurely conditions, can't go too wrong. Rock climbing trousers for 25 eur that would last you half a year vs brands for 100 eur that would only last you 2 months more... A down jacket for alpinism where you give zero F's if you need to duct tape it (you won't feel the same about tearing a 400 eur patagonia).

Basically: relatively inexpensive or fast wearing, small items where you'll get away with skimping because they're not as crucial to the quality of your experience.

Things not to buy at decathlon: products that are crucial to the quality of your experience. Like a snowboard, bindings or boots. You'd get away with a decathlon helmet, goggles, jacket, trousers, gloves, but please, don't buy yourself a decathlon snowboard.
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Oldandbrittle wrote:
Basically: relatively inexpensive or fast wearing, small items where you'll get away with skimping because they're not as crucial to the quality of your experience.

Things not to buy at decathlon: products that are crucial to the quality of your experience. Like a snowboard, bindings or boots. You'd get away with a decathlon helmet, goggles, jacket, trousers, gloves, but please, don't buy yourself a decathlon snowboard.


Nailed.

No experience of decathlon snowboarding equipment but I wouldn't take the gamble. A second-hand branded board would be better and if you don't like its ride you can sell it.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
I'd like to add, I just found out they're selling a range of real brands now at decathlon, amongst others a couple of k2 boards, boots from k2, burton and ride, bindings from Burton & rossi, ...

The ride lasso is for sale for 319 euros at decathlon and I paid 280 for my pair in a brick and mortar independant ski/snowboard shop.
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Quote:

Things not to buy at decathlon: products that are crucial to the quality of your experience. Like a snowboard, bindings or boots. You'd get away with a decathlon helmet, goggles, jacket, trousers, gloves, but please, don't buy yourself a decathlon snowboard.


I've bought a fair amount of kit from Decathlon and generally it is acceptable quality, budget kit. Excellent fit kitting out a large family.

I totally agree with your point about not buying Decathlon kit that is crucial to the quality of your experience, and in that I'd definitely include gloves. I bought some Decathlon gloves for me and the kids and they were all pretty rubbish. Wet, disintegrating gloves do not make for a good ski and boarding holiday! I bought new gloves, having to pay top dollar in the resort.

I haven't heard anything at all about their boards, boots or bindings though, sorry.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Factor in the expense of taking a snowboard.
£74 return on EasyJet
Plus you need to buy the board, bindings, travel bag, maintain it yourself or pay a shop to wax it.
So let’s say your initial outlay £300
Compare that to £100 renting, you are only saving £26 a trip. If you get a shop to wax it in resort, then that is anythiing from another £10-£20!
RoI would take years. Your board will probably be damaged or you outgrown it by then.
Obviously there is nothing like having your own board, but get the right board for you. Not because it’s cheap.

There are lots of try before you opportunities. Either in resort (I know Stubai Glacier do one in November which gets all the latest gear) or snowdomes in the UK has them.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Thanks all for the comments and thoughts.

The point about investing properly in key items, or high spec items is very true. I do the same buying tools for work or home diy - stuff for coarse work can be cheaper, tools for precision or with cutting edges are worth investing in.

Actually, those costs seem a bit out of date to me, @Mr.Egg. I used to do the same calculation, but this time round the return cost of transporting a board was £50, and I've seen others charging £40. And hire of boots and board for "standard" kit is £150. I could have shopped around for something a little cheaper, but it's still £80-£100 saving. Couple that with the benefit of having a better spec board and one that is the right size for me, then it starts to become a pretty evenly matched equation for me.

Trip 1 I'd be out of pocket by maybe £250, and by trip 4 I'd be starting to save... (There's always a good argument for getting more toys!)

It's one of those "no clear answer" kind of issues, except for the general consensus not to get a Wedze board... thanks folks.
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@BigSouthernJesse,
I used EJ as an example.
Other airlines charge different. Crystal package is £50, RyanAir £90, so varies greatly depending on how you travel.

I assumed you already had your own boots - but £150 renting sounds like you are not pre-booking online, where you can save around 50% depending how far out you book.
I sort out our group hire & have never paid over 100 euro for a snowboard bundle. Most now have their own boots & helmet, so hire is 50-60 euro for a board only.

Maybe get decent boots first, so you are saving renting boots. Maybe also a helmet.
By trip 4 there is a good chance you are bored of your board, or outgrown it, or its damaged, etc.
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Funnily enough the hire boots I've had have always seemed really good. And have had my own helmet for a long time now, that was an early choice.

Definitely not our cheapest hire, but for simplicity sake in covid times I bundled everything on to one cc payment with one TO.

We'll see, if the hire shop has something useful at 164 or longer, then I'll be fine. If I end up with a little 161 I'll spend the week practicing spinning and start shopping when I get home!

Cheers.
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also worth looking as the season comes to end for any last season or current season bargains.
Boards dont change massively from year to year unless there is new tech. Lots of times it is just a different top sheet.

Wedze board is probably made at an OEM factory. So could quite easily be SWS in Dubai or somewhere cheaper in China or closer to home like Austria, etc.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
BA, Swiss, Lufthansa, JAL and Canada Air don't charge for snowboard bag if it's your only checked bag, there's probably others too. I avoid the ones that charge personally. Also don't buy a Decathalon board.
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So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Actually I think you'll find that AC will carry snowboards for free in addition to your standard baggage allowance, in northern hemisphere winter.
Quote:
There's always a good argument for getting more toys!
I get that, although there's nothing worse than having a toy you know isn't as good as the one you didn't get... because then you're stuck. wink

They are very cheap. Getting them properly waxed will cost 20% of the cost, although their advice on waxing is surprisingly good:
"Ideally, wax every 5 outings.". Note the bases are extruded though.

Is there no one here who can own up to having a Decathlon board, or at least having ridden one?

Reading up on them they seem to be aimed at the novice market. I think that's a bit odd as you ought
to be progressing pretty fast as a novice, you'd not want to be stuck with a board suitable for your first day
for very long.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Better off to waiting for the end of season sales and getting a good All-Mountain twin board.

Though I would also second @Mr.Egg's notion of getting boots first if there are financial constraints. The overall outlay of boots + bindings + board can really stack up quite quickly.

You could try finding out if there are any decent snowboard shops in your area, as they should be able to give you advice and help you find a board that is appropriate for your level, weight and preferences.

Overall buying a board is probably not going to save you money in the long run, but if you get the right board it will help you progress much quicker, and you will not have to get used to a new board every time you go snowboarding.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
philwig wrote:

Quote:
There's always a good argument for getting more toys!
I get that, although there's nothing worse than having a toy you know isn't as good as the one you didn't get... because then you're stuck. wink


The plan of buying 2nd hand and being ready to move it on and try something else is probably most effective. Or get a load of testing done and buy new... With my intermediate legs and one or two weeks a year I'll probably not notice too much difference from board to board if they have the same general purpose.


philwig wrote:
Is there no one here who can own up to having a Decathlon board, or at least having ridden one?
Doesn't seem like it... I guess Decathlon also don't allow them out for general reviews against other manufacturers.

philwig wrote:
Reading up on them they seem to be aimed at the novice market. I think that's a bit odd as you ought
to be progressing pretty fast as a novice, you'd not want to be stuck with a board suitable for your first day
for very long.
There's a few they describe as more intermediate and up, warning the beginner off them.

But hey... Hopefully off to Austria in 10 days now, so we'll see what we get out there. Then I can come back with a "What board should I buy?" post... Toofy Grin
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
BigSouthernJesse wrote:


But hey... Hopefully off to Austria in 10 days now, so we'll see what we get out there. Then I can come back with a "What board should I buy?" post... Toofy Grin


If you know the store you are renting at you can check in with them beforehand to see what is available. Some rental stores are also happy for you to swap your board around, so you could try out a few. Worth asking if they are happy to do that.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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ski_free wrote:
BigSouthernJesse wrote:


But hey... Hopefully off to Austria in 10 days now, so we'll see what we get out there. Then I can come back with a "What board should I buy?" post... Toofy Grin


If you know the store you are renting at you can check in with them beforehand to see what is available. Some rental stores are also happy for you to swap your board around, so you could try out a few. Worth asking if they are happy to do that.


Yep, I have done that, not heard anything back yet.

Best result so far was a few years ago at Conny's in Alpbach (highly recommended), where one of the staff brought in one of his own older boards for me. Spent the week blasting around on a 168 Burton and loved the plantedness that the extra length seemed to give.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Quote:

Trip 1 I'd be out of pocket by maybe £250, and by trip 4 I'd be starting to save... (There's always a good argument for getting more toys!)


Even if that math is correct it still doesn't seem worth it. There's a chance the board doesn't last 4 years - you decide you need something different that better fits your style/interests. Plus the hassle of transporting it and maintaining it. The big advantage of renting is you can pick something that suits the trip - not snowed in a week get a nice carving board or something soft and fun for jibs and park or if an off piste focused trip get a powder board. Some places even let you swap during the week meaning you can optimise the tool for the job as conditions change. Also there is a certain freedom to riding a rental - look at people navigating a piste with lack of snow cover and a few stones sticking out and I bet the ones carefully picking their line own their boards!
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@boarder2020, I don't know where you are hiring kit from, but unless you're going to a resort known for snowboarding, then you're normally looking at going to Intersport or the other Intersport 200m down the road, and from my experience you're normally slung some dried out PoS Head with bindings from the Torquemada range (age and comfort), particularly if you're after something in the mid 160s like the OP.
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Richard_Sideways wrote:
@boarder2020, I don't know where you are hiring kit from, but unless you're going to a resort known for snowboarding, then you're normally looking at going to Intersport or the other Intersport 200m down the road, and from my experience you're normally slung some dried out PoS Head with bindings from the Torquemada range (age and comfort), particularly if you're after something in the mid 160s like the OP.


There are some awesome rental places in Canada where I do nearly all my skiing - To the point where people with quivers are using them to demo new stuff. I personally haven't rented in years and don't know the situation in individual European resorts.
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boarder2020 wrote:
Richard_Sideways wrote:
@boarder2020, I don't know where you are hiring kit from, but unless you're going to a resort known for snowboarding, then you're normally looking at going to Intersport or the other Intersport 200m down the road, and from my experience you're normally slung some dried out PoS Head with bindings from the Torquemada range (age and comfort), particularly if you're after something in the mid 160s like the OP.


There are some awesome rental places in Canada where I do nearly all my skiing - To the point where people with quivers are using them to demo new stuff. I personally haven't rented in years and don't know the situation in individual European resorts.


I'm a pretty normal boot size, so they're fine. But yeah, rental boards in Europe are not the same as Canada it seems. Mostly skiers get a choice of Beginner, Silver, Gold standards. Snowboarders get a board. Actually, it's not that bad, and for the amount I get to the mountain it isn't often a problem. Once or twice I've managed to upgrade in the shop when offered a limp rossignol from 15 years before, and as mentioned above, a few times I've managed to make contact in advance and get something a bit more suited.

Probably time to either accept what I get or take the plunge and invest in a 2nd hand well regarded board and be happy with the level of tech and design it has for a while.

I'm still happily blasting on the first windsurf board I bought. 6yrs old when I got it, and is now 20+ years old. I have newer boards for speed and waves, but for general non-specific, do everything okay, sailing it's still fine.

I'm sure that there's a whole load of snowboards out there that'll be an upgrade on hire kit, and do just fine for 80%piste/20%powder and the occasional pop and play which makes up my annual week or two on the snow.
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@boarder2020, Ah Canada, yeah. You're more likely to be offered a decent selection there.

@BigSouthernJesse, as it goes, for the price I reckon you'd be very happy on a Wedze setup - particularly as even if you go for their high end, a board+bindings+boots will set you back less than just the board alone for an equivalent mid-range "brand" board. You see plenty of them dotted around the mountain so if its what you want to go for, go for it, I've never ridden one myself but a quick scope out of the tech suggests they're based on older board designs, a bit heavier in construction, but they'd probably be better than a generic rental option. If its not too late, Skibay on Facebook, eBay, or scope out the For Sale section here...

Or, save up for a bit and when you're ready to try some more toys, come to Mt.Hemel for the Snowheads Oktobertest where there's normally a selection of K2 and Ride kit to test or some other sucker Snowhead might just loan you some stuff to try out, or watch out for the Burton or other test days dotted about the UK hills.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
The dreamscape 700 166cm is the freeride model I wouldnt consider any other

First I would be aware in case they sell a older model year vs current year model.
Decathlon does have good end of season sales if you look deep into whats worth buying ie some not all ....tools waxes irons ,baselayers etc

I looked into this Decath board alot once for good reason but couldnt find detailed info and what you do find is possibly muddled with other models as no one knows sht ...its like Asda

Think I got my hands on one once to hand flex it and believe that was ok as you dont want a stiff 166 with a straight sidecut as "it will beat you up" ...it may have even been the 160cm model.... it was years ago now .

They run abit of taper and a very straight freeride sidecut which are good greenlight specs but.... I could never find all the spec detail .

Im abit vague on it now but at the time my thoughts were buy a used one its well worth it at used prices... as demand will be low .

They did sell a board with bindings package .


Last edited by After all it is free Go on u know u want to! on Sat 5-02-22 21:40; edited 1 time in total
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https://thegoodride.com/search/decathlon

I'm a bit late to the party but to answer the original question, did you come across this site on your search? They have reviewed a few... he rates the Endzone 500. They had one in my local store and I gave it a bend but seems a bit softer than I'd be after, personally. I like Decathlon but there's usually a compromise somewhere... most of the time and end up buying main brands. I think the reason they aren't generally reviewed is that they get paid by clicks and page visits. The big sites must get dozens of budget and breakthrough brands trying to get their stuff showcased all the time, Decathlon's price point puts them in a bracket where many pooh pooh it even if it is good and if people are searching Jones or Burton then the reviewers will focus there.

I guess you're back now. How was your trip? Did you get any further insight into what you're looking for? Reading your answers, don't be put off buying one, as Richard_Sideways said, it's probably better than the usual Head rental boards and if you go in with your eyes open about total costs then it's fine. You don't seem to mind rental boards other than the length issue. Which is why I'm surprised you are looking at decathlon because they don't seem to do longer boards. Otherwise I'd say it's the perfect use case for this type of board. You'd have something where you can get used to its characteristics on the few precious days you ride... and that's not so eye wateringly expensive that you wince that it's sat in the garage 50 weeks a year or when going over every stone or tree root or in the chair lift tussle when the skiers try to nudge in front and scrape your topsheet in the process. And when you come to sell it after a few years once the marketing get to you, you might find it wasn't that expensive.

I suspect the majority of boards are sold in the 150-160 range and retailers (and rental shops) stock accordingly. As others say, the end of season sales will start soon, however as you're looking for a longer board you might not be able to get a 'top' board in the sales anyway. Advice to look for 2nd hand is fine and if you were looking for a 156 you'd have your pick but I've been looking for something in the 162 region and they're thin on the ground. apart from freeride boards I haven't seen many longer than that come up. I'm sure when they do you'd have some competition. You also have to think why is someone selling the board? Maybe it's rubbish to ride or 15 years old and/or not in the greatest condition. Not to say you don't get the exception where someone made a mistake with size or "all the gear; no idea" types who gave boarding a go and can't hack falling over. If you can wait you'll see some but I think the best ones 2nd hand are over priced compared to buying new and without benefiting from a warranty and truly knowing how it's been cared for etc.

Quote:

Factor in the expense of taking a snowboard.
£74 return on EasyJet

If you're going away for more than a few days you're probably taking checked luggage, depending on airline it's rarely free for that, either. Factoring that in you might not be paying much more for taking the board. I've also seen discussion on here with people allegedly not paying for specific carriage and not being challenged. Not condoning it, just saying.
Quote:

Wedze board is probably made at an OEM factory.

I've had a suspicion for a long time that Decathlon mountain stuff is related to salomon (or possibly rossignol) somehow. Not least because they are one of the few brands they carry. They are all French brands and also because Decathlon/Wedze are "developed in the Mont Blanc valley". If nothing else there's going to be natural staff turnover etc.


Caveat - I'm no expert. I recently bought a board and similar to you considered Decathlon for the amount I ride, but marketing/ ?snobbery? got the better of me. I did grapple with myself over the purchase, but having since come to terms with my actions, in the end I also own a mountain bike (Decathlon, coincidentally) and I suspect by the end of the year I'll have spent more hours on a snowboard than my bike. Let's see. Either way I'm going to have fun on snow holidays! snowHead snowHead snowHead
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