The Artifact is a noodle, especially the rockered version. If that's what youre looking for, it's perfect.

 

Okay, bare with me.  It's this simple type of ignorance that just drives me absolutely CRAZY and puts me on these early morning rants.  First things first, there is NO SUCH THING as a PARK SPECIFIC board.  Remove that word (words) from your vocabulary.  You can take almost anything anywhere, and have a blast at the sime time.  Second, I know tons of people that prefer something firm, cambered, and sintered for park riding.  You can take the same shit to the stairset rails or the backcountry too.  DOESN'T MATTER.  If you blame the gear for why you can't do what you are trying to do, you should find something else to do.  It just shows laziness and an attempt to take the easy way out of everything.  Plus, you are missing out on the experimentation of trying new things in new places, which allows for variation making life exciting and ever changing.  Your loss.

 

Nothing is more annoying than ignorance and "advice" which covers the same overused and plain wrong generalization that everybody seems to be attatched to.  Think outside the box people.  The guys that are legends did not copy what someone else did.  They learned from other people's successes and failures and turned it into something that resembles a new distinct style/approach that is exclusive to that person.  As a result, they stand out from everyone else in the crowd.  Try these things.  They not only will make you better at what you do, but will also make life more exciting. 

That! Was! Awesome! Dude rips. I'm getting a fish for park riding. It's clearly the only choice

I've been on two boards the last 2-3 years, and they've done the job for me.  Quivers do make a difference, but like many people, I am not an endless bank account.  Last time I had 3 plus snowboards was like 4 years ago.  Ever since then, been doing just fine with what I got.  I'm sure I would do perfect with one as well, but its always fun to have something that feels and rides a bit different.

This

F that. Burton Fish makes a great park board. 

[TUBE]NytY1QfvjVM[/TUBE]

Riders that usually ask these questions are 99.9% absolute noobs and couldn't tell you their preferences if their lives depended on it.

You're not going to post this in every "Help me pick out a board" thread, are you?

(edit: this thread won't die because it's a sticky... well that answers that I guess.)

 

Absolutely correct.  I personally use two snowboards.  A Lib Tech T.Rice 161 and a Jones Flagship 164, both of which I will take into the park.  Now, if you use the basic assumptions that people make about park boards, I am way off.  I size up a bit on the T.Rice, and size up to the extreme on the Flagship.  Both are stiff, the T.Rice at a 7, the Flag at what I would guess an 8.5-9.  And, the Flag is directional tapered.  Interesting huh.  Yet I enjoy taking laps in the park with both and isn't that what matters most?  If you ask whether or not I would enjoy a softer snowboard more, I would say no.  My preferences are based toward a bigger snowboard that has a flex rating of around 7-8.  Remember too that as stated above, the rider is in control, not the board.  If the board is in control, then your technique is f*cked, and you are likely going to take several nasty spills.  Everyone is different, and everyone has different preferences.  Period.

It doesn't matter what anyone else uses, everybody is different.  Sure the Reverse Crew can be a very solid choice for all sorts of riders, but there are so many more options.  Bindings are preference, so it depends on whether someone is looking for something stiff and responsive, or something flexible.  Just think of it this way.  If there was one right answer, then everybody would be using the same exact gear.

 

First of all, a park board comes down to preference, as does any piece of gear no matter where you are riding.  Also, park riding ranges from jibs to huge kickers and other random features, so when looking for a park specific snowboard, you shouldn't be looking for something that only satisfies your jibbing preferences.  On top of that, bindings are not terrain specific, and niether are boots.  For example, I use a Burton C60 (Flex 9, so pretty eff'n stiff) for everything I do.  Whether it is a couple laps in the park, cruising around, working on technique, or just one of those balls out hit the gnarliest shit possible days.  As for boots, a "park boot" is one of the most rediculous concepts I have ever heard in my life.  I mean really, just because a boot says park boot doesn't make it the best option for the park.  Otherwise, EVERYBODY would be using the same exact stuff.  For the last time, boots come down to fit and feel.  I want extra ankle support, so I look for a mid-stiff to very stiff boot when buying boots.  I also try to find something that fits my foot the way I want, and don't just buy something that advertises itself for a certain terrain.

 

Sure there can be general trends of people liking softer gear for park and stiffer gear for big mountain riding, but there are those who are on the other end of the spectrum.  Gigi if I'm not mistaken was ripping it in the backcountry on an Uninc.  Blair can just destroy the backcountry on his skate banana.  And I have seen several winning slopestyle runs by people using things like the custom x, which is pretty damn stiff.

 

As for the all caps, ask yourself.  Was it really necessary?

OP, I realized I didn't really answer you question with my previous reply…

I picked up a Love because it was advertised as softer type camber board; I enjoy camber boards, so that was why I pick the shape; the graphics I was happy with and it worked with bindings I had, so as an over combination I felt good about it.

I haven't had the opportunity to try it yet; it's mounted and ready to go; just waiting for snow.

Now if you want my first impressions before having tried it: High back is stiff as hell—it took a lot effort to twist the highback to adjust it the angle I wanted (I use 21º in the front); base plate looks pretty solid and it's stiff; the "Hinge" tech I could see useful, but can't really comment on it; footbeds are thin and cushioned, not to mention the bed is very simple in construction [which is good in my opinion]; ratchets and ladders are excellent Burton quality as always; straps are pretty confortable, but I only tried them a few minutes—I think pairing them with good boots will probably make more of a difference in terms of comfort; the highback padding is the only part I can forsee a problem with—the foam padding is glued onto the carbon highback so i see with a lot of movement and use it will cause the glue to separate (I had this problem with last year's C60 EST, where the footbed separated 4 times in one season; the last time Burton told me not to send it back to them anymore and instead promised to send me new bindings this year—which they kind of did make do on by sending me a gift card of equivalent value, which I spent on the Vapor)

 

Oh and if you read up a bit, he did say the NS SL was too stiff so I did say look for something softer flexing...  The other opinions on stiff boards came in reply to other comments throughout...  read the entire thread before making assumptions...

 

 

pretty much my point exactly... for you something with the mid-life's feel does it, whereas for me, something with a flex of 7 or 8 does the trick...

it also depends if you want it for big features or more for jibs and butters.

 

^freddie_joe

get a 152. you'll be fine and it'll be more playfull.

 

hahaha, ure probably right.  oh these kids.  on another note, i cant get my frontside boardslides down. my board doesnt go 90 degree with the box when sliding.  only like 75.  any tips?

 

If you read this closely, it translates to "I just wanted to get one of my free points for the day."

 

very well put my man.  i totally agree. i see too many people yanking their front foot up when learning to press.

 

and on the subject of flex rating.  its 90% rider.  heck when i first got into park i was riding a horrorscope (flex 3) AND it was also rocker and i still couldnt do presses.  then when i finally figured out about weight distribution, everything became easier.  i can press and butter on my ultrafear (flex 6) now.

 

Think of it this way; its called a press, not a lift.  You aren't lifting the board.

 

Some people out there, I being one of them, find no problem buttering and pressing on stiff/"7 flex" snowboards.  If you can't butter on a semi stiff snowboard, you have a long way to go.  I found that with the Custom X and T.Rice, it was very easy to do jibs, presses, and especially pow butters.  It was just as easy to do those things on those boards as it was on the X8.  On the other hand, I had no problem going off of 30-40 footers with an X8 when I still had it, which is a flex of 3 (according to Burton of course).  You should watch Blair do the gnarly terrain he does with a skate banana, then watch Nicolas Muller butter the shit out of a T6.  Might change your perspective on board flex and usability in various terrain/features.

 

 

To the guy who said the NS SL was too stiff, I believe that is a mid flex, around 5ish if I am not mistaken.  If that is the case, try something with a flex of a 3 or 4 and see how that feels.

You're looking way too much into it.

The dude wants a jib board anyway, so size down to the 152.

 

He is talking about 2 DIFFERENT boards.  He said nothing about the SL being too big, only about the flex.  So if the length doesn't bother him, stay with something that has a similar size.  Also, a lot of factors affect maneuverability besides flex and length.  Sidecut, effective edge, board shape, width at the different sections, distance between the contact points, camber patterns, edge patterns (MTX, mellow MTX, PDE, etc...) and so on.  I would say the biggest factor of maneuverability is the sidecut.  For example, if I have two boards of the same flex and length, but one has a 7.5 sidecut and the other has a 9.5 sidecut, the maneuverability of the snowboards will differ greatly.  Some people may feel more comfortable with larger arcing turns, whereas others like doing quick turns on a dime.  A sidecut will affect all of that, whereas length and flex do as well, but not nearly to the same degree IMO.

 

In my own experience, I have owned both a supermodel X 164 and a Flagship 164.  The Flagship is stiffer, but they both have similar flex.  The Supermodel X had a sidecut around 8.3 whereas the flagship is a 9.3, and because of this, they felt completely different on snow.  The flagship wanted me to go straight down the hill most of the time, whereas the Supermodel X was definately less energy consuming to make quick turns. 

i think what he was trying to say is that the 155 is too stiff because he can't manuever it because it is a little too big.  If he gets a new board then he could have the same problem if its the same size.  if you downsize then the board becomes easier to flex and control.  i understand that downsizing may not make a difference if you get a different board but a shorter size could just be all around better for the new board.  i suggest the 152

 

Huh?  You do realize he is talking about two different boards right?  If the NS 155 feels to stiff, why should he size down with the different board?  I forgot that the Never Summer SL 155 and the Gnu SS 154 were the same exact board with the same exact overall feel.  If the 155 feels comfortable in length, don't change it, whereas if you feel it is too big, maybe you should size down.  I would go to a demo, and try several snowboards including the Gnu at the 154 and 152, just to get a feel for both.  You may find that there is something else you like over the Gnu.

Originally posted by grunge   BTW I was being sarcastic.  ;)

 

Which part of this line did you not understand?

if you adding to his sarcasm you forgot to put the  /s 

You're WRONG. 

It's all about the more choice, the more choice there is the better someone will get at their specialized area. That's what it's all about, that's what everyone in marketing is selling. 

Clearly they're right.

So never use a powder board for park. I say bull you can't do it... 

It's not about user skill, it's about the right board for the right person.

BTW I was being sarcastic. 

;) 

if all else fails, just pick the best looking one and youll look awesome owning yourself

buck ferton rules.  Now available in sizes from 147 to 158!

Or ask the guy's opinions.

With more research, you'll eventually settle on something you like. 

don't think it actually matters if its R camber or camber..

 

or if you can't decide.. just get a flatline..

*unless you're johnny lazz, LNP, scott stevens, etc.

Thank you for saying it, so I didn't have to.

I guess my ideal "park" board (Capita Midlife) doesn't work well in the park, according to everyone's suggestions.

This guy really needs some help!!