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#11
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why hardboots?
You've got a fairly stiff freeride board, so it would probably make
sense to try hard boots on that before buying a dedicated alpine board. Alpine boards are a serious rush though. Try strapping some ski boots, either your own or some rentals, into your bindings, might not fit too well, but if you take a couple runs like that, you'll get a bit of an idea if you like the feeling... |
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#12
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why hardboots?
Try strapping some ski boots, either your own or some rentals, into your
bindings, might not fit too well, but if you take a couple runs like that, you'll get a bit of an idea if you like the feeling... AsaaraAgain, Have you actually tried that? I haven't but I have a pretty good idea that that it would feel nothing like a hard boot setup that included plate bindings. I'll assume that implicit in your recommendation would be to set upo the strap bindings in stance that is more akin to what someone would normally use in hard boots. Even so, that doesn't change the fact that there would not be enough lateral support to simulate actual hard booting. I'm recommeding agsint this because I think it would turn whoever tried it off from hard booting. Even if they might have liked a setup that included plate bindings. Mike T |
#13
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why hardboots?
(suffering from google-lag here...)
[... hard boots will] be different, perhaps better and perhaps worse. My limited experience with riding non-groomers in hard boots tells me that jumping, moguls, and open powder fields should be just as good (maybe better) as in soft boots, while chutes and trees may be a bit harder than in soft boots. I agree. I've done a lot of back-country stuff in hard boots and don't take any prisoners in chutes or trees either, but then it's hard to tell what's the gear and what's the rider. [...] I have yet to see [anybody] riding down some seriously steep stuff I don't think that says much other than that most snowboarders are poor riders. Several extreme pro riders used to use hard boots, and I think still do. I'm not sure how much the design of the gear and how much marketing. Are snowboarders as a group unable/unwilling to ride most steep/ bumpy stuff because their gear is bad (eg they use soft boots intended for aerial ballet moves), or is it because the marketing is all park focused? This last is interesting because with most boarders knowing only sideslip turns, trick skiers are blowing them away. Do we end up with snowboarding being just sideslip-drop-sideslip, a sort of resort-bound snow-skateboarding? Alpine boards are a serious rush though. Yes. Are they a serious disadvantage in moguls/steeps? No. It's hard to tell what's the rider and what's the gear though. |
#14
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why hardboots?
Have you actually tried that?
I haven't but I have a pretty good idea that that it would feel nothing like a hard boot setup that included plate bindings. I used to ride in my ski boots all the time years ago when the only other options were work boots or Sorels, which didn't exactly give a great response. May not provide a true feeling of hard booting, but it'll give you a vague idea of the response. I used soft boot stance angles rather than high ones. |
#15
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why hardboots?
"Neil Gendzwill" wrote My personal belief is that for the sort of riding you like to do, hard boots would work very well so long as you have a fairly wide deck and keep the angles lower (under 50). I think trying to wrangle moguls or steeps with 60 degree angles is probably not that good an idea, but I'm sure there's somebody out there killing it in those conditions. Under 50 being a lower angle and 21cm being a "fairly wide" board seems a bit scary, but looks like I'll gonna have to try hardboots. Well done and thanks for sharing to everybody who replied, I'm almost convinced. |
#16
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why hardboots?
On 11 Mar 2004 04:52:55 -0800, phil said (and I quote):
I'm not sure how much the design of the gear and how much marketing. Are snowboarders as a group unable/unwilling to ride most steep/ bumpy stuff because their gear is bad (eg they use soft boots intended for aerial ballet moves), or is it because the marketing is all park focused? This last is interesting because with most boarders knowing only sideslip turns, trick skiers are blowing them away. Do we end up with snowboarding being just sideslip-drop-sideslip, a sort of resort-bound snow-skateboarding? At the places I ride, the park and pipe are practically empty, and all the good riders are carving up the groomers. That seems to be all they do, and they're all doing it in soft boots, which seems so suboptimal. I ride mostly on weekdays, and the general standard of riding is very very good. On weekends it's a whole other story, and there are so many novices scraping down the hill that it's hard to get a feel for anything going on. But amongst the hard-core mid-week riders, it's carving carving carving, all in the latest fashions (one-pieces, believe it or not), and the latest soft boots and boards. Not resort-bound snow-skateboarding at all, except for the clothes and equipment. It's a strange world. -- A: Top-posters. Q: What's the most annoying thing on usenet? |
#17
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why hardboots?
Dmitry wrote:
"Neil Gendzwill" wrote My personal belief is that for the sort of riding you like to do, hard boots would work very well so long as you have a fairly wide deck and keep the angles lower (under 50). I think trying to wrangle moguls or steeps with 60 degree angles is probably not that good an idea, but I'm sure there's somebody out there killing it in those conditions. Under 50 being a lower angle and 21cm being a "fairly wide" board seems a bit scary, but looks like I'll gonna have to try hardboots. Well done and thanks for sharing to everybody who replied, I'm almost convinced. When I rode hardboots on a freeride board (25 cm waist), I used 35 degree angles. Now that I'm on an all-mountain board, it's 45. You don't have to go to a narrower waist, but you should absolutely go to steeper angles. Unless you're already at 30 plus in softies. I've got a 200 Tanker coming, it has a 24.5 cm waist so I'm guessing I'll be at 35 or 40 on it. I'll let you know how that works out. Neil |
#18
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why hardboots?
At the places I ride, the park and pipe are practically empty, and
all the good riders are carving up the groomers. That seems to be all they do, and they're all doing it in soft boots, which seems so suboptimal. [...] It's a strange world. Indeed. With a couple of exceptions (Brighton Utah, Serena Finland) I've never seen a popular half pipe/ terrain park. Yet the equipment and magazines on sale seem to be 100% rail-oriented. Out in the real world about 98% of snowbaorders would seem to be sideslipping even moderately steep runs, often on their arses. And the skiiers are blowing them away in the pipe. Perhaps it's simply easier to make a sideslipper look good if they're in the air. I guess I don't understand the gap between the marketing and the actuality. If only I could figure out how to make some money out of it. |
#19
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why hardboots?
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#20
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why hardboots?
In article , plast530
@hotmail.com says... At the places I ride, the park and pipe are practically empty, and all the good riders are carving up the groomers. That seems to be all they do, and they're all doing it in soft boots, which seems so suboptimal. [...] It's a strange world. Indeed. With a couple of exceptions (Brighton Utah, Serena Finland) I've never seen a popular half pipe/ terrain park. Yet the equipment and magazines on sale seem to be 100% rail-oriented. Out in the real world about 98% of snowbaorders would seem to be sideslipping even moderately steep runs, often on their arses. And the skiiers are blowing them away in the pipe. Perhaps it's simply easier to make a sideslipper look good if they're in the air. I guess I don't understand the gap between the marketing and the actuality. If only I could figure out how to make some money out of it. At my closest hill, Snoqualmie Summit where I've been going after work a few nights a week, the only place that consistently has a crowd is the advanced terrain park & jumps. The superpipe isn't as crowded but there are always a group of boarders and skiers lining up for the jumps with and without rails. I never see skiers in the superpipe. I'm usually there from 6PM to 8:30 or so on weeknights(go elsewhere on the weekends) so the time of day probably plays a large role. I don't see why anyone should give a damn if 99.9% of snowboarders are sideslippers who never see a black diamond. If they are having fun and enjoying themselves, more power to them. I hope they get to sideslip as often as possible. Same with any other outdoor sport - most climbers can't lead much past 5.9, most surfers can't ride much OH, etc, etc. That doesn't negate the relative quality of their experience. C. -- -she ain't revved til the rods is thrown |
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