3cm difference in board length.

I am new to snowboarding, male, 5'3" 165 lbs. People at snowboard
shops always tell me how much better a 151cm board would be for me
compared to a 154cm board. I have bought a 154 at a bargain price but
have not yet used it. They claim that the 154 would be substantially
harder to maneuver. I realize somewhat the validity of their claims
but also suspect that they are taking the opportunity to market their
151cm boards, of which all the shops in my area seem to have so few.
So, besides the argument that beginners should of course start
with a shorter board to make things easier, what do you all think
about this conundrum? The beauty is in the impreciseness, it can be
said that there no real answer. Yet please share your opinions.

Jude wrote:
I am new to snowboarding, male, 5'3" 165 lbs. People at snowboard
shops always tell me how much better a 151cm board would be for me
compared to a 154cm board. I have bought a 154 at a bargain price but
have not yet used it. They claim that the 154 would be substantially
harder to maneuver. I realize somewhat the validity of their claims
but also suspect that they are taking the opportunity to market their
151cm boards, of which all the shops in my area seem to have so few.
So, besides the argument that beginners should of course start
with a shorter board to make things easier, what do you all think
about this conundrum? The beauty is in the impreciseness, it can be
said that there no real answer. Yet please share your opinions.


When choosing a snowboard, the length can make a few differences. One
thing with a longer board is flex pattern. I think it can be generalized
that a longer board of the same model is made to be stiffer (to carry a
taller, heavier person). At your height, either a 151 or 154 is
sufficient but you might want to go to 154 because your weight is
sufficient to effectively flex a board that length, and might overpower
a 151 (considering this board is an average freeride/freestyle park
board). Another thing you should know is the sidecut. A shorter board
usually means a shorter turning radius. Depending on what you might want
to focus on later on, the sidecut can make or break your riding. If you
want to focus on just riding with maybe a few stints in the park... I'd
choose a board with 8m+ sidecut radius. But if you want to concentrate
in the park, go for a ~7.5m one.

It is true that a shorter board makes things eaiser (easier to flex and
swing around), but once you start craving the speed, a longer board will
give you more stability (firmer and more edge to carve on)

I suggest you go and demo different lengths before you buy.

Good Luck

Stu

Aside from the argument that beginner should start with a shorter
board, I would always recommend the 154 to you. Most store people are
taught to use height to estimate for board length because it's much
quicker and easier to do. However, in most case weight is a much more
important factor as guides you ability to "flex" a board in a turn. A
154 will do a *much* better job at holding an edge for you once you
start turning at high speeds, at 151 will generally be softer flexing
and you will easily over bend the board I think (it will be a tiny bit
easier start out on, but that's a false sense of control).

In comparison I'm 5'8" 150 lbs and I ride a 154-155, although I started
out on a 152. At 165 you could go 157-158 cm eventually, altohugh 154
sound good starting out.

When I first started learning to board (while renting equipment), I had a
really, really hard time with the huge boards that the guys at the rental
shop were convinced were best for me. I'm fairly tall (6'-2"), and they
kept giving me these monster boards to use that I had a hell of a time with.
When I went to stores to buy a board, again, the guys in the stores were
telling me I needed this huge-ass board (160 cm + or something like that).
I ended up geting a 156 cm board, which was both narrower and shorter than
the boards I'd been using until that point.

I was fairly nervous the first time I took it out, but almost instantly
things seemed so much easier, and I've fallen in love with the board I have.
With regards to other people's coments about demoing a board, how do you go
about doing that? Wouldnt' that involve borrowing a board from a shop for a
while, espically if there wasn't a slope in the area?

Iain

telling me I needed this huge-ass board (160 cm + or something like that).

It's all relative... to me, something in the low 160's is *small*

(My board lengths: 161, 168, 170, 172, 178, 180, 188)




By all means, if it feels good, ride it! *Most* riders who are 6'2" would
probably be more comfortable on a longer board than a 156, but if it works
for you, more power to you!

With regards to other people's coments about demoing a board, how do you
go
about doing that? Wouldnt' that involve borrowing a board from a shop for
a
while, espically if there wasn't a slope in the area?

One can often rent demo boards from both ski areas and snowboard shops. At
the ski area, demoes are often available at a different counter than the
normal rental counter... it varies by ski area. Many ski shots will rent
demoes of the most popular boards that they sell. When demoing from a
shop, it is often possible to negotiate a deal where you can apply the
rental cost towards a new board if you wind up buying one; this is a good
point to haggle on. Some small companies like Donek offer demo-by-mail
programs as well.

Mike T

"Mike T" wrote:

One can often rent demo boards from both ski areas and snowboard shops.
At
the ski area, demoes are often available at a different counter than the
normal rental counter... it varies by ski area. Many ski shots will
rent
demoes of the most popular boards that they sell. When demoing from a
shop, it is often possible to negotiate a deal where you can apply the
rental cost towards a new board if you wind up buying one; this is a good
point to haggle on. Some small companies like Donek offer demo-by-mail
programs as well.

Ahh... gotcha! I was trying to think if it was like, a store downtown or
something... I was picturing trying to figure out how to ask the guys if I
could have a board for a week and then bring it back, or something like
that.

Iain

Waco Paco wrote:

When choosing a snowboard, the length can make a few differences. [snip some good points]

Just to emphasize what Stu said, it's not just the length, it's all the
other stuff that gets tied to length. If flex, sidecut and width were
all the same, I don't think 3 cm would make a huge difference. It's the
fact that as the length goes up, typically the flex gets stiffer, the
sidecut gets longer (bigger radius turn) and sometimes the width goes
up. If you're comparing a 151 to a 154, I'll bet you're not comparing
the same model of board, most manufacturers go up in more than 3 cm
steps. So it becomes a very apples and oranges sort of thing. One
thing you can do is find the manufacturer's recommendations for purpose
and intended weight range, although with the current state of
information-deficient flash websites that data might be hard to find.

Having said all that, if you're looking at general purpose boards I
can't fathom a 154 being too long for a 165 lb person.

Neil