Frosty

First off I need to say that I am highly JEALOUS that you get to ride in the Italian Alps!  ENJOY!!!Next I think that you need to graduate to a longer board, 160 or thereabouts.  Especially given your experience level and your adoration of powder.I put a lot of consideration into these picks.  You supplied some really specific info on yourself and your riding situation which makes it easier to make more specific recommendations for you.OK here we go (drum rolls).  Three recommended boards in order of occurrence here and three honorable mentions….

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1Ride Decade Snowboard 160 – Sick board.  Perfect for the Alps all-mountain riding.“Solid, Smooth, and Versatile. T

First off I need to say that I am highly JEALOUS that you get to ride in the Italian Alps!  ENJOY!!!Next I think that you need to graduate to a longer board, 160 or thereabouts.  Especially given your experience level and your adoration of powder.I put a lot of consideration into these picks.  You supplied some really specific info on yourself and your riding situation which makes it easier to make more specific recommendations for you.OK here we go (drum rolls).  Three recommended boards in order of occurrence here and three honorable mentions….

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1Ride Decade Snowboard 160 – Sick board.  Perfect for the Alps all-mountain riding.“Solid, Smooth, and Versatile. The Decade's brand-new 90A SlimewallsTM and Silencer 3 Tuned CoreTM combined with Carbon Array and classic Quadratic turning make this the ideal smooth Ride for the masses wanting all-around resort versatility.”Key Features of The Ride Decade 160cm Snowboard:# NEW Thin ConFor a nice light board that is still powerful (won't noodle).# NEW 90A Slimewalls – “Same smooth feel as a 85A with increased response, Skate inspired Urethane sidewall technology, Forgiving and Ductile, Absorbs impact rather than defending against them. Just like your skate wheels, the urethane in Slimewalls® smoothes the interaction with the snow, wood or metal surfaces you may Ride on. On top of all that, these babies are virtually indestructible, the most durable sidewalls in snowboarding.”See the vid about this tech here http://ridesnowboards.com/technology/sidewall# Carbon Array 3My old Salomon board had this kind of technology in it, but it was more straight bilam fiberglass reinforcement than this new fancy carbon array strips.  It delivers nearly instant power to the edge.  Makes great performance and sweet for border-x for that reason.# NEW Silencer 3 Tuned Core – “Ride's new and improved NR Con Silencers directly compliment the shape of Carbon Array and filter even more edge vibration for a super smoothed-out, snappy core. Original Silencer material in the New Carbon Array 3 Shaped to purify the response from Carbon Array™ 3.”Means it is good stuff, thin and strong and goes tip to tail so will keep the shape and last a long time# Hybrid Glass – “Triaxial on Base (0, 45, and -45 Degree), Biaxial on top (90 and 0 degree), Balanced torsion and stiffness for better response with speed.”# Carbon 7 Aramid Laminates – “Carbon on top; Aramid on base, More snap for Ollie Power, Increased longitudinal and torsional flex.”# Fusion 4000 Sintered Base – “Fastest base material known (sintered), More durable harder and faster than extruded.”These are easy to repair and hold wax very well.  Use GOOD wax (not cheap or rub-on) on these bases because of this.# New 2×4 InsertsThis simply offers more stance options without being funky or proprietary (like Burton).SPECS:# Effective edge (cm): 125.70# Nose/Tail (cm): 29.90# Waist (cm): 25.30   Great for a size 11 boot.# Sidecut (m): 8.8  Nice for higher speeds, longer turns and freeriding but still can handle freestyle action.============================================2K2 Believer Snowboard 159 2010“Voted the overall winner for Men’s premium snowboards in Transworld Snowboarding’s 2008/2009 Annual Good Wood test, our team has taken that model and pushed it to the next level. This year the team requested we add our all NEW! Flatline Technology to make the Believer even better. We answered. The slightly longer tip and tail and Twin-tip Hyper Progressive sidecut combined with the Hybritaper Construction instills confidence that every spin will maintain stability and control while the WH3 Core takes lightweight strength and lively flex to new levels.”Key Features of The K2 Believer Snowboard 159cm:    * Length (cm): 159    * Effective Edge (cm): 124.37    * Tip/Tail Width (cm): 29.76    * Waist Width (cm): 25.20    * Sidecut (m): 8.20    * Twin Tip Hyper Progressive    * Triax Top ICG 10 Base    * One Degree Base    * Hybritaper    * Flatline Baseline    * WH3 Core    * Martix I – Carbon has been extended to the very edge of the board for maximum power and pop combined with a fine-tuned edge hold and torsional stability    * 4000 Sintered===========================================3Burton Custom X Snowboard 160 2010Well I bet you thought the Custom X would make it to my list!  I would ride this board anywhere.  The success of the custom X line speaks for itself.  It simply rips.”Leave a trail of smoldering rubble in your wake. Driven by the cream of today’s freestyle crop—Frederik, Kazu, Peetu, and Marko—the Custom X™ is the lightest, fastest, and snappiest wood core board on the planet. From massive airs, to face-melting speeds, and big spins into small spaces, this super-tuned version of the legendary Custom attacks with precision. NEW Lightning Bolts radiate outward from the Channel, creating zero lag time between you and your edges.”Key Features of The Burton Custom X Snowboard 160cm:    * Effective Edge (cm) – 120.50    * Nose/Tail (cm) – 29.44    * Waist (cm) – 25.00    * Sidecut (m) – 8.19    * Dragon Fly Core    * Multizone EGD    * Positive Core Profile    * Carbon I-Beam Glass    * Carbon Vaporskin    * New Lightning Bolts    * Triax Response Fiberglass    * Sintered N2O WFO Vision Base    * Directional Shape    * Pro Tip    * The Channel    * Infinite Ride    * Grip & Rip Edge Tune    * Stainless Steel Pressure Distribution    * Twin Flex    * Feel: 7============================================Honorable Mentions:Sapient Coast 159 – Awesome graphicsBurton Supermodel X 160 – All Burton X boards ruleForum Seeker 160 – Had to get Forum in on this list for TravZ! (jab jab)

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Thanks for the question.  Where do you ride primarily?  I ask because East Coast tends to have firmer snow on average and a board that is too wide for you (250+) is going to be slower edge-to-edge and require move action and strength to get up on to edge (and hold carve).  That will mean fatigue and, as you mentioned, loss of overall control.Width is more important than length.  Keep that in mind.  Is a 150 board OK for you?  Sure, but keep in mind the width as the major determining factor.  Everyone have their own preference and the calculator is designed to be an accurate guide.  For me, I have a 9.5 boot size and ride a 247 to 249 width (about 1/4 inch hang on heel and toe side) and that is spot on for me.  At a 159 all-mountain length, it is SO difficult to find a board that “narrow” or so they say.I notice a lot of guys today riding sticks that are t

Thanks for the question.  Where do you ride primarily?  I ask because East Coast tends to have firmer snow on average and a board that is too wide for you (250+) is going to be slower edge-to-edge and require move action and strength to get up on to edge (and hold carve).  That will mean fatigue and, as you mentioned, loss of overall control.Width is more important than length.  Keep that in mind.  Is a 150 board OK for you?  Sure, but keep in mind the width as the major determining factor.  Everyone have their own preference and the calculator is designed to be an accurate guide.  For me, I have a 9.5 boot size and ride a 247 to 249 width (about 1/4 inch hang on heel and toe side) and that is spot on for me.  At a 159 all-mountain length, it is SO difficult to find a board that “narrow” or so they say.I notice a lot of guys today riding sticks that are too wide for them.  Now, if that were their natural preference then that would be fine, but fact is that manufacturers today are making the boards too darn wide (Lib_Tech, Ride, Atomic, etc…).  Why?  They want to accommodate as many riders as possible per model they make.  In their minds, making boards that are on the wider side “fits” more riders therefore their product is “qualified” to a larger market segment.  More money for them — see.Do not be fooled or “told” what to do and what size to ride — just because a manufacturer pushes it, all the cool kids are riding it, or even some chart or calc says it.  But do be smart, understand the physics of it and go for what is going to be the most fun for YOU.

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