Long Boards? Not Bored Long!

By Jim Driver

In the evolution of any sport, changes in equipment can renew the sportsperson' s verve for improvement. Essentially, at some point, equipment makes a drastic change.

Now summer has ended and new snow has appear ed on the high peaks, I am allowing myself to bring my boards from the shed into the living room where snow magazines have been peppering the carpet for the last 3 months. I am back in love with my boards. They are the vehicle from where I derive sliding freedom. They don't have to be clean or new or even attractive. They conjure memories of great times, top runs and close calls.

Last year I bought a brand new board with intentions of having a solid plank to ride on for several years. I noticed immediately that the brand new stiffness made carves more powerful. I could really load up the board and there was still room to bend it more. Like all new toys it took 3 weeks of tweaking to get the stance right, and to understand the board's capabilities. However, I came to a sad realization that it was too narrow. I went back to an old, old board with the width I had been very comfortable with and immediately noticed the lack of spring, stiffness and power. I needed a new, wide snowboard.

A fellow instructor, Dave, had equipped many of our snowboard instructors with boards that came out particularly on powder days and conversely on carving days. Stiff boots, race bindings and long, powerful euro-carves were marveled at from the chair on runs before line-up. By the middle of the season a few demos became available. I tried one and once again it was too narrow - I'd heel out with an increase in edge angle. However while skis were getting shorter, these boards were pushing 200 cm!

Last February, some huge dumps left 4 feet or 120 cm of powder for everyone to try and track out before lunch. The town of Bozeman called in sick, and the hill was actually crowded. Even at 9:30 Pierre 's Knob had lines all over it, but was still very fresh. After following Dave hazily to the top of Family Bowl, I stopped to watch him launch at high speed off the side of the groomer into the bowl. T here were 3 skiers stranded in the deep powder floundering looking for equipment. By the time I got over the edge to see where Dave had gone, he was approaching the lower groomer. He'd managed to maintain enough momentum and float to straightline it past the skiers and never sink in. Well powder on any snowboard is terrific but my 161 wouldn't stop trying to nosedive. I made it through somewhat disappointed that I wasn't able to keep up speed.

Now I'd decided I needed a longer, wider board. A 177 came up for sale and I snatched it up. The second day I had ridden it I showed up to a freestyle clinic at Big Sky. After brief introductions, everyone's eyes averted to the board. During the buzz, I heard the clinician mutter over his shoulder that it was hardly a freestyle board and could be interesting in the pipe. Although I was happy with my purchase, I did certainly question the wisdom of bringing a brand new toy to an accreditation clinic.

I really enjoyed the clinic, even though I was still getting used to the board. I had remembered someone saying "riding a long board just takes a little bit more of everything". The result I had found was that you could do a lot more, with ease. A longer board was faster ; the wide board meant I could carve at a higher angle , and most of all it was a smoother ride. The length allows the rider to have more edge in the snow for a more confident carve. It has a lot more length to cushion irregularities in the surface and hence shock absorbs while it tracks. In the powder, you have the same weight distributed over a greater area so you float better with less pressure. You can increase the nose length by shifting your front foot back as with any other board, but you have dramatically increased the "surfing" ability of the board. In the half pipe, you obviously have a longer propeller to rotate and so need to give yourself more room accomplish the spin or the turn at the lip. However, with the length as a stabilizing factor you can ride with speed and control down, across and back up the opposing wall. The length will be an issue at the top of the lip when turning, but as the saying goes "you just have to do more of everything". You have to steer harder, pressure more and follow through. Another numinous moment which increased my confidence in the virtues of a long board, occurred upon landing over the nose off a table-top jump. The extra nose length meant I could bend the board without it digging in to the ramp and flipping me onto the side of my head. By the end of the season I thoroughly enjoyed riding the board in the pipe, over jumps and spinning 360's. In fact, I like to think that an all-mountain board is a great arrow to have in your quiver because it doesn't necessarily have any limitations. I will agree that hard-core freestylists are going to gong the spinning and pipe qualities. This observation is no more evident than among the skiing aficionado where shorter planks are the current bend particularly in the freestyle arenas. However, after mastering skills on a board in which you are very comfortable with, I'd challenge anyone to explore the range their skills can take them to on a longer board! Remember, you are not trying a whole new tool, just expanding the abilities you already have . For those that like to ride the steep and deep, the turns will exhilarate and thrill as you maintain a continuous and buoyant flow. Many companies already manufacture all-mountain boards and so choosing a suitable length is the key question. I increased my board length 16 cm going from a 161 to a 177. Of course, you should also make sure that the width is what you need and are comfortable with.

As I explore the mountains on my bike, I appreciate the thrill I glean from equipment modifications such as shock absorbers and 24 plus gears. I can go so much further and ride harder than I ever could as a kid on a mountain bike then. Helmets are cheap, cool and light and I am able to enjoy the mountains in the summer-time. These elements of a summer outdoor sport namely safety, comfort and thrill transfer to the snowsports. While a person can always improve physically and mentally in their sports, you can also amplify the experience with equipment modifications. Even the Olympic runners and swimmers who use very little equipment, shave times by altering their clothing fabrics and starting blocks. As a snowboarder, we have many equipment modifications we can make. For me the drastic change to a much longer and wider board was a relief and is still a great thrill.