#4- This board is the k2 A-Star. This awesome board has a capped construction, with a wood core. This board is incredibly light and is oh so very responsive. This board is a great all around board. Hit the steeps or the park, cuz this board can take it. The A-Star costas $420, but is worth your money, and comes in four sizes, starteing at 146, and goin up to 162.
Comin in at #3, is the Forum, JP Walker. J.P. pretty much designed this board himself, so you know it's good. It has a cap construction, and a wood core. You really can't go wrong with this board. It only comes in 148 cm, but for those shorter riders, like me, it's perfect. This board can do it all, park, backcountry, or both, it don't matta anymo' cuz the bottom line is that this board is tight. It costs $440, and is of course worth it.
At number two this year, I got the Burton Supermodel. This good lookin board also feels good. Comin down the mountain, you'll feel like you're flying, and if you're good enough, you will be. With carbon I beams, this board will offer that little extra pop off the hit, and you'll get that little extra distance and height to perform all those huge tricks better. This board does great in all conditions, groomed, pow, or packed pow, it's all good. This board is a great all around board, with a capped construction and a wood core, this board is one of the lighter boards you'll come across. This board starts at 156 cm and goes to 181, so it's definitely for the taller riders, or the freeriders, whichever is you.
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Finally, my number one pick on the 2000 Mack Attack board picks, is the Burton Custom. This board was completely redesigned to by the Burton team members, and now it's back with a vengence. The park, backcountry, or even on top of your ski rack lookin good, this board does it all. It's like Superman!! The Custom has a sidewall construction to give it a little more stability to it, but no real weight was added. However, my friend did get this board, and it dents fairly easy, so if you're into keeping a really nice lookin board, this board is fine, but not the best. Infact, this is one of the lighter boards that I have seen. Carbon I beam construction allows for great pop off kickers and very responsive and powerful turns. This board comes in seven sizes, ranging from 144 to 169, so it's cool for everyone. Also, with its sintered base, the Custom can keep wax fresh on it, to keep you goin full speed for a while! At $450, this board is defintely worth buying. It's one of the best boards I have seen, so don't let this oppurtunity pass ya by. |
A good brand of boards, that aren't hugely noticed, is 5150. They make pretty good boards, ranging from $200-300, so that's pretty good. One of their better boards, is the Enigma. The Enigma costs $280, and has an extruded base, which is pretty soft, which gets scraped up easier, but it also repairs very easily and absorbs wax very well, whereas a sintered base is harder, and used more for powder riders. The board has pretty good flex, both torsional and longitudal. Torsional flex is how stiff a board is from edge to edge. Longitudal flex is how stiff a board is from toe to tail. The Enigma has a cap construction, and a wooden core. It comes in 146, 151, 156, 159, and 163. This board is good for all mountain riding, because of its directional form. Directional means that one tip is bigger and wider than the other, but ever so slighty. This board happens to have the tail bigger, by .4 of a cm. To let you know, 5150 has the Cyclone model out, the Caprice, the Imperial, the Pacer, and a bunch of others. They are a good company, as a branch of the recently redesigned RIDE snowboards, which have taken on a whole new look, and have actually become pretty good boards.
My next company of decks is Option. These boards have become really good boards, and they deserve some recognition. However, Option is a brand with a couple expensive boards, and a couple affordable boards. Although the difference between the two boards is small and hardly noticeable, there is 50-150 dollars worth of price difference. So I recommend checking out the Redline model, along with the Super Cap, and the booter. The booter comes in 154, 158, 162, and the 166, and costs about $380. The Super Cap comes in the 141, 144, 148,152, 156, 159, and the 163 and costs a respectable $359 or so. The Super Cap is the cheapest of the three models, at $310, as it is not quite as good. I reccomend this board for a beginner, or a powder rider. It comes in 144, 148, 152, 156, 159, and the 163.
One other brand that isn't recognized, that you could take advantage of, is Silence. Their boards are among the $350 and up ranges, but I definently reccomend these boards. Silence has been around for awhile, working all their bugs out and this year, their boards are really good. Silence models include the Ami Voutilainen, the Dale Rehberg, the Puzzle, the Mike Ranquet, and the Rob dow. All Silence boards have sintered bases, pretty solid. Sintered bases retain wax a lot better than extruded. The sintered base requires more maintenence, but it is better overall material. However, it really doesn't matter, unless you are a racer or a halpipe competitor, in which you should get a board with Electra base, which gives you the extra boost when you would normally be going slower on a sintered or extruded. Electra bases are way more expensive, so I recommend sticking to a sintered or extruded base. Back to Silence though. The Ami Voutilainen model comes in the 163 model only, as it is a pro model, and it costs $375, along with most the other Silence boards in this section. The Dale Rehberg model is a pro, so it only comes in teh 161. The Puzzle, however, comes in 151, 155, 159, 162, and the 166. The Puzzle is $365. The Mike ranquet is a pro, so it only comees in 162,. The Rob Dow is also a pro model, and it only comes in 157. The Team is 153.5, and costs $375 The Silence I most highly reccomend is the Puzzle. It has a cap construction, and a wood core. It is not to flexible, but it's not too stiff. It's just right for people who like to ride the steeps and then hit the park on their way down.
Another brand that is over used and over hyped is Sims. Sims aren't that good of boards. They are average, with exception to one board, that costs like $675 or something, but a lot of rentals and beginners have a Sims. I don't really like Sims, just because they have the nerve to charge you $675 for something to ride on, that does not have a motor.
Since I don't want to go into great detail about other played out brands, I'll just tell em to ya. World Industries, all the little skaters that can't do anything have em, Burton, everyone rents em out, Oxygen, everyone rents em, Liquid, everyone rents em, and Palmer USA, because it's Shaun Palmer's line, and he only rides boarder X, and he shouldn't have his own line of boards. Bottom line is it's labeled as a poser brand!
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At the number two spot, are the new green Forum Bindings. Forum has been working on bindings that emphasize performance, versatility and customization. The team has really pushed Forum to develop a good binding that has features that let you to personalize your binding for maximum comfort, control and support. These bindings are your basic bindings, but they work very well, and they don't cost as much as a lot of other bindings. They cost somewhere around $150. The only problem, and this is only for some people, is that this season, everyone will have them. I think these bindings are pretty good, and that's why they are here, but do not buy these bindings because Peter Line, JP Walker, Devun Walsh, or any of the other riders has them. In fact, do not buy any gear just because your favorite pro rides it. Find something that suits you and your type of riding. One problem that I found with these bindings is that they don't strap down very well. They may take a second or so to get down, but they would do just fine. |
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At number one are the Drake f60's. These bindings are dope! They offer everything, responsiveness, stability, and an awesome color job. These bindings are so great. I just purchased a pair, and compared to Burtons or something, they are way more responsive. The aluminum heelcup enables the energy from your turns to go directly through into the board. I know you are thinking that this couldn't be true, but it is. I was skeptical when I got them, but they paid off. These bindings have a very highback, which comes up to just about the top of my boot. That's good for older riders, with bigger boots, but not for little kids. My bindings are black and yellow, and they look awesome. I stuck a bakoda high back pack on their, and now I'm ready to ride. |
BOOTS
Now, instead of goin into great detail about boots, I'm gonna let you decide, after all, there's so many good pairs, you really can't go too wrong. And remember, get a pair that fits. You won't wanna ride if you are floatin in your boots, so get a comfortable pair. Ordering online is risky, but saves $$$. Check out these links to boot companies.
Burton homepage. Who else did you expect?
DC Shoes homepage
Northwave Homepage
Thirty Two Page
Vans' site
"The House" is a good dealer. They sell last years models and this years of everything for pretty cheap. It's worth a look! .