Here are my initial experiences of my new Swoard 168 medium after a three day carving session in Trysil, Norway. For background information: I have ridden an alpine snowboard, F2 Silberpfeil for 2,5 seasons before switching to Swoard. Before that I rode a freeride board for several years.
My initial feeling of the Swoard was that it was hard to turn ( it is 4 cms broader than the F2 and has a 13m turn radius, F2 has 10,5m). I also had problems with counter rotation and committing to the carves especially on icy, steep slopes.
After 2 days of riding I got used to the board and learned to use more rotation and commit more to the carves. The broader board still required more work to be ridden on narrow slopes, but after three days of riding I got used to it, so that I could handle narrow blue slopes as well as broad red ones.
Once ridden properly the edge hold of the Swoard was superior when compared to the F2, which IMO had good edge hold. The board also handled very well different types of snow, ranging from slush to ice. Whereas my F2 had the tendency to nosedive in slushy bumps, the Swoard did show any signs of doing this in uneven slush.
I did not manage to do any fully laid out carves, but with hindsight I think my main problem was the lack of speed. With my F2 it was easy to get low in slower speeds, since it had a tight side cut.
There are some pictures available at www.pokkis.tk, Trysil link. I am the guy in the white jacket and black pants. Comments on my riding style are welcome
Final judgement: I can't wait to ride the board again! In my opinion the board was well worth its price. The only downside is the top sheet, which seems really sensitive to scratches.
I will send more comments after riding at Ylläs in Finland during the Easter holidays.
Cheers,
Henrik
in