Bomber TD3 SIDEWINDER? - Once upon a time in good old Europe

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Schneewurm
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Bomber TD3 SIDEWINDER? - Once upon a time in good old Europe

Post by Schneewurm » Wednesday 18 August 2010, 10:09

Once upon a time in good old Europe snowboarders took way to stiff skiboots or mountaineering skiboots for to ride on snowboards. That was totaly the opposite to that what's going on in US, where softboots are leading. So there was a demand for more flex, even more sideflex, against what's giving by mountaineering skiboots.

Because of that weak side-flex, some riders are asking some decades before now to flexible bindings. And they use bingings like You can see on the picture below. This bindings had 2 pivots and 4 springs each, for to offer a huge range of sideflex. The declination can be controlled by 2 screws, which allows to adjust assymetrical declinations (inside/outside) too.

Snowboarding stuff companies are then trying to fix this problem (weak side-flex) and put some new hardboots for snowboarding to the market. Then one company (Raichle of Switzerland) issue one of the most excellent boot for alpine snowboarding, the overall new SB-124 with plenty of flex, but also with a lot of support, in any direction (ankle screws have been designed for to be tighten or not be tighten, so colar can have a full flex to the sides for an enhanced free movement of the boot.) And Yes of course, it works with shell deformation, like all modern snowboarding softboots does it today. But no more special bindings have been then needet for to give a ride specific side-flex.

The last couple of Years many raceboarding people in Europe are aging and they are now heavier then any 18-Years old guys or girls. So they turned the focus to stiffer and harder boots for to get control of their many time much to long sticks. Even if they wear UPZ's, which shell was orginaly designed for hardcore racing only, they will have again lack of side-flex. Beside this, there are the american slopes, almost designed slopes on fully artifical snowsport-resorts which allows to ride very long boards. Thats realy a special market too.

Well, for to manage the "new" lack of side-flex on hardboots, Bomber Industries put out last season, an other one binding which is able to flex to the side: the TD 3 Sidewinder. Thats some decades later of the binding I'm showing above. As You know now, Bomber Side-Winder is allmost not a new invention at all! And Yes, it's a cool thing if e.g. companies in the US find out, which stuff their snowboarders need to manage riding their own slopes Yet.

But every continent/country on the world has different slopes/demands. E.g. slopes in Switzerland are different to Austrians so called "proved" highway-type-slopes (where I systematicaly destroyed my edges by enbedded stones).

Beside that, alpine snowboarding is growing up in some countrys very strong, but not all of them needs stuff like e.g. them, designed for the US market.
Keep e.g. focus to the alpin board riders from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran (#), India, or Turkey (*). They have a totaly other demand of equipment for riding an alpine snowboard. Usualy the ride on slopes shaped on a absolute natural and fully authentic scene - thats really the opposite to all the fully artifical snowsport-resorts.


(# Iran: On PSL- PGS-races, like on FIS Asia-Cup or on a FIS-Race [Dizin, Shemshak, Tochal = fifth highest ski-resort on the world, with one of the worlds longest and highest cable car, right above Teheran - world's most scenic ski resort, with worlds finest powdersnow - just 45 minutes for to go from Teheran up to the peak 3963 m/13000 feet for snowboarding] there You will find about as much Iranian riders, up to much more Iranian riders like e.g. German riders on a similar FIS-Race in Germany [Ebingen, Goetschen-Bischofswiesen], but no woman categories at all!)

(* Turkey: Has a strong alpine racer scene too. Since about 2005, snowboarding is growing very rapid. Even most published Turkish skimaps are no more up-to-date. Most of the 22 Turkish resorts are growing fast and offers many new lifts and additional new huge skiing sectors on mountains. Next resort to capital City Istambul is only 90 minutes away!
Parallel slalom alpine snowboards races ends usualy by about 80-100 Turkish finisher. Thats about 5 to 6 times of competitors, compared to German racers on races in Germany. Some snowboard companies like Kessler knows about that, they are still ahead to many other snowboard companies and have taken up e.g. sponsoring of Turkish snowboard racing schools [just ask the alpine riders on white pants and white jacket with a single red block-strip on Austrian Glaciers this autumn]. Whats going on? You can watch it at the Erzurum 2011 Winter Universiade at Mount Palandoken (Ski-area from 2100 m up to 3271 metres) form January 27. to Februar 6. 2011)
Attachments
Carving-slopes-Turkey-ULUDAG-BURSA-and-Palandoken-Murat.jpg
Carving-slopes-Turkey-ULUDAG-BURSA-and-Palandoken-Murat.jpg (57.11 KiB) Viewed 2264 times
Wintersports-in-Iran-Tehran.jpg
Wintersports-in-Iran-Tehran.jpg (51.43 KiB) Viewed 2264 times
Checker-Pig-CPX-Sidewinder.jpg
Checker-Pig-CPX-Sidewinder.jpg (26.82 KiB) Viewed 2264 times
Gliding on Snowboards,
like Pogo, Kessler, Virus, Hot, Nidecker and others,
from 151 up to 183 cm and 14 to 27.4 cm width,
covering any kind of shapes with
any kind of boots and bindings.

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