Which Dual for a skinny Bigfoot?

[EDI-BRU]

Hello Swoard community!

I would like to buy a Dual 175 but I am not sure if this is the right choice for me. Can you help?

I am looking for an all-round board that carves well on the piste, floats on powder and is maneuverable on bumpy terrain.

My weight is 76 kg and I am 187 cm tall. Soft boots are Salomon F2.0 fusion, mondo 29.5, external length 32 cm. For my height and size of feet I believe the 175 is the right choice for me, but looking at my weight shouldn't the 168 be better suited?

I am concerned that the Dual 175 might feel a bit like a big oil tanker when dealing with varied terrain (moguls, off-piste between trees and rocks...). On the other hand, the 168 is quite narrow and requires high binding angles to minimize boot overhang. That is no problem on a groomed piste, but on a bumpy piste or off-piste I prefer my binding angles low.

I know that a stiffer board carves less well on ice, but that’s a compromise I’m prepared to make.

Many thanks in advance,

G.

[fivat]

Hello Gunter,

Your analysis is good! For sure the Dual 168 will be too narrow for you big feet in soft boots.
One of the good points about the Dual 175 compared to other brands is its longitudinal softness (while the torsional stiffness is high and well controlled/distributed thanks to the Carbon ATC Matrix). This gives amazing performances on-piste and off-piste. So don''t worry, it won't be too stiff (in its axis) for your 76 kg.
However, I would recommend you to get a Dual 175 from last season or before (as second hand for example). This season we make this size very slightly stiffer, because we took into account the feedbacks from some riders who asked precisely a bit more longitudinal stiffness.

Patrice Fivat

[EDI-BRU]

Hello Patrice,

Thanks for the advise!
I posted a note in the classifieds. Unfortunately, there are no Duals 175 on offer right now. Do you know anyone who is thinking about selling his old Dual 175 because it feels a bit too soft?

Merci,

Gunter

[fivat]

Probably Le Fanfoué. He discussed this with me.
He uses hard boots on his Dual, so he could switch to the new Dual 2014.

Patrice Fivat

[EDI-BRU]

Thanks for the tip. I'll send him a pm.
Gunter