50th birthday present

[aussiecarver]

Hi guys, - some naiive questions - please go easy on me!

My wife is buying me a 50th birthday present - a brand new snowboard. I'm weighing up a Kessler and a Swoard. I am SO excited!

I'm new to hardbooting - been softbooting for years. I switched two years ago and I love it. I surf, so it makes perfect sense!

I have a Prior WCR 167 (2000?) non-metal and an F2 Speedster GTS 158. Step ins on both. 2002 Deelux Salt Lake City racing - MP 28.5 Indy boots.

Both setups are super fun. I kind of prefer the Prior as I like speed and long carves. I'm getting lower and lower with each time I ride (hands on snow), but I'm not nearly laying flat yet!

I'm fascinated by the Extreme Carving style and feel like a moth drawn to a flame. I want to do it... but I have no idea how to get there. Patrice and Jacques - you guys are insane. I wish I was you (sorry for being a pathetic groupie here... but hey, might as well put it out there!). If you ever want to come and do some lessons in Australia, let me know and I'll take you to out of the way, fantastic surf spots in return for a couple of lessons!

Some advice please! I have been told by one of my contacts here in Australia (a racer who goes over to the US each year - lucky bastard!) to go for a Kessler KST metal. That all sounds great and I'm happy to go down that path, but I also LOVE the look of the Swoards and I understand they're great to use even if you're not an expert like the guys mentioned above. Will I love a Swoard as much as a Kessler? Somewhere I read you can still ride a Swoard and have fun without 'laying down' (even though I want to lay down, I think it will take me a while - if at all!!!). So what should I do? I can only really buy one board.

Should I buy a demo Swoard and a demo Kessler? How hard is it to do that? I have no idea because I'm from Australia and hardbooting is not well known!

Please go easy on me and sorry for the basic questions!



- Pete.

[Arnaud]

hi Pete

Being here on a Swoard forum, of course we'll say that the Swoard extremecarver is for you
If you're interested to make races, maybe the Kessler is the tool. But from what I can read in your message, laying down is one of your goals, and for this the Swoard is the best tools because it's designed for (this since nearly 10 years). The board is also versatile and you can have fun even when you don't lay down.

P.S. Happy birthday

[aussiecarver]

Thanks for that Arnaud (sorry, forgot to mention that you too are insane on a snowboard)

I think you're right - no racing - I'm only recreational. But I have lots of fun. Even if I never manage to get down flat, I'm reading between the lines that the Swoard will still be super fun.

I'm 5'11 and 75kg. Should I go for the 175? I guess there's so much to learn as well. Is there anyone in Australia that can teach me the EC way?

Other questions: What's the difference between the Generation 4 and the Generation 3 board?

Can I use my Step in bindings? (F2 titaniums) or do I need to get new ones?

Cheers again,

Pete.

[Transistor Rhythm]

I personally like step-in bindings for my narrower boards as they help me to tilt the board with steep angles, but I have regular bindings on my Swoard. I wouldn't buy new bindings immediately but you could choose for regular bail bindings for your spare set (I always bring two sets because if a binding fails in most places I can't get replacement bail bindings), so you can choose what you put on your board.

You can get a 168 too for your height, and maybe it's a bit more versatile than the 175. But it also depends on your bootsize:

https://extremecarving.com/swoard/choose.html

[Arnaud]

I'm 5'11 and 75kg.

5'11" = 1m80
As Transistor Rythm said the 168 could an option but considering your feet size, the 175 is better. If you want a 168, which is indeed more versatile , you can also consider to change your boots for shorter one (Head Stratos Pro in 28.5 works fine on 168)
You can start with your actual F2 and change later (normal bindings are better for EC)

What's the difference between the Generation 4 and the Generation 3 board

In addition to the design, the new generation (4) has some difference in the construction to improve the behaviour .... More informations soon

[joemzl]

Is there anyone in Australia that can teach me the EC way?

Yes, you´re lucky.
leeho730 is a member of this forum and he says, he´s living in freaking Australia, in the middle of desert.
So you will know where that is.
You´ll find him in the following thread, if you scroll a bit:
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9190

[rcrobar]

Hello

Happy Birthday, great present for the big 50!

I have said this before and I continue to believe it to be true; the Extremecarver is a great all round carver that is very forgiving, I would recommend it to anyone interested in carving even if they NEVER lay down a single EC style turn. There are a lot of great boards out there, the Extremecarver is one of them.

Because you are from Australia and a surfer I'd would also like to suggest another line of thinking. The basis for the design of the EC board was that it was designed to be used with the rotation technique, yes you can ride it anyway with any interface, etc., but it was built with a board flex that is meant to optimized the rotation/push pull technique in mind. The reason I mention this is because the roots of the rotation technique are from surfing and skateboarding ... and you are a surfer.

I think it would be interesting to hear from you, an Australian surfer, whether or not snowboarding with lower angles and flexy standard bindings, that lend themselves to pressuring the edges of a board more with the heel and toe of a boot rather that the sides of the boot, would be similar to your surf experience? My background is skateboarding vert, I found the Extremecarver's lower stance angles to be an Alpine dream come true for me.

Best of luck with whichever board you decide to go with.
Rob

[aussiecarver]

Well Rob, I can safely say that I am very happy to test this out for you and give you my theory on how close it is to surfing.

Only one problem! I don't have a board to try out. LeeHo is on the other side of Australia and that's a long way from me to borrow a board off him. (for Europeans, it's a bit like saying I'll just drive over to London from Athens for the weekend to borrow the board). So if anyone is prepared to lend me a board next winter in Australia (June - August 2012) I'll personally pay for the return freight to get it here and send it back so I can try it out! Alternatively, maybe someone has an older Swoard that will still give me a reasonable idea of what EC is like, maybe we could strike a deal.

Let me know guys!

Cheers,

Pete.

[leeho730]

I'd love to send you the Swoard, but it's currently sitting in my skipad in NZ.

If you ever come to NZ, you can try swoard, 168M. I've got a spare binding (td3) as well so all you need to bring is your own boots.