I first tried the split board as a snowboard at kirkwood 5 days ago. Board rode better than I expected. Then I tried the skis, keeping in mind I have only ever skied one time 20 years ago. (I'm a fairly aggresive snowboarder of 12 years). Your experience snowboarding will not make you a skier overnight, I learned immediately. I got off the lift without falling, but man! It was very frustrating at first. O.K., so as open minded as I am, I am a snowboarder, not a skier. I retreated back to my 11 board selection for the day, riding my Nidecker 163 Megalight (I would just love to cut this board in half now because it is light, and a fantastic powder design). The next day, I decided I'd better try the climbing skins to complete my evaluation of this split board. O.K., NOW this is soooooo cool! I had my poles, and just straight launched right up the mountain! WOW! This totally changes everything!
I had only back-country rode for the first time on my last excursion in March behind chair 6, also at kirkwood. I very much had the best riding day of my life. (O.K., it was THE best day of my life period, but don't tell my wife) I actually went with a pro skier, Ian Kent, who had climbing skins, and I had no snow shoes, and my Lib-Tech Dark Series with the much loved Magne-traction (another board I'd love to split now, as well as the banana with magne-traction)
Sure enough, the Lib-tech was the good call for decending an icy wall coming down north gate near the entrance from the highway. The 6 hour expedition was so incredible after 12 feet of recent snowfall, and 4 fresh feet on the surface. Only one skier had dared put down a fall line, and later there had been no-one before on our route. So addictive! But so exhausting! Ian told me I must have been using 20 times more energy than he was with skis and skins. We timed it. It took me 3 times longer to traverse up steep pow, (untracked) and 2 times longer up medium but boot-tracked trail. I'm looking forward to the 5 times more terrain I'll be riding on future outings, and I'm already planning on hauling a light tent and overnight gear to make an overnight adventure. The hard part is to get someone as crazy as I am that is physically up to such a haul! Thank you folks at Voile for coming up with this one. From reading others reviews, I can see I'm not the only rider who's life is just dandy now because of you guys! God bless you! All the same, I'd like to see your board design improve. Carbon composite would save a pound or so, and have a nice pop, and if you could steal the magne traction off of a Lib-tech, and go banana camber, it would be THE ultimate! Especially for the traverse up with the skins, the banana would skip you up on the surface. By all means, respond to this and tell me what you think. Snowboarders?
