nicebikeman12

Hey guys, I'm another beginner looking to get into snowboarding; I've gone a couple times with friends and have gotten hooked. I'm a true beginner, but am planning on taking some lessons in the near future as well as making regular trips to Tahoe. Since I'm a poor college student, I figured it would be more cost effective to buy now rather than renting every trip or buying in the future. Specifically, I'm looking for a setup that:

1) is cost effective (I don't want to shell out $500+ for just a board)
2) is beginner friendly
3) will continue to perform as I progress

As for my personal specs, I'm 5'9", 185lbs--some chubs, some muscle—looking mainly to ride the groomers of Tahoe with some trips to the park. I’ve been looking into a couple Ride boards, the Crush and the Antic.

The Crush: I believe it’s a park board, but I’ve read that a softer flex is better suited to learning. Would getting a relatively long Crush (158 or 161) be a good board for learning while being able to perform moderately well on the mountain? I’m not looking for a board that will handle really high speeds—I figure I can always buy a new one when I reach that point—just one that can perform from beginner to an upper level intermediate.

The Antic: I think this would better fit my eventual demands of a board, the all mountain riding with some jumps, etc. My primary concern was that I think the flex is stiffer in the Antic. Would it be too extreme to function as a beginner board? Would a relatively short Antic (157/158) be good to learn on while maintaining some higher end performance? I had also read somewhere that a higher weight rider can better handle/may require a stiffer flex, and was wondering if this is one of those cases.

Any input on these boards is appreciated, as are suggestions of boards of a similar price range.

As for bindings, I was looking at Ride EX’s, Flow ‘the Fives,’ Burton Customs, or possibly Burton Freestyles, though I’ve read mainly bad things about the latter. Again, any input on these bindings as well as other suggestions is appreciated.

Thanks guys!

rasmasyean

The Skate Banana is one of the most versatile beginner boards that can stay with you for a while as you progress. It's reverse camber that makes it forgiving (the middle is also softer) and has magnetraction for edge hold on hard and icy snow. It's also twin so you can ride switch the same as normal which helps in the park. The ends are stiffer so it will be stable at decent speeds.
Skate Banana Lib Tech Snowboards
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9in6ick3OE

http://www.sierrasnowboard.com/snowb...d-Bindings.asp


There's a 30% off discount code in one of the shops that has a bunch of sizes somwhere in this forum.

ippy

Seriously, if youre after 2010 stuff, you could definitely do a lot worse than heading to sierrasnowboard and picking up their custom knock off (the sierra crew). You may also want to look at their blunt knock off (the sierra stunt). Both boards i think are under 200 and both will last you well past your first season (the crew youll probably have for a good three seasons or so before you get sick of it, particularly if you pick up the reverse crew model).

gjsnowboarder

I would probably stay in the 155-157 range for board length for your height/weight. Also the Crush might be the better board to go with since it a little flexier for a beginner. Make sure you match up the board with your size of foot. If size eleven + you will want a wide board. also take a look at the Ride Kink. I have this board and it is a joy to ride. For bindings try to upgrade to the Ride SPi's or the Burton Missions at the very least. If you go with one you have listed then the Custom's are the best binding of the lot.