New to snowboarding - need help selecting board

[crazylegz]

Hello,

I have been trying to get a snowboard setup for myself that will work the best for me, but with all the decisions its hard to choose!

I am between two board choices now:

Roxy Ally BTX 147
GNU B-Nice 145

I am 5'7', 130 lbs, athletic female, beginner

I am being told that there really isn't much difference between these boards and thier sizes, but have been told that I should stick with the 145 as it will be easier. But isn't that just a little too small for me? I want the ability to still go on powder without having to work extra hard or possibly sink.

I want a board that will be good for me all around the mountain since I dont know my style nor do I know where I will like to ride. But I seriously doubt I will go in the park and I will probably stick to the runs and possible going in between to find the powder snow (once I am confident enough).

Im not afraid if its a little more work to learn on the 147 as long as that is the best all around mid range size board for my stats.

Thanks for your help and advise!

[Kauila]

My first board was a Burton Lux 150 (5'6", 130 lbs at the time) and it was OK although I thought it was a bit too long. I'm ten pounds heavier now (my son's so sweet, he says "I'm sure it's muscle" ), and I'm riding an Arbor Cadence 147, and the length is perfect. I don't think I would size down to a 145 unless I was riding more park.

Of course it's all personal preference and there are other factors to consider, such as board flex and camber profile (sorry, I don't know the stats of the Ally and B-Nice off the top of my head).

[Joannegiven]

Crazylegs........sorry to jump in on your post but Kauila sounds like she can help me decide between the 2 boards I'm currently deliberating over.....the Burton Lux 2012 and the Arbor Cadence 2012. Which do you prefer? I have a 2007 151 Ride Rapture but I'm looking for something that I can learn tricks on while still being able to ride the mountain including powder. For the Cadence would a 147 be ok for me? I'm almost 5'5" and 10.5 stone (147lbs).

[EatRideSleep]

Originally Posted by crazylegz

Hello,

I have been trying to get a snowboard setup for myself that will work the best for me, but with all the decisions its hard to choose!

I am between two board choices now:

Roxy Ally BTX 147
GNU B-Nice 145

I am 5'7', 130 lbs, athletic female, beginner

I am being told that there really isn't much difference between these boards and thier sizes, but have been told that I should stick with the 145 as it will be easier. But isn't that just a little too small for me? I want the ability to still go on powder without having to work extra hard or possibly sink.

I want a board that will be good for me all around the mountain since I dont know my style nor do I know where I will like to ride. But I seriously doubt I will go in the park and I will probably stick to the runs and possible going in between to find the powder snow (once I am confident enough).

Im not afraid if its a little more work to learn on the 147 as long as that is the best all around mid range size board for my stats.

Thanks for your help and advise!

I'd go with the 147 over the 145. Both boards have banana tech (BTX) which is a rocker profile, and they are fairly similar (both Mervin made).

However. If you are not interested in park and want more of an all mountain deck, the rocker might not be what you're looking for, since they can feel squirrely while carving. From what I've heard, rockers can be more forgiving to learn on, though.

In the event you want something with more stability for carving (when you get there), you might want to consider a hybrid camber that combines the banana (rocker) with some camber. Mervin boards (for chicks, Gnu and Roxy) with that tech have C2BTX, banana between the feet and camber from the binding inserts and out to the contact points.

There are other manufacturers that offer hybrid profiles if you are open to other brands.

[Kauila]

omg, my weight has fluctuated quite a bit in the past year, hasn't it? I'm currently 135 lbs., same height.

@joannegiven, my Burton Lux was an OK board...not great, but OK...did the job while I was a newbie rider. Stable, serviceable, kind of like driving a Toyota Camry. Burton has since changed the camber profile on the Lux (the one I had was traditional camber), so it's a probably different kind of ride now.

Cadence is a fun board. Haven't been able to take it out this season yet (no snow until recently) and ride it more aggressively, so I can't really comment on how it does in that respect. Mostly rode it last year to play around on the mountain, ride powder, and survive the long, flat cat tracks. 147 is probably the right size for you. According to the Arbor website, the current model Cadence 147 tops out at 156 lbs (71K) and the 151 tops out at 164 lbs (74k).

Lilfoot (another poster on the forum) has ridden a bunch of boards and has some good recommendations. Just search the archives for her posts.

@crazylegz, what board did you end up getting?

[snowboardr77]

Check out the never summer infinity. I just got my wife one and they say it's like they guys SL which I have and first time riding it feel in love. It has the rocker and camber.

[EatRideSleep]

Originally Posted by Kauila

@crazylegz, what board did you end up getting?

Oops. Didn't notice the date stamp on the original post!