MrRaD

hey i need advice in a new board.

6'0 tall
188lbs
12 boot
so i am looking to go wide.

i am a solid intermediate from NYC. so i mainly ride vermont or hunter mountain. but i go out west 2-3 times a season for 8-14 total big mountain days. been to kirkwood, whistler,squaw,mt. baker, cerro cathedral(argentina) and snowbird so you get an idea. did back country in argentina, but i'm not to big on it, but it is always an option if i'm with the right group. so i mainly ride groomers and enjoy nice controlled speed, which my 159 skate banana does not give me. i enjoy its playfulness. i previously owned a 157 skunk ape no banana which was my second board 3 yrs ago. this is my 5th season, it was a beast, and allowed me to ride hard and fast, but wasnt as playful. i want an all around board, so i can mess around with 180's no serious park riding, little hits off of rollers but nothing crazy. i'm keeping the skate, so i was wondering what would be the best for me as far as fast and stable yet playful on groomers with some deep powder days. the RC is an option too because i demoed it a few days ago in Baker for the hell of it and was pleasantly surprised.

any suggestions from the 3 would be awesome..

Riders choice 158w or 162w
skunkape 161
or NS heritage 159 or 163

im headed to alyeska at the end of Feb, and will do some snow cat so i want to be ready to carve..

Derp

Just a thought. Haven't personally rode it, but know people who have and enjoyed it. Sounded like it might fit what you are looking for.

KT22

MrRaD

never hear of it, did some research and it looks pretty sick!, thanks for even more confusion. lol

although i think the skunk ape now has a replacement

BigmountainVMD

The skunk apes are super wide. Even with a size 12 boot, you don't need a WIDE board... you just need a wider/mid-wide.

The Heritage X in 159 has a waist of 26.1 cm... which I think would be perfect and playful for you. I know the difference between 26.1 and 26.8 (skunk ape and Heritage X 163) does not seem like much, but it is most definitely noticeable, and the NS will be faster edge to edge.

I have a size 11 boot (6'3", 200 lbs) and ride a 157 Proto CT with a waist of 25.3 and I have yet to get any toe or heel drag, even while throwing deep carves down black trails.

Go for the Heritage X 159. You will be very happy with that size.

MrRaD

thank you, i was leaning heavy towards the heritage x 159..its been in my shopping cart for days now..

BigmountainVMD

Do it. Being that it is your 5th season, and your riding style, that board will do whatever your current style demands, with room for more advanced things like big mountain drops/jumps.

lisevolution

Not to add confusion to your search because I'm all for you going with the Heritage but you may also want to look at the Legacy as it's a bit more playful than the Heritage. The Heritage is definitely going to be a bit more board and have super quick edge to edge response but it's also a bit stiffer and more tuned to bigger mountain freestyle. I was back and forth between the two a couple of seasons ago and ultimately decided on the Legacy because I came to reality that while I do get out west usually once or twice a season, the bulk of my time riding is in VT where I don't really need nor would I appreciate the extra burliness and responsiveness that the Heritage brings to the table. Unfortunately due to a lingering back issue I haven't been able to take the Legacy out west too much as I have only been out to Vail with it but I will say that we were dealing with 4 feet of fresh over the 5 days I was there and pretty much did nothing but natural runs and the back bowl area and it handled everything beautifully despite my terrible form and bad riding tendencies.

On the plus for the Heritage though the carbonium top sheet is sick looking. You can't really tell from a distance but when you see it up close it's awesome

BigmountainVMD

I'd agree with that. NS boards are very composed at high speeds, so you can go down a "level" stiffness wise, and get a more playful board that is still very nice at speed. I was initially looking at the Heritage but I went with the Proto and I couldn't be happier.

bseracka

At 188 you're pretty light for the skunk ape especially with only size 12 feet. The ape is stiff and damp and will probably feel like a plank at your size. If you really wan the ape may I suggest some weight gainer 3000

lisevolution

To go further on this, you may even be able to go shorter than the 159 at your weight and go for the 156 in the Legacy. I'm not sure if he's still really active on the site at this point but you may want to reach out to Vince from NeverSummer to get his take on that. His handle on here is VMan. Shoot him a PM and see what he says between the two and the right size for you. He helped me out a lot when I was looking at them.