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Review: 2012 Never Summer Proto CT

272K views 919 replies 187 participants last post by  dreampow 
#1 · (Edited)
Review part 2 here with David's take on the board as well:

aGNARchy Proto CT Review

Introduction

For the past two years, I've slowly been getting sucked into the Never Summer hype around these forums. I wondered, "Can a line of boards really be that good?". Well, earlier last month, I was presented an opportunity of a snowboarding lifetime. Vince and Tracey from Never Summer contacted me and offered me a position in their online design team. What does that entail exactly? Well, they wanted my input on their products present and future. If I have any ideas/input regarding all aspects of their boards, then I am more than welcome to provide them. What's the catch? I have to ride and review a board of my choice. I chose the Proto CT because the tech specs sounded to be a perfect compliment to my riding style.

So you might be wondering what I thought about the board now. Well, I am a little angry at snowboardingforum to be honest. All that hype... all that talk... for what? A board that did not meet my expectations... THE NEVER SUMMER PROTO CT EXCEEDED MY EXPECTATIONS. So why the anger? Because now I have to add another brand of boards to my want list. Now I want to ride them all! Thanks guys. This is not a good thing for a gear whore like me.

So here it is, my initial review of the excellent 2012 Never Summer Proto CT 157:

Setup
Board: 2012 Never Summer Proto CT 157
Bindings: 2011 Rome 390 Boss L/XL
Boots: 2011 Burton Restricted Hail 9.5 US
Stance: +18/-12 Regular @ 23.5"

I am 5'9, 180lbs.

Handling
The Proto CT really shines in this department. The snow conditions was as good as it gets for Michigan at a generous 10-12". The Proto absolutely loves the snow. It held a solid edge when initiating carves and was more than easy to engage the sidecut. I did a series of short to medium to long carves and it was superbly stable and smooth. The Proto rode like a 160ish board, but handled like a 155ish. I attribute these characteristics to the longer effective edge and light weight (the blunted tips reduce the swing weight as well).

As the day progressed, the good snow had been pushed off to the side leaving the hardpack exposed. The Proto didn't have a single problem eating through it all. In fact, I felt so confident on this board, that I still rode aggressively even though there was crazy wind gusts with snow that made it hard to see. Of course, I didn't mach down the run in fear of hitting another rider, but I sure was carving it up on terrain I could barely see.

I didn't take the Proto into park jumps yet, but I definitely will soon. I was hitting some pow build ups though and it was super stable on those little jumps. On one occasion, I leaned forward too much and was sure I was going to eat snow. Much to my joy, I was able to ride it out. Come on, I got away with landing on my nose. That's pretty good. Not sure if this will be the case on an actual kicker, but I'll take it.

The only cons I could find about the handling is the edge to edge quickness and speed. It wasn't quite as fast as other boards I ride. This is because the board's width is a little wider than what I normally ride. The Proto CT 157 has a waist width of 25.3". My other boards are under 25". But to be honest, that is nitpicking and someone with even a size 10 boot won't likely have this problem. As for the speed, I found it to be a bit slower than my other rides. However, this is on factory wax and I will surely have to see how it rides after I personally wax it.

Pop
Very satisfying. One of the more poppy boards out there. Load up on either the nose or tail and off you go. I was having a ton of fun just ollieing over branches and clumps of snow.

Flex/Camber Profile
I'd give this board a 6 rating flex-wise. Just over middle-of-the-road. Perfect for all-mountain freestyle in my opinion. Torsionally, it is a bit stiffer which is one of the reasons why this board carves so well for a mid-flex.

I was very curious about Never Summer's now famous Rocker Camber profile. Love it. I'm going to say it... I like it more than my previous favorite, C2 BTX. While the C2 is in fact more playful, it doesn't lend to carving and stability (stable C2 boards are good deal stiff like the T.Rice). Never Summer got things right with their hybrid camber and this is probably another reason why a board of this flex can handle like a bigger, stiffer board. I like that their camber section feels like it has more bite. I haven't compared it next to a C2 yet, but I'd hazard a guess that NS's camber zone is a little more pronounced. Although there wasn't a ton of pow, I did take the Proto on the sides of the runs where everyone was neglecting the untouched snow build-up. The NS held up really well and gave me a glimpse of what riding actual pow would be like. Obviously, there are better pow boards out there, but the Proto CT does well enough.

Other Thoughts
I have to mention that I had a crash on the Proto. I was riding behind a skier and wanted take a path to the right. I did not realize that he had the same path in mind and he made an abrupt right turn. We ended up colliding causing him to lose his skies and me to go into a tuck and roll. Don't worry, I admitted fault and apologized and we both had a good laugh about it. Anyway, back to the point. I was sure I was going to find some damage on my board. Absolutely sure of it. Needless to say, I still can't find it and I want to give it another look over next time I ride. I guess Never Summer isn't kidding about the Carbonium topsheet being durable.

That brings me to my other point. The Carbonium topsheet not only looks good, but makes for a damn handy stomp pad. As in, you don't need one with this board. The whole topsheet acts as a stomp pad thanks to that cool looking texture.

Conclusions
Boy oh boy did Never Summer deliver. Trust me, I wanted every bone in my body not to like this board as much as I did just so I can have a different opinion than the rest of the crowd. But now, I realize that this Never Summer hype has a solid foundation. Is it the perfect board? Well, no. No board truly will be perfect. But for an all-mountain freestyle shredder, it comes pretty darn close.

Who do I recommend the Proto CT for? The intermediate-advanced rider that is looking for a do everything ride.

Big thanks to Vince and Tracey for giving me this opportunity. The Proto CT is definitely an excellent board that exceeded all my expectations.
 
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#27 ·
I have one in my possession as well at the moment. Not quite ready to put up a full fledged review (need two weeks until I take it to Mt. Bohemia), but initial impression on the board is VERY positive. I personally think it's a hair little softer than a 6 (maybe more like a 5-5.5 on my personal scale, but I also have 10-15 lbs on Leo and that's honestly probably just semantics).

The pop is pretty fantastic for a reverse camber board. Great pop, but also easy to pop. You can easily slap it behind the back foot, but you can also load up like on a traditional cambered board because you have something to fight against in the tips.

I'm really enjoying the feel of the board. I love my 09 SL, but at times found it to be a little too damp for my tastes. I have been trend a bit more "lively" in my tastes, but not going overboard... this board really hits that sweet spot I think.

I still need to put the board through a few more conditions (chopped up Sierra cement-esque crap and pow), but this so far my impressions are very positive. I think I'd prefer the 160, but I'm having a lot of fun on the 157.
 
#25 ·
They were at the test fest last year, it's for shop employees only. Unfortunately, NS won't be here this time. I think it's because they aren't well known here yet.

@dice: The Proto handled everything I threw at it well so far. I will be doing some jumps on it tomorrow. Nothing big though as I'm no park rat. I'll let you know how it handles.
 
#29 ·
I found this board to be a hair softer than my 09 SL, but I hear the SL is a bit softer nowadays so flex is probably push. This board is also poppier than I remember my SL being new (although that was a couple years and 50-or-so riding days ago). The biggest difference is that this board is noticeably lighter and less damp with a more aggressive sidecut. You could go either way, just going to depend on preference.
 
#31 ·
My proto ct review.

First of all, i'm new here, so hello everyone! I've been lurking for a bit and its a very cool forum. I have been lucky enough to ride a proto for the past week, here is my review...which I also posted over on easyloungin.
OK, Here's my Proto CT Review.
Me 5'10, 150 lbs. I normally ride a NS EVO 155.
Board NS Proto CT 157 w/cartels.
I've finally gotten enough time on this board to feel confident writing a review of it. Overall I like it...a LOT. While the same shape as the evo Its a good deal stiffer, both longitudinally AND torsionally. As such it feels a lot more stable at higher speeds, and on edge. The board feels damper than my evo for sure... there is a lot less chatter going on in choppy conditions. I really enjoyed carving on it and the pop. oh my god the pop. I got a LOT more snap out of the tail than on my evo, on small side hits I was consistently getting much more of a boost of of the proto than I would on my evo.
Today I took it to the park and lapped a 20' park jump on it and I found the stability and pop to be really nice. The landings had some ruts on them that the Proto absorbed really nicely...like I didn't really have to think about it much. In contrast, when I hit the same jump afterwards on my Evo, the landings had a lot more chatter to absorb and I felt like I had to be a little more mindful of not getting bucked.
What didn't work out well for me on the Proto CT was the size of the one I'm on. I weigh 150 lbs and couldn't manipulate the board in presses the way I would like to. I enjoy butter combos and presses on my evo, and there was no way that was happening comfortably on the Proto. I'm chalking this up to the size of the board I was on. Some of my larger friends were able to press the Proto very nicely. I am strongly considering buying one for next year, as I think its a great "does everything board", but I think I would be looking at the 152.
Overall I think the Proto CT is a great board that will suit a lot of riders, especially those looking for an all mountain, do-anything twin. It has everything I like about the shape of the Evo, but with just a bit more of everything. More snap, more pop, more stability, more dampness. It also weighs a lot less.
I would highly recommend this board to intermediate+ riders looking for an all mountain freestyle board, especially those who find the evo to be too soft.. I hope this review is helpful, I've never really written one before. If i can give any more info, please let me know.
 
#33 ·
Yeah Leo, just read your review and it seems like we are pretty much in agreement on most things. I got a chance to take it through some deep snow in the woods and it definitely delivered. Even more interesting was watching another instructor ride it yesterday. He weighs 200 lbs and was SLAYING it on this board. Makes me want a smaller one :).
 
#37 ·
Does anyone know for certain how much this thing is going to cost?, because I'm trying to decide to buy this Proto CT or just buy a marked down 2011 Evo this summer.
I think Vince (or maybe one of the Cannadays) in a Transworld interview said that manufacturing costs will drive up the price on a lot of product. Given the dynamic between SL and Evo pricing ($510 vs. $490) and price on the Heritage ($540), I'd expect it to fall in the $520-540 range).
 
#41 ·
Hmm yah that would defeat the purpose of the Evo.. I mean its a short 2008 Evo for me I'm riding like a 151 or so for the park. So its definitely small. My 2001/2002 custom is on its way out. So I kind of wanted a direct replacement for it.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I may have to try and find a demo of the SL or Heritage.
 
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