GreyDragon

Still fairly new to the forum, I've read several posts critical of the above site. Just curious why.

I'm not here to defend the site, but I have found it is a good starting point for getting a non-brand affiliated opinion on snowboard gear. I know that they don't necessarily ride/use every item they review, but they do indicate which ones they have ridden/used.

Also, as with any snowboard review site, I've found that one has to understand any possible biases in the reviewer's comments and/or how their riding style affects their reviews. Caveat emptor!


Finally, since I'm asking about snowboarding/gear review websites, are there any others of which I should be aware?

Angry Snowboarder (Home to BA of course.)
Geeks of Shred
Agnarchy
Snowboard Review
Shayboarder

Any others worth a look?

Edge

I only really go by what I read on Angry Snowboarder, or on what some of the more experienced boarders on here say.

Just find it to be more trustworthy, sound, and unbiased advice I supposed.

Justin

David z and leo i believe are the guys on agnarchy. they are both active on here.

board insiders does video reviews but they come out kind of late. For example they don't review this years gear until mid season.

wrathfuldeity

The thing about gear is that, its relative to the hill or region. Sure there are the fan clubs...burton in east, ns and venture in colorado, lib/gnu in pnw, and prior in bc....and the reasons are partly based in fact that the team/proto testing is generally done in those areas...therefore a board/gear made to handle those conditions/terrain. In a general forum, like here, some folks forget that the local hill is a huge influence of their riding style, preferences and what they tote as the best. Perhaps at the beginner and intermediate level it doesn't matter so much but at the expert level the little design things for the conditions/terrain just add up. So just take into account their region and riding level and style and perhaps check in with a local core shop and their seasoned riders to see what they ride or recommend.

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FacePlant4Free

i use thegoodride all the time to compare different gear.

now that people are bringing this up i am noticing some errors on their site...

example:

the good ride rates 390 bosses as a 2 out of 5 for flex.

they then rate the Mob Bosses as a 3 out of 5 for flex.

People on this forum have said that the Mobs are flexier and more of a jib binding than the 390s.

is this true?

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Park Pickle / GNU Chice

1

GreyDragon

I absolutely agree with the comments above. I have found that only experience reading the reviews helps to determine any biases.

For myself, I ride the Ice Coast primarily. Powder is something only rumoured out here most of the time. For me, edge hold is extremely important, and I have found that Mervin's magnetraction works best. Therefore, if I reviewed a board, I'm sure I would be critical of ANY deficiency in edge hold. Someone who rides mostly powder might put far less emphasis on that feature and rate the same board more positively than me.

I'd be curious how some of the members on this forum who do review gear regularly feel about this?

Snowolf, BA perhaps?

Nivek

Mobs are much softer. The Good Ride is pure crap. They're one of those review sites that's popped up cause they figured out if they can get people to send them stuff to review, occasionally they'll get to keep it. Free shit. That's why this exists.

Shayboarder is awful. She'll like anything from a company that hooks her up. And I've seen her ride. She can't do anything to actually test a board.

Agnarchy has good dudes over there.

Snowboard Review... after some poking around I only found a few things I didn't like. Seems alright.

Geek doesn't have enough on there and I've yet to see anything to suggest they aren't just licking the hand feeding them.

Angry. I work for him. You trust him, he trusts me.

@Dragon:

I take those things into consideration. Despite what people seem to think, we do get gnar ice in CO. Especially at Keystone. There are sides of that mountain that sit in the sun most of the day, then around 1:30 shade hits. That'll easily drop the temp 20* in half an hour. It gets bulletproof.

On top of that, a good tester can tell what the edgehold is gonna be like on standard groomers here. If you're the type that can feel the minute changes in snowboards you can translate it's reactions in certain conditions to others.

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Snowboarding Sucks.

dreampow

^^

Everyone else is crap, we are the best!

Thanks for that impartial advice their Nivek.

On the whole I am inclined to agree with him though, the good ride seems to make some strange conclusions about boards it would appear they haven't ridden.

I personally try to find all the info I can get on various sites and take them all with a pinch of salt. If you see several people on different sites making similar observations about the same board that gives you something to go by.

Personal preference has to play a huge part, nothing wrong with that its human nature.

Conditions will play a big role as well.

As far as I know there are very few independent gear review sites here in Japan (in Japanese). Maybe a gap in the market.

Nivek

I didn't give any advice... huh?

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Snowboarding Sucks.

tdn

Ride Big

Another review site, mostly geared towards bigger riders but still gives a good additional point of view for smaller riders as well.