Union ultra with strata highback

So i bought a pair of Ultras and a pair of stratas to test figure out which direction i wanted to go and to test the ultra with a bit stiffer highback.
So here is my experience in short:

I only had a week in the French Alps on my 163 Drake battle rusty. I had everything from bluebird and overcast powder days to black runs painted blue from pure ice. I was on piste, off piste and in park.
here is what i noticed.

Both binding unfortunately enden up being to soft. They weren't responsive enough for my wide board and my nearly 100 kg body when I wanted to make micro adjustments, quick heel to toe turns and in general on newly prepped groomers. So take my opinion with a grain of salt.


So i spend one day on the ultras, one day on the stratas and 4 on the combination.

The reason i ended using the combination the most, is because to me the ultra was great especially for my injured knees and back when absorbing landings to flat, jumps and much more.

The strata was good to, but i quickly noticed (at least for me) it was not as good. But i got some more response, which i really needed from the ultra.

So putting the strata highback on the ultra baseplate gave me the best of both work.
It just felt like an upgraded strata. I had close to if not the same response. Maybe a bit less on the toe side, but not enough to really notice the difference. While getting the added response i kept the absorption from the ultra baseplate. I can't remember having my back feel this great after a snowboard trip, since i was younger and not as injured, so that was great.

So i wouldn't go buy both bindings, but buying a set of strata or force highbacks to gain some more response from your ultras would be highly recommended. At least if you are a heavy rider like me.

So it's not the most detailed review, but i hope it helps if you were considering trying new highbacks one the ultras like me