# Carpet choice - Snowflex / Powderpak Alternative



## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

No clue. Take your board in the store and start sliding around on the shit.


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## dangerranger (Apr 8, 2011)

The carpet that i used is very similar to the second option, and it slides great for me. Just add soap and water and you should be fine.


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## RidePowder (Oct 30, 2008)

I agree with SW except I wouldn't sue PAM or non stick cooking spray, that would be a lot of cooking spray and could get expensive. I'd say wet it down with a hose and put some concentrated dish soap on it


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## kev711 (Feb 7, 2013)

did you ever buy and try out that #2 carpet?


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## WasatchMan (Aug 30, 2011)

MAJOR bump - but yes it would be nice to have a report on what worked/what didn't.

Would help with future searches. Doubt you'll ever post back though...


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## ScottVD (Jan 19, 2011)

So I got a few PMs about this- sorry life has been busy and I haven't logged in this forum for like a year. Here's the full story on the ramp..

So I ended up getting carpet option #2 - it was from a different store and the carpet was a marine grade (like for boats etc.) and was brown in color. Same closed medium length loop. I wanted to build a really legit ramp so for whatever reason I though it'd be better to build it with a progressive angle like a quarter pipe instead of a flat ramp. :dunno:

So we built this thing all legit and dumped a ton of money into it. When we were done the quarter pipe style was a really really bad idea - the it caused the board to flex waaay too much and really put heavy pressure on the front/rear tips of the board. The tips then dug into the carpet and would essentially lock you into whatever direction you started in - it was next to impossible to steer or move your board once it stated moving.

Here's a video, in reverse for whatever reason, of us building the ramp:
Snowboard Ramp in reverse time lapse - YouTube

So you can see it's waaaay too steep and the quarter pipe thing was a wicked bad idea.

So I did some work to the ramp and tried to lessen the steepness of the curve... but after all this it still didn't work - just couldn't steer the board once it began sliding. I kept falling off the ramp and it was getting to be this huge source of fail.. I spent too much money, it never worked, it took a long time, and it really hurts when you fall off this thing. Every video I see on YouTube is of some 12 year old kid using a free tarp he found and stacking some wood pallets he stole from behind a grocery store and put a ramp together in 20 min and has hours of fun riding it.

So after spending more time, and more money I modify the ramp. I'm convinced this time it will work - so I get up early before work - get my wife and son out of bed so they can watch dad's epic jib session on the "new and safe" ramp.. this is what happened: :dizzy:
Snowbard ramp fail - YouTube
So my kid (nick name "Pico Fish") thought I died.. yet again, on daddy's wicked evil horrible ramp..

Out of sheer frustration I completely disassembled the ramp so the reminder of my epic fail would not be in my backyard reminding me each day.

All that being said - I think the carpet WOULD work out, but I'd probably go with even a shorter loop like option #1 above - and I'd just start really easy - find a grass hill somewhere and cover that carpet with soap and water.. try it out before building. If you do build, don't put a contour in the ramp! :laugh:


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## kev711 (Feb 7, 2013)

looks like you really spent a lot of time into the build, sorry it didn't go so well. I made a very basic set up and it works fine. 
here's a link to a forum that should help. Build-A-Jib 101 Cult Forum

keep us posted. i'd love to see more people put up more backyard set ups


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## kev711 (Feb 7, 2013)

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...0301866000641.540339.862550640&type=1&theater


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Years ago in the summer, kids used some old carpet torn out of an apartment laid it down on a tiny slope in the park and dumped a 5 gal bucket of dry saw dust on the carpet; worked great.


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## ScottVD (Jan 19, 2011)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Years ago in the summer, kids used some old carpet torn out of an apartment laid it down on a tiny slope in the park and dumped a 5 gal bucket of dry saw dust on the carpet; worked great.


LOL ^ this.. yes.. :yahoo:


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## ScottVD (Jan 19, 2011)

kev711 said:


> looks like you really spent a lot of time into the build, sorry it didn't go so well. I made a very basic set up and it works fine.
> here's a link to a forum that should help. Build-A-Jib 101 Cult Forum
> 
> keep us posted. i'd love to see more people put up more backyard set ups


Ah, cool links - thx! :thumbsup:


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## kev711 (Feb 7, 2013)

yea...that link was awesome. I wish this forum was as interested in backyard parks as they are. it's a great way to get tricks down and how cool is it to throw a BBQ in July and tell people "and bring your snowboards"


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## jonesy (Apr 11, 2012)

Try Astroturf Snowsport - they used it at Texas Ski Ranch (TSR Snow Park | Snowboarding Texas Style) down near Austin, TX and built an outdoor training park out of it. Google it and look for the stuff made by Grassworx in St Louis.


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## Varza (Jan 6, 2013)

kev711 said:


> yea...that link was awesome. I wish this forum was as interested in backyard parks as they are. it's a great way to get tricks down and how cool is it to throw a BBQ in July and tell people "and bring your snowboards"


Yeah, well, I wish I HAD a backyard :laugh:


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## NZRide (Oct 2, 2013)

ScottVD said:


> Out of sheer frustration I completely disassembled the ramp so the reminder of my epic fail would not be in my backyard reminding me each day.


You didn't want to be reminded of it, so put it up on youtube to be there till the end of time? haha. Sorry it didn't work out for you man, you did a nice job of it building it. 
Agree from previous experience many many years ago trying to make dodgy jibs and even small early season kickers on the mountain, before they got a chance to open the park.
I always found, and it looks like you may have done their, the tendency to make the ramps to steep, including kicker, and transition far to small. 
I think if you had of been able to ride down your drop in ramp you may have been bucked with the short tranny and rapid rise kicker any way.
Thats why the hillside jibs work well, you can make the drop-in longer and tranny mellow, compared with the space and height you need to make a drop in tower, ends up becoming huge to make it rideable.
Top effort though dude.


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## RightCoastShred (Aug 26, 2012)

i got some short haired turf from home depot for 25 cents a square foot. not a bad deal and it works fine


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## ScottVD (Jan 19, 2011)

NZRide said:


> You didn't want to be reminded of it, so put it up on youtube to be there till the end of time? haha. Sorry it didn't work out for you man, you did a nice job of it building it.
> Agree from previous experience many many years ago trying to make dodgy jibs and even small early season kickers on the mountain, before they got a chance to open the park.
> I always found, and it looks like you may have done their, the tendency to make the ramps to steep, including kicker, and transition far to small.
> I think if you had of been able to ride down your drop in ramp you may have been bucked with the short tranny and rapid rise kicker any way.
> ...


LOL, yes, memorialized on YT right.. :laugh:

Well, if nothing else I learned a lot (the hard way) through this -and yes, everything you said about building hillside really seems like the way to go - far less investment and better results. Live and learn!


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