# What happened to The Good Ride snowboard website?



## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

That would be a benefit to snowboarding.


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

That depends. I got a lot of good info from that site over the years. I purchased boards I never would have seen/heard of. It would be a loss if they closed for good. JMHO.


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## Simon Birch (Mar 11, 2014)

I just checked and sadly it's working for me.


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## SGboarder (Jun 24, 2012)

joebloggs13 said:


> Is it down temporarily or has he decided to close shop?


One can only hope...


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## txb0115 (Sep 20, 2015)

BurtonAvenger said:


> That would be a benefit to snowboarding.


Yes it would, those guys are fucking clowns...


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

joebloggs13 said:


> That depends. I got a lot of good info from that site over the years. I purchased boards I never would have seen/heard of. It would be a loss if they closed for good. JMHO.


If you're getting advice from them I'm sorry. Check out Boardarchive.com WAY better.


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## Alonzo (Dec 30, 2015)

I find it to be a helpful website, but only the 'On the Table' reviews, and only when the sound is muted.


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Alonzo said:


> I find it to be a helpful website, but only the 'On the Table' reviews, and only when the sound is muted.


 This is priceless! Thank you for the morning laughs.


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

BurtonAvenger said:


> If you're getting advice from them I'm sorry. Check out Boardarchive.com WAY better.


Haters are always going to hate. The site you recommend doesn't list that many boards. I know some of the reviews aren't great, but the board database on that site is extensive.
Your reputation precedes you sir.


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Wow a list of snowboards. Awesome! Too bad every time James Biesty opens his mouth he spews out misinformation. Then again we now live in a world where anti-vaxxers, flat earthers, and climate change deniers seem to be growing. #fakereviews .

Sorry you want to be informed by a fucktard that doesn't know shit about snowboards. I'd rather listen to someone that has years of snowboard shop experience and actually knows the difference between camber profiles and sidecuts than someone that stands there stuttering and bellowing out the wrong info.


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## kriegs13 (Nov 28, 2016)

joebloggs13 said:


> Haters are always going to hate. The site you recommend doesn't list that many boards. I know some of the reviews aren't great, but the board database on that site is extensive.
> Your reputation precedes you sir.


Haters definitely will hate..it's their job!

In my experience, the good ride's reviews are a jumbled paraphrasing of readily available board specs from any given company's website. I've had better luck just googling x board and reading from company site/watching or reading reviews from just about anywhere else. 

Archive probably has some of the best actual feedback and reviews but you are correct that they are limited. 

Board insiders are a bit goofy and scattershot, but they at least give feedback on actual feel of the board after usage

The House tends to have at least a bit more depth when discussing the obvious points already stated by the manufacturer and seems to be good for someone who doesn't already understand all the tech verbiage. 

I'm not a particular fan of white lines reviews but they seem to have figured out how to not stumble over themselves.

All that being said...It's not like I have watched everything to good ride has to offer so I could be missing some gems. But for the most part, I don't really bother anymore.


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

BurtonAvenger said:


> Wow a list of snowboards. Awesome! Too bad every time James Biesty opens his mouth he spews out misinformation. Then again we now live in a world where anti-vaxxers, flat earthers, and climate change deniers seem to be growing. #fakereviews .
> 
> Sorry you want to be informed by a fucktard that doesn't know shit about snowboards. I'd rather listen to someone that has years of snowboard shop experience and actually knows the difference between camber profiles and sidecuts than someone that stands there stuttering and bellowing out the wrong info.


Constructive criticism is one thing, but a personal attack is something else entirely. I know he has made mistakes in his reviews, but I am more interested in basic info on a board in which I am looking at purchasing, I then do more research. You do what you gotta do. You don't have to feel sorry for me. In fact, it's probably the other way around.


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## kosmoz (Dec 27, 2013)

that site is good for checking snowboards designs year by year and by size, as well as technical specifications.


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

kosmoz said:


> that site is good for checking snowboards designs year by year and by size, as well as technical specifications.


Agreed, that is my point exactly. In that regard, I find the Good Ride a very informative site. They are one of the best for providing complete lineups year over year.


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## f00bar (Mar 6, 2014)

You can do the same on any of the big 3 or 4 online retailers that many people go to anyway to buy their board. Of course I have no idea what the hell most reviews are even talking about most of the time with their fancy smancy lingo so just go for the board with the biggest boobs on the top sheet most times.


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## timmytard (Mar 19, 2009)

f00bar said:


> You can do the same on any of the big 3 or 4 online retailers that many people go to anyway to buy their board. Of course I have no idea what the hell most reviews are even talking about most of the time with their fancy smancy lingo so just go for the board with the biggest boobs on the top sheet most times.


You can't really go wrong with that strategy.

Bigger(nicer) boobs, better board.
Pretty simple really.

I like boobs.


TT


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

Good grief.:facepalm3::whiteflag::wink:


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## jstar (Sep 21, 2016)

kriegs13 said:


> Haters definitely will hate..it's their job!
> 
> In my experience, the good ride's reviews are a jumbled paraphrasing of readily available board specs from any given company's website. I've had better luck just googling x board and reading from company site/watching or reading reviews from just about anywhere else.
> 
> ...




That pretty much sums it up for me too, I feel the only thing bringing me back to The Good Ride is their extensive amount of reviewed gear, otherwise I wouldn't even bother.

I like the ranking thing going on with Boardinsiders, and for the most part think the reviews are good, just wish they would get their hands on more boards/gear.

Honestly, my go to site last season was Angry, mainly due the extensive list of boards he reviewed, and the 'Best to worst list' as a reference to go by. I've owned a bunch of boards on that list (some shitty, some awesome), and the rankings reflected what I found as well.

If he delivers what he has promised this season (specifically the board comparison and rider feedback stuff), it should be some good content.


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## SnowDragon (Apr 23, 2012)

timmytard said:


> You can't really go wrong with that strategy.
> 
> Bigger(nicer) boobs, better board.
> Pretty simple really.
> ...


Agreed!

An alternative strategy is to get the board with the most skulls on it.
My Lib Tech phase taught me that.:nerd:

If there is still confusion when choosing a board, the default is to always get the blue one.0

And of course, ANY board with a dragon on the top sheet is a must have.:grin:

That's all you need to know when choosing a snowboard.


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## kriegs13 (Nov 28, 2016)

jstar said:


> That pretty much sums it up for me too, I feel the only thing bringing me back to The Good Ride is their extensive amount of reviewed gear, otherwise I wouldn't even bother.
> 
> I like the ranking thing going on with Boardinsiders, and for the most part think the reviews are good, just wish they would get their hands on more boards/gear.
> 
> ...


Right. I don't "agree" with half of what Angry says when it comes to opinion and being...well...i guess...angry. but as far as facts go, its hard to find too much fault. I don't blindly buy BA's suggestions but it's usually my first stop for getting a general idea of what I'm looking at. 

Also...on the subject of hating....TGR is wicked stupid. And as stated before, all the info they sloppily put out is easily accessible on Evo, the house, back country and any company's site.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

If I was to follow any reviews it would be either Angry or Archive. I have seen both ride and know they actually get out and ride their shit. If their sites say that its a piece of shit, I wont buy it. If I am looking for a powder board or all mountain board and either one has a good review, I will lean more towards that board they reviewed. I never look at good ride after seeing them take a one run and done review on like 50 boards one weekend. Fuck that. 

Board Archive may have less reviews but he rides them for a wide variety of days and conditions for a long time. I met him up here at bachelor last season when he was cruising with snowboard pro camp and my son... guys a good rider too.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

f00bar said:


> Of course I have no idea what the hell most reviews are even talking about most of the time with their fancy smancy lingo *so just go for the board with the biggest boobs on the top sheet most times*.





timmytard said:


> You can't really go wrong with that strategy.
> 
> Bigger(nicer) boobs, better board.
> Pretty simple really.
> ...



Then I want *THIS* broad,.... 








Er, Uhmm,.. :blink: I mean _Board_! :embarrased1: >


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

what are u guys even talking about


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## joebloggs13 (Feb 28, 2013)

chomps1211 said:


> Then I want *THIS* broad,....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Me too please!:nerd::wink::grin:


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

Argo said:


> If I was to follow any reviews it would be either Angry or Archive. I have seen both ride and know they actually get out and ride their shit. If their sites say that its a piece of shit, I wont buy it. If I am looking for a powder board or all mountain board and either one has a good review, I will lean more towards that board they reviewed. I never look at good ride after seeing them take a one run and done review on like 50 boards one weekend. Fuck that.
> 
> Board Archive may have less reviews but he rides them for a wide variety of days and conditions for a long time. I met him up here at bachelor last season when he was cruising with snowboard pro camp and my son... guys a good rider too.


Here's the other thing about Board Archive, TJ only has one season of reviews under his belt. Give him a season in the mountains like he's planning, that list is going to drastically grow. As the grandfather of online snowboard reviews, if I say someone's solid, you better damn well believe they're fucking solid. FYI Board Insiders pulled the plug.


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## kriegs13 (Nov 28, 2016)

BurtonAvenger said:


> Here's the other thing about Board Archive, TJ only has one season of reviews under his belt. Give him a season in the mountains like he's planning, that list is going to drastically grow. As the grandfather of online snowboard reviews, if I say someone's solid, you better damn well believe they're fucking solid. FYI Board Insiders pulled the plug.




Ah I didn't realize they were done. They were usually a fun watch even if not the most informative. 



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## GDimac (Nov 19, 2015)

Argo said:


> If I was to follow any reviews it would be either Angry or Archive. I have seen both ride and know they actually get out and ride their shit. If their sites say that its a piece of shit, I wont buy it. If I am looking for a powder board or all mountain board and either one has a good review, I will lean more towards that board they reviewed. I never look at good ride after seeing them take a one run and done review on like 50 boards one weekend. Fuck that.
> 
> Board Archive may have less reviews but he rides them for a wide variety of days and conditions for a long time. I met him up here at bachelor last season when he was cruising with snowboard pro camp and my son... guys a good rider too.


Ditto. With TJ/Archive, you can see that he is a good rider from the review vids, so I trust his judgement. Imo, the best rider out of all the dudes from Snowboard Camp crew, hands down.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

GDimac said:


> Ditto. With TJ/Archive, you can see that he is a good rider from the review vids, so I trust his judgement. Imo, the best rider out of all the dudes from Snowboard Camp crew, hands down.


Procamp guys are great dudes too. Do they even do reviews though? 

I had not heard of any of them until this day.... (another good day)

https://youtu.be/GDOUI0hTThE


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## 70'sskater (Mar 20, 2014)

I quit looking at review sites 20 years ago when I realized most reviewers weighed about 150 lbs and would say I usually ride a 154 but we got a 158 and it was too much for me. I get better advice talking to a person I'm riding up on a chairlift with. I've even swapped boards a few times with total strangers for a run or two. Can any reviewer these days acurrately review a board over a 162?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

70'sskater said:


> I quit looking at review sites 20 years ago when I realized most reviewers weighed about 150 lbs and would say I usually ride a 154 but we got a 158 and it was too much for me. I get better advice talking to a person I'm riding up on a chairlift with. I've even swapped boards a few times with total strangers for a run or two. Can any reviewer these days acurrately review a board over a 162?


1997 you were reading online snowboard reviews on the three snowboard sites that existed?

Definitely ridden some big boy boards over the years.


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## jerry gnarcia (Feb 11, 2017)

The Good Ride does provide a lot of value even though the reviews are bad. I use it a fair bit to survey what's out there and try to get a vague ballpark. It's very well designed, and conveys information effectively. There is far too much gear out there that consumers have no easy way to sort through it other than to use his site. Before Good Ride existed, you'd have to look through transworld or snowboardmag which we obviously know are _really_ bad cases of paid placement and marketing copy. And Good Wood is the same one-run-and-done-on-slush bullshit (though with many riders at least), limited to brands who were willing to send them a ton of product and likely the ones who keep a decent relationship with the editor. 

On the other hand you have angrysnowboarder who uses basic blog software and just posts each review as a new article. It's impossible to sort those and get a general selection of board options that fit some criteria. Much more trustworthy riders I think, though I have no idea how many runs they get per board either. So they have the content and the expertise but could do better with delivery.

Oddly enough what I've done in the past many times is use The Good Ride to get an initial list of options that are in the ballpark, then go over to Angry and search the archives for their take on that piece of gear.

It's like both of them provide half of the puzzle. He's got the presentation and organization, but not the information. Angry has the information, but not the presentation. 

So, like the guy or not, he is providing a valuable resource for many, and until there is real competition, he's going to keep riding free gear and pushing his affiliate links. I can't even hate the affiliate links because I find that they are also a super convenient price checker. It's also not bad for doing year over year comparisons, but half the time they botch their copy/pasting or forget to update or reuse an old review, so that's hit and miss.

The personal attacks and calling people out by name really isn't a good way to go though. Unless they took your mom out for a night and never called her again or something. Then sure, get personal. But it shouldn't be just because they aren't a legit enough shop kid.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

jerry gnarcia said:


> It's impossible to sort those and get a general selection of board options that fit some criteria.


The 2017 Snowboard Review Recap - The Angry Snowboarder

The recaps do a pretty good job of that. Simply adding each years recap article on their drop down menu could make it a lot easier to navigate for many. 

How the Yes Optimistic ends up in the 'Twinish Powder Boards' Category is a little bewildering, though :shrug:


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## Alonzo (Dec 30, 2015)

Phedder said:


> The 2017 Snowboard Review Recap - The Angry Snowboarder
> 
> The recaps do a pretty good job of that. Simply adding each years recap article on their drop down menu could make it a lot easier to navigate for many.
> 
> How the Yes Optimistic ends up in the 'Twinish Powder Boards' Category is a little bewildering, though :shrug:


I think it's because it's a twin contact to contact (i.e. has no set-back) and isn't _super_ tapered, though it definitely has a lot more nose than tail.


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

jerry gnarcia said:


> Oddly enough what I've done in the past many times is use The Good Ride to get an initial list of options that are in the ballpark, then go over to Angry and search the archives for their take on that piece of gear.
> 
> It's like both of them provide half of the puzzle. He's got the presentation and organization, but not the information. Angry has the information, but not the presentation.


Agree. I do the same. TGR with it's filter options can give one a first hint of what's out there; then go to Angry and check the review. As long as Angry's page has no filters which offer a selection, it's only useful to get well _detailed_ reviews of something one has done the general research on TGR.

They both won't like it... but there's some sort of symbiosis between the sites. Both are not realy useful alone, but if used together, one gets the info one wants 

In short: @BurtonAvenger: if you wanna make TGR obsolete? Add filter options to your page!


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## Nivek (Jan 24, 2008)

The hard thing with filters is they force us to pigeon hole boards. What categories do we list? Where does the Alter Ego sit? All Mountain or powder? Is the Spam a pow deck or a park deck? What category do we place The Trick Pony under, pow, park, or all mountain? The only filtering I can think of that would work would be brand or camber. Stiffness is too subjective. So is purpose. Twin, dir twin, and directional arent really that helpful. So if you want a camrock that could be narrowed down. But the Flagship and Villain are both camrock so you're still gonna have to sift through a ton of stuff.


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## jstar (Sep 21, 2016)

Phedder said:


> The 2017 Snowboard Review Recap - The Angry Snowboarder
> 
> The recaps do a pretty good job of that. Simply adding each years recap article on their drop down menu could make it a lot easier to navigate for many.



Thats what I do, just go straight to the recaps.

Not sure if they do that for the bindings too, but adding any/all annual full list gear recaps would work really well and be all I would need.


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## jerry gnarcia (Feb 11, 2017)

Nivek said:


> The hard thing with filters is they force us to pigeon hole boards. What categories do we list? Where does the Alter Ego sit? All Mountain or powder? Is the Spam a pow deck or a park deck? What category do we place The Trick Pony under, pow, park, or all mountain? The only filtering I can think of that would work would be brand or camber. Stiffness is too subjective. So is purpose. Twin, dir twin, and directional arent really that helpful. So if you want a camrock that could be narrowed down. But the Flagship and Villain are both camrock so you're still gonna have to sift through a ton of stuff.


The way to do that is by mapping attributes many-to-many. So you'd tag Alter Ego with both "All Mountain" and "Powder". That way someone who comes to the site saying, "Ok, I just want to learn about good options for riding powder", they would be offered that one. Someone looking for All Mountain boards also sees it. 

You'd definitely want to filter by stiffness even if it is subjective. Put it into 3 or 4 buckets "softer, medium, stiffer" maybe, at least so people can filter out noodles if they don't want that, or so beginners can filter out stuff like a custom X. 

Doesn't have to be perfect...TGR sure isn't.


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

I only have one thing to say about all this YOUTUBE! Just wait.


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## jerry gnarcia (Feb 11, 2017)

Looking forward to it! Although, video reviews are good if you're somewhat set on a board or three and you want a more detailed look at them, but not so good for scoping out the product landscape and narrowing it down to those 3, or skimming details to compare a bunch of boards.

I like where BoardArchive is going (Find Snowboard Reviews - Board Archive), not much there yet but they seem to be trying a combination of the two.


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## muzzyahoy (Nov 19, 2016)

One thing I really liked and found a good tool was Board Insiders flex tests. Once you have some knowledge and know what you like, to see torsional flex and flex break-over points is a great tool. Really gave me a great idea of eliminating boards I don't like. Too bad they pulled the plug.
Is that something you're going to be adding to your Video Reviews, BA? Or are they going to be the stand there and hold the Board -type review?


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## BurtonAvenger (Aug 14, 2007)

muzzyahoy said:


> One thing I really liked and found a good tool was Board Insiders flex tests. Once you have some knowledge and know what you like, to see torsional flex and flex break-over points is a great tool. Really gave me a great idea of eliminating boards I don't like. Too bad they pulled the plug.
> Is that something you're going to be adding to your Video Reviews, BA? Or are they going to be the stand there and hold the Board -type review?


You realize a board flexes a lot different when you strap in inside and don't move than when you're on the hill right?

No I'm utilizing sock puppets and stop motion in mine.


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## ctoma (Aug 9, 2011)

Even his sock puppets are angry:


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## Alpine Duke (Jun 21, 2015)

70'sskater said:


> I quit looking at review sites 20 years ago when I realized most reviewers weighed about 150 lbs and would say I usually ride a 154 but we got a 158 and it was too much for me. I get better advice talking to a person I'm riding up on a chairlift with. I've even swapped boards a few times with total strangers for a run or two. Can any reviewer these days acurrately review a board over a 162?


I'm with you on this brother. Not so much because of weight issues (Dude on TGR doesn't look too dainty to me  ) but just because I get better feedback face to face. Info from other Ski Patrollers works for me. @poutanen on here has me now looking at a Virus as my next board. (well, maybe after I hit the powerball....but still on my radar  ) I got another Patroller locked on to Mig's Diamond Blade, a different Patroller got me focused on a NS Swift as a board I want to get after the Virus.

But that does't mean that I don't peruse online sources. Evo being what I use most I would say. I do like TGR.

We had an almost identical thread on here not too long ago and in it a couple of us that say we like TGR were saying the video reviews are just much more enjoyable to watch vs reading a paragraph.....particularly where so much of the info on all board reviews is so similar anyway. just a better medium and they were the ones using it. Angry was probably getting quite a bit of similar feedback from other sources and credit to him and Nivek; they seem to have listened (not to us maybe but feedback overall  ) and are adding video so its not like they aren't trying to match what the masses want and the way they want it.

And....like I said before and still say....I like swimming around TheGoodRide site  Glad they are still there


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## kriegs13 (Nov 28, 2016)

I suppose those of you saying the format of TGR is superior have a point to an extent. I just can't bring myself to take any of their "reviews" seriously. A video isn't all that useful when it's clear that the folks don't have a grasp on what they're reviewing. Seems sloppy IMO.


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