# Advice on new board



## NKar (Mar 13, 2017)

Hi,

I am looking into a buying a new board and your advice would be much appreciated.

I switched from skiing to boarding 9 years ago and for the majority of that time have used the same board (Forum Destroyer 156). Earlier this season I bough a second hand Rome Anthem 162 mainly because my old board started to feel unstable at speeds on groomers and to stay afloat in powder. I am 5ft10 and weigh 80 kgs.

Since trying the Anthem I haven't used the old board at all. I really enjoy how stable and locked in the camber felt on groomers at variable conditions (with the exception of moguls) and speeds. It also managed well on a couple of powder days. My only concern is that at times it felt a bit lifeless especially at lower speeds or areas where there wasn't huge amount of space for big fast turns. Could that be because 162 is too big for me?

So what I am after is a board that will allow to charge and feel stable/locked in at speeds on groomers but will also provide a little bit of playfulness/agility to hit natural features. I do enjoy steep terrain around the mountain. I generally don't ride the park with the exception of the odd jump. Ability to handle powder would be great but given I ride in Europe ~20 days a season that is purely based on luck and hence I am not after a powder specific board.

Some of the boards I have shortlisted and for which your feedback would be greatly appreciated are:

Burton Flight Attendant
Burton Landlord
Arbor Iguchi Pro Camber
Capita Mercury
Yes PYL
Ride Berzerker

Feel free to add any that you think would fit the purpose and which I have missed. In terms of budget I am fairly flexible. 

Thanks,
Nik


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

The anthem has a ridiculous amount of camber, probably the most I've ever seen on a board. Being stiff and a very aggressive camber does take some speed for the board to come to life, but also gives you that stability/locked in feeling you like. 

You've got a really good list there, I think you'd be happy on any of them. The landlord is probably a bit too directional for you though. Do you ride switch or throw spins often at all? For more playful riding I'd go the Iguchi Pro or mercury, for more charging and less playfulness the Flight Attendant or PYL, and the Berzerker probably splits the difference with a directional shape and profile but more playful flex.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

General rules...

the more camber you have, the less playfull a board is at low speed. Its also more stable and responsive with more speed.

The more rocker you have the more playful it is. Also the more unstable it is with more speed.


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## NKar (Mar 13, 2017)

Phedder said:


> The anthem has a ridiculous amount of camber, probably the most I've ever seen on a board. Being stiff and a very aggressive camber does take some speed for the board to come to life, but also gives you that stability/locked in feeling you like.
> 
> You've got a really good list there, I think you'd be happy on any of them. The landlord is probably a bit too directional for you though. Do you ride switch or throw spins often at all? For more playful riding I'd go the Iguchi Pro or mercury, for more charging and less playfulness the Flight Attendant or PYL, and the Berzerker probably splits the difference with a directional shape and profile but more playful flex.


 @Phedder Thank you for grouping them in the way you have. Very helpful. To answer your question I don't ride switch much or throw spins. I like hitting the odd jumps off natural features but that's pretty much it. I do enjoy steep terrain (off and on piste) and big fast turns which the Anthem was a beast in. Having not ridden many boards before I hadn't quite appreciated how much of a difference a cambered/stiffer deck would make. Where it was less fun was moguls and tree runs where I'm assuming due to its' size (162) it was pretty tough to maneuver and in a way I wish I could get my hands on a 159 and see if it would make a noticeable difference. At the moment I am leaning towards the Iguchi end of your spectrum but still need some time to think it through.


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## NKar (Mar 13, 2017)

@ Argo Thank you. To be honest between my old board and the Anthem I have gone between opposite ends of the spectrum. I now know that I enjoy the Anthem end of the spectrum a lot more but still trying to figure out how much of that I can sacrifice for a bit of playfulness. What I wouldn't want is a playful board that ends up washing out or feels massively unstable. I am thinking that maybe the iguchi/mercury might be able to offer that.


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