# looking for a pro to make up my mind on a board



## td.1000 (Mar 26, 2014)

1) are you looking specifically for a rocker board? they say they're more forgiving and easier to ride but I'm not sure if its the best thing to learn on

2) when shopping around for deals, make sure they have your size

3) I don't know anything about women's snowboards :laugh:


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## ETM (Aug 11, 2009)

I got my gf a flow silhouette to learn on. Its perfect for that and the price is just stupid cheap.
Rocker lets you get away with things where a camber board will punish you, learners dont need to be punished lol.
Ride that until you feel yourself wanting something more aggressive then get a camber board


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## ThredJack (Mar 18, 2014)

I don't know much about women's boards, but you should really see a board in person(you can buy it online later, if you want), as all those stats mean very little, especially comparing boards between manufacturers. Doing things like testing flex are impossible online, and you can't go by the "flex profile." It means little. A Burton "3" for instance, has a different flex than a Rome "3," which is different than a Flow "3," a Gnu "3," etc.

Weight is another one that can't really be gaged online. These all make a difference, so poke around the decks when you go check out boots. Don't be afraid of the sales people, they can be helpful. Ask questions, get their suggestions. You can always check with us here, to be sure they're good ones, and not trying to get you to buy the most expensive or whatever deck they have a bunch of left and are trying to push. 

Also, Tactics.com gives pretty good profiles on the boards and bindings from what I can tell. Stuff like flex can be gaged on their scale, as it's based on their tests, not what the manufacturer says. Check em out.


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## polecat (Apr 9, 2014)

Thanks! I appreciate the help. We're going tomorrow to a different ski area, likely different rental gear, and hopefully I can get a bit more of a feel for what might work. I do get your point(s) about how not only the ratings for flex are different, but also how I don't need the extra punishment of trying to learn camber vs rocker, when what I really need is to sort turning and staying upright. 

I'll be able to visit a few shops soon, and if I don't snap up the eBay deal, I'm sure that something will appeal.


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## rambob (Mar 5, 2011)

Find a shop that has friendly, KNOWLEDGEABLE peeps and pick their brain: Thats what their there for. Ride with people that are better then you: I'm serious; Ride with people that will stoke u up and that will make u ride better. Watch people ride when you're riding up the chair: U can learn a lot that way too.
Ask people about the boards and bindings the're riding....... These type of things have helped me thru the years.


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

rambob said:


> Find a shop that has friendly, KNOWLEDGEABLE peeps and pick their brain: Thats what their there for.


Little add since it's hard for a noob to determine who's and who's not: the shop guy who determines the appropriate lenght of the board by holding it next to you checking if it goes up to you chin does not belong to the "knowledgeable" category


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## polecat (Apr 9, 2014)

Thanks again. Point(s) well taken - pick some brains, but be careful about which brains I pick. 

We went yesterday and were set up on Burton LTR boards - those were SO much better than the rental gear I'd used before. Huge difference, as was switching away from the step-in bindings (to the ratchet kind - i have no clue what they're called- sorry). 

I think that I'll keep looking, and if nothing else comes up, will likely buy the Flow Silhoutte if the uber-cheap one is till available on eBay. I can then divert budget into bindings and boots. 

We made tons of progress yesterday, so I'm pretty optimistic about learning much more quickly with my own gear next season. Thanks again for the help!


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## ThredJack (Mar 18, 2014)

neni said:


> Little add since it's hard for a noob to determine who's and who's not: the shop guy who determines the appropriate lenght of the board by holding it next to you checking if it goes up to you chin does not belong to the "knowledgeable" category


The guy I had suggested mine based on what he uses, sine we have a similar build. I weigh more than he does, but he said "You're a beginner, shorter board will be easier for you to control."


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

ThredJack said:


> The guy I had suggested mine based on what he uses, sine we have a similar build. I weigh more than he does, but he said "You're a beginner, shorter board will be easier for you to control."


:thumbsup: good decision.
Rule of thumb: short=easy to turn but not very stable at speed. Long= vice versa. As beginner, you want to be in the lower weight range of a board (easier to control/turn, like your guy correctly stated) as you won't charge/carve at high speed yet but profit from the plus in agility. The more you advance, you'll rather choose boards in the mid/upper range, depending on your preferences.

Board lengh and weight range do have inherent similarities (range increase as length increases), but length by chin is rather sketchy... e.g. I'm 125lbs, chin measure would put me on a 156. That means the longest board in every women's model - if available at all :blink: 
If a beginner, a 156 would be a rather hard start! OTOH, lower weight ranges would put me on a +/- 145 (checked it with some GNU and Ride boards), which would be a way better start


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## neni (Dec 24, 2012)

BTW...
I'd like to encourage to buy local. On one side, it's unfair to exploit the knowledge and time of a shop and then buy online. On the other side, if you have problems with gear, your local shop will handle it, give you replacement parts. If you're long time customer, they'll give you test boards a.s.o. 
I've bought online three times since boots/bindings were no longer available locally, resulting in unnerving time delay. Boots had a manufacterer failure, it took week after week and a lot of mails/calls till they replaced them. With the bindings, once two left bindings were delivered. Had to wait for the right pair of bindings for a month (that's a long time if the season is only 4 months). The other time, a ratchet broke, and I haven't received a replacement part in 2 month. The local shop however supplied one immediately. 

Prices local are a bit higher, sure, but if you include the service you get locally, it's worth it!


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## ThredJack (Mar 18, 2014)

neni said:


> :thumbsup: good decision.
> Rule of thumb: short=easy to turn but not very stable at speed. Long= vice versa. As beginner, you want to be in the lower weight range of a board (easier to control/turn, like your guy correctly stated) as you won't charge/carve at high speed yet but profit from the plus in agility. The more you advance, you'll rather choose boards in the mid/upper range, depending on your preferences.
> 
> Board lengh and weight range do have inherent similarities (range increase as length increases), but length by chin is rather sketchy... e.g. I'm 125lbs, chin measure would put me on a 156. That means the longest board in every women's model - if available at all :blink:
> If a beginner, a 156 would be a rather hard start! OTOH, lower weight ranges would put me on a +/- 145 (checked it with some GNU and Ride boards), which would be a way better start


I ended up with a 155, that actually does come to my chin. But that's not why I picked it, like I said. I'm actually pretty sure I'm just out of the weight range, but I plan on that changing before next season, so no biggie.

And yeah, I HATE when people "kicked the tires" at the store I used to work at, then buy online. You're wasting my time, when I could be helping customers who are at least PLANNING on spending their money here!


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