Just wait until next season

By Matt Boxler

Many of us are trying to extend the snowboarding season for as long as possible. We’re out there carving mashed potato turns until they turn into small ponds; we’re soaking up rays on resort decks enjoying good friends, good music, good food and good beverages. We’re mourning the inevitable passing of yet another year even as we look forward to the warmth of summer.

Spring marks the end of the season in New England, but industry manufacturers are way ahead of the game, having already developed new gear for the next season. Here is a glimpse of what some manufacturers will be rolling out for us in 2009-2010:

Rock on!

Rocker technology, or reverse camber, is not new to the industry as manufacturers for a few years now have been designing boards elevated at the tip and tail for improved flotation in powder (picture strapping onto the runners of a rocking chair).

While the design performs brilliantly in deep powder, it reduces the linear edge available for carving on groomers or inconsistent crud – basically any surface lacking flotation. In the industry’s ever-present quest for the holy grail – to build an all-mountain ride perfect for all conditions – companies are tinkering with rocker technology and will be rolling out several hybrid solutions next season.

One example to look for in 2009-2010 is from Rome SDS, which will put out five boards that feature a hybrid camber. Rome’s Anthem Superlight Series (SS) will have a positive camber between the feet combined with a reverse camber in the tip and tail. The result the company says, will give riders pop and edge control, along with float.

Look for similar innovations from K2 Snowboards, which will introduce the Slayblade. This all-mountain ride will feature “Harshmellow” and “Flatline” technologies. Harshmellow is a synthetic compound designed to dampen vibration and Flatline creates an equal pressure everywhere across the base of the board to optimize stability and versatility.

Ride Snowboards’ new Machete board will feature “LowRize” rocker with “Radial BlendZ” sidecut. This board maintains a flat profile through the center and begins to rocker out at the Blend Zone, in essence, a delayed rocker. The company states that this combination eliminates the “hooky-catchy” feeling of traditional camber boards, but eliminates “rocker washout” in big landings.

Going Elastic

Feeling a loss of flexibility in those aging knees? Not to worry, as Flux Bindings has a new product that can pick us up where genetics lets us down. The Distortion and Titan RK, integrate urethane in their highbacks, enabling riders to stretch their lateral limits without sacrificing edge-to-edge responsiveness. Flux is also using urethane material beneath the baseplate to serve as dampeners, creating a smoother ride with less chatter.

Going Green

In the world of socks, Eesa is taking the concept of going green to the next level. The company now uses 100 percent bamboo fiber in every sock it builds, but the new S.O.S. (Save Our Socks) program calls on consumers to do their part to “pay it forward.” Eesa is asking customers to send their old, used synthetic socks to be recycled and reduced by sending them to people who will use them to clean up oil spills or turn them into bedding and pillows.

Crash Pads (protective gear for extreme sports) is converting scrap material into treasure ... and it’s all being done in the U.S. “All new products have been designed to use parts of fabrics that would otherwise be scrap,” the company writes. “We purchase all elements as often as possible from over-runs. When over-runs are not possible, we do our best to purchase elements that are in stock. This way our purchases are as low impact as possible on the environment and the creative design of using waste puts less into landfills.”

Going Odorless

Can the era of smelly base layers be over? And who knew it was as simple as embedding activated carbon and nano silver into yard? The folks at Terramar Sports knew. Their X-Odor yarn is being used in several new products. How it works, according to the company, is ... “the carbon attracts the microbesand fungi that produces odor and the nano silver eliminates them on contact. The nano silver never touches the skin because it is embedded permanently in the yarn and thus cannot wash out.”