Bola at All Boards Sports was kind enough to loan the Hardbooter crew some boards at SES this year. He sent us packing with an Oldenberg alpine stick and a Dupraz Pintail powder board. These boards cover the extremes of snow conditions from the hardpack groomers to the pow pow, respectively, and we where stoked to head back to our trusty, variable Utah stomping grounds to give them a welcome to the Hardbooter lifestyle.
Rolling back from SES Dave, Rusty and I could not wipe the grin off our faces. We were still on the uber alpine high of trenching the cord with so many amped riders at SES. Now with the 7 hour drive home ahead and I, with a newly broken wrist, ate some pain killers, sat back and enjoyed the ride. Even with four full days of solid riding behind us, we still talked snowboarding all the way home, probably like everyone else who had just left SES was doing.
Rusty had met us in Aspen for SES but it was only the start of his adventure after a gnarly crash and some hospital time last year. He was back on the war-path and happy to be back in Utah. Rusty is one of my closest childhood riding partners that spends 5 days a week working for The Man and rides New England resorts on the weekends. Maybe it was the Dupraz loaner from Bola or maybe it was just because Rusty had it coming but we woke up the next day and it had dumped. Only a day after getting the Dupraz at SES it was mounted, waxed and put into service.
The Dupraz’s shape sure got a lot of stares from the newbees in the base lift lines but once we were up top in the real snow, the snickering giggles and “what is that†questions turned into jealous stares from all-mountain board riders struggling with pocket tools, moving their bindings back in search of float. With its powder specific shape and 179cm length, float should not be an issue for this board. I couldn’t wait to see how it rode and since we had just been traversing from chair to chair, all I know so far is that the inserts are doing a great job at holding my bindings in place. We were just a few hundred feet from some PC pow and a hidden tree stash and now it was time to see how the Dupraz and Rusty rode. I dropped into a narrow opening that turns into a loose grove of aspens and pines. The snow was a bit heavy by Utah standards but the pointed nose of the bright red Dupraz found its way to the surface as the tail began to drop. The pintail did a great job of supporting my weight but could use a break. I moved some weight over the front foot while insuring I was balanced incase it pearls. The nice moderate flex smoothly took the weight and the nose continued to plane. I only needed a few turns to find the sweet spot and although it should have been easy on a board this size, I was surprised by the response I received from a board that might have been more at home in a wide open Powder field. I threw in a big powerful braking turn just as the tree shot crossed an open traverse and the board dumped speed very predictably. This was just enough to keep me from drifting too far and landing on the low traverses but still a few feet up and plenty of drift into some waist deep virgin snow.
Landing a pintail in fresh snow is always a blast. It’s almost like auto-land! The tail sinks and you slowly descend into the snow. All it takes is a little forward pressure and POP! you’re right back on plane. I headed for a groomed section of trail and was ready to see if this specialized powder board could handle a few meters on the trails to get me around the hill. There was just enough fresh on the groomer to plane up on but as soon as the edge grabbed and I leaned, I felt the board hook up on the soft cord underneath. The soft, pow exclusive nose did a fine job of holding my weight and I threw in some laid-out turns and came up covered in white stuff. It held fine and I spent the turns smiling not worrying about the board. Perfect! Rusty and I rode all day and the Dupraz was solid. I rode heavy on my front leg for the duration without a hint of back leg powder ach you might get on an all mountain shape. The big Dupraz seemed to shrink under my feet as the day went on. I was nailing some tight tree shots that I usually pilot my 56 Fish through when I realized I had not heard a bomb in over 45 minutes. Time to walk.
mmmmmmmmmmmm… open bowls. In less than 20 minutes Rusty and I zipped up our gear and got ready to see if this Dupraz would work in one of the thousands of open bowls in the West. I made two turns to check and pointed the rest.
Some boards do well just pointing. After I made two great powder turns I got bored. Sure I could have put down twenty or forty more and the Dupraz would have answered because it was that easy to ride but Rusty took care of all the turning behind me and I’m a sucker for an open field. Maybe I’m just polite but I try to use as little fresh snow as possible so my friends have plenty. I simply put a straight line down the middle most of the time. I ride a lot of fun pow shapes and I think this is when I want a board to work; hanging on at some silly speed just bouncing on the top of the snow, looking down at the run-out for the best lip or an open spot into a meadow to lay out turns in the flats. ( and to sucker the tourists into thinking they can do the same. Of course since they didn’t point it, they have to hike out for 20 minutes saving more fresh for cronies and me! Come on! I didn’t coin the phrase “no friends on Pow daysâ€). But I didn’t want to be the guy hiking so the board better feel, well, no pow board is stable but perhaps secure is the word that fits. Man, this Dupraz is secure! By the end of the day I was worked from riding hard but could still hang on strongly through the chop and crud now covering everything. I found lips to slash and cut back on and spent the day smiling. It may have been just the time I spent riding with my pal Rusty but the Dupraz felt more like a new surf board that I felt right at home on than a snowboard and sometimes that’s OK!
Since that day I have logged several more powder days on the Dupraz swapping it in the rotation with my other Pow sticks like my 156 Burton Fish, a 162 Malolo, a 182 tanker, and several other all mountain shapes from the demo shop. Every time, the Dupraz has been a joy! It only takes a few turns to get reacquainted with and serves its purpose on the groomers well with alpine like angulations possible on good snow due to its wide nose! I was bummed when we sent it back to Bola and hope to find a similar shape to spend more time on. I have since ridden some large swallow tails that remind me of big board stability but have to give the Dupraz Pintail props for riding as well as a larger board in the open and making great work of the trees, turning much tighter than any board its size. Thanks Bola!
For a high resolution video review of the Dupraz, click the following link:
(The file is quite large, and could take some time to play, based on your connection speed. You can also right-click and download the file if you wish.)
