Freestyle Snowboards buying guide

Love riding on the snow on your board? Want to polish your snowboarding skills to the next level? Opt for a freestyle board to have the best experience of the sport.

Freestyle snowboards are specially designed to jib, jump over snowy terrain. Certain factors are altered to make the experience more smooth and enjoyable. However, you must select the best fit according to your requirements.

There are different characteristics you need to consider to sort out the best fit. You can do this only when you possess detailed facts about them. Gathering all this information can take a lot of your time and consume many resources. Moreover, you may end up with false facts.

However, if you refer to a comprehensive buying guide, you will get all the necessary information under one roof. You can get answers to different queries and strike out the best fit according to your needs quickly.

But before starting with the guide, let us get into a brief introduction to the product.

What do you mean by Freestyle Snowboards? Why is it important to have it?

Have you ever dreamt of jumping high over various obstacles and feel like you are flying high? Do you want to experience a thrilling adventure?

Snowboarding is here to give you an exciting opportunity to fulfill all your dreams.

Freestyle snowboarding is a type of sport where the person boarding performs various actions.

Boarding is done in a terrain where there are rails, boxes, jumps, pipes, etc. These objects help you to be creative with your sport and perform different types of snowboarding activities.

Freestyle snowboards are boards that you can use to play and glide on the snow. You can perform difficult stunts and tricks and leave your friends awestruck. The best feature is the butter-like flow, which you feel while you glide along the smooth white surface.

They are much different from freeride snowboards, and individuals who incline freestyle snowboarding can feel the difference.

It is fascinating and an excellent method to have a snowboard workout. Soft and lightweight than the other snowboards available, Freestyle snowboards are way more comfortable to be controlled, and ideal for park uses. They have good pop and are more flexible.

Difference between freeride and Freestyle Snowboards

The freeride and the Freestyle snowboards stand at opposite ends of the spectrum because they have significant differences.

The differences are created for a reason, and that is to make the board more suitable for the style of riding for which it is specially designed.

Mentioned below are the points of differences between the two for a better understanding:

Freestyle boards

These boards are more flexible and softer. You can easily control your movements while performing stunts. Moreover, they provide butter-like shifts.

1. Shape

They have identical ends that are tapered. It makes riding and landing switches more natural and comfortable.

2. Setback

These don’t require setbacks, and having them can make riding switch troublesome. They have a centered stance to keep the board symmetrical.

3. Base

Some have a sintered base, while the majority of them have an extruded base. Extruded bases are inexpensive and easy to manage. They have slow speed so that the riders can control it accordingly.

4. Length & Width

Typically the boards are shorter in length. However, they are easier to control, spin, and hit while maneuvering.

They possess a broader width to provide more stability to the rider while boarding.

Freeride boards

The boards are quite stiff as it allows them to move quickly between two points for better edge hold and precise moments. They have stuffer boards for better edge hold that offer successfully boarding on hard and icy terrains and cutting through tight and steep mountains.

1. Shape

They have one narrow end. This is because directional and narrow ends are designed for riding in one specific direction making riding switches difficult.

2. Setback

These have extra setbacks that allow better flow in deep snow. The setback stance enables you to keep the nose of the board above the snow always so that you can carve out great lines and patterns.

3. Base

These have a sintered base, which is faster and offer a better glide on the snow. Sintered bases are expensive and get damaged quite often.

4. Length & Width

The boards are longer than the other options. The extra length provides speed and stability. However, they possess a slightly narrower width to give an increased response.

Why read a buying guide before selecting an appropriate snowboard?

Whether you are a newbie or expert in the sport, owning a suitable snowboard is critical for a smooth and enjoyable experience. You have to consider the style, length, width durability, and other additional properties to select the best board.

By reading a buying guide, you will be able to wrap your head around all the necessary elements of the board that alter its performance and usability.

So, let us dive into the buying guide for further detailed information on all the elements of the product.

Things to deem about while selecting an appropriate Freestyle Snowboards

Want to change your dreams into reality? Want to float on the white powder and make your way out smoothly?

The best Freestyle snowboards for you are the ones that are designed for the style of riding you prefer and the terrains you love going to. Also, consider specific features of the snowboard, which may affect your adventure.

If you are a beginner, you should look for Freestyle snowboards, which can help you develop fundamental skills in the sport.

But before you start searching for your snowboards online, catch a glimpse of different features of a board, which may become a crucial deciding factor for your investment.

Length:

According to a general rule that governs the snowboard world, the snowboard you are considering to buy should be of a specific length.

When you stand your board on its tail, its nose should reach between your nose and chin. For better reference, use the size charts and recommended rider weights.

To choose the right length, consider the type of riding you want to do and your height and weight as recommended by many snowboard manufacturers.

After having a general idea of the weight to length ratio, you can go for shorter or longer lengths according to your built. Fast riders choose a longer board while the park riders prefer shorter and broader boards for having stability while jumping.

Shape:

While going for your preferred shape, always emphasize on the type of riding you plan.

1. Directional

The boards are designed for riding only in a specific direction and are ideal for high-speed carvings on the snow. Example: freeride boards

2. Directional twin

These types of boards are best-suited for the riders who ride over the mountains, be it the groomers or the parks.

3. True twins

These are symmetrically designed and do not affect the performance. It can be used for riding in any direction, unlike the directional ones. This feature of the board makes them a primary choice for pipe and park riders.

True-twins and directional twin boards allow you an easy-riding switch while the directional boards do not.

Width:

The right snowboard width gives you better control over your board, and this feature of the board is worth considering before you set out for any purchase.

The wider the board, the more secure you are as it prevents you from falling off while you are riding. This is because the width of the boards prevents your boots from touching the snow while snowboarding. After all, the shoes hang over the board’s edges slightly if they are wide.

The boots that you choose to wear while snowboarding should be compatible with your board, or else you will end up having a great fall!

Wider snowboards give you more stability while landing and while balancing on the jibs.

Since responsiveness isn’t a factor for freestylers, having a board little wider makes no difference. Though a narrow board is faster from end to end, a freestyler gives no importance to the speed.

You may sacrifice a little on the responsive side but gain much more on the smooth landings.

Camber and rocker:

When you place the snowboard on the icy surface and get a side view of it, you will notice that different boards have different shapes.

Some boards have their middle raised off the snow, while some have their middle portion flat against the snow. This is the fundamental difference between camber and a rocker.

Camber provides a stable ride and offers responsiveness on hard or groomed trails. Experiences and speed-loving riders often choose cambered snowboards.

Flat, as the name indicates, are flat on the surface and allow quick turns and maximum feel while increasing the float along the snowy surface.

Rockers or reverse cambers, have upturned tails. This design is favorable for riding in the parks as they move excellently on the soft snow. They are softer than cambered boards and give a surfy feel that allows smooth turns, preferred by new riders. However, expert riders can still enjoy an exciting ride on them.

Camber/rocker boards, when combined, provide great edge hold of the cambered boards and the smooth glides and floats of the rockered boards. Board manufacturers have experimented a lot with camber and rocker boards to give you a maximized performance.

Flat rocker features a flat surface in the middle for decent edge hold and rockered tails for easy and quick turns.

Flex:

The most vital aspect of any board is its flexibility, which is required during riding.

1. Freestylers in the park

Many freestylers go for medium-soft flex, for it allows them to feel jibs well and reasonable control over the board while at the same time providing many give on the landings.

It also offers enough stiffness to ride along challenging trails if there is an urge to do so. Also, it provides a better edge hold for better landings on bigger jumps.

A soft flexing is better for riders who want only to ride the park.

2. In the pipe

If pipes are your liking, then you should search for stiffer flex to compliment your riding type.

It offers a more excellent edge hold and drives for climbing the wall of the pipe.

Having extra edge hold technology like Magne-traction on your boards helps you to get a good grip on your board and drive you up to the pipe walls.

3. In extreme park

If you want your ride to be epic with large and extra-large jumps, then you should undoubtedly go for slightly stiffer flex.

This is needed for having a good edge hold while you are going for large jumps and provide stability for smooth landings after the jumps.

If you still want the landing to be a bit smoother, then a medium flex will be a good bet here.

Base and its material:

Most of the Freestyle snowboards have an extruded base. Extruded based boards are relatively slower because high speed can be a hindrance to many freestyle rides.

They are cheaper to manufacture and require less maintenance, unlike the sintered baseboards.

The material used for making these snowboards is Polyethylene.

While sintered baseboards are stronger and durable, but require higher maintenance and regular waxing. Also, being cheap and easy to repair, extruded baseboards are sometimes prone to warping.

Jump and pop:

Pop is the push that you get from the board while you make jumps. Good pop is required to increase the airtime and perform impressive stunts in the air.

It makes your adventure more enjoyable if your freestyle board provides you with more pop.

The best Freestyle snowboards should give you a good pop for enabling you to do more tricks and perform more stunts of a different kind.

Softer boards give you a good push while firm boards being stiff, do not allow you the same.

If your board is soft and has rocker ends, then your jump is going to be much more exciting.

Profile:

Choosing a profile for your board entirely depends on your taste. A typical freestyle snowboard is cambered or flat between the feet and is rockered at the tail. When landing, the camber offers you more stability. If you like jibbing, then the flat middle is the ideal one.

If you like riding or jumping on rails, then you should look for a full or partial rocker profile.

The best park snowboard is the one that suits your taste of style and your stunts. It depends on your preference.

Versatility and stability:

Park snowboards are less stable because they often feel soft and have stability issues while riding at higher speeds.

Individuals who love freestyle snowboarding like it but at the risk of downhill stability.

Many other boards are stable in the park. These are usually cambered with a medium flex, and their design places the bindings right in the middle, thus making it more stable while hitting a jib or jumping.

If you want to attempt both downhill and park riding, you look out for a hybrid, which is an all-mountain freestyle snowboard to cater to both the styles.

Jibbing:

It is a snowboarding term, which means sliding a snowboard on different surfaces like rails or pipes. It’s a significant factor governing freestyle snowboarding and an exciting thing to do in the park.

If you want to be an expert in jibbing, then make sure that you own a board that makes your work easier.

The base of the board plays a crucial role while you jib as the board itself does all the work. Unlike carving slopes, the edges of the board have no part here.

This is the reason why you should have a board that can swiftly jump over an obstacle and slides on the rails and boxes without losing control. Individuals love jibbing the boards that have a flat surface for experiencing a better slide.

Price:

Freestyle snowboards are relatively cheaper than their other counterparts. This is mainly because of the soft materials used in them.

They require less maintenance, which saves your extra investment in fixing the damage.

Hence, it is economically feasible and affordable for everyone.

Though the top end boards cost a little more, even if you buy a middle range board, you will have the same experience as on any other freestyle board.

Effective edge:

Want to slide down the mountains swiftly, cutting through the snow and coming out through the clouds like a victorious soldier? This is where the effective edge of a snowboard comes into the role.

Snowboards are equipped with metal edges that cut a pass through the snow for better control and steering. A board’s ‘effective edge’ is the portion of the board which comes in contact with the snow throughout your decent.

The edge is always shorter than the actual length of the snowboard. A longer effective edge offers stability even at high speeds and firm grip during turns or when descending icy slopes. A shorter effective edge enables the board to turn swiftly.

Sidecut radius:

It describes the arc formed by the snowboard’s edges. It is expressed in meters and gives you a general idea about how competent a snowboard is at making turns.

A board with a narrower body makes tighter turns because it has a shorter sidecut radius while a board with a broader body has a longer sidecut radius and is good at long radius turns.

Binding capacity:

Many different types of mounting options are provided by snowboards for binding them.

Snowboard bindings transfer energy to your board and respond to the shifting of your body for precise control over the board.

Choose binding according to your riding style, board, boots, and comfort. Always ensure that your binding is compatible with your board to avoid injuries while riding.

FAQs

1. What is the ideal choice of flex for the freestylers in the park?

The freestylers prefer flex that is medium-soft so that they can smoothly ride over pipes and aid you in riding difficult terrains comfortably. Not only this, but they can also land with ease and feel stability while landing onto bigger jumps.

2. What is the right shape of a snowboard that freestylers use?

True twins are considered the best for snowboarding in the park. Being symmetrical, they can be ridden from both the directions, be it forward or backward, without any compromise on performance. Thus, freestylers feel more comfortable with true twins owing to its exceptional flexibility.

3. Should kids use the same board as adults?

No, buying an adult board for kids is not right. It is because the board has an oversized weight and cannot be easily managed by the child. In addition to this, they can even result in restricting the skill development of the kids.

4. Can a freeride snowboard be used in freestyle snowboarding?

Being a snowboard with a stiff flex, it is not recommended to use a freeride snowboard for freestyle snowboarding. Also, these freeride boards are best-suited for adventure-lovers, which means they can be used on any terrains. Along with this, they are unidirectional, and thus, freestylers do not consider them as a viable option for their comfortable ride.

5. What should you choose: rockers or cambers?

Rockers precisely reverse cambers are the apt choice for freestylers who like to ride rails in the park. Being softer than cambered boards, these boards are excellent for experienced drivers who like to feel like surfing while riding them. Also, they are perfect for amazing rides that have smooth turns. All these features also make them an ideal option for all the novice riders.

Final Verdict

With all this information under your possession, what are you waiting for? Arm yourself with an elite board, and you are all set for your snowboarding expedition.

We have presented all the crucial information about freestyle snowboards in this extensive guide to help you funnel down the best option. Go through each point and make an informed decision when choosing your board.