The Basics: Board Tech

Photo: Alex Indigo

Your board. Probably one of the most basic of basics when it comes to snowboarding. In the past few years, the ways that boards are engineered have changed dramatically to say the least. Coming into the 2009-2010 season it seems like snowboard companies have their act together and actually know how to talk about the product they are trying to sell.

There are some really great articles on the differences so I don’t need to re-write what has already been written, but I do want to go over the basics…and give some places to go from here for more information.

The word of the day is “camber.”

And, if you don’t know, like I didn’t, camber refers to the curvature or arch of the board (Wikipedia). The way that your board arches can affect how you can use your edges in pow, groomed trails, or the park.

THE LINE UP

Traditional

This is the camber that you have been riding up until maybe last year. The center of the board arches up off of the snow from from each end of the board. When you ride this board, the middle of it presses down, increasing the amount of edge that is in direct contact with snow. The 2009 Transworld Snowboarding Gear Guide says traditional camber “initiates lively turns.” I’d have to agree.

Flat

This type of board will lay dead flat on the snow. The center doesn’t arch upwards like  traditional camber boards do. Since all of the edges are flat on the snow, Transworld says its a pretty stable and predictable ride. They also say that it has a lot of flex and will be easier to do ollies with. A move that’s harder with a traditional camber board.

Reverse (Rocker)

Like the flat camber board above, this design is exactly what it says it is. It’s a reverse of the traditional cambered board. The center of the board connects with the snow and the tips of the board arch up. Because there is less edge-to-snow contact at the tips of the board it is much easier to sail through pow.

Mixed Camber

Want a little bit of everything? This is where you are going to find it. There are a lot of different variations depending on the brand, but most mixed camber boards are concave-or touch the snow-between the bindings, then arch up off of the snow at the point where the binding is, then arch back down at the tips. It basically looks like those low-tech bows used for archery.

Learn More

There are a couple of other really great descriptions of the different board cambers that are out on the market.

• South if the North’s Guide to the Technology Formerly Called Reverse CamberGood examples of boards with the different camber styles. They also match riding style with board design.

• Shredding Betties’ Sneak Peak: The Shape of Boards to ComeExplains why you should even care about this new technology. They break down some of the camber designs from a variety of snowboard brands.

• Angry Snowboarder’s Camber Theories In UseTakes the discussion one step further, commenting on how these new boards actually hold up on the hill.

• And, if you still buy magazines, check out Transworld’s 2009 Buyers Guide. They have some excellent visuals that might make the different types of camber a lot clearer.

What do you think? Is the new technology all it is cracked up to be?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 30th, 2009 at 6:13 AM. It is filed under gear, snowboards and tagged with camber, review, snowboards, technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.