Snowboarding

I'm going to hit TK Maxx looking for Goretex bargains, failing that I like the look of the jacket @IR linked to.

That's all really helpful, appreciate you taking the time to write it all out :-)

Nike did a goretex jacket that was called a juniper I think - thats what I have...got it from SS20 for very little. Would recommend - fully loaded!

Mountain Warehouse have some pretty amazing deals on if the sales are still on. It won't be amazingly hip with the kids but in my late thirties IDGAS about fashion.

Why are some people paying £600 for a jacket?

Why are some people paying £5k+ for a bike? ;)

£2k+ for a pair of sneaks? That someone else has worn? Dude...

Fair point. I was just wondering if there was anything tangibly better about a £600 jacket versus a £300 jacket

What's the jacket?

£600/300 for a jacket!
Last seasons sales is the babber. Haven't paid over £90 for a jacket, but that may explain why I'm so shit at snowboarding and cold all the time...
#Meh

Ha don't worry I'm not planning on paying £300, that just seems to be the average price of a 3-in-1 top waterproofed snow jacket, yet there's some that are £400, £500, and £600 so was wondering why they kept going up even thought the technical features weren't increasing.

@d-goods

http://www.snowandrock.com/ortovox-mens-3l-guardian-shell-jacket/ortovox-jacket/ski-snowboard-outdoor-sports/fcp-product/52780?listing=true

£590

Any input on this:

http://www.ss20.com/snowboarding-c2/snowboard-jackets-c25/hazed-14-15-jacket-black-red-p25608

^ I have the 12/13 season I picked up for £85. I really like it.

That's ski blud, and the nodder skier end too. They're all cunts who would throw £100's at gear that my make their parallel turns a tincey bit better. You CANNOT wear ski gear on a snowboard. You have to stay true.

Yes! I also have this jacket in the grey and black. Christmas present :) not used it yet but its really nice and thats a good price. XL comes up big I'm 6'2 and the XL covers half my arse which is a good thing. Only criticism is that it doesn't have snocuffs, but you can get base layers with thumbholes everywhere now (nike also do good ones) that can also help keep the snow out. Great vents, packed with all the stuff you need.

Mega, I'll buy this then. Re your PM, it doesn't matter this isn't actual Goretex? Nike's Storm Fit is an acceptable alternative?

Oh and I'll be buying small, i'm a midget.

Of course goretex is the ultimate - if you can go for that with say a burton 2L or 3L which you can get for sub £200 all the better, but for the price, this will piss all over the etnies thing. You don't need goretex all the time. I always travel with 2 jackets. This would be one to keep.

@NurseHolliday - Last week I was in Blacks on regent st. They had a good Mountain hardware (bright orange) Jacket for £150 on sale or a 66ºNorth Goretex Pro shell for £180. good gear and many other uses too. The 66º North had more snow oriented features but looked more technical too. Whatever you get, get a shell. As others have said they are much more flexible in use. I'm normally in a merino base layer, merino T-shirt and the shell. good down to about -5. Plenty of room for another layer if it gets colder.

I need to get back to the snow now!

BTW, thanks to all those that recommended Bataleon - The Omni I bought is great. I'm a convert to the TBT. But... man you burn the wax off! The base was nearly dry after a few fast piste burners.
It's a great board off piste and in deeper stuff. Did a guided day at Les Arcs and got taken down some couloirs on to the few remaining bits of untracked powder. So much fun after I stopped shitting myself! Absolutely floats and you can really extend your carves without losing speed or digging in.
Weirdly it only suffers on hard packed stuff, very hard to hold an edge if you put too much power into the turn.

I found my bataleon would sort of wash out on the really hard packed stuff if I didn't really commit to the carve and force it to dig in. It was also way too wide* for me so I sold it.

*shop convinced me to go for a wide board despite my protest, reverted back to 'normal' widths and don't regtet a thing.

Definitely do a season. I got my job through natives, was head barman at a hotel - the perfect job. You get to know everyone (and their business :) and you work evenings so other than a few odd days with an inspection from the pompiers and the mairie, and the odd hour sorting deliveries and stock counts, your days are your own.

I went riding every day, other than the week I had flu, even if it was for just a few hours. Running a busy bar all night, few beers to wind down, ski every day, and only a 3 hour shift on a saturday so essentially I had 2 nights off as well.

This was in France. The shop guys tend to be working a lot, though they do get a bit of riding in, the chalet hosts had the worst deal, but if you are totally on point and know your shit you can get out every day. If you get a bar popular with seasonnaires then you will have wild parties, know everyone well, and have some epic, busy as fuck, but a great laugh, nights, usually listening to slightly dodgy covers bands that are favourites with seasonnaires across the french alps. If you can play guitar, or even if you cant, then being in one of those bands is probably up there as the perfect job. With seasonnaires bars though, watch out you don't go for one owned by a big company as they will rip the pish in terms of the hours you are expected to work.

Agreed - washes out. Took me a few sketchy high speed runs to figure it out. Mine is narrow though. Wide boards are no go. Was pretty interesting to compare different techs. My mate had a Burton with a "W" shaped base - nice and flexy and chuckable but was useless in the deep stashes and particularly in technical bumpy stuff through trees. To be fair though, I was wishing I could shrink my board from a 56 to 50 at that point! (silly, ooh, lets follow that tree line down - it should meet up at the bottom moment...)

Also, went for a more duckfoot stance this time. mucho better!

Looking at a 2015 bataleon global warmer for £250 new...so tempted to pull the trigger!

Bataleons seem to be a love 'em or hate 'em board... I know quite a few in the latter camp and a couple in the former... Never ridden one myself.

I think most techs and shapes have a roll somewhere. I really like cheap, mid flex, traditional camber park boards as well as flat between the feet jib boards.

My current favourite is endeavour I've got.
http://www.endeavorsnowboards.com/clout-series/

Albeit last seasons version, it's fast, stable, has pop for DAYS, is fun in powder and it presses pretty well if you're willing to work for it.

I'm 187cm and 81 KG and ride the 156.

Jeepers. I'm 5' 11 (~14st) Used to be 12 :-S and I ride a 156.

Fuck wide.

Would anyone have a mens board, bindings and boots (sz 9) I can borrow. Beginner so won't be doing anything apart from piste blues.