Ice. I immensely dislike snowboarding on ice. I traveled all the way to New Zealand last year and the first thing on my list to do upon arrival was snowboard. I paid to rent gear, and as I am totally spoiled on my gear from working in board shops for the last 6 years, this was extremely painful. Yes, I ended up with slightly soggy boots, that no matter how small you go down in size are STILL somehow too big, bindings from 1987, and a board that is cap construction. Then I headed to the front desk of my hostel and spent almost $200 on a lift ticket. I gritted my teeth and tried to look at the big picture: snowboarding in New Zealand! I geared up and headed to the hill. When I got there I was blown away by the lack of lines and amazing facilities, but there was sooooo much ice.
This, at home, would be no problem seeing as I have a Gnu board with the Magne-Traction that cuts through ice like nobody’s business. In Oregon ice is everywhere, but I have overcome it by riding my Gnu. It grips and holds turns in conditions that even the Titanic would go under in. Unfortunately for me this was NOT the board I had. I took 5 runs with no problems, but on my 6th run I took a turn on some of that dang ice stuff and my board flew out from under me. Don’t worry; I caught myself, with the back of my head. After cleaning up my yard sale and taking a couple more runs with a headache, I retired to the lodge for some delicious Chai. If you want a board that will help you perform in adverse conditions I highly suggest the Gnu B-Nice with Magne-Traction to kill the threat of ice and Banana Action for floating through pow; it really is a very diverse board. It’s great for an all-mountain rider, a park rat, and even a lady just starting to get her mountain legs under her. Gnu also makes all their boards in the U.S.A. So tell Jack Frost to get bent and ride a Gnu board, or bag it and hang out in the lodge, because New Zealand has the BEST Chai of any place I have been thus far.
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