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Re: Moss Snowstick

Posted: Tue Feb 13, 2024 3:19 pm
by kimchi
I haven't ridden them all but in general they ride lose with rear foot input. I ride them narrow stance and double posi (for me like 21", F+27 R+12).

Swallow 162: Feels pretty normal and pretty predictable ride. My go to on pow days when I trust snow pack. Super fun on groomers as a change of pace, can really lay back on that rear fit and tighten up the sidecut on the backend of carves. Sucks on ice.

Swallow 170: Moss switches up shaping pretty dramatically between sizes, this actually has less effective edge than the 162. I'd like it better in pow, worse on groomers.

Performance Quad 54: Feels super weird but in a good way. So much weird shit going on in this shape, convex base, concave sections between the fins, and a stubby swallow... but long and short is I can lay this thing over with minimal speed and pitch. TUsually I feel like I need to get up to 25+ mph to really carve, I can lay this over at more like 15 mph. Tiny ass tail gets bucked around in variable conditions, something I learned at Jackson Hole. I wish Moss made a bigger PQ57 with the wider waist and a bit more edge, they narrow up the PQ60 significantly. Sounds like the Modern Fish might be the board I'm looking for, but even for a Moss that sucker is $$$$.

Wingswallow 149: I never fully trusted this board. It was surprisingly solid given I'm 210 lbs, but I never found it as flowy as the PQ54 or as solid as the SW62. I was terrified to go fast on it because you have essentially zero edge behind the backfoot, even by the standards of a Moss. You're basically committing to a line unless you can buttslide out or have a mellow runout to slow you down. I have a feeling I'd really like this board if I rode a flatter mountain like Bachelor.

Long 184.5: I don't think they sell this in North America any more, only the Mini Long. This thing is fucking weird. I took one lap on it and gave it back to my buddy. Only thing I can say is it's exclusively rear foot input... first turn I tried to make on it I went to the front foot and straight up fell on my ass. My buddy loves it for super low angle pow days, as you'd expect of a board that big.

U5: This was the first Moss I ever demoed like 7 years ago and I didn't really "get it" yet. Felt like a tweener, not super snowsurfy, not quite as sturdy as a traditional snowboard. My buddy who owns like six or seven Mosses has this and says it's the one he rides the least.

Re: Moss Snowstick

Posted: Tue Feb 13, 2024 4:24 pm
by casjcade
I'm considering the Long, looks like they changed it some for this year, after only selling the Mini for some. It has more tail than Mini, so probably faster in the deep stuff, planes and can lay more into turns because of the length. These things are for real terrain and soft snow, not hard groomers, check out edge vs total length. Others are better for that. Downside is I'm not sure I can throw it in the back of my car, and would need a new bag if I want to travel with it. Maybe grab a Nallo instead, so I stick to the same problem:)

Some of the boards are very set back, torsionally soft tails and soft noses, but not all. A few have more width so the flex feels "normaler". Most are mid wide, but pretty different from Koruas. Need to drive along the edges. Trying to sit on the tail and brake, alot of them will chatter out, but they like sharp turns. Most of the boards are really good in the trees. Bamboo/poplar makes them dynamic and not at all damp, so you need to keep up with the movement, but I've felt pretty comfy at speed. Got 3 of the boards. The pintails, pq and "step back rockers" are worth a try at least. Put on some chill music and just surf the terrain:).