BINDINGS

[dpartridge7]

I'll raise you a video from Fawcett, a slight ghtly more credible source:



This is why I can't take the "only for Jerries" argument too seriously. Mark Fawcett and Dave Downing preferentially ride Step Ons when they can ride whatever bindings they want. I wasn't too stoked on v1, kooks definitely gravitate towards them, but they got a place in a performance quiver pending rider preference.

And yea the occasional mid-mountain eject happens but over the years I've had catastrophic equipment failure on various brands of regular bindings. Shit happens.

i've spoken to fawcett's about his preference for step-on. yes, this is true, but not in all situations (not saying this as a put-down of step-ons, especially since he swears by them). he is a total gear nerd and great to work with and talk to about progressing snowboard hardgoods (hope he doesn't mind me saying that).

[Vanni]

I'll raise you a video from Fawcett, a slight ghtly more credible source:



This is why I can't take the "only for Jerries" argument too seriously. Mark Fawcett and Dave Downing preferentially ride Step Ons when they can ride whatever bindings they want. I wasn't too stoked on v1, kooks definitely gravitate towards them, but they got a place in a performance quiver pending rider preference.

And yea the occasional mid-mountain eject happens but over the years I've had catastrophic equipment failure on various brands of regular bindings. Shit happens.

For sure it seems they are super responsive.
I'm wondering if they have a place in a quiver like mine, with a rider with my preference.
And I'm not talking about straps, or convenience of the stepon. I'm just talking about the performance.
Maybe they are too sharp, too responsive for my skills, or for my preference. I prefer smooth bindings, that have certain performance.

If the vast majority of the snowboarders needed that kind on performances, we probably saw a lot more top of the line carbon injected super light super responsive bindings on the mountain, but 99% I'm seeing Force/atlas/Cartel-level bindings and below. And for sure buying a top of the line Jones Apollo-Union Atlas FC, etc etc, is cheaper than buy a stepon + stepon boots combo.

This video of Fawcett with stepons, scare me a little bit, the first thought was that he rides incredible, for sure they are a performance tool and they are not "only for jerries", but the second thought was, "I'm wondering if the performances are a bit too much for me"

[jclinares]

Haven't been on StepOns yet, but after seeing a buddy struggle with icing issues on his a couple of years ago, in multiple days of the week we rode together; and seeing him miss out on the afternoon session where our group were all exchanging boards amongst ourselves to try other setups, because he was the only one on StepOns (we weren't switching bindings), I don't think they're for me, lol.

Yes, this is a very narrow view and small sample size, but so be it, hahaha. I'd still like to demo them one day, though. I'm open to chaning my mind.

[casjcade]

Those Falcor straps are damn nice.

[eleveneightnate]

Those Falcor straps are damn nice.

And the Ultra gets that ankle strap next season, too

[C.Fuzzy]

I've also watched the Good Rides takes on step on, and pros talk about how step on 'aren't for them' and then of course fawcetts video. I've heard Billy Anderson talk about riding them, Downing, etc. We're seeing most major boot and binding brands adopt the platform.

It seems to me that there's an underlying resistance to step ons that they're not for 'real' snowboarders. But also, few can really say why, outside of some pretty flimsy criticism and or worrying about missing ritual ratchet clicks n such. But some other guys aren't worried about being seen as a 'real' snowboarder and so they're just evaluating the performance and don't find it lacking.

And I think that's kind of where my head is on it. Like I said before, to me it's kind of like the difference between tight trucks and loose trucks on a skateboard... But maybe even less so. If I remove my own bias of what I already own (a shitload of strap bindings) and dispel myself of the step on = jerry bias, what I'm left with is the idea that if snowboarding had started with step ons to begin with and then someone invented straps... I think we'd be having the opposite conversation and most would think them a step backwards. I can already hear the criticisms about adding straps and all the things that could possibly go wrong with them, now.

And so the fact that the industry seems to be embracing them, and the next generation of consumer will probably not have the same old school bias, it seems to me that step ons will likely, over time, just become the norm. But maybe not. I don't know I care either way.

[casjcade]

I bought some thinking they'd be great. That didn't happen for me, so whatever. Maybe at some point I'll try some version that works, but what I have works so well, I'm not going to put an effort into it.

[pow_hnd]

Here we go…

IMG_8551.jpeg (5.44 MiB) Viewed 2621 times

[McK21]

I'll raise you a video from Fawcett, a slight ghtly more credible source:



This is why I can't take the "only for Jerries" argument too seriously. Mark Fawcett and Dave Downing preferentially ride Step Ons when they can ride whatever bindings they want. I wasn't too stoked on v1, kooks definitely gravitate towards them, but they got a place in a performance quiver pending rider preference.

And yea the occasional mid-mountain eject happens but over the years I've had catastrophic equipment failure on various brands of regular bindings. Shit happens.

For sure it seems they are super responsive.
I'm wondering if they have a place in a quiver like mine, with a rider with my preference.
And I'm not talking about straps, or convenience of the stepon. I'm just talking about the performance.
Maybe they are too sharp, too responsive for my skills, or for my preference. I prefer smooth bindings, that have certain performance.

If the vast majority of the snowboarders needed that kind on performances, we probably saw a lot more top of the line carbon injected super light super responsive bindings on the mountain, but 99% I'm seeing Force/atlas/Cartel-level bindings and below. And for sure buying a top of the line Jones Apollo-Union Atlas FC, etc etc, is cheaper than buy a stepon + stepon boots combo.

This video of Fawcett with stepons, scare me a little bit, the first thought was that he rides incredible, for sure they are a performance tool and they are not "only for jerries", but the second thought was, "I'm wondering if the performances are a bit too much for me"

Well, I think that choosing step on it's not only because of fast entry/exit, I don't even look at it because of that, to me, on one side, it's just convenience because my snow friends areallmost all on skis, so it save me a little bit of time because they don't wait and sometimes I ride/teach my son, si it's better about that.
What I like most is the feeling in some conditions, on slope and freeride gives you that little bit more response and precision, very responsive, as I already said I loose something in the freestyle side, not that it's hard or impossible, it's just a different feeling, but it's just the first couple of runs, then you go easy, but, honestly, you can feel that it's different.
Jumps, side hits, buttering, you can do it, but you miss that movement of the ankle that helps you in a lot of things.
But I've tried the regular step on, I think and many people confirm that the Genesis are little bit better, obviously not like a strap binding, curious about the flux model.

So, it's not that different or hard, it's just suited better to some things than others, you just have to try.

There's an Italian YouTube photographer that did a video with a local burton pro about why pro's didn't use step on if not only for filming commercials and he showed, like many others did, that you can go big in the park and on the rails ( I guessing works out good also in the pipe) like a normal bindings but.....you have to relearn al the muscle memory because of the different feelings and reactions, so nobody that it's used to film or compete with normal bindings have the time and the will to do so, that's what he said, you can find the video on YouTube, it's in Italian, Roby Bragotto.

[eleveneightnate]

I've also watched the Good Rides takes on step on, and pros talk about how step on 'aren't for them' and then of course fawcetts video. I've heard Billy Anderson talk about riding them, Downing, etc. We're seeing most major boot and binding brands adopt the platform.

It seems to me that there's an underlying resistance to step ons that they're not for 'real' snowboarders. But also, few can really say why, outside of some pretty flimsy criticism and or worrying about missing ritual ratchet clicks n such. But some other guys aren't worried about being seen as a 'real' snowboarder and so they're just evaluating the performance and don't find it lacking.

And I think that's kind of where my head is on it. Like I said before, to me it's kind of like the difference between tight trucks and loose trucks on a skateboard... But maybe even less so. If I remove my own bias of what I already own (a shitload of strap bindings) and dispel myself of the step on = jerry bias, what I'm left with is the idea that if snowboarding had started with step ons to begin with and then someone invented straps... I think we'd be having the opposite conversation and most would think them a step backwards. I can already hear the criticisms about adding straps and all the things that could possibly go wrong with them, now.

And so the fact that the industry seems to be embracing them, and the next generation of consumer will probably not have the same old school bias, it seems to me that step ons will likely, over time, just become the norm. But maybe not. I don't know I care either way.

Generally agree with this, even as someone who doesn't like them. Though, the inverse is also happening on every post across the internet about them (even here) where if you dislike them you're told you just can't handle the "performance" of them or whatever.

I put "performance" in quotes because, with Step On, it's often framed around just one metric: hair trigger heel/toe response. They don't "perform" for me personally because I lose 95% of the lateral mobility that I want out of my bindings and riding style. Plus the known heel lift issues, lack of adjustability for boot centering, hard plastic bases with the little board-breaker wings that B won't get rid of, etc (I realize Union just fixed that with theirs). For other people, response could be that end-all-be-all metric and there's nothing wrong with that at all, but there are more metrics that are often ignored when talking about them and snowboarding is simply not that one-dimensional for everyone.

Hopefully we get some more freestyle/surfy brahhh friendly iterations as time goes on. Maybe wider heel cleats or something?