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Korua Stealth 2016-2017

 

  • Price: €449
  • Sizes: 150, 156, 163
  • Flex: 9
  • Profile: Setback Camber
  • Shape: Directional
  • KORUASHAPES.COM

Korua Shapes have drawn inspiration from Japan’s snow surfing culture to produce a range of interesting, unconventional-looking shapes aimed at those with a ‘yearning for turning‘ and the Korua Stealth is arguably the most striking. If you’ve ever witnessed a blur of red-and-while screeching down the piste or the pow, then you’ve just had a close encounter with a Stealth.

By making the board significantly wider, Korua has increased the surface area which makes for a far more stable ride – especially off-piste. It goes without saying that you won’t be able to turn on a ten-pence-piece, but on a board of this style you wouldn’t want to either. There are plenty of options in the Korua line for ducking in and out of the trees, but this one’s about drawing big, broad turns at high speeds.

“It goes without saying that you won’t be able to turn on a ten-pence-piece, but on a board of this style you wouldn’t want to either”

It features the brand’s ‘Float Camber’ profile, which is essentially a mellow rocker bend in the nose that turns to camber as you move towards the tail. This is ideal for directional pow sticks, as you get power and pop from the camber but won’t ever go over the handlebars in deeper snow. Camber is still the best profile for gripping your edge into firmer snow, so carving on the hard-pack is a doddle on this too (at least once you get used to the slightly slower edge change).

The board has a slight swallowtail, which further improves the float and means that the Stealth isn’t too stiff at the back. Generally speaking, however, this is pretty rigid, so leave all notions of buttering the piste back at home. Master the pop and you can still spend some good time in the air – but perhaps avoid any switch landings…

Sizing options in the Stealth’s inaugural year left a lot of room for improvement, with only a 163cm version available to buy. This year it comes in two new sizes as well, meaning smaller, lighter riders won’t miss out. As long as you’re down for swooping carves, bombing pow faces and generally gunning it at all times, there’s a Korua Stealth for you.

Tester’s Verdict

Tom Copsey – Onboard

‘Holy crap, they’ve given me a coffin lid to test’ was the first thing I thought when I picked up this intimidating weapon, but from the first turn it was clear this was not as beastly to ride as it appears.

It turns much quicker than expected for a board that looks like an oil tanker, with a soft nose and medium-to-stiff flex throughout the rest of the ample length, so carving and slashing and surfing your way down the hill is much more fun than you might imagine. Powerful? Yes. Challenging? Nah.

“Powerful? Yes. Challenging? Nah”

Needless to say it’s in powder that the Stealth excels. It’s fairly wide with a lot of volume so it just FLOATS. The Gerard Depardieu-esque beak is so long and wide it effortlessly rides above the freshies, while the narrower, vampire-fanged tail sinks well and kicks up tasty roosters with none of that back leg burn you’d get from a less directional board.

But it’s not just pow that this board is a blast to ride on – if you’re not fussed about rail combos or serious airtime and prefer to charge the piste as if it were a great white wave, you’ll be hyped on the Stealth’s carvy, powerful nature.

Perhaps those with more switch riding savvy than I would find riding this thing fakie OK, but I confess I found it pretty terrifying. In short: Go forwards, go fast, and get low, bro. If you do, the Stealth is a killer ride.

Trade Secrets

Nicholas Wolken – Co-founder, Korua

For me the Stealth is about as close as it gets to the perfect all-round board, because it carves massive trenches in to groomers and floats like a buoy in the ocean. I think this shape fits a very wide audience simply because it is very forgiving and easy to ride.

The surface area of the 163 model has 4646 square centimetres of pure float, which is very nice for the heavier riders and those who love to stay right on top of things. Despite the width of the board you will be surprised how agile it is – that’s what our customers tell us anyway! The long scoop nose also prevents those unintended freestyle maneuvers like frontflips and face plants in slush or powder.

The minimal swallowtail really gives it its own flavor – just that little extra playful torsional flex you want in the back foot to keep things fun, while still being stable at high speed. A nice side-effect of a smaller swallow tail like this one is that it throws solid sprays out of pockets and off windlips compared to a deep swallow. The board also lies flatter in the snow, starts floating earlier when gaining speed and offers more of that train- track-rail feeling when put on its edge.

If I can’t make up my mind which board to take, or what conditions to expect, I usually go for the Stealth.

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