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YES 420 PowderHull 2018-2019 Snowboard Review

UPDATE: Check out our review of the 2019/2020 YES 420 Powder Hull here

There have been many memorable boards to come out of YES’ ten years (and counting) in the business, but none more so than the YES 420. After perfecting the concave-base design with the YES 20/20, it made sense to see how it would fare on the brand’s orifinal short ‘n’ stubby offering.

THe YES 420 PowderHull isn’t quite as squashed as the 420; it’s longer and thinner, although not by much. The base’s surface area is comparable to a more conventional choice, which means plenty of float in powder, and the unique shaping of the nose and tail makes it even easier to stay on top of things.

“Its best environment is the trees, were you can pick out a line that a longer board would have no chance negotiating”

[monetizer101 search=’yes 420 powderhull’]

As long as you don’t expect to be nipping from edge to edge like a hard-booted racer, you’ll be amazed with how the YES 420 handles. Its best environment is the trees, were you can pick out a line that a longer board would have no chance negotiating.

While the twin-shaped YES 20/20, is more suited to freestyle, it’s still an option with the 420 PH. The mostly-flat base isn’t the poppiest, but the lightweight core is easy to get airborne.

A one-board quiver it ain’t, but the YES 420 PowderHull is a unique take on one of snowboarding’s most popular recent trends. If you’re expecting a lot of pow days this year, take a closer look.

Tester’s Verdict

Kieron Black@kieronblackart

“The YES 420 PowderHull is a funky little gumdrop of a thing, all bluntness and cheek. The topsheet is beautifully done; no puking demons or gynaecological nightmares – it’s just nice.

Which is a hint as to what it was made for – fluffy backcountry niceness and perfect piste days. Which is unfortunate, given that my test day was a lively blend of soggy piste and heavy, leg-achingly wet powder.

“It is incredible in the trees; so petite that you can whip around anything, with steeze, no matter how little warning you might get”

Is was only once we had negotiated the misery-quilt that was passing for a ski-resort that day and got into the woods that I was finally able to make the 420 PH come alive, and come alive she did. It was so laughingly odd, the juxtaposition of that fat little shape and the electric, joyful ride it delivered, that I could almost sense the delight the shapers at YES must have felt once they realised what they had achieved with this board.

It is incredible in the trees; so petite that you can whip around anything, with steeze, no matter how little warning you might get. Yet she still has the volume to crank it out in the open powfields too, so don’t let her fat little profile dissuade you of the fact that she is a serious all-round backcountry contender.

I am sure also that thanks to that sidecut she’s a lot of fun on the clean corduroy too, but unfortunately for me the piste that day was like a cardboard box left in the rain; heavy, sluggish, and globular, which meant that the combo of the board’s waist width and my tired legs gave me all the edge to edge torque of a toddler trying to lift a manhole cover – it was not pretty.

But I reckon that for good days, powder or piste, this is a hard board to beat. If I had any concern it would be that maybe on those truly rotten days when it’s hard to summon the enthusiasm to get up the hill in the first place, the 420 PH might have you heading for a beer just a couple of runs before anyone else.

Fortunately those days are few and far between, and so this little fizzy cola bottle of a board gets a full double-thumbs-up. Enjoy!”

[monetizer101 search=’yes 420 powderhull’]

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