Construction and Materials

The core feels impossibly light, but it’s reinforced with a multiaxial carbon weave throughout to keep the response levels dialled up. Even the edges are a little thinner to further reduce the weight.

Perhaps one of the most innovative features is the topsheet constructed from base material, allowing you to wax your topsheet according to the local conditions that day and prevent snow from building up and weighing you down on the ascents. Pretty smart stuff.

The mounting points have also been designed to let you put on and remove the skins when the Escalator is still connected in ride mode. So if you find yourself in a precarious, windy and exposed transition zone, life should be a little easier thanks to that. That notch that’s cut out in the nose of the board? That helps to reduce the friction or likelihood of snagging up at the front when you’re in hike mode. Every detail really has been considered with the Escalator Split Plus, and it shows at every stage of your day out in the backcountry.

“The core feels impossibly light, but it’s reinforced with a multiaxial carbon weave throughout to keep the response levels dialled up”

Roundup

Of course, you can talk about weight reductions, skinning efficiencies and countless dimensions that all go into making a quality operator in the backcountry, but the bottom line is that the Escalator Split Plus also absolutely rips on the way back down. It carves about as well as any solid from KORUA’s line and delivers in a huge variety of conditions. We all want to reach the summit faster, obviously, but only so we can enjoy even more turns on a day out. This is a splitboard that squeezes every drop of potential out of the ups and downs. The end result is pretty sublime.

“The name “Escalator” was actually the working title during the conceptualization & design process of this board, and it fit so well once the shape came to life that it just stuck… so the name “Escalator” was there before the actual board.”