Born from the ashes of GNU snowboards, Lib Tech has been at the forefront of ecological design and cutting-edge technology since the late 80s. The name comes from when founder Mike Olson put cloth from a jumper into a skateboard prototype. When it came out of the press, it bore an uncanny resemblance to Valentino Liberace’s sparkly jumpers and a brand was born.
Lib Tech’s first-born snowboard children all featured skeletons as the top graphic on the deck, and the skeletons now adorn many a shred pirates’ bedroom like a work of art. The legendary snowboarder Jamie Lynn, who once rode their boards to victory, picked up where the skeletons left off and took up art duties on the snowboards.
Since then, Lib Tech have freed themselves from the shackles of their 80’s jumper roots and gone on to sign themselves a team that makes Burton blush. Yeah, the ‘Art of Flight’ crew? They’re almost exclusively signed to Mervin Manufacturing (Lib Tech’s parent company).
Still building the boards in their factory near Seattle, Lib may have grown since the 80s, but a lot about them remains the same. Their commitment to sustainability in their environMENTAL factory, their passion for conceiving new, innovative technologies (Banana rocker and Magne-Traction are both theirs, and they were one of the first to re-introduce asym sidecuts to Millennial snowboarders), all these follow the blueprint of their early years, as does the team – Eric Jackson, Austen Sweetin, Chris Rasman and a fella called Travis Rice are three of Lib’s most recognisable riders today.
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Scroll down or select from the links below to check out our reviews of this season’s best Lib Tech snowboards.
