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Bataleon Party Wave + 2020-2021 Snowboard Review

  • Price: £480 / $560
  • Category: All-Mountain, Freeride/Powder
  • Ability Level: Intermediate, Advanced
  • Size: 148, 151, 154, 157
  • Flex: 5.5/10
  • Shape: Directional
  • Profile: 3BT Camber
  • Base: Sintered
  • New for 2020/21 season
  • BUY DIRECT FROM BATALEON

Why we chose the Bataleon Party Wave + Snowboard: The wildest party on the mountain just got turned up to 11.

It’s no secret that we love the Bataleon Party Wave snowboard. It claimed a spot in our 100 when it debuted back in 2018 thanks to its insanely fun shape and surprising versatility. But the new Party Wave + is a different beast altogether. Though it’s still all about those freewheelin’ good times with your riding crew, this one comes with the muscle to hustle and break ahead of the lineup when the waves are really pumping.

At a glance, the Party Wave+ is still undoubtedly cut from the same cloth as its predecessor. It retains the volume shifted, pocket rocket outline and the Freeride 3BT and Sidekick profile. If ever there was a snowboard primed for zipping and ripping through trees, spraying your mates and bombing slush runs, this is it.

“Just about every component of the snowboard’s DNA has been upgraded and overhauled in this deluxe version of the Party Wave”

That’s the beauty of Bataleon’s patented camber profile: Triple Base Technology lends itself to every style of riding. Yes, it’s unashamedly built for a freeride frenzy and, asides from the Surfer, the Party Wave + has the most boat-like nose in Bataleon’s line. But the diminutive 3BT in the tail and the specced up core makes it a veritable daily driver, even when it hasn’t snowed in weeks.

And it’s here where the biggest changes are felt. Just about every component of the snowboard’s DNA has been upgraded and overhauled in this deluxe version of the Party Wave. It’s laid up with stiffer, tri-ax fibreglass sheets to increase torsional rigidity and a lighter, more responsive poplar and paulownia wood core.

Then there’s the carbon. Lots of it. Stringers stiffen up the nose and tail, while hollow carbon rods known as Dual Super Tubes run along the sidewalls to dial up the response of the camber and add a little more zing when changing edge – a welcome addition to a snowboard with thumping 280mm waist width.

Lastly, the base has been upgraded from extruded to Bataleon’s rapid Ultra Glide sintered version which, despite stretching the budget, will pay dividends when you’re racing the pack for first dibs on untouched windlips.

“It still ticks an unbelievable amount of boxes in the all-mountain category for such an unconventional looking deck.”

This isn’t to say that the Bataleon Party Wave+ has just become a testosterone-charged, characterless, powerhouse compared to its little brother. It’s undoubtedly faster, more aggressive and capable of taking on bigger terrain, but its character remains as loose and rowdy as before – largely thanks to its shape and profile.

And yet it still ticks an unbelievable amount of boxes in the all-mountain category for such an unconventional looking deck. Sure, you won’t see it making an appearance at the Xgames or the Freeride World Tour any time soon, but how many of us are chasing those kinds of thrills?

This one’s all about mobbing the front country with your mates, chucking yourself off of every side hit, and dicking around long after the powder’s been tracked. And, after all, isn’t that what it’s all about?

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