- Price: £565 / €600 / $620
- Category: Freeride/Powder
- Ability Level: Intermediate, Advanced
- Size: 148, 152
- Shape: Directional
- Profile: Directional Camber
- Base: Sintered
It’s pretty clear why Nidecker gave this shred stick its buggy little name. No, it’s not its blood-slurping abilities – despite its gory tinted resin colourway, it comes with a price tag that won’t exactly suck you dry. Nor is it its ability to really get under your skin, although, since we first laid eyes on this thing, we’ve been giving it quiiite a lot of thought. Nah, instead, without question it’s the Mosquito’s two biggest selling features – its small size, and its ability to absolutely wing it down the mountain.
“It slams a first-class postage stamp on a big parcel of smooth and speedy power”
Maybe it’s the logo they’ve stuck towards the nose – one designed by Henry Nidecker’s grandma back in 1946. Or perhaps it’s the shape, which takes inspiration from the first Nidecker snowboards of 1984. Whatever it is, as well as positively dripping with Swiss authenticity, this little fun machine has got character by the bag-load. If you’re not afraid of going a little shorter with your board, this pocket rocket – with its side-cut radius between 7.0 and 7.9m, small running edges and sexy little surf-inspired fish tail – is going to slam a first-class postage stamp on a big parcel of smooth and speedy power, and deliver it as soon as you push send.
The Mosquito incorporates Nidecker’s new progressive and technical Nidactive approach to board building – one inspired by the manufacture of surfboards and that contains real beard-strokey terminology such as ‘ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene’. But look, on the face of it, the reason to add this little whippet to your quiver is just as simple as working out how it got its name – mean, aggy, radical turns are very much the name of the game here, and it’s one we’re in the market to play before the last big dump of next season.
