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Snowboards

Rome Ravine 2018-2019 Snowboard Review

  • Sizes: 148, 152, 155, 158, 162, 166
  • Flex: 7
  • Profile: Setback Camber
  • Shape: Directional
  • Price: £449 / €529

UPDATE: Check out our review of the 2019/2020 Rome Ravine here

The Rome Ravine snowboard is new for 2018/19, and is perhaps the most all-mountain-friendly of the brand’s ‘Tramline’ range. While the likes of the Powder Division are best saved for the days immediately after a storm, this one will be just as fun on early morning groomers.

The shape is pretty hard to miss – the Rome Ravine is a beast of a thing, with a squared-off nose and tail. If you want something that can hold a carve, float in powder and blast through chop, this is it. It’s also wider than average, and has a tapered tail (between 6mm and 10mm, depending on the overall size).

“The ideal rider for the Rome Ravine will be the adventurous cruiser – happy to blast a piste and get airborne off a side-hit one minute, then see what the backcountry has to offer the next”

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The shape is pretty hard to miss – the Rome Ravine is a beast of a thing, with a squared-off nose and tail. If you want something that can hold a carve, float in powder and blast through chop, this is it. It’s also wider than average, and has a tapered tail (between 6mm and 10mm, depending on the overall size).

The Ravine features the new ‘Thruster’ hotrods; two bamboo stringers that run from the rear inserts out to the contact points, firming up the tail to give you extra oomph at the end of each turn.

As for the glass, a combination of 45-degree and 90-degree laminates aims to deliver enough response for charging, but just enough play torsional twist to dial back any potential twitchiness. Its end-to-end flex is towards the stiffer end of the spectrum, but stops short of plank territory.

“The bevelled, spoon-like design makes the Ravine smoother from edge to edge, giving a ‘surfy’ feel”

It also boasts on the most complicated profiles that you’ll find anywhere – not that that’s a bad thing. It’s essentially setback camber, with a pronounced bend concentrated around your back foot that’s perfect for powerful carves. In front of that is a flatter section that smoothly becomes a ‘3D rocker’ at the nose.

The upwards bend naturally helps keep the nose up in deeper snow, but the bevelled, spoon-like design makes the Ravine smoother from edge to edge, giving a ‘surfy’ feel that you can appreciate on the hard stuff too. Naturally it’s not got the same lightning-quick response that a more traditional shape can offer, but most riders will appreciate the trade-off as they explore the whole mountain.

The ideal rider for the Rome Ravine will be the adventurous cruiser – happy to blast a piste and get airborne off a side-hit one minute, then see what the backcountry has to offer the next. Powder purists may want to look elsewhere, and the same goes for fully-fledged park rats, but backcountry freestyle boards don’t get much better than this.

Tester’s Verdict

Tom Copseyonboardmag.com

“A big gun for sure, but the length was no problem, however it’s also pretty wide (for my Euro 43 feet) which made it a bit awkward on the hardpack – it was hard work to get it from edge-to-edge.

However, this was my only gripe (no doubt solved by sizing down or making sure your feet aren’t too small for it before pissing off to ride powder) as once in deep snow it was epic.

“It goes into turns super easily, and floats sublimely in powder”

It’s fairly soft, even more so in the nose, meaning it goes into turns super easily and floats sublimely in powder, while on groomers when it did get on its edge it was solid as a rock.

With a shape more traditional than some of the guns these days, this would be a great choice for both pow hounds and more all-mountain riders.”

Trade Secrets

Ozzy Henning – Team Rider, Rome

“Straight up, no matter what the snow conditions are, you only hope to actually find a ravine to ride the Ravine in. It’s that good. If your goal is to make the best out of any conditions when you head out on hill, this is my board of choice.”

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