• Price: £480 / €529 / $529
• Category: All-Mountain
• Ability Level: Intermediate, Advanced
• Size: 150, 154, 156, 156W, 158 159W
• Flex: 8/10
• Shape: Directional Twin
• Profile: Camber
• Base: Sintered
• BUY ONLINE

There are really just three things you need to know about Slash’s flagship snowboard. Number one – it’s called the ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle), essentially making it the Ronseal of the snowboarding world, with little doubt as to where it performs on the mountain. Number two – it’s designed by snowboarding legend, rad Dad and all-round good dude, Gigi Rüf. And number three – it confidently self-proclaims itself as “the best all-mountain board in the world”.

You know what, though? Fair enough. The ATV is a snowboard that walks a narrow line with razor-sharp accuracy, blending tried and trusted designs with a modern twist. It’s also Gigi’s go-to steed among the Slash fleet to see him through the majority of the winter. It shouldn’t, therefore, come as a surprise that it’ll suit the more confident, hard-charging riders out there.

“It’s only really once you start to pick up the pace that you’ll truly see where the ATV’s strengths lay”

The Reactive Camber is exactly that. This is the only board in Slash’s line with a full, tip to tail positive bend. This profile generates the most amount of pop, power and precision. That’s complemented with the Forever Wood Core, which features no less than four different woods (poplar, paulownia, spruce and beech) to give the ATV a super lively, responsive and durable build.

There’s also the addition of Slash’s Buried Treasure positioned under the inserts. The combination of carbon, Kevlar and basalt, laid up in a cross formation under the inserts and out to the edges and contact points provides solid edge-to-edge response and dampening underfoot, but won’t interfere with the torsional flex in the centre of the board. Even so, the triax fibreglass layers still keep things pretty snappy throughout and it’s only really once you start to pick up the pace that you’ll truly see where the ATV’s strengths lay.

It won’t, therefore, have the same kind of buttery soft, jib feel that you’ll find on the Happy Place, but it’ll still stomp its way through the park without ever feeling unbalanced. After all, with no taper between the nose and tail and only a 13mm setback the board has clearly been designed with freestyle on its radar.

If you’re already familiar with the Slash lineup you’ll notice the distinct outline of the nose and tail cutouts. This doesn’t just help them stand out in the crowd, but stand up in the crowd, too. The Kickstand on the ATV all but proves your innocence the next time a line of 50 snowboards comes crashing down in a domino effect outside the apres bar. There’s even the added bonus of shaving a little off the outer swing weight and making those nose and tails grabs a touch more reachable.

“This is a case of simple things done brilliantly – quality materials, a considered shape where every measurement was no doubt tirelessly scrutinised over, and a level of passion and knowledge in snowboard design that very few can deliver quite like Gigi”

That’s really as far as any gimmicks go, though. There’s no funky topsheets, base bevelling, or futuristic sounding additives with the ATV. This is a case of simple things done brilliantly – quality materials, a considered shape where every measurement was no doubt tirelessly scrutinised over, and a level of passion and knowledge in snowboard design that very few can deliver quite like Gigi.

Consider, too, that all of this comes in at around the same price point – and often cheaper – than some of the best selling all-mountain snowboards of all time. The Bataleon Goliath, the Salomon Assassin, the CAPiTA Mercury. The Slash ATV doesn’t just deserve its place alongside them, it should downright scare them.