LIB TECH T. RICE PRO SNOWBOARD 2013/14 REVIEW

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last decade, you can’t have failed to notice a Jackson Hole native by the name of Travis Rice. Having exploded onto snowboarders’ TV screens around the world with his opening part in the Absinthe classic Transcendence at the age of 18, Travis went on to redefine the parameters of what is possible on a snowboard. He won every major contest going (US Open Slopestyle, Air & Style, X Games Slopestyle and Big Air). He filled countless individual parts, and later entire movies (That’s It, That’s All and The Art of Flight) with riding that was bigger, burlier and gnarlier than anything anyone had done before. And he created a contest series (Natural Selection, Supernatural and Ultranatural) that many believe will change the face of competitive snowboarding.

This is the board that he’s done it all on. It’s a stiff-flexing true twin with what Lib Tech call a ‘C2BTX’ profile. A variation on their ‘banana’ shape, this features camber underneath the bindings which (along with the magne-traction, represented by the ‘TX’ in the name) helps the board grip better on icy steeps and gives it a more snappy, responsive feel than conventional banana. The topsheet is made of one of Lib’s more madcap inventions, a polymer made of beans. Apparently it’s more environmentally friendly than conventional petroleum-based plastics.

As you’d expect, the board feels solid and powerful to ride. It’s never going to be the easiest board to butter and novices will struggle with the stiff flex, but it’s incredible at speed and has pop in spades. Interestingly the 161.5 and 164.5 models have a more pointed nose and tail shape better-suited to deep powder, while the shorter lengths have a blunt nose that’s easier for freestyle. Travis apparently switches it up depending on the conditions.

BUY THIS BOARD AT: boardwise.co.uk, tribalriders.com, snowandrock.com, surfdome.com, boardridersguide.com, theboardbasement.com, tribalriders.com

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