- Price: £550
- Sizes: 151, 155, 158, 159W, 160, 162, 163W, 165, 166W
- Flex: 7
- Profile: Combo
- Shape: Directional
- NEVERSUMMER.COM
Happy birthday to the Colorado-based board builders at Never Summer. Over the past quarter-century they’ve developed quite the following, and have chosen to mark the occasion with a brand new model: the Never Summer Twenty Five.
It might not be blessed with the most original name, but the Never Summer Twenty Five has it where it counts. It’s a freeride-focused charger that is all about stepping up to any terrain, in any conditions. As with all NS boards, there’s not a square inch of this that is in any way superfluous or under-developed – these guys take tech seriously.
“The dampening is off the scale, so it stays solid even when straightlining over harsh crud”
For starters, they have the patent on ‘Rocker Camber’ profiles, and it’s the ‘Ripsaw’ variation that you’ll find here. The rocker section sits in between the feet to aid with powder float, while the pronounced camber bends on either side deliver the grip you need for carving up the mountain.
Carbon stringers run between the inserts and just past the contact points, stiffening up the nose and tail without turning it into a plank. There’s also an ‘X’ of carbon laid right in the middle, which has a similar effect on the area between your feet. It’s be responsive, but there’s no need to worry about foot fatigue when things are sketchy underfoot; the dampening on the Never Summer Twenty Five is off the scale, so it stays solid even when straightlining over harsh crud.
All in all, it feels like there’s more fancy stuff at work in one of these than you’d find in the average Formula 1 car. You’re always going to be paying a little more for a Never Summer – especially as they’re still made in the Centennial State – but the quality speaks for itself. Plus they’re built to last, with chip-resistant topsheets as well as extra-durable sidewalls and fibreglass.
All Never Summers are available in wide sizes, so larger-hoofed riders should check those out. There’s also a splitboard version of the Never Summer Twenty Five, which has an even more directional shape.
