Winter is nearly upon us. It’s time to wax those boards, and get ready to make some turns. But if you hit the slopes, it might be time to update your board. And if you’re a little overwhelmed figuring out what your next ride should be, fear not, we’ve got you covered. We’ve compiled this list of our five favorite boards for the 2019-2020 season to help you figure out what you should be spending your hard-earned money on. And if you don’t have time to read through the whole review, we’ve added one sentence blurbs to help you find the perfect board for you. We dug through the hundreds of new and updated boards released this year, and came up with these five that represent the best of what snowboarding is becoming.
We dug through the hundreds of new and updated boards released this year
Burton Hometown Hero
Burton Hometown Hero
“One board for every day on the mountain”
Of all of Burton’s snowboards, their Hometown Hero is one of the most consistent, reliable, and predictable all-mountain boards on the market. It’s got a huge sweet spot, both for conditions and for rider style. It will make a lot of people happy, in a lot of different types of snow. It’s one of the best all-mountain snowboards for the all-mountain rider. Its directional profile, with a rockered nose, and camber underfoot and through the tail. That means that it floats and slashes well in powder, but has a tenacious grip on groomers, and can handle chop and crud with ease.
If you’re looking for a single board to form a long term relationship with, regardless of what the snow report says, Burton’s Hometown Hero is your best bet.
K2 Cold Shoulder
K2 Cold Shoulder
“This board won’t ever let you down”
Your crush giving you the cold shoulder? Don’t worry, this board won’t. K2 has optimized this board for easy turning, and stability at speeds, no matter what kind of conditions you run into. Every aspect of this board is optimized for women, from its sidecut, to its flex and rocker profile. Sometimes “women’s” just means soft and lifeless though. Not so with the Cold Shoulder. Its slightly stiffer flex, combined with a directional rocker/camber profile makes for a fast, fun, playful board. If you’re looking for the simplicity that comes with using one board for everything, the K2 Cold Shoulder should be high on your list.
Jones Storm Chaser
Jones Storm Chaser
“For that dream powder day”
Plenty of boards claim to be “one-board-quivers” designed to make any style of rider comfortable in any conditions. The Jones Storm Chaser does exactly the opposite. This is a board designed with one thing in mind: slashing perfect turns in deep, deep snow. It’s in the name, this is the board to take with you to Japan, the board to ride when it dumps a surprise two feet overnight. The Storm Chaser’s shape was designed by surfers to give the most organic ride possible. It makes riding deep, light snow feel impossibly intuitive. So put on your most waterproof jacket, find your snorkel, and grab the Storm Chaser to make the most of every powder day.
Gnu B-Pro C3
Gnu B-Pro C3
“A consistent ladies’ ride”
Gnu’s B-Pro C3 is a snowboard for the discerning lady ripper. This directional all-mountain board is designed to give you the best performance possible in just about any conditions. It rides just as well during the storm as it does three weeks after, and is just as happy jibbing in the park as it is riding steep exposed lines. Much of that versatility is thanks to its magne traction edges. These pockets of aggressive sidecut allow you to lock into a carve, or surf and butter effortlessly, just by subtly tweaking how you weight your ankles. Combined with its directional rocker/camber profile makes for a board that’s comfortable making huge carves on groomers or noodling around in the trees.
Capita Super DOA
Capita Super DOA
“For the freestyle jibber”
Capita’s Super DOA is the perfect board for the freestyle-oriented rider. Its symmetrical shape, and rocker profile mean it’s just as comfortable dropping in fakie as it is regular. With the Super DOA Capita has managed to combine a super light and poppy core, with a durable construction that makes for a board that’s very easy to spin, grind, and trick, but will hold up to repeated hard impacts as you dial in your tricks. And its hybrid rocker/flat/camber profile means it’s a competent ripper outside of the park as well. So if you live for bluebird days when the jump line has been freshly groomed, grab the Super DOA and learn some new rotations.
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