omg finally someone doing a proper review of the snowboards. Great job of backing up your opinion with facts and explaining the basics! I'm tired of reviewers who can only retell the description from websites and say "this board rips!" Keep up the good work! Subscribed.
Nice vid. Really like the look of the Stratos, I've kinda gone off Jones lately but the Stratos is one of their more interesting and versatile boards I think.. who wants to own only one snowboard though?? Haha
I got the Stratos as my first "own board" been riding for years on rental. I have not regretted it. It is a monster on groomed runs nice and stiff, goes where you point it. I was riding spring conditions with slush at the end of the day and ice in the morning. The Stratos did it all. The spoon shape sure helps make the board feel "catch free". 10/10 would buy again! Looking forward to get in on some pow this coming season.
Agreed with the skeleton key have the 162 as 88kg and 6 feet tall absolutely love it as super fun I also purchased the 158. Have just been riding a Salomon 157 dancehaul and loving that rode a Salomon 160 super 8 last week for 2 days and had a lot of grunt and was awesome. Just hoping spring conditions will open up so can give a 158 custom x a crack with some stiff ride insanos and burton x base bindings knowing I will like you mentioned with the ultimate ride needing to be on point. Have got a unridden Korua cafe racer 164 and a 163 deep thinker when the mountain opens up with a few spring dumps hopefully. I am a transitioned hard boot carver just wanting to lay down some eurocarves. Tried a bit too hard last week result was a bad crash 3 cracked ribs. I will ease back in the skeleton key for a few days as way more mellow and fun. I really enjoy your reviews thanks mate all the best
I’m about 5’9” weigh 195 lbs and just got the mercury 157. Do you think that should work for all mountain riding or go up to 159 because of my weight? Thanks for video
Hey mate, love the reviews. I'm deciding on the Capita DOA or Mercury but don't seem to see much review comparisons between the two. Besides the obvious price would you happen to have any thoughts or experience on the DOA vs Mercury? been snowboarding for a handful of years now, I would say I'm a intermediate rider and looking to get my first board. Thanks in advance :D
Basically the DOA bit.ly/48ijB4C is going to be a softer and easier ride overall. Although the specs don't make it seem so different, in real life the DOA gets fairly soft when it breaks in. Both have a roughly similar profile, camber between your feet made a little bit more forgiving on the ends. I think that the DOA is going to be the best choice, you will still be able to learn tons on it, it isn't like it is a beginner board. The Mercury is do-able, but it will have a steeper learning curve, and I don't think it is going to be worth making the step away from the DOA.
Hi, I am picking up between jones Stratos and CAPiTA Mercury. I am wondering the since the Stratos have stiff flex but have 3D shape, which one will be more easily to turn edge to edge? Less edge catching? Both in groomer and steep slope. Thanks
That is a tough one, but the Stratos will turn a bit quicker and easier than the Mercury, mainly because of the taper. Although the 3d shape will help a little bit, I don't think that you will find it super noticable. Overall the flex of both is going to be really similar. The Mercury will do a little better riding switch, but overall I think that the Stratos will be the better choice for you.
Great video! I've also watched your reviews on the Ultimate Ride and Mercury and was wondering which one you would recommend? I am an advanced rider who loves to go all over the mountain, generally looking for fresh powder or carving in the mornings and then going to the park in the afternoon (I like to go on medium to large jumps but not as much on rails). I can generally find sales on the Ultimate Ride for around $150-$250 off MSRP, but very hard to find sales on the Mercury. I am 5'10" at 150 lbs and have been riding a 155 rocker board for park and a 156 stiffer rocker for powder, and was also considering if going a bit shorter at 153 would offer me more flexibility in the park and play while still maintaining enough float on fresh powder? Thanks in advance!
Thanks! It sounds like the Ultimate Ride will be the best match for the riding you are describing, and probably much easier to find on sale now that they aren't making it anymore. Although going a little shorter to 153 might make it the tiniest bit easier to move in the park, for carving and powder the 155 will be better. Depends which you think you will spend the most time doing, it is quite a stiff board though, something to get used to.
Nice vid, how does the PYL stack up against these boards? Im tempted to buy the pyl uninc, but the shop recommended the stratos. I want a board with superior edge hold for Australian conditions and capable in pow overseas.
The PYL is a good addition to these boards, though I did find it to be fairly soft overall. For edge hold, as well as how it would ride in deeper powder overseas, I think that the Stratos would be the better choice between the two.
An intermediate looking for the first broad. Would like to explore the resort area, medium carve, side hit and also floating in powder. Not interested in park at this moment. I am 168cm, 57kg, us7 shoe. My binding is Union strata. Considering capita mercury 150, K2 Passport 151, Jones Stratos 153 and bataleon goilath 153. What will you recommend? Will it be too aggressive for intermediate?
I would look at the Capita Navigator and Season Nexus. I have videos of those on the channel, I think they will be more fun as a first board, but still very capable for the riding you will be doing.
Another great vid! I was very close to buying the mercury but had people comment that you always needed to bring your A game. Do you find that the mercury is like that? Does it get catchy? I recently picked up a lib tech dynamo which I’m keen to try this coming season. I feel it would fit into this group nicely but is suppose to have a bit more of a freeride focus.
Thanks! Yeah the Mercury does take a little bit of work, but nothing crazy. I think that the rocker on the nose and tail help make the stiffer flex seem less intimidating. I never found the Mercury to be catchy, even with lots of bad landings and spins that didn't make it all the way around. The Dynamo looks good, I'll see if I can get on one at some point.
The 158 will be fine and what I would choose, though it might feel a bit softer that I described it. If you want to spend more time riding fast and don't mind having to move a bigger board around, the 162 will give you a tiny bit more stability.
Hey mate nice vid!!!! From your reviews I’m about to get either the capita mercury or the Salomon dancehaul maybe even the jones stratos. i want/need a allmountain board that can do it all as easy as possible, will be my only board. I ride usually groomers, a few laps to the park (just rails and boxes, cause I’m afraid of getting hurt) small kickers., and if we get lucky down here will love to handle pow and off piste terrain. So a mix of everything, I’m about you size, a bit shorter at 1.8mts , 68 kg, 10.5 boot size. Which board would you recommend
I would go for the Mercury if it was me - the Dancehaul is fun but does get pretty soft for all mountain or faster riding. The Stratos is a good option, but I wouldn't expect it to be very good on boxes or rails, at least compared to the other two.
Thanks sooo much for the quick reply! So… I give it a second thought and I came out to 4 options more suitable: Capita mercury Jones mountain twin Ride algorythm Bataleon Goliath I know you ride the mercury, but maybe could be too stiff, and for better conditions. I’m most of the time in hard pack snow, icy , groomers, resort riding in general till we get some fresh snow which isn’t often…. So would you care for any particular option on my list???? Thanks again!
You could easily swap the mercury for the mountain twin, they are pretty similar. The other two I haven't ridden, but the Goliath would probably be a bit looser feeling with the 3bt base
I ride everything up to a 280mm width on my 9s, I'm sure you'll be just fine. If anything it'll help make sure you have proper technique using your toes to get up on edge.
Was hoping to find a consistent few boards that people recommend for all mountain but every video on RU-vid has a completely different 5boards they recommend
Oh yeah you are right, these are just the ones that suit my personal preferences. You should be safe with most boards that have a bit of camber under your feet, with rocker on the nose/tail - no need to think about it too much.
I am well overdue to ride a Custom again, it has been a while. That's one of the main reasons I like (and included) the Skeleton Key, similar features, construction and feel, but with a shape that is a bit more useful in soft snow.
I mean, I appreciate the reviews alone. But where are you? These scenes at times look like straight out of a movie. Some epic terrain @ 2:28 and clouds @ 3:00 !
It is, but when I last Kazu I rode one had almost no life compared to these 5. It was still solid and stable, but I think the Fusion has a better feel, or even closer might be the Nitro Mountain.
