My first sessions on the Magne-Traction 164 were at Snow Summit (Big Bear), hardly a steep and deep freeriding resort, but the “blues and blacks” were enough to get some speed/hard turns going and the stick is the closest thing to riding a “Fishtail surfboard” on the snow that I’ve ever experienced…I agree with Chris Ankeny that the full rail turn stability is similar to what I imagine a hardboot rider would experience…The stability of the Magne-Traction, particularly with straight line speed is unreal, no chatter, no bounce, no vibration despite the board having so “much camber and life” built in…You can “feel the life of the board regarding the camber” as soon as you strap in and “it rewards you” by turning hard, going as fast as shit…The edges do not have that typical bouncing sensation when you have it up on rail at some “serious degrees”, that feeling of cutting a steak knife through butter is no exaggeration…Taking the Quiksilver Boarding Team Captain Brian Craighill’s advice, I ducked out the rear binding which further facilitated that “surfy feel” which reminds me so much of riding my fishtail big-guy tri’s only on the snow…I also use Palmer Risers (due to my size 13 boots) and they further added to the boards “second to none” precise edge to edge turning ability…I can foresee my snowboarding ability and skills “going through the roof” with my Magne-Traction 164…Kudos to the “brains and vision” behind this new design that simply “blows doors” on any other stick on the planet…
-Roger Cox