Skiboards Rvl8

[Algernon Alcala]

TheSpliff was a board I had been eyeing for a long time. Its cambered and rockered design was intriguing, and I especially liked that it seemed like a lengthened KTP with rocker. The graphics are also stunning.

I knew these are suited for riding out west, so I waited until one of my trips to Utah to break these out. It had dumped snow the first day out, but only then, so I rode these in both fresh powder and skied-off hardpack a few days later. These boards are a bit of an oddity in that they are large in size but playful with a short running length, and they feel like they ride longer when laying into carves.

The Spliffs shine in deep snow and off-piste. I felt not acquaintance time here, they just perform. The rockered tips aided by their width give a great amount of lift in soft deep snow with that lively pop from the camber. The flex range that the rocker-camber provides feels amazing. I feel like I have butterfly wings under my feet feeling poppy and light, with a large reach of support and lift. I find a 2-4cm setback is preferable for powder to put more weight on the tails and prop the front tips up and found myself leaving them setback without noticeable difference in performance on groomed snow.

I have had virtually no issues with tail support like I felt on zero-camber rockered skiboards. I can count on the tails to support me, rarely feeling like they will slip out from under me. Landing drops and pressing the tails rarely feeling the need to hold back thanks to the extra support the extension of the under foot camber provides.

I would love to see variations in length for this rocker-camber combination. The point at which these skiboards are pushed enough for the tips to engage enough and the full edge can be relied upon is very subjective to the rider. Chopping 10cm off the length while keeping the same rocker-camber ratio and same width would give lighter and shorter their own freeride possibilities, (or even adding an extra 10cm for even larger riders!)

The combination of width and rocker is a dream in powder and soft snow, and they were easy to pull up over the snow when I felt I was sinking. They handled wonderfully center mounted in some light powder and even better set back when I hit deeper stuff, but I kept on wishing the tails were a little stiffer to give more support when the noses needed to be pulled up like drops or when coming into soft snow and crud, especially when riding them set back. I was falling back seat pretty frequently even after adjusting my riding. Their mid size makes them enjoyable in glades, able to pick tight turns in trees.

Park riders looking for something really playful for jibbing, rails, and boxes will love these, but the big jump senders might miss the lack responsive edge, and may find themselves washing out on landings. Put pressure on the edge or pick up speed and get that full 104cm length down in the snow and the SIIs hold an edge surprisingly well when carving, with the early rise giving confidence over crud and uneven snow.

Would recommend these for east coasters looking for versatile groomer oriented skiboards, park rats who want to spin and butter all over the place, and smaller, lighter riders looking for >100cm skiboards with effortless turns.

Based on his recommendation, I started my skiboard journey with a pair of 2016 Blunt XLs sight unseen, along with the Tyrolia Spruce quick release bindings. And yes, you can wear a standard ski boot. A quick note on that: go with lower flex boots (90 or below). This is because you can ski forward, upright, and really any way you want on skiboards. A higher flex ski boot has you leaning forward all the time and this is not necessary for skiboards. It will also unnecessarily fatigue your quadriceps muscles. Higher flex boots lock you into dorsiflexion and we do not want, or need, this with skiboards.

For sharper carving, getting skiboards that are cambered help with this. This is the reason I purchased the Spliffs (rockered and cambered), a few years later. They edge very well, making them great with groomers, and perform nicely in powder. The Blunt XLs will still out-perform the Spliffs in powder, but the Spliffs are better for all mountain performance.

As a side note, I just got a pair of 2023 cambered Condors. Why another pair? I already have two. Well, I can use the same bindings for the Blunt XLs, Spliff, and now the cambered Condors. The Condors are best for sharper carving and for even better control of safe speed than the Spliffs. Spring skiing tends to be a bit more slippery and the Condors will do well in these conditions.

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