Board: Salomon Assassin

Size: 156

Camber Option: Rock Out Camber. A flat camber 2.0 through the inserts then rocker in the tips. Basically new age camrocker.

Bindings: Rome Black Labels

Stance: 21.5 Wide 15 Negative 12 Goofy

Boots: K2 Thraxis Size 10

My Weight: 200lbs

Resort: Arapahoe Basin

Conditions: Overcast skies with pockets of blue, slightly warmer temps, a bit of loose granular grapple off the groomers, creamy to icy groomers depending on where you went.

Flex: Predictably this is your standard middle of the road all mountain flex. Slightly softer in the tips stiffer from outside the inserts through the middle of the board. There’s a fair amount of torsional flex that matches perfectly to the overall flex of the board.

Stability: At high speeds this board gets real chatter in the tips and you’ll feel it under foot. The middle is a bit more stable but there’s still some kinetic energy pushing up into your feet. In chop and chunder while it will push through the looser stuff if you hit anything firm your body does get jarred.

Ollies: This board has snap and it lets you know it. While not as poppy as the Pro version it’s still really solid. You do have to give the camber section a little bit of a load and it will rebound when you do so but overall it’s not a demanding camber profile. This makes it nice for doing last minute skate like pop off features.

Pop On Jumps: As there were no real jumps this year at the Basin it was all Hollywood hits as fast as you can and see what it can do. Would I hesitate to hit a jump with it? No, it’s solid for small to large features and has enough pop to spring off the lip and the stability you want to land.

Butterability: The tips are softer and there is rocker so that’s 2 things going for you to butter on it. There’s a very distinct flex point right where the camber meets the rocker. This fusion of the two lets you leverage your weight out over it with ease and really press the board so much so that if you aren’t careful you can cause the board to buckle. If anything tone it down a notch and you’ll be fine but this board can butter with the best of them and still retain the pop from the camber section.

Jibbing: A little speed and this board comes alive on rail features. The tips are easy to lock into presses and take next to no effort to engage but still retain some snap from the camber section to pop off the end of the feature. When you get sideways the camber locks in and cradles the jib without clapping out or feeling like it can’t handle fat tubs or flat bars.

Carving: The edge to edge control steers a bit more underfoot so you lose some of the drive from the outside of the front foot but it does what you need it to. When you’re on edge you do feel locked in for the most part except on straight sheet ice but that’s kind of a given with most snowboards. The softer tips do take away some of the drive when you lay this on edge and push into the tail, you’ll notice that, but if you can compensate for not pushing into it full force you will rail some nice smooth carves. Overall it’s a board that can pretty much handle it all on edge.

Rider in Mind: All mountain freestyle guy with more emphasis on freestyle.

Personal Thoughts: I’ve ridden this and the Pro and I’d have to say the Pro seems to be the better ride as it’s a bit stiffer where it matters. This one gets a little soft in the tips and loses some of its drive but gains more buttery play which can be a benefit if that’s what you’re looking for. Overall it’s not a bad board but it’s not a super stand out it has its place and gets the job done.

Comparable Boards: Jones Mountain Twin, Yes The Greats, Rome Agent

Binding Recommendations: Salomon Holograms, Ride C-6, Burton Malavita