Burton Jussi 2010 Review

I’ve been wanting to get this board for a couple seasons now, and I finally did this season. After a few weeks riding the Burton Jussi, it’s time to put up a review.

Setup: Burton Jussi 159, Burton C60 (with the ICS adapters) bindings, Burton Ion Boots.
Conditions: machine groomed and very cold!

Technology
Twin Shape – this board is symmetrical and should feel the same whether riding regular or switch, though it has a directional flex pattern, meaning the nose has less pop/flex than the tail to maintain better stability at higher speeds.
Inifite Channel System – supposedly provides a more direct connection between the bindings and the board (I don’t buy it), while easily letting you mount your bindings any way you choose (this, I buy).
Freestyle Scoop – exaggerated spoon shape which creates a forgiving feel by turning the edges up at the tip and tail.

First Impressions: This is an excellent all mountain freestyle board for the aggressive rider in you with a lot of pop and spring to it. Given that this is Jussi Oksanen’s board (and designed by him), you can only expect it to be that good, but the board is a bit too stiff to rock just anywhere.

Flex/Stability: Stiffer in the tail, with more pop in the nose, but overall pretty flexible board and fun to ride. Burton’s feel/stiff rating is 6/10, but the board felt a little stiffer than that (think of it more of a relative thing). In any case, it works out well, because the board felt very stable compared to many other freestyle mountain boards. Buttering with the Jussi board was fun.

Park/Jumps: Taking off jumps with the Jussi is great, and landing is not too hard on the knees, but don’t get too excited, because this is not a park board. I definitely wouldn’t recommend jibbing with it too much, because it wasn’t designed for the park in the first place.

Carving/Switching: The board is stiff and tuned enough to hold its edge under pretty high speeds. Switching was a lot of fun and riding regular felt pretty much the same as switch – no board will ever feel the exact same riding switch or regular since humans are not anatomically symmetrical, but this is as good as it gets.

Pro’s:

• Very playful thanks to the exaggerated spoon shape
• Stable under high speeds
• Switching is as natural as it gets

Con’s

• $$$ – somewhat expensive
• Not a fan of the board art
• Not for the park and jibs

My thoughts: The Burton Jussie is a wicked board designed for anyone looking for a fun, yet aggressive stick. Moving forward, this is going to be my primary board (replacing my much more aggressive Burton T6)

If you have any questions about the board, please leave a comment and I will answer you!

Burton Vapor 2010 Rider Review

Burton’s Vapor is one of the boards I rode a lot in the past 2 seasons, so when I finally got my hands on the 2010 model, I had to take it out for a couple of days. First of all, let’s go through some of Burton’s BS marketing mumbo jumbo to give you an idea of some of the technology put into their previously most advanced board (Burton’s Method takes the cake this year). Here’s some of the tech worth mentioning:

Vaportech Alumafly Core – Burton’s infamous NASA-grade aluminum honeycomb architecture (oh yeah!) that makes up the core of this board and allows it to be one of the lightest on the market. Couldn’t find a picture of this stuff but imagine holding a metallic honeycomb in your hand that twists and bends like moldable plastic but pops back into position just like real wood. When you hold this board up to a strong light, what do you see? Virtually nothing. That’s because the board is 90% air by volume.

Infinite Channel System – The 2010 model features Burton’s ICS system that allows for basically infinite stance positioning options. Rami posted an article recently explaining this in detail. You’re no longer confined by shitty three degree increments in your stance, the width between your feet, etc etc etc.

Carbon Vaposkin – Burton’s ultra light topsheet that contributes to the feather-like weight of this board.

Sintered N20 Vision Base – New, faster base technology that apparently comes pre-impregnated with wax and holds it much better than your standard base. This is supposed to make for a much faster ride.

Directional Pro-Tip – The board is like most others in the sense the nose slightly longer than tail for better float and pop but the difference with the Vapor is a tail that is significantly narrower than the nose, which is supposed to reduce swing weight (mostly off the pipe and jumps) and give it a more playful flex.

The Reality

I’ve been a big fan of this board ever since I got into snowboarding. I couple of seasons back I bought the ’08 model and absolutely love riding it but that doesn’t mean that this shred stick is for everyone out there.

I got my hands on a 2010 157 model preloaded with Cartel EST bindings, which I tested with my new Burton Ion boots during a November visit to Whistler Blackcomb.

• Conditions: Reasonable temperatures between 2 and -10 degrees. Snow varied on different locations on the mountain but mostly soft packed and groomed with some powder on the sides of the runs.

• First Impressions: Right off the bat, the board feels amazing under your boots. This was my first time riding Burton’s ICS/EST setup and I must say, you can feel a difference. Felt much more connected to the setup, as if there was less “stuff” between me and the board, and even me and the snow. The pop was slightly improved when compared to previous models. When plowing through the powder banks on the side, it was much easier to keep the nose up than other boards I’ve tried and you even feel the tail sink a little.

• Feel – The board keeps up with the typical Burton stereotype of a “stiff” board. High speeds on groomed runs felt really good and natural. The best kind of turns for it were longer, faster S-shaped turns. Despite being a very light board, at high speeds the board held an edge extremely well and didn’t have the “shattery” feel you would expect. Instead a much mellower, damper ride with quick edge to edge turning. I loved pressing down with my entire body weight on it during a carve and knowing it would holf. That being said, this board sucks with tighter turns on much steeper slopes. The response just wasn’t there. Although I think the one I tried out was a bit too long for me, you can tell that the stiffness just doesn’t help. Buttering around towards the flatter part of some runs was also difficult if not impossible. You would need something with a mellower flex for that kind of stuff.

• Stability – The thing is a beast on groomed runs but didn’t take some bumpy, choppy terrain as well as I thought it would. The lightness of the board definitely played a factor there. In pow it feels smooth and natural almost like a powder board. The more aggressive pop in the tail lets you also pull off some tricks you didn’t think were possible in such deep snow.

• I Believe I Can Fly – I don’t care what bullshit you’ve heard out there regarding ultra-light boards, when it comes down to it there really isn’t much of a difference on the snow. But who said a board like the Vapor is made for the ground? This baby is meant to FLY. Where you really feel the lightness is in the air. Whether it’s a tiny feature on the side of the run or a giant ramp in the park, the second you get this thing off the ground the weight underneath your legs seems to disappear and turning your body for simple switches, 180’s, or even 360’s feel effortless. Swinging the board around feels much better than your typical snowboard and you use much less energy to do it.

• Park Riding? – Definitely not this board’s area of expertise. The stiffness just makes it hard to catch rails and boxes properly and with a board this expensive, I’m not sure you would even want to try. The thing is a vision when it comes to the halfpipe. You can really feel it climbing the walls of the pipe nicely and the “swingyness” of it makes it easier to spin in the air. A lot of people have claimed that the Vapor is essentially a pipe board, but that’s definitely not my thing.

The Usual Suspects

With a price tag over what you probably pay on your mortgage, this thing is pricey! Especially when you consider what you would have to dish out for EST bindings to get the true ICS/EST experience. Snowboarding is fun kids, but you need to draw the line between “fun” and “excessive” sometimes. All the technology packed into this board has also made it somewhat fragile. The Vaposkin topsheet is a scuff canvas for 6 year-old skiers waiting at lift lineups or going up the chair. This thing scratches very easily on the topside and if you’re OCD like me, it might drive you a little nuts! It’s also a stiff board that goes fast but might not be enjoyed by people that enjoy a slower, “jibbier” experience down the mountain. Buttering around is pretty hard to pull off on this board and it definitely is not your friend in the park. This shred stick definitely falls under the “advanced to expert” category and it will definitely overpower the inexperienced rider.

Time to Be Honest

Burton’s Vapor is definitely a wonder when it comes to snowboarding. Despite my comments, this thing is an all-mountain machine that will take you anywhere on the mountain but doesn’t seem to truly sell itself except when you’re in the air or riding the pipe. The price tag is too hefty to just throw this stick in with the rest of the collection and at the same time it’s range is too narrow to have as your single, full-time board. Other companies, like Elan with their Inverse, make lighter boards than the Vapor. I loved this thing on groomed runs but there are arguably better piste boards out there, even from Burton themselves.

That being said, I’m going to keep riding my ’08 Vapor till I break it and then I’m going to buy another one!