Snowboard Review: 08-09 Nitro Sub Pop

Location: Loveland, Colorado

Snow Conditions: Snowing with hardpacked groomers to icy groomers to fresh snow on the runs.

Setup: I rode the Nitro Sub Pop with Union Force SL bindings and my Vans Omni Focus boots size 8.

First Impression: It’s a softer Nitro board…it’s a softer Nitro board.

Size: 155cm

Weight: lighter than average

Flex: I didn’t have any issues with flexing the board, very easy torsionally to flex and resulting in super quick turns making it a really easy ride. It was tougher to pinpoint the longitudinal flex when I rode it…but overall it’s a softer flexing board, easy to ride and fun to ride. It wasn’t so soft where I couldn’t wait to get done riding it…it actually was a fun ride for someone who likes freeriding with smaller freestyle tricks every now and then.

Turning: The best turns were really short sharp turns…I didn’t have any problems with initiating turns, no catching on the turns but I also noticed the longer arc’d out turns weren’t as solid and it could have been just the smaller size for me. The edges are tough and you can’t miss them…they also held an edge in the conditions which included a couple icy spots where I could test if the board slid on the ice or held an edge, it actually did very well on the icy spots.

Stable: I was expecting the board to be less stable with me on it, really…I figured it’d be like a board I rode years ago that practically wanted to gallop away when I rode it. Surprisingly, it handled…but I would have preferred a bigger size when charging. The edges look indestructible. By the time I took it out the fresh snow was getting more chopped up but it didn’t have any issues with maneuvering over cruddy bumped out areas, absorbed them without being bouncy.

Pop: It definitely has pop power, really easy to ollie and play around with. It didn’t require much effort and was fun just popping off the sides of runs with. I had no problems with buttering, pressing…it’s not a stiff board and definitely not in the tail/nose of it.

Switch: Easy swing weight to transition from regular to switch on snow or in the air. I never had it catch in any of the conditions, bumpy to groomers to pow pow. Easy to ride switch as a centered twin board.

Overall Impression: So the Sub Pop was supposed to be a 2010 release, then it got pushed up to an early release which is great…because it adds a whole other board to the mix when considering reverse camber. I would definitely ride it again, it’s an interesting design and concept…different than the others.

Shay’s Honesty Box: My only gripe is 155cm is the biggest size, I would have liked a 158cm to ride on it…just more board for me.