Location: Winter Park, CO
Snow Conditions: Hardpacked to icy conditions on the mountain, flat-light riding conditions.
Setup: I rode the YES Great Dudes with Union Flite bindings and Vans Veil Boots size 8.
Size: 154cm.
First Impression: Definitely the more playful YES board over the asym I rode last year from YES.
Weight: average
Flex: The great dudes took some adjustment because when I played with it on flat surface it seemed really soft but that was only the nose and tail where the rocker is. Between the bindings it was a tad stiffer with the camber but that made the ride down the mountain more able to handle freeriding. It was torsionally stiffer so it never felt out of control too soft when I rode with it. When I wanted to play around, the tail was easier to butter on and still had that playful feeling to it. The flex also changes with size, so I recognize the 154cm was going to be softer than the 156 I took out last year.
Turning: I found the board relatively easy to get on edge, the contact points were lifted up by the rocker on the nose/tail so that made catching them not likely in a turn. I preferred longer radius drawn out turns on the board but when I needed quick response, I just had to put a little more effort into it. The Great dudes is an asymmetrical board so the sidecut is deeper on the heelside edge making it a lot easier to get those heelside turns and carves down on the mountain.
Stable: I’ve become a fan of the ultimate grip, it definitely helps on the icy hardpacked days for holding an edge better on the snow. The YES boards are meant for all mountain, charging and even though they have a freestyle focus they still offer up stability on the mountain.
Pop: Definitely some pop and livelyhood to this board, it wasn’t difficult to get decent air with my ollies (and i’m not the best so some improvement). In the park, no problem on the boxes with not catching and on flat ground tricks, easier to butter and play around with.
Switch: Great dudes is a true twin asymmetrical board which I found rode like a true twin, whether I was riding regular or switch easy to maneuver on the snow and no adjustment in how it handled.
Overall Impression: The great dudes is meant for that all mountain freestyle board that you can take in the park or in the powder. The camrock gives it the camber stability but also the rocker playfulness and the mix of ultimate grip means never having to wash out on icy runs.
Shay’s Honesty Box: When I first stepped on the great dudes, it had a loose feeling that I had to get adjusted to and I wasn’t sure if I’d really like the board. Once I got used to it and enjoyed the playful feeling, it was a lot more comfortable in how it handled the mountain. It wasn’t as charging as the YES asym I rode last year but also size has a consideration, the 156 suited me better. Also with the graphics there is limitless possibility of dirty jokes depending who is on the topsheet (found that out quickly when I rode the Einstein model).
Ready to buy? Head over to evo for the YES Great Dudes of History or shop their full line of Yes snowboards
On Snow Photo
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YES Great Dudes description
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Review Disclosure: I rode this board at a demo day.
FLuiD
March 7, 2010 at 7:52 pmHey Shay…Thanks as always for the review! I have one question though. I have looked at the catalog etc and can’t find if this board is centered or set back stance? Last years asym 156.5 was centered and am just curious. TIA!!
Shay
March 7, 2010 at 8:08 pmFluid, nose and tail are the same length so it’s centered not set back.
keothakid!
March 8, 2010 at 6:30 amWhat’s up Shay! Do you know if the dudes are random or are they tied to the sizes? I want a MLK but there is no way I can ride a 49…
Blake
March 8, 2010 at 6:30 amHey Shay,
Thanks for the review. This may be a stupid question, but who is the guy on the 156?
timmy
March 8, 2010 at 6:44 amIs that chong in 156? lol
Chad
March 8, 2010 at 12:28 pmThe dues graphics are not random, they are assigned to a particular size. The dude on the 56 is Salassi, the father of Rastafari.
CP
Kimchi
March 9, 2010 at 9:10 amDamn, my assumption was that the GDOH was basically a decked out version of the current more aggressive YES board. Any idea how much of the additional playfulness was from the shorter size and how much was from the softer flex?
Alex
March 14, 2010 at 7:07 amKimichi you original assumption is right – the 154 GDOH is stiffer than this years 154, and they get stiffer up the line – i have the 156.5 and have ridden the GDOH 159, which was a tad stiffer than my 156.5.
Dave
March 16, 2010 at 1:05 pmThe GDOH have carbon in them so they should be stiffer than this year’s which are made of just wood…
But maybe the tips are softer and the rest of the board is stiffer because of the carbon.
James
May 10, 2010 at 10:10 pmFor once a classy graphic.
One question for the entire Yes. range, I wear a size 11 nitro boot, what board size is the most appropriate.
Great review too!
GKS
June 27, 2010 at 7:52 pmIf you were rating this board’s stiffness (1 being the softest flex, 10 being the stiffest), where would you rate the GDOH? Would you guess the 152 in this line is softer than the 154 you rode? If so, how much so?
Thanks so much. Your reviews are consistent and clear. Your input is informing purchasing decisions. Great work here!
Olly
July 25, 2010 at 11:20 pmHi Shay, Great review. I was just wondering if you had a ride on the YES Optimistic? I’m tossing up between the optimistic, NS Heritage and the Capita BSOD.
Olly
Nic
August 3, 2010 at 4:35 amHi Shay,
there’s one thing wrong… a few days ago I had the possibility to touch with my hands the Yes. the Dudes and it didn’t have the Ultimate Grip! I saw a normal edge..
soulglider
August 26, 2010 at 4:44 amHi Shay,
Did you find this board had a particularly quick base? I was impressed with the base on my YES 158 and going on the spec this board should be quicker.
James
Tim
August 30, 2010 at 7:55 amHow does the asymmetrical sidecuts affect riders with goofy stance? And is the Yes optimistic asymmetrical?
Dylan
September 4, 2010 at 1:37 pmWhich boards out of the YES line have ultimate grip? and how would you compare GDOH to the Jones mountain twin
Shay
September 7, 2010 at 10:11 amTim, asymmetrical doesn’t matter whether you are regular or goofy, the heel edge is still the same for both. The YES optimistic is not asymmetrical.
Dylan, i checked with YES to find out the right answer and the Great Dudes is the only board in the YES line with ultimate grip. GDOH to Jones Twin, similiar flex but different in how they turn handling. Jones has MTX, GDOH has Ultimate Grip so they both hold an edge good on hardpacked. GDOH is a true twin, Jones is a twin shape with directional flex. Jones is more mountain in my opinion, GDOH is more freestyle.
Wil
September 12, 2010 at 11:52 amis Great Dudes of History suitable for people who require a wide board
Shay
September 12, 2010 at 12:02 pmWil, what size boot are you rocking? The waist width on the GDOH is normal, so not a wide board.
Wil
September 13, 2010 at 10:52 amim wearing uk 11s so i think it would be a problem. but this board is everything i want and i cant find anything similar in wide?
Shay
September 13, 2010 at 11:49 amUk 11’s are men’s US 12’s so on the wider size, is you rock a duck stance and wider stance it could be doable. What size board are you thinking and what’s your stance angles and width?
Wil
September 14, 2010 at 1:39 pmim looking to get a 156. i ride my stance gangster and 17 17. do you thiink it could be a posibility cos there just isnt the veriaty in wide boards.
Shay
September 14, 2010 at 11:00 pmYeah the ww on the 156 is 25.1 which is the narrowest part of the board so if you rock pretty ghansta and 17 angles do-able. Are you able to put your bindings/boots on the board in a shop…that’d be a great way to know for sure! I’ll see if I can get my hands on the GDOH and see what the width is at the farthest inserts.
james
September 16, 2010 at 3:36 pmHey Shay awesome review, as always. I was wondering if a size 11 burton ozone(footprint tech[smaller outsole]?) Stance is around 23 f=15/18 r=-12/-15. Thanks for reading
James
Dylan
September 19, 2010 at 1:13 pmGreat review. How would you compare a jones or yes board (camrock) to a rossignol board(amptek)? Also how would you compare camrock or ampek to lib techs c2, or never summers tech?
elan
January 22, 2011 at 10:22 amhey shay do you know if the camrock run true to size i was thinking about getting the typo, i ride a 153 now and am like 5′ 7″, 145 lbs, but i was wondering if i should get the dudes 52 or if i could pull off the typo 149 (im not exactly trying to get a pink board like the typo 52)
Shay
January 24, 2011 at 12:27 pmElan,
You could definitely size down with camrock but depends on what you want out of the board. If you are riding park and just want a straight up park board, 149 would do it. But depends on your riding style and where you ride.
darwin
March 14, 2011 at 3:04 amawesome review shay!
i’m in the same boat as ^Elan^ (stats: 2 inches shorter 5 lbs lighter)
don’t know if i should go typo 149 or 152 gdoh. i want an all mtn board that kills it, but i do spend about 60-75% of my time in the park. i’m riding a pretty old m3 right now (camber 148) so i’m looking at new tech and expanding my game.
i know the typo is more park directed so does that mean it’s got that much of a softer flex, especially at the smaller length?
i can save a $100 bucks right now if i pick up the abe lincoln 154 too, just worried about the jump in size.
thoughts? TIA!
darwin
March 14, 2011 at 11:19 amerr lincoln 52*
Shay
March 14, 2011 at 6:40 pmDarwin, yeah i was gonna say 54 is a bit big for park, even 52 if you spend most of your time in park. I haven’t ridden the typo yet but definitely the park orientated board from YES, GDOH is more aggressive more mountain. Really depends on your park riding, are you jumps or rails more often?
darwin
March 14, 2011 at 7:34 pmyeah, i’m not trying to go all the way up to 54, being used to 48-49. as for my park riding, i’m more into air/jumps than jibbing/rails. i am thinking of expanding my riding into more of the all mtn-backcountry-free ride scene. i guess that’s why i’m so interested in the GDOH 52.
i appreciate all the input, and i think the GDOH is looking more and more enticing. i’ve never really had options in the past and getting the 52 just might make my trips more interesting with switching up the board lengths. hopefully i’ll be able to tell the difference.
one last question: does the rocker in the tip in tail give the board a forgiving flex… say if i were to not land that clean/flat?
thanks shay!
Shay
March 15, 2011 at 8:34 amDarwin, yeah definitely if you expand into more mtn backcountry freeride, this board could handle. 52 would be a noticeable difference from your other board and worth trying out! You’ll have to adjust to the camrock and how it lands on jumps but it’ll be more forgiving.
darwin
March 16, 2011 at 12:51 amok one more question 🙂
i just can’t help myself.
been reading reviews and features of everything.
what bindings would complement the GDOH? i know all of the bindings below are awesome products, but just wondering what you suggest, what feature of which binding will accent the board in what way and what not…
not looking for anything in particular, just a pretty good pair but i feel like all of these bindings would go well, so i wanted to know your take on which will be best.
union force?
union force sl?
union contact pro?
2010-11 or 2011-12. don’t mind waiting for next year’s products.
thanks!
Tahoe Shredder
March 16, 2011 at 10:06 pmUnion Force in white for sure. It’ll match the board’s white accents yet the white from the bindings will pop out nicely. I’m running asadachi’s on my Abe Lincoln.
darwin
March 19, 2011 at 12:19 pmthanks tahoe shredder
+1 for aesthetics. it’s always dope to rock something that’s eye catching.
how are your asadchi’s treating you on your lincoln ride?
but what about tech/build?
know anything about the responsiveness of each binding when paired with a board like the GDOH and the all mountain with the freestyle flavor?
based on what i’m reading from reviews and product descriptions i gather that
1) force sl is the force with a few more bells and whistles
-stiffer
-machine cored out force baseplate
-a little bit lighter than the force?
-stiffer than the force (more all mtn oriented than the force)
2) contact pro is a lighter more intense version of the regular contact.
so how does the contact pro compare to the force?
how does the contact pro compare to the force sl?
i know for sure that the union (regular) contacts might be too park oriented for me esp with what i want to use the board for, so i’m looking for good combo.
i definitely wouldn’t mind GDOH and white forces esp because i know i can save a few bucks compared to the force sl and the contact pros.
Tahoe Shredder
March 19, 2011 at 4:55 pmdarwin:
As far as tech goes, it’s all based on your preference. I ran last years Forces (in Red) and I loved them. The only reason I switched out to the asadachi was because I fell in love with the wood grain design. The only difference I felt was slight weight and highback. The asadachi was a tiny bit lighter than the forces. As far as performance, couldn’t really tell. Both bindings were comfortable, responsive, and most importantly (for me) is very adjustable.
Board and bindings will not dictate how you ride. I’m sure you know this. It’s 90% rider, 10% gear. I felt the difference with the Forces and SL’s. SL is definitely lighter because of the MC’d base. However, the difference you’ll feel is probably only with the highback design. The forces have a stiffer highback than the SL/asadachi.
As for the GDOH itself, it’s a great board to ride as Shay described in her reviews. I have a blast everytime I ride it and contrary to other reviews, the board is very lightweight. I run the 152 (abe linc) and I like it’s responsiveness/stability/flex.
To answer your question just straight up, I would go with the forces and save yourself the extra $$. Bolt it on and start riding.
darwin
March 19, 2011 at 6:27 pmword!
definitely hear you about how it’s rider 1st, gear 2nd. thanks for the reply.
as for the comparison, the input from everywhere i’m looking is exactly what i wanted. kind of just confidence builders in my purchases and what not.
thanks again!
manhattanproj
March 20, 2011 at 9:48 pmhow is this board for a beginner rider? is this board so aggressive that it’ll be hard to learn on?
Shay
March 22, 2011 at 8:36 pmmanhattan, I wouldn’t recommend it for an entry rider. Good progressive boards for beginner riders would be arbor formula, rome garage rocker, ride crush or gnu carbon credit.