Location: Mammoth, CA
Snow Conditions: Hardpacked to softpacked groomers.
Setup: I rode the K2 Eco Pop with my Union Team bindings and Vans Veil Boots size 8.
Size: 155cm.
First Impression: The Eco Pop is an aggressive pipe board and it’s quick.
Weight: Lighter than average
Flex: Stiffer flex longitudinally from nose to tail that helped give it stability on the groomers but a tad softer torsional flex so you could engage the board for quick responsive turns. The stiffer flex made it not as playful but very aggressive for freeriding and carving. The Eco Pop features K2’s all mountain rocker which is 70% flat and 30% rocker. Basically flat between the bindings to almost the last insert, then rocker from there to the contact points.
Turning: The Eco Pop was quick to engage into turns and that’s where I thought it was most aggressive was how it handled carves especially the initiation part. The hyper progressive sidecut has been a favorite because it locks you into each turn and is really quick to engage into each carve. I found this time around with the Eco Pop it held the short radius turns the best and the longer drawn out turns were decent.
Stable: The stiffer flex kept it a stable ride on the groomers. It could handle speeds and carving but definitely kept you on your toes when you were riding it. The forgiveness factor wasn’t there in the handling so it was easy for the board to ride you if you got lazy. The stiffer flex and lightweight handling made it not handle chop as well so a little bumped around on those conditions.
Pop: I rode it through Forest Trail for a couple laps and didn’t feel much pop to it. I let a friend borrow it to see if it was just me who noticed the lack of pop in the board and they also thought it didn’t have much liveliness to it. It was capable of park riding but you never felt the extra air and snap from it. It was fine on the flat boxes, the rocker helped it not be catchy on any features.
Switch: The eco pop is a tad setback (.75″/19mm) so it’s not exactly true twin but still capable of switch riding. I found the turns were as aggressive switch as they were regular and my switch riding isn’t as strong as regular so the board rode me during switch riding.
Overall Impression: The Eco Pop is a lightweight aggressive women’s board. It’s quick to turn, stiffer flex and can handle the inside of a halfpipe like it’s no one’s business. For the female rider looking for a charging quick board that’s lightweight, this is it.
Shay’s Honesty Box: The last time I rode the eco pop was in 2009/10 when it was flatline tech at the Good Wood Test so I wanted to try the 2011/12 in all mountain rocker at this Good Wood Test. Last time it won me over quickly but this time I didn’t think it had any personality to it. Too aggressive without the fun factor.
Ready to buy? Head over to evo for the K2 Eco Pop or shop their full line of snowboards
On Snow Photo
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K2 Eco Pop description
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Review Disclosure: I rode this board at the Transworld Good Wood Test at Mammoth Mountain, basically demoed it from their fleet of test boards and returned it when I was done riding for the day.
