Burton X8 Snowboard

Terrain Use: Jumps, Boxes and Rails, Groomers, All Mountain

Pros: lightweight, poppy, Popular model, Popular on mountain, Soft, Well known brand

Other Thoughts: its similar to my jj but softer the est/ics is the future off snowboarding it gives u an unmatched feel

Terrain Use: Half Pipe, Jumps, Boxes and Rails, Powder, Carving, Backcountry, Groomers, All Mountain

Pros: Durable, lightweight, Easy to carve, poppy, Strong edgehold, Great value, Soft, Well known brand

Cons: Top sheet scratches

Other Thoughts: I bought the x8 when it was first released and took it for a few turns on the Australian 'wannabee' snow. (yes, here in australia, most of the time our snow is pathetic compared to the likes of Japan and Canada, but on occassion we get some big dumps and get a couple of weeks of powdery bliss) The x8 performed perfectly both on the groom and off piste, in the pipe it held up well, in the park it stuck the landings and had no issues jibbing or grinding rails and boxes and its as smooth a ride as they come! I headed to Niseko, Japan in February with the idea that, ill give the X8 a ride, if it doesnt perform in the pow, ill hire a better suited powder board. i set the bindings back in the ICS channels, (only takes about 30 seconds per binding for a full adjustment!!) and took a few turns in the powder. not having ridden powder this deep in the past, it took a bit of getting used to. I was very suprised how well the board floated above the pow, i was expecting to sink as i wasnt riding a tapered board, but it held up perfectly and i had no issues carving the pow on the X8. the board is light, durable, flexi and still packs alot of pop. the edges hold well at resonable speed, can get a little shakey when flat lining down the groomers, but still easy to ride. the ICS channel is perfect and I am yet to have a screw come loose and yet to find a fault.

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Pros: After you ride a board with the Infinite Channel System (ICS) it is very hard to switch back other limited binding mounting setups. The ICS allows for an infinite stance width through the channels on the board. It's also allows you to torque down more on the screws without damaging the base. If you add Extra Sensory Technology Bindings (EST) to the mix you have just upgraded to a baseless binding system that allows for infinite stance width and angle adjustment. You can dial in your perfect setup instead of being restricted to the incremental stance options on other boards. On to the boards performance. I have ridden a 155 and a 151 in many conditions. I purchased the 151 to be mainly a park board or days without pow. But due to breaking my other board on a trip I have even ridden this in two feet of fresh pow. The board behaves extremely well in all conditions which surprised me. I wouldn't recommend it for pow days but it will perform above expectations if needed. It butters easily and has pop. The only place I have not taken this board is in the half-pipe. For park, freeride, freestyle this board rips. The WFO base is extremely fast and surprisingly durable.

Cons: I am hard pressed to find a problem with this board. The only con I can say is for those who do not have Burton bindings there currently is not a way for you to strap on. The baseplates that come with the board only allow for conversion from Burton bindings. But if you buy this board, it's worth the investment to own the EST bindings as well.

Other Thoughts: If you are looking for a powder board, then get something else. For any other place on the mountain this board tears it up. The ICS and EST setup will make it difficult for me to ride anything else.