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This thing hasn't touched snow yet but that will change really soon.

Helix 163 (27cm waist) mounted with Spark Ignition IIs


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I'll add a full review to this post next week after I've put a few miles on her over the weekend. 'till then enjoy the pics.

"Sexy Time!"

Dude, that's hilarious and disturbing all at the same time.......nice work.

I spent three consecutive days on my new Helix over the weekend and now it's review time. See the TR "Three Day Weekend" for pics and such.

First of all I was a little apprehensive of the Helix's floatation and control due to it's smallish size (163). I am 6'5" and weigh ~230# without gear so I normally wouldn't ride anything less than a 170. My concern was quickly laid to rest after the first day as the rockered shape made floatation a dream and the shorter running length made riding tight trees feel like I was driving an A4 through traffic. One of the most noticable benefits is the ability to quickly initiate turns. On my 170 Divide, I would normally need to pick up some speed before the board became responsive. On the new Helix, turn initiation/responsiveness is almost skateboard like.
I also had the new ride in some open bowls and rocky, technical terrain. The board was rock solid in these situations as well. Whether I was ripping big "super-G" turns or straight lining through tight spots, I had a ton of confidence.
The uptrack was a little different. The rockered profile took a little getting used to. Once I slightly revised my skinning technique, I had no issues. The revision I speak of was putting more balanced pressure down on the board as opposed to heavily weighting the heel to maintain traction in steep firm terrain.
In all, having a rockered splitter was a great change to the traditional cambered boards that I've riden. It's nice to have a board that is both playful and hard charging at the same time.

FREAKING AWESOME dude!! Your board looks sexy as hell!!

I thought I was getting away with riding a smallish board for my frame (5'11", 180lbs. 163cm). Sounds like you can manhandle that thing! How was floatation during touring mode? Did your tips pop up when skinning in untracked?

What boots are you running in your Sparks?

Thanks for the nice comment.

Floatation in skin mode was the same as it was on the 170. The surface area between the 26cm waist 170 Divide and the 27cm waist 163 Helix is nearly identical. I did notice that the tips seemed to want to pop up to the surface quite a bit easier but I never really had issues with that on a cambered board either.

I use Rulers. They're the highest quality, stiffest boots I can find in a size 14.

Nice setup. I am ready to place a order myself. Would like to ask you a few Qz. Ur Size & Weight etc. Me 6.4 - 195 am think about a 158 or 163 wide. I have boot size 12 and not sure if I should go shorter 158 & Wider 27 or 163 and 26. I have a Burton Blunt 158 - Wide and I love it. Not boot overhang and fast turn.

PS : Where/what kinda hardware did you use with the double climbing bar etc. The Voile S-plit kit setup?

Could you maybe PM with email or Phone # to ask you some more Qz.

Again Sweet setup !!

Thanks.
I'm 6'5" 230# without gear.
Not sure what terrain you're planning on riding but, for me, bigger always seems to be better. I'd go with the 63 in either waist width option. I think you'll find the 26cm waist will be crazy maneuverable and super whippy in tight spots. The difference will only be an inch longer in both directions and you'll gain a ton of high speed stability.
The double climbing bars are ghetto rigged G3 tele heel pieces that will be swapped out for the stock Voile duallies as soon as I pick a set up.

I'll send you a PM with my email for further questions.

Great review, I have been thinking about the Venture Storm-R and I never really gave the Helix much of a look considering its smallish size. My question for you though is related to the binding setup. I notice you have Spark Ignition II base plates of which they only offered a L/M. I wear a size 12 boot (K2 T1) and had issues with the full Ignition II binders as the straps didn't fit very well and caused me a great deal of pain. Fortunately, Will worked with me and I got it straitened out with some adjustments. I further customized them by using Large Burton C60 ankle straps, but I have never been able to replace the toe straps as the Burton straps aren't compatible out of the box. It looks like you are using custom straps, any insight into what straps you are using would be appreciated.

BTW: I must say that Spark bindings is what made me come out of the closet and put away my snowshoes for good . I just received Large Fuse baseplate and heel loop and they provide a much better fit for me. Of course I am still using the straps from my Ignition II setup.

There's nothing custom about my straps. They're a mix of old and new Bent Metal straps. When I bought the Spark baseplates, I already had two sets of BM Step-Ins. I cannibalized one set of the Step-Ins to make my Iggy II's. The straps are different colors because they're from different BM model years.
It seems odd that you had so much trouble at a size twelve. My feet are 14s and I've never had any issues what so ever.

Thanks for the follow up on the Sparks setup, considering this is the splitboard thread. My issues weren't necessarily with the Sparks but with the sourced out Bent Metal straps as when compared to C-60 straps they have about 60% of the running length which just happened to hit the pressure points on my boots. This led me to believe that the issue had to do with my boots, K2 T1 which is super stiff and beefy for wider feet. I like the slimmer design of the Driver X's, but my feet are too wide for those. Never considered the Rulers, but I suspect my feet are too wide for those as well. Problem completely solved with C-60 straps and I have even more comfort with the Large Fuse base. Will at Spark was super cool to work with as he offered just about anything to me to get the Iggy II's to work for me, thanks Will!

Back to the snowboard, based on your review I am giving the Helix some consideration over the Storm. Thanks again

This board is SICK! I just bought the solid, identical to what you're riding (163, 25cm waist). Certainly going to split it at the end of the Bridger season. I would've never considered buying this board until a friend lent me his for a day. So much fun in every bit of terrain I could find. Only slight -: requires a little more input to stay stable in variable straightlines. But this hardly negates the tons of positive factors that make this thing so enjoyable. Nice work Venture.