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Home Forums Splitboards Aristan, Billy Goat, or Panoramic?

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  • #577691
    OSUmountaineer
    Participant

    First time poster, long time message board troll.

    I’ve finally got the loot to get my first split. 5’10” 150 lbs, size 9 boot and split time between CO and the PNW, so I need something that can handle huge variations in snow conditions and terrain. I ride the steeps so I need something that will stay stable at speed but is also responsive enough for tree riding in the PNW concrete. I’m looking at day trips with the occasional (few times a year max) overnight.

    I’ve narrowed my choices down to the Voile Artisan, K2 Panoramic, and the GNU Billy Goat. I’m a huge fan of the hybrid rocker system, which has me leaning more towards the Voile or GNU. From there, the biggest difference seems to be effective edge, where the Voile has almost 6cm less. This should make the Voile more responsive in the trees but a little less stable gripping the steeps, right? The PTEX sidewalls on the Voile are a huge selling point for durability as well.

    Looking at the 159 in any of these models. Any thoughts on potentially stepping up to a 162 given the conditions I explained above?

    Anyway, have you riden any of these? Got any thoughts on how to proceed? I won’t be able to try before I buy, so I’m absorbing as much info as I can find before I make a decision.

    #662246
    wrath
    Participant

    Just took my 159 goat out for a day 1 on hardpacked less-groomed, early season Baker…lapping chairs to see how it rode and get it dialed. One word…FLOW, it loves to flow down the fall line and just ate up early season terrain and probably the best board I’ve run in the natty half. I’m 5’6″ and 180, so a 159 split should be plenty in pnw…idk about CO; actually a 156 non-split would be fine for inbound for all but deep poo. There are some goat fans over at snowboardingforum

    #662247
    B-P
    Participant

    Honestly any of the three boards you have listed will do a decent job of what you are after. My question for you is, have you ridden reverse camber or c2 boards before?

    You are asking about 3 different board profiles and each has strenths and weaknesses. It really comes down to which type you like to ride the best, if you havnt ridden all 3 types, I would hold off purchasing a board until you get a chance to test em out.

    If you are dead set on buying a board asap, I would recommend the Voile board, this is mainly due to the camber center and rocker nose and tail. In my experience in board testing, these are the easiest boards to transition into that have some type of rocker. The camber in the middle will also have much higher grip for skinning as well as more stability when gliding. In my opinion, the cam/early rise combination is the best for an all around splitboard for the NW.

    I have ridden c2 and tested this years Arbor Abacus split, they are both good boards, and if you have already ridden a reverse camber or c2 board, you should be able to pick which you like best, good luck! :headbang:

    #662248
    iriecoyote
    Participant

    I haven’t ridden the artisan or the panoramic but I love my Goat!

    #662249
    ruapehu_explorer
    Participant

    The artisan doesn’t have a cambered center (that would be what Jones splits aim for), at least as far as it’s advertised design specs – I haven’t seen how the profile ends up being in person. The Voile Artisan is supposed to be more like a cross between the the C2Btx and the K2 flat/rocker profiles- it’s flat directly in the center (like k2, except the flat section is much smaller) and has camber almost directly underfoot (like C2) while the overall profile of the nose and tail extending from the central flat section (including the camber underfoot) are rockered.

    The flat underfoot is supposed to help add stability for skinning, but lots of people get used to the rocker in the center and have no problems.

    #662250
    Supra
    Participant

    Check out my photos in the k2 panoramic post to see the rocker profile of this year’s panoramic. It has a little bit of camber underfoot, which should flatten out after the board breaks in a bit.

    #662251
    OSUmountaineer
    Participant

    Thanks guys. I actually ended up finding a Venture Zephyr on ebay for $620. Found a sale on hardware and on Blaze bindings through Tactics and Mountaingear so the whole setup ran me less than $900!

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