Lib Technologies Skate Banana Original BTX Snowboard - 2009

If you are looking to cruise I would get a 159-162 based off your height. If you buy a reversed camber board you can go a couple inches smaller because the reverse camber will be like riding a board a couple inches bigger.

Hey Dude,
For a size 12 boot i would go with a wider board, why because catching an edge isn't a worry but massive toe or heel overhang can be a pain in the park or on groomers. I have a good buddy thats a 13 boot size and he swears by the 156 wide skate banana. As for the size of the board if you normally ride a 159 I've been told that with alternate camber boards you wanna go up to 8cm smaller than what you'd ride with a traditional camber board. I hope this helps with you're decision dude:)

No need for a wide I've been riding Lib for years and have last years sk8te banana in a 154cm and i'm 5'10 170lbs with size 10 1/2 boots and I'm fine dude. Wide is just extra board to slow you down!

Thw C2 will definately hold up better than the Bannana. The Bannana is a good all-around board, but compared to the C2, still lacks in the back country a tad. The C2 will power through anything you throw at it in the back country, and you can still rip it all over. But the Bannana is softer and will allow for more flex as you ride, and is mainly a park driven board. When you go from the Bannana to the C2, you will prob find the Bannana to be a lil washy in comparison. Both are sick, now its just up to you to decide what you really want. Hope this helps bro

If you ride mostly park then go for a pair of Union Contacts with maybe a bannana(reverse camber) or maybe a Ride Kink(if you dont want a reverse camber). If you do all-mountain, then go for a pair of Union Forces or Datas mixed with a Ride Crush(reverse camber) or a Ride DH2(no reverse camber). But if you are looking for a extremely solid line of binders, definately go Union. Thats the only company I will lock myself into. Hope this helps

Oliver, I have been riding a Burton X8 155 EST with a 24.8 waist and I have a size 12 foot. I have never had any toe/heel drag and I ride 6/-3. You should be good to go but I would not go any smaller than that bro. Board safe!

you should be ok, make sure your bindings are properly centered and you shouldn't get much if any toe drag

Either is good, the 152 will give you more speed, as you 'll sink less in the snow, the 149 more maneuverability. Good Luck!

Oh yeah and im only a size 10.5 boot!

if i were u id go 159 wide and u should be good to go

Well this deck is suuuper good in both worlds. You could rock a 148 all the way up to a 153 if you really wanted to. Personally I would tell you to get closer to the 150 area, but its all personal preference. Some like a bigger deck and others like a smaller one. I ride mainly park so I like to get the smallest deck I can without sacraficing stability(I ride a 154w and am 6' 170lbs) And aslong as you weigh under 150lbs, you will be fine on anything around that area. Hope this helps :)

I think the narrow will be too skinny for your foot. If you are currently riding a 149, then the 148 wouldn't be a huge change at all. The only thing is getting used to how reverse camber flexes. Its good to go smaller for the park, but you dont want to sacrifice stability or comfort. Some ppl like a bigger board for the park, others don't. So you could grips the 148 and be fine with it, if you can find one, but don't go narrow

LIb tech can be shipped internationally.
See link here for further info.
http://sales.liveperson.net/hc/s-9551721/cmd/kbresource/kb-4645481071220091338/view_question!PAGETYPE?sc=84&sp=97&sf=101133&documentid=239527&action=view&VisitorProfile=DogFunk&MESSAGEVAR!home=no&MESSAGEVAR!cookie=no

Id just go up one CM for the normal with board because one cm wont make much of a difference when riding but have a huge over hang will

It depends a lot on your riding style, but that seems about right. That length will give you the option to go freestyle or freeride..pretty much the best of both worlds. Go for it.

It is noticeable but it's all preference for park riding, for deeper stuff and depending on your weight, you may want the 151. Fun boards.

No, it is not.

it will be yellow and green. there is another link for the assorted

the 151 is a narrow board, you don't want that... get the 152 is a good size for all around riding and will last you a few seasons.. i don't think you'll specifically be able to order red and yellow since they ship out random

I'd suggest the 152 to give yourself a little growing room, but still have a fun board to ride. Sizing down with banana technology is key if you're new to the board. The Banana rocker will make the board feel like you're riding a bigger board and won't sacrifice float in powder.

Search it via Bing Shopping. I found a 159 pink top / pink bottom (the best combo!) that's cheap and if that's your size, it looks like they are trying to clear it out since it's all they got.

PINK ALL THE WAY!

I think it's harder to get depending on the size because most of the smaller ones are gone. Because of all the girlies. But the yellow one is played out imo. They make a lot more because it's supposed to ride the "banana" trademark hype but now it's kinda stands out too much. And it looks lame because there are so many of them.

The pink would be sick, but for me a banana has to be yellow and green, but thats what everyone thinks, get the pink and be original!

I would get the pink. nothing says BAMF like rocking a pink snowboard. Now go get your hands on some 2009 Burton Cartels in the "That's Hot Pink" colorway and you'll be all set.

What you may be thinking of is the recessed edges at the tip and tail. Mervin doesn't wrap the metal edges around the tip or tail (past the contact point) to make the board easier to repair, damper and lighter. The center of the board will have larger magnetraction "bumps" to strengthen your turns and give you better edgehold.

This one will be good for you.

The TRS is much more high tech and is said to be like an upgraded Skate Banana. The other difference is that the TRS is directional flex and stiffer. The Skate Banana is true twin and a tad softer. The TRS will have more pop and dampen vibrations better at high speeds and will work better in the foward direction. The Skate Banana will be better for jibs.

The Burton Hero prolly would be more comparable to the boards you mentioned in terms of specialty. But the Hero can't really "handle" the entire mountain too well. I tired it and imo it lacks in this area as do many jib boards. It's not "recessed" though. The Skate Banana is more of a general purpose board...that "can also" be used to jib.

This board has magnetraction (wavy metal edges). The wave in the edge gives you 7 points of contact when you turn vs a normal board where you'd get two contact points. I've never ridden a skate banana, but I have heard (and seen) that they are great in the park and on the mountain. For other suggestions (and I'm not just trying to push burton here) the Burton Hero is a great ride. I can't compare it to a banana, but the hero is the sickest board I've ever ridden in 10yrs riding. If you really want the banana then go for it, but make sure you check out every company's rocker boards first. I did my research and went with the hero, but that may be different for you.

156 for a park board or 159 if you do all mountain riding. Its advertised as an all mountain board but its more of a park board and tends to get chattery at high speeds and can be a noodle on bigger park features, if you want something thats stable at high speeds you need c2 btx which is in the t rice and the dark series

cartels, but unions would go better with the board plus they're lighter and more durable, forces would be your best bet for all around bindings and contacts would be good for park only riding

Check out the Burton X8, the board is super fun in the park. You can also take the X8 anywhere else and it will shred anything and everything! As for the person who said you can't use other bindings on the Burtons with ICS, he is wrong. All ICS boards come with a baseplate that inserts into any binding for a secure fit. But, to get the most out of board I'd go with the EST binding.

156 would be a better size for you if your looking for a park specific board whereas 159 would be more for all mountain. The skate banana is a sick board for the park, i definitely recommend it, if you want something cheaper don't go with burton there are many other options such as the rome artifact, ride kink, capita stairmaster, signal park rocker all are from non sell out companies and you also have the freedom of using any bindings you want, but if you got the cash go with the banana for sure

I would say you could go for the 156, especially in park. Also I would recommend a burton hero over this. I have heard many people who have ridden both boards say they like the hero better, and I personally love the hero. Its hands down the best board I've ever ridden. Also, the adaptor plates to put a regular binding on an ics board are free and come with the board.

this is a pretty dope board but if you wanna spend less for an equally sick board id go with the burton dominant. normally i dont like burtons but its got the p-rocker flex which gives you insane flex. only problem is youd need to either get new bindings or a thing to go on the bottom of the ones you have right now.

156 is the size for you for a park board... with your boot size you may also want to consider a wide. The skate banana is a great park board that will be there for you as you try to progress in the park

A wide would be good for bigger feet but it can also give you more stability and float in pow, the regular width is relatively wide so I would probably go with that. This seams to be a pretty tough board so it should hold your weight.

Thanks for your help!
159 is a bit long, so I'll go for your recommendation and get a 156, but why a wide? I thought they were for people with big feet (sorry i dont know a great deal on this!!)
Also, would a 156 hold my weight on rails etc?
Keith.

This would be a good board for you. It is very versatile and can do everything you want it to. I would not advise any other board. The sizing depends a lot on preference, for what you want to do though I would recommend a 156 or 156 wide. You could also go for the 152 if you wanted to spend a lot of time in the park and have a board that is easier to control.

i would go with the 159

No it shouldn't be, the reason for the larger with is not to accommodate a bigger boot size, but to make it easier to rip it up out on the powder. This is why nearly every 'powder' and 'backcountry' board you see is usually sold as a 'wide'. You may or may not know that once you start hitting jumps and gettin air, landing is completely different back there. The extra surface area helps you to stomp those landings and to glide around without getting sucked into the snow. Just be sure to lean back!

You are going to find that a 159w is waaaaay to short if you're used to 165. I tried to downsize from 163 NS Legacy to 157 Burton X8 this year and just couldn't get comfortable on a board that short (FWIW, I'm about 215 lbs, size 11 boot).

You may have better luck than I did, but I just want to warn you that downsizing that much isn't as easy as it sounds.

lib has some of the best boards out there in terms of design, performance and they are hand pressed in the USA, if you like park and pow this is a great board for you, if you are more into all mountain riding you should go with the T Rice or Dark Series

Lib Tech Skate Banana or GNU Park Pickle would be good in the park and pow.

I think the 148 it a little short especially since you 5,9 like everyone else is sugestin a 152 makes the most sense you wont find it big at all.

you should be good unless you like to ride a lot of backcountry then I would get the next size up which is like a 152 i think

you could rock it if you want a smaller board for the park/freestyle.
you wont have to worry about toe/heel drag with your boot size.

look in to a 151 also. it is also a smaller narrow board.

i wouldnt say you'd have to... but if ure only using it in the park its prob a good idea. The magtrac means that you'll still get heaps o grip after detuning it too. Personally, I didnt detune cause i love carving (yes, i carve/ride fast with this board hehe) and i can still hit the box's an rails without issue.

if u were just riding park id say get the 152 but since ur not the 156 is a great choice for pow/mountain riding and even if u want to hit the park a few times

its great in the pow, the 156 would work for you although if you don't do a lot of park riding you should consider the T Rice and the Dark Series, they have C2 BTX which is also great in pow but has added stability for freeriding and going fast

oh and this thing has amazing pop. i can be going pretty slow and just go off a little stump and get enough air to do tricks and still land them clean

I almost got this board but instead i went with a gnu carbon credit and have some union force bindings on it. I just got this board so ive only ridden it 6 or 7 times but i just went up to Tahoe and we just got 40+ inches of fresh powder and its awesome in powder, park and on hard pack. the magnetraction holds an amazing edge. whether you get the banana or the carbon credit you'll love both of them however the banana is supposed to have more flex then the credit so if you do more rails and boxes then jumps and all mountain id go with the banana

i've loved rocker since the first day although some people still prefer camber. The skate banana is a sick park board and great in the pow however if your looking for a board that can ride the whole mountain you need a T Rice, Dark Series or the never summer SL-R and yes 156 would be good for all mountain for you but the 152 would be better for a park specific board

its more of a park board its good in the pow but if you do a lot of non park stuff the T Rice or Dark Series would be a better board

the skate banana is a sweet park board and is great in the pow, if thats all you do you'd like the skate banana, if you do a lot of other all mountain riding you should consider getting C2 BTX which gives you more stability and pop

I went to windells and i have EDDIE WALL's eddie wall pro model board and its signed by him and used by him in powder clips in forever.... looking to sell it is in great condition only used by eddie wall himself and i have a picture to prove i won it at the americas next top pro model comp in windells check snowboarder mag if anyones interested in buying this board email me michaelkappaz@mac.com i can send u pics of it or if u want to work out a price

once you ride lib tech you will live and die by them, they make sick boards. The skate banana is a sweet park board but for a great all mountain board the T rice or the Dark Series is a better choice because they have C2 BTX. The New C2 BTX which has rocker between the bindings and camber at the tip and tail gives you stability at high speeds and more pop in the park. The T Rice is the sickest board i've ever owned, it handles anything I throw at it from groomers to pow to trees to 60 foot kickers in the park plus magnatraction goes through any snow condition

I picked up the 159 wide about a month ago and absolutely love it. I am 5'11", 210 Lbs, with 10.5 boots. EXCELLENT board for progressing at presses and butters, rips up the park, and the Magne-traction lets you cruise the groomers with ease. you keep it on an edge and even when the mountain's iced over you'll be able to ride. I went with the wide so I wouldn't have to worry about toe drag, but you could go with the normal width with your feet ducked out a little and you should be fine. the 10.5 is right on the edge where you could go ether way, so it's more of a personal preference.

The skate banana is a great park board, you are a big guy so you should go with the 159, the only problem with that is its gonna be ok in the park but kinda small for anything else

id recomend a wide too, i squeese my feet into a 10.5, and the wide means i dont have to ever worry about touching down. floats like a fether too.

159 is a good size for you for all mountain. If you don't do park that much you may want to consider the Lib Tech Travis rice and the Dark Series, C2 BTX gives you better stability

Well, the 2010 is a lot stiffer than 2009, I tried my friends 2010, and I actually prefer the pop of my 2009 banana. Its still very springy, so yeah its great for jumps. Its great in the park.

depends on the size of the jumps, some of the landings on large ones could be sketchy but you should be fine on smaller kickers. The Skate Banana is a great park board

its definitely soft, it just depends on ur preference. landings might might be a little sketchy for you

156 for park, 159 for all mountain

156 or 159. you won't need the "wide" board with a 10.5 boot.

Never Summer Evo-R. Or lib tech skate banana. size 156ish for your weight.

to add to Bristol's comment, icy conditions are no problem for any lib board because thanks to the magnetraction, you dont even feel the ice. The t-rice is definitely better for bigger stuff, but if youre looking for a jack of all trades board, the banana is perfect.

The Lib Tech T Rice is better at handling the mountain. The skate banana is decent at non park stuff but if you do a lot you want more of an all mountain board. The landings can get pretty sketchy on large features in the park because of its flex, if thats what your into the T Rice is a much better board for you

i dont think dog funk does that i know the house does

somewhere in the 170-180 range if you are using it in the park

a 156 wide should be good for about 185 pounds. I ride a 163 wide, and I'm 215 pounds FYI.

banana is the one that you should lean more to because like the person before me said the magnatraction gives better edge hold i have last years and tested this years. i love bananas. and its eco friendlt so you cant go wrong

While they're all good boards, the advantage of the skate banana is the magnatraction, it really does give you superior edge hold and turns ice into powder. I noticed the difference with magnatraction on my first run on a lib tech board. I would definitely go with the skate banana

this will handle the mountain a little better than the box scratcher wich is mainly a jibstick but they both have magnatraction so the ice shouldn't be a problem

156 Wade sad to hear you are spending a season in that whale killing nation,Must be another place to go antill thay stop the slaughter.

I have usually ridden 156, but got my banana at 159 and I've never been better in the park. Jibs and rails are really "easy" although I moved up a size. Atleast the presses.

really those 4 aren't gonna matter too much, just base don the principle of having a shorter board for park a 152 would be better.

any specific reason why?

go with the 152

based on your weight, the 156 would be good for an all mountain board, but you said you are getting more into park, if thats the case you are going to want a shorter board for rails/boxes

you're right on the borderline of needing a wide board, you can probably get away without one if your bindings are ducked out

Like someone already pointed to, check out the T-Rice. I have the new one with the c2 banana which might make a difference. It’s been tearing up the sketchy early season conditions in CO. Better than any other board I've used on ice.

i ride in wisconsin and there are some pretty icey slopes and itdoes fine

the skate banana can handle all mountain riding but its more of a park board, if you are looking for all mountain performance look at the Lib Tech Travis Rice

it has magnetraction, so you will get a good bit of bite into icy slopes. on high-speed groomers, i think handles decently, but only because i sized down (156 vs a 159 or so normally). you could always size the same as your cambered board - my guess is that it would ride fine. chris jones is correct, though, traditional camber is better for groomers.

Its not the best for icy groomers for sure. A traditional cambered board is the best for that junk. But you will love it in the pow, its all about the quiver man, you need a bunch of boards.

ARTIFACT! I purchased from these guys and i am absolutely confident in my choice. Rome is a sick company based off some sick values, they have a sick, sustainable, refundable, product ( if you wreck yourself off a 50 footer ) and their just dope board, flexy, attacks all aspects of the mountain, bronze edges help you jib n slide, the boards sick. My buddy dave hase last years artifact and he sends that shit!!!!! so hopefully a lil bit of his jealously for the board will rub off on my riding... dont think il ever be able to pull a dubcork... maybe a tipsy powder day!

I have a TRS with mtx and when riding flat i get no pull, it feels just like standard edges, but the magne traction feels amazing when its an icy day.

well 152 will be great to jib but 156 would be good for powder..

if youre not riding powder all the time id say 152. hope this helps

i ride last yrs skate banana, actally just got it and im obssessed with rails, butters mostly urban shit in detroit and id say go with the 152!

its just the board breaking in i have a two year old burton custom that still cracks if you do a hard tail block

My 09/10 Lib Skate Banana does the same thing, even when I flex the tail. At first I was scared s**tless, but I'm glad to hear that everybody's is doing it. I was definately not putting too much pressure on it if its built to handle my 170lb chubby ass butters and presses. Hope that helps.

yes its called breaking it in half.....

That's normal for lib tech boards. They do that when they are new. You are good.

yeah homey go with the 152 for sure. i defidently wouldnt go any smaller. im 157 and 5'8 and own a 156 nana' which is perfect.

considering you don't even know what size of a board you should rock out on, I'd save your dough and buy something a little less expensive, this board is tight but it won't make you an allstar and you can get the same fun out of something a lot cheaper, sorry to burst your bubble bro,
but you could rock out on '52 if you really want the bananer.

yo billy...For park riding size down and for pow size up...im going to assume you've never bought a board before...your 5/4 so i think the smallest size that they offer....also you might want to take a quick look at the sizing chart DF offers

I would get a 151 or 152. The reason being is that if your not purely into park riding, meaning you wanna go all mountain, your going to need a bigger board. The only problem is your weight vs boot size. You got a very big foot for your weight. I have the same problem. Im 5 6 120 and have size 11 boot. I ride a 150 and it fits me just fine. I ride the park pickle though. These boards are very similar. I would go with that for now. You should grow into it but 1 or 2 cm wont affect you greatly

I'm going to be all over the mountain but
mostly the park

what kind of riding do you plan on doing

Kayla, I have a size 9 Burton boot and just threw my binders on this board (156 standard width) the other day. It seems that there are gonna be NO problems with drag for me, and I assume your BF will be the same. Also, since board length is alot about preference and riding style as well as physical size and weight I would try to sneak a peek at his current board to see how long you want to get it (the size is often printed somewhere on the board top and will probably just be a number between 150-160). If everything goes wrong and he gets mad at you for getting him the wrong size and you live in the Salt Lake area then dump him and give me a call. A girl who gets me a new snowboard for my birthday couldnt get me the wrong size if they tried.

get the regular...if you get the narrow...your probably going to get toe drag with a 9.5 boot

How tall is he?

I have that same size foot and ride this board in the regular width in a 156cm which has a 255mm waist width on it. So he will be just fine on the regular width board.

I"m the exact weight and size as you and I had the same troubles in finding the right size of board. So i just bought both and tested them out. I ended up returning the 152 and kept the 148. It depends what you want to do with your board. If you want to have the ease of buttering then go for the 148 (3.5/10 stiffness rating) but if you want more of an all around board the stiffness increases on the 152 (4.5/10 stiffness rating). I would defin not go for the 156cm, that's just stupid.

i'm also 150 lbs and i rode the nana 152 last 2 years. take the 52 - rode it with the widest stance in pow. stiff enough for your weight to go on speed, and so much fun..

I would say youre good with a 156. If you look at recommended boards for the weight class LIB suggests a massive board. Im a little on the heavy side myself, 6 foot tall and 190 pounds, and my 156 is PERFECT. It has a little more flex than the smaller sizes which makes up for the weight. Your size 8 feet would get lost on the large boards.

The banana is the ATV of snowboards. Any terrain, any surface, it kills it. Groomers, even when its icy get destroyed by the magnetraction, and in pow, the banana butters straight through. I dumped my burton custom for a banana, and never been happier. Its a pretty flexible board, so if you are looking at tougher hardcore terrain, you should check out some stiffer boards, but generally, the skate banana works no matter where you shred.

get some unions probably either force or contact great bindings

Hey MJP...
I've ridden the banana at Jackson Hole on a good day and had a great time, but if you are planning on spending most of your time doing big mountain freeriding, I would suggest something a little stiffer.
The TRS and Travis Rice models excel in those areas and may be what you are looking for.
As for the Bindings, the Bent Metals are comfy, solid bindings that will provide you with the stiffness you need. Union has some killer bindings on the market designed for Banana and rocker boards that are worth checking out as well.
Let it snow!!

Mark,
Go for the 56 Wide!
the 52, while fun, you would probably break due to your weight, especially if you're getting nasty on some park features.
Having banana, the boards initiate turns much faster, so having a wide is no prob. I have a size 8.5 boot and prefer the mid-wides like the Travis Rice and the GNU Street Series.

my brother is 87 kg's and 6' 1 with a size 11 1/2 boots. I bought him this board for deep pow and easy park riding. I hooked him up with the 156 W. The Wide will work well with the boots and help you avoid drag and give you more options for stances, and the 156 is about as short as you can push it. Maybe throw on some burton custom L bindings on it.

i weigh 180 at 5'11" and i have size 12 feet also. I say if you duck out your bindings just enough you will be fine on toe drag. I would recommend to you a 153,154 forum destroyer

I'd say go for the 152 to 154 GNU Street series. It's a mid wide, mega fun deck!(25 to 25.4 waist) It'll be a little softer for the jibbing and your weight spec's.
It's also priced right!