Ride Berzerker Snowboard - 2011

I've been riding the new Berzerker since the beginning of January 2010, I would say probably somewhere around 45 days on the board now. The big thing about it is the new rocker profile it has.

All-Mtn Hybrid Rocker: New rocker profile for 2012 that has rocker on the nose and then is slightly cambered all the way back through the tail. The rocker on the nose is equal to what you find with the lowrize profile. There is a flat stable zone that is infused with a slight camber all the way back through the tail. I say slight camber as it's no where near the amount of camber you'll find in a traditional camber deck like the DH. It's more like the amount of camber a DH will have after it has around 30 days on it.

I have to say this board really shocked me my first day out on it. I've been riding a while and I can typically look at the features and makeup of a deck and get a pretty decent idea how it's going to ride before I take it out. The Berzerker caught me off guard, but not in a bad way at all.

This board is very responsive, don't let the CA3 and PopRod 2.0 fool you, it will put you on your ass if you're not careful. I wasn't expecting it and ended up tumbling down the mountain head over heal the first hit I took it off of. It is IMO the snappiest most responsive deck in Ride's lineup for 2012. The pop is insane in the nose and tail and the edge to edge response is fast and stable at speed yet you still have a playful feel between the bindings when you want it.

The sidecut is probably my favorite thing about the board. One thing I've missed with the Rocker/Reverse Camber trend is an aggressive sidecut. I loved the Quadradic side cut on older boards like the Society, Concept TMS, Concept UL, Timeless, Fuel, Prophet, Serum, etc...

Ride has found the right blend where the rocker meets the camber and produced a sidecut that rips just like the old Quad sidecut. You have that old comfortable feeling you had on a camber board that carved it up and was stable and the Berzerker turns on a dime and holds and unbelievable edge as you cruise down the mountain. It has that wonderful carvy feeling to it without being edgy.

There are tons of boards out there that carve really well... but as you run them flat based down the trail they always seem to want to initiate a turn and to be on edge. The Berzerker gives you that great carvy feeling without always wanting to be on edge. So when you're rolling into a jump, jib, chute or just pointing it down the mountain. You have a flat stable platform that allows you to setup for whatever you're doing without any issues at all.

So far I've ridden this deck in Bullet Proof Conditions at Snowbasin that reminded me of riding at Killington in January. 3 feet of snow at Brighton and it floated like a dream through all of it. The thing I really loved about riding it through the powder was the amount of control I had steering the board with my rear leg. It reminded me of riding a tapered deck, but I still had the versatility of riding it switch without any issues unlike a tapered shape.

Switch riding isn't very difficult at all, it's kind of like riding a bike as it doesn't matter how long it has been you never forget. I haven't ridden much camber in the past 3 seasons now and flipping around and riding the Berzerker switch was slightly odd at first and then it just clicked and I was like "Oh yeah, I used to do this all the time".

The Berzerker is an amazing deck and has quickly become one of my all time favorite Ride boards ever. The new rocker profile is perfect for the rider that rides the entire mountain like a terrain park, wants a deck that can float in powder, carves up the trail on those days you just cruise the groomers and dips into the park from time to time.

Feel free to head over to RideNation if you have any followup questions you want to ask me about this deck.

http://my.ridesnowboards.com/showthread.php?t=1112