Option vs. Prior

[liquidblue]

Ok, so Im looking at some new boards and iv preaty much narrowed it down to:

Option Northshore
vs.
Option Signature
vs.
Prior MFR

Now b4 everyone yells the MFR, im thinking more along the lines of the option board... just when reading abotu the boards the MFR seems preaty much liek my dream board... what I want to knwo is what option board is more like the MFR? from what I gather the Northshore is more stiff than the Signature.. but like how different are these two boards really? Like is the Northshore way to extremely stiff? The MFR seems liek tis a good all around board thats mainly free ride, which is what I want.. Im just not sure if the Northshore fits this criteria or if its just for freeriding...

any sugestions/experiance ppl?

[Kenny]

I ride an option signature and i must say it is pure gold. It is good for everything.. Powder, park , groomed. Its a very good all around board. Im not gonna say anything about prior because i havent rode one. But from my first hand experience Signature is my recommendation.

Plus its handcrafted in canada.

[stringbeans]

i think in terms of quality prior is better hands down

[MC Hammered]

Comparing Option to Prior is like apples to oranges.

Options are batch machine made, Priors are hand made and they will ride completely different.

To a 'typical' rider you probably won't notice much difference. But when you get to an advanced level you can feel the difference in bite, rebound, flex pattern and torsional stability between the two boards or any two boards.

I'm an all mountain rider and don't play in the park much. I love to the steep and the deep as well as flying down groomers and carve, like tits brushing the surface carving, and I need a board that can handle the stress.

My first Priors I bought 4 years ago and they still rock today. My custom 169cm Prior 4WD scares the crap out of me at how fast it goes and how well it can hold a line.

I bought two Original Sin 4807 and when I took one on a high speed groomer run to dig some trenches I cracked the topsheet from torsional stress.

So you have to ask yourself where you do most of your riding, what type of terrain you want to be in, how much flex you want to have in the board and how long you want it to be.

Once you dial in these detail you can then filter out lots of boards as they won't meet the requirements.

If you can't find one that does then you go see Prior or Donek and they'll make the board of your dreams.

[Mr Ektion]

I'd listen to Winston. He's like a snowboard guru. Otherwise, i've always been a Ride kind of guy myself. I have a 156" Ride Nation 2003 with matching Ride Nation bindings.

How much does each board cost? or are they all around the same price?

[MC Hammered]

BTW if you have any questions you need answered feel free to ask them here and I'll do my best to get you the information you need in order to make an informed decision.

[liquidblue]

Originally Posted by MC Hammered

BTW if you have any questions you need answered feel free to ask them here and I'll do my best to get you the information you need in order to make an informed decision.

I do the vast majority of my riding on steep stuff and powder (as much as possible) Im not much of a park kindda guy either. I like the ability to have an all mountian board though, like thats why I was considering the Option Signature, because i think the flex in it is softer than the Northshore. From what Iv heard the Northshore is an awesome freeride board, I was just worried about it possibly being too stiff for any kindda riding other than groomers. Im only going to be getting one board this year, and Im moving up to whistler so Ill be doing a fair bit of riding.... Man do i ever want that Prior MFR, if only I had more cash... Hopefully there are some prior boards at the snow swap, Ill be cheaking it out on saturday.

Oh Winston, have you ever ridden the POW-stick? from what Prior has to say on their site it seems like an amazing all around directional board... but the stance kinda wories me for riding on anything other than powder... ?? Do you know how it compares to your 4x4? I wish i could demo these boards b4 i buy one, but the deals are on this weekend :(

[MC Hammered]

You don't want a soft flexing board for the backcountry/steeps.

Too much flex means less control but you don't want one that is too stiff either.

A stiffer board takes more effort to flex but as your riding technique improves you will find that a stiffer board is a better riding board as it will react faster. A good analogy is a sportscar with a tuned stiffer suspension can react faster to obstacles and change in direction thatn a SUV.

So take the board that you have and up the stiffness level about 33% and you'll probably have a more challenging board to ride but you will grow into it and therefore it will stay in use for a lot longer.

Prior does have demo sales so chack that out and you will be able to find a few of them at the Ski/Snowboard sale but make sure you go on day 1 or they will be all taken.

Before you go shopping measure out your stance on your current board. I ride with 15* front, 8* back and you center your boots. Check to see if you have boot overhang and if you do measure how wide the board should be so you don't. Take these details AND A TAPE MEASURE to the sale and measure it out on every board you are considering.

Finding a Prior that doesn't fit your feet is like being 6' tall and buying a used Mini Cooper S for next to nothing. It's great but you'll suffer in performance.

When you flex a board you DO NOT grab the tip of the nose and push near the top to feel it. All boards flex there. Put your arm over the tip of the board (if you can) and place the palm of your hand about 8 inches down from the top on the BASE of the board, then put your foot to stop the tail from sliding and you are kind of "cradling" the board with your one arm. Now push where the binding holes are and feel the flex there. Do that with your board a few times so you know how to hold the board and then try it to feel what your flex patter is kind of like.

As for the Prior POW stick... it's pretty much like my Original Sin 4807's but built way better. If you want a powder only stick you can get a 4807 off eBay for about $200 and it is worth the money. I ride my 4807 on everything since I don't ride switch much. I take it into the park, I rip trenches on groomers on it and fly through the powder. Don't let the shape fool you, the POW stick/4807 RIPS on the snow. I seriously did crack my topsheet where the tail is due to the amount of torque I was creating while carving on it in France.

My 4x4 is a monster and I ride it with hardboots only. It is custom made, 20cm wide and 169cm long. I demoed a 4x4 a couple of years ago and tried a 169cm one at Chris Priors suggestion and I couldn't turn it. I went back and he gave me a 159cm one and it was like riding a scalpel. My friend told me when we were in this one area and I carved a line so fast that I was actually upside down (board base was facing the sky my head was pointing falline down) carving 'over' a small hill on the side of this run. The faster we went the more bite this 159cm board would have. It was by far the fastest, scariest, craziest ride I have ever done at Whister on a carving board. So I had Chris make me a 169cm version for more high speed stability the flexes and rides like a 159cm board. best of both worlds.

Lastly... look into other makes of boards too. I like sandwhich construction boards better than cap boards EXCEPT for Salomons. If you can find one of their older (first came out 2 years ago) FRS series monoque boards buy it! They are the shit!

Sandwich constuction can take more side hits and can be repaired if damaged but are heavier due to constrction methods. Cap boards are cheaper and easier to make and if you blow out an edge you are screwed.

I also stick to wood cores as they last longer and don't break down like foam/honeycomb based cores do over repeated use.

Any other questions?

[liquidblue]

So I couldent find any northshores at the snowshow, and there definatly was not any prior boards there so i was debating an Option signature for a while... after a bit of searching and talking to a bunch of people I ended up with this Rossie... im not sure the model of it, there this writing on it that looks like "jorps" I dno. ANyways the board is nice and stiff, It is used but theres no major damage. I figured I could live with a used board as long as it rides well. Anyways heres a pic, does anyone know the model? It said "RS" on it as well but im just assuming that stands for "rossignol snowbording" or something along those lines. The board has tripple hybird core.

Oh and does anyone know how this baby rides? Im not goign to get a chance to use her for a while :(

[Senior]

I've had a new Option board every year or two since 99 and I've loved every single one. Thinking of buying a new Super Charger this year!