A little more ALP

[valmorel]

I rode the ALPs all day today in some pretty grim conditions, mainly hardpack/ice. I have them centre mounted with FFPros. The overwhelming feeling from them was how astonishingly easy they are to ride. If you want to slob about skidding turns, running butters, switch, flat spins, they just do it. I cant imagine a board that a beginner would find easier to ride, but push them hard, with really deep carves, and they REALLY perform. The FFPros gave the usuall rock solid interface, and I really felt at one with the board. They seemed to just do anything I asked of them with zero fuss. I fitted a softer binding in the afternoon, Snowjam Quick Adjust, and some of the instant response was lost. Anyone thinking about this board might want to grab one while there are still some left, and the same must be said for the FFPro binding. True classics both.

[DanielB]

Val,

What a coincidence. I was off yesterday and went to Plattekill (In Roxbury NY, on the other side of Hunter (customer appreciation week, $10 lift tickets until Saturday)

Rode the ALPs hard all day. With same, FFPRO, interface.

What a ride. Just as responsive as the Mike Nicks ever were, but so much more stable, and much faster, more float, and really was able to dig in turns, but still keep up the high speed (that was what truly set it apart).

Where's the math genius here who can tell us the actual surface area of the ALPs and that of the current average parabolic (164cm) ski that is out. I believe the ALP has more surface area.

Performance seemed to improve throughout the day. I was surely just getting better at handling the width of the boards.

My best run was my last. The Terrain park was closed (come on snow) , but there was a nice jump on one of the trails. I hit it every time (I think I had 15 total runs) and only fell once, though the ALPs kind of made it look like a pretty fall, got right back up and blazed away.

A Skier, one time, was waiting for me 200 feet past the jump. He asked what I was riding. I explained. He was really interested in them. I handed him one of Greco's Revel8 postcard adverts and he said he would check it out. He was 1 of only 11 people total on the mountain.

I pushed these skiboards, put them through all of their paces, sans rails, and they are definitely the best ride I have ever encountered.

If that 125cm ever comes out, or even the Icelantic Scout, I may try one of them now too. Hey, don't flame me, even the 2 best skiboarders in the world ride twin tips sometimes.

I will use the ALPs all season and I'm sure they'll keep making me smile. But next year I may want to also try those Icelantic Scouts, is all.

I'll tell you this, I keep my Line Bullets (95cm, 11.7cm width) as beater boards, for Icey days, cause the MNPs stunk in Ice. I don't need them anymore. In a couple weeks I may just sell them on ebay, cause this season the ALPs are all I need. PM me if you are interested in those, boards only.

One thing, on the top sheet, it does chip on the edges and some chips can pull a little more top sheet off than you can imagine, but I expected this, and everyone should, with sidewall construction. There is just not as much sandwiching the topsheet from icey conditions pulling on it. No complaints here though, the sidewall construction I'm sure helps make for a better ride, and the Asymmetrical graphics still look sweet. If I wanted them to look prestine, I wouldn't ride them. :)

BTW, like Val said, you must pony up for the FFPRO or Bomber to get the full potential out of the boards, and confidence in you, when using the ALPs.

I ran over some rocks on a semi closed trail and had no damage at all to the bases. Thanks for the great factory wax job Greco. Now it's time for me to get out the iron and do it myself the rest of the season.

Final rating: 10 out 10. Lived up to all expectations, and I'm sure I'll have many people asking me about Revel8 on Saturdays and Sundays.

My advice, if you're still holding on to your MNPs (buggy, hoodie guy, bonzai tree), sell them on ebay. They cannot measure up to this ride. Just keep the FFPROs.

[valmorel]

Last season I felt the Revolt was the best skiboard ever made, and this morning I took THEM out. The plan was to ride them all day to get a comparison to the ALPs from yesterday, as conditions were the same. By 11.00 am, I was back on the ALPs! The Revolt felt more stable, but way less responsive, way less fun, and way more work. Great Job Greco.
The last few hundred metres vertical back to the resort was very worn and sketchy, and as DanielB says, the bases held up really well. Basic extruded bases would have been badly ripped out.
I dont have any chips on the top-sheet, but I sanded a good radius on the top edge when I first got the boards, which helps prevent chipping more than you could believe.

[Greco]

thanks fellas. i'm glad you're enjoying them. and thanks for sharing your experiences. :)

g

[jjue]

Nice reviews guys ! 110 boards are something special , they reach a critical surface area , I think , that makes them very competitive with long skis as all mountain boards . Here are some comparative surface area calculations that folks might find interesting. One of the important things is that float is not the whole story . What makes skiboards very different from long skis is the ability to easily weight our tails by subtle weight shifts much easier than on long skis where weighting the tails can involve awkward changes in balance . Thus, we can get away with less surface area in soft snow ... our skiboards float like airplane wings tail down tips up .
ps. although I really love my Scout 143 in really deep snow .. my favorite boards are my 110 and my 120 skiboards which work great all mountain including deep pow...

Snowjam 90 Surface area 1068 sq cm
Alp 110 Surface area 1338 sq cm
Spruce 120 Surface area 1384 sq cm
Line Invader Twintip161cm (Dimensions 110-83-110) 1481 sqcm
K2 Shuksan 183cm ski (117-78-105 Dimensions)1602 sq cm
Icelantic Scout 143cm Hybrid - 1645 sq cm

[DanielB]

Jjue, thanks for the sq cm results. Just as I suspected, the ALP has gotta have the equivalent or even more sq cm surface than a regular parabolic full size ski.

I mean, only 150 sq cm less than that 161cm Line twin tip, and no ackwardness shifting gears, in changing trail conditions, as you pointed out.

The ALPS are the best Skiboard ever.

I think we can go a little wider next season :-) haha

maybe an extra cm wide Greco??, but we are getting close to the limit of length and width for Non-Release.

BTW jjue, I saw a telemarker yesterday tearing it up, in that smooth way. That is a difficult sport man.

[adamlynam]

it really stokes me out to see you guys shredding on my boards and loving it!!!!!

thanks for the good words and keep on ripping it up fellas!!


sincerely yours,
ALP

[airdonut41]

We definitely need a Dan Slotcavage pro model. I mean seriously, DSP sounds and looks so sweet. I'll even design and test them (quite extensively I might add) to the exact specifications of crappy skiboarders everywhere. Actually, I'm not that bad but I'm no where near my own pro model.

Dan