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Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
04/08/09
04/08/09
looks like there's a low-tech solution as well. rip the wheels off a skateboard, and install leather straps.
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04/08/09
Sad to say it, but I would watch it.
04/08/09
01/25/09
The other thing that concerns me is the increased edges. One of the main reasons I fall when I get on a snowboard is because I catch an edge in some weird way, causing an immediate face-flop. This just seems to double the chances of that. And when it comes to doing any sort of rail slides or whatnot, I can only imagine this thing would make that impossible. Maybe that's not what this board is designed for, but it would still be a concern for me. Not that I do any rail slides. I'm talking about the hypothetical me who is a really good snowboarder and buys $1900 boards on a semi-regular basis, of course.
01/25/09
Yes. Longer boards are designed for speed. But it's not because of reduced friction or anything. It's because a longer board provides a larger surface area and is more stable in that way. Just like airplanes with large, wide, wings are very stable but cannot do barrel rolls whereas jet fighters usually have narrow wings with sharp angles.
01/25/09
Yes it is. Compare how fast a loose board rockets down the hill with how fast you can get when you're riding that same board. More surface area/less weight=faster speed because you are putting less pressure per square inch on the board, thus creating less friction with the snow. The only point at which this is changed is if you can exert enough pressure to quick-melt the top layer of snow as you pass over it, which will create a cushion of water for you to ride on.
01/25/09
Of course friction being proportional with weight is only a simplified model. The real world is different.
01/25/09
01/25/09
01/25/09
What it really comes down to is what type of snow you're riding on. With powder, the reduced surface area won't support you as well, you'll sink into it, and the snow that's above the level of the board will result in additional drag. Also, on packed snow, there will be more friction to overcome as there will be a higher PSI exerted by your weight (which doesn't change) in relation to the surface area of contact (which is reduced).
In reality, however, packed snow throws a wrench into the physics calculations. If it's packed hard enough, you obviously won't simply sink into it, so reduced support is less of an issue. However, snow melts, and the more pressure you put on it, the faster it melts. If you can get it to melt as the board passes over it, you will in effect be riding on a reduced-friction cushion of water, much like an ice-skate or a toboggan is designed to do. _THAT_ is how this could end up being faster than a regular snowboard, provided you don't go anywhere near any powder.
01/25/09
I see this board creating real problems anytime someone tries to quickly switch from a toe edge to a heal edge turn on this because the middle of the board is going to dig into the snow. Other than that, one rock or ball of ice on this thing and you are toast if it goes down the middle of the board. I wonder how much torsion this board can take, too.