How to choose the model and size of your snowboard

Are you starting out snowboarding and looking to invest in your first board? Or are you looking to replace your current equipment so you can progress, or to explore new ways of practising this sport? If you don’t know where to start, you’ve come to the right place.

1. Why is the choice of board so important?

With a variety of shapes and features, snowboards actively contribute to your riding experience. Depending on your level, body type, and the way you want to practice this activity, it’s advisable to choose a board that will be able to adapt to your preferred environment and offer the key comfort that’s vital for your enjoyment and progression.

Conversely, equipment that’s not right for you can complicate your movements unnecessarily, and quickly discourage you from pursuing snowboarding.

2. Choose your snowboard according to your level

To get off to a good start, it’s vital to identify what level you’re at. This will help direct you towards the most suitable equipment, so that you have fun while also improving.

You’re a beginner if:

At the very beginning, we’re not going to lie, you’re going to be spending more time on the ground than on your board. You’ll slowly start to descend green to blue slopes, but your corners will be more skidded than cleanly cut. (Hang in there, reaching a higher level isn’t that far off!)

Our advice: Opt for a flexible, forgiving snowboard which will limit edge errors.

See Beginner-level snowboards
You’re advanced if:

You can descend red slopes with no problem, and the black ones are within sight. You can do a series of cut turns, and you’re trying out small 180s or even 360s along the edges of the slope when you’re feeling in the zone. You pretty much know how to ride switch (which is the opposite direction to your usual direction), and you sometimes venture into powder snow.

Our advice: Go for a medium snowboard, which lets you go faster and gives you more grip while still remaining easy to ride.

See Advanced-level snowboards
You’re an expert if:

You remain in full control of your snowboard. You can slide on any terrain, combining speed, trajectory, style and efficiency. Whatever the condition of the snow, you’re able to take narrow or sloped corridors and passages (35° or more). If you’re a snowpark fan, you know how to perform a grab on a medium table (4 to 6 metres) while staying balanced in the air. You know how to land a 180 or even a 360 on a 3- to 6-metre table.

Our advice: Go for a rigid snowboard which suits those in good physical condition.

See Expert-level snowboards

3. Choose your snowboard according to your ride type

For slope / carving use

To you, snowboarding means making impressive cut turns on freshly-groomed slopes: this is what’s referred to as “carving”.

Our advice: Go for a rigid board with a classic camber for excellent grip, even at speed.

Note that snowboards designed for carving share many characteristics with Freeride snowboards.

Slope / carving boards

For Freeride use

What really gets you going is setting off to discover virgin slopes, where the snow is powdery and you’re the one making the first tracks in the snow. To access this type of terrain you need to take the chairlifts and then veer off the trail.

Our advice: A more rigid board favours sliding on this type of snow. With an adapted directional profile and a central rocker, you’ll be able to easily pick up speed on powder, but also enjoy efficient grip on hard snow.

Freeride boards

For Splitboard use

Do you like ski touring, but prefer snowboarding to skiing (especially freeriding)?
Splitboarding is a discipline
that now offers a combination of the pleasure of ascent with that of a snowboarding descent.

Our advice? The Splitboard pack with board and skins, to follow your ski touring friends but also enjoy a snowboard descent.
You’ll need to add bindings specifically designed for this practice, as well as telescopic poles for the climb, stored in your backpack for the descent.

See the Splitboard pack

For freestyle use

If you enjoy spending time at the snowpark, trying new tricks on tables, boxes, slide bars or any other type of module. When you’re not at the park, you play with your board for each movement on the ground.

Our advice: A manoeuvrable board will allow you to perform fluid sequences between the various tricks and modules. Whether you’re a switch rider, rail slider or can pull off front-side or back-side rotations on a kick, it’s advisable to opt for a snowboard with a twin-tip shape. The symmetry of this shape will assist your lands, offering you greater freedom of performance.

Freestyle boards

Designed for all-purpose use: a good combination of everything

If you don’t specifically identify with any of the disciplines described above, and you’d just like a board that slides well and everywhere. Then you’re an All-mountain snowboarder tending towards versatility, and wanting to try out all the disciplines snowboarding covers.

Our advice: If you want to maintain the option of doing some tricks while still enjoying freeride trails and groomed slopes, a board with a directional twin shape is the preferred choice. The latter has the characteristics of a twin-tip shape but positions your feet slightly further back on the board to guarantee your stability in all circumstances.

All-mountain boards

4. Which snowboard is best for women? And for men?

Choosing a snowboard depends on your height, weight, level and type of sports discipline. We offer men’s and women’s collections, with the main difference being the range of sizes offered, and the designs. But of course each and every person is free to choose the design they like most! The most important thing is to go for the model that best suits your body type and what you’re looking to get out of it.

5. How do you choose the size of your snowboard?

Here are a few points to be aware of before choosing the size of your snowboard:

➤ Snowboard size is expressed in cm (for example, where it states 155 on a snowboard (or sometimes just 55), it means that its size is 155 cm).
➤ You won’t go wrong with your snowboard choice if it’s within 3 or 4 cm.
➤ The higher your level, the more centimetres you can add to your board (1 to 2 cm per level).
➤ You need to take both your height and your weight into consideration. If you are relatively heavy for your height, then go for a slightly bigger and/or a higher level board as they are often more rigid.

The right size for Slope / All-mountain / Freeride use
Go for a board that is 15 to 20 cm shorter than your height. (For example, a person who is 1.74 m tall should choose a board between 159 and 154 cm in length).

The right size for Freestyle use
Go for a relatively short board that’s 20 to 25 cm shorter than your height. (For example, a person who is 1.74 m tall should choose a board between 154 and 149 cm in length).

Below is a size guide to help you choose your snowboard according to your gender, sports discipline, height and weight.

6. Choose a board width adapted to your shoe size

If the length of your snowboard assures you a performing equipment for this winter, the width of it must also be taken into account in your criteria. Indeed, for an optimal handling of your board and a good balance in descent, your feet should not exceed the edges of the snowboard, at the risk of hitting the snow during the turns. On the other hand, a small shoe size on a board that is too wide will not be able to press properly on the frontside and backside edges to maneuver easily. Depending on your shoe size, you can then opt for more or less wide models:

➤ Narrow snowboard:
less than 25 cm wide, this type of board is the narrowest and fits all sizes under UK shoe size 7.5.

➤ Standard snowboard:
the most common for men, they generally correspond to a size ranging from UK shoe sizes 7.5 to 9.

➤ Mid-wide snowboard:
a wider design, these boards suit UK shoe sizes 9.5 to 10.5.

➤ Wide snowboard:
if you have a foot size over UK size 10.5, go for these comfortable boards, but that are difficult to manoeuvre.

7. How to calculate the size of a snowboard for a child

To start out and discover the sensations of snowboarding in the best conditions, a versatile All-mountain board is recommended for children.

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In terms of size, here’s a guide to help you:

➤ For a child who measures 95 to 115 cm: a board of 88 to 92 cm will be preferred.
➤ For a child who measures 115 to 130 cm: the height of the snowboard must be between 103 and 107 cm.
➤ For a child who measures 130 cm to 145 cm: the choice of board will be made on models from 118 to 122 cm.
➤ For a child who measures 145 to 160 cm: a snowboard measuring 133 to 137 cm will be ideal.
➤ For a child who measures 160 to 165 cm: the size of their board should be between 143 and 147 cm.

Now you know all the criteria to take into account when choosing your snowboard. So it’s time to get to grips with snowboarding boots and bindings! Get our tips on how to make the best choice

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How to choose the model and size of your snowboard

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