Gnu Billy Goat Snowboard Review |
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The Good Ride TakeGnu Temple Cummins Billy Goat C2 BTX All Mountain Freeride Snowboard ReviewDays on the hill- 14
Groomers- This board really improved over the last few years and now excels on the groomers. It has a stable solid feel and can make it a good day on hard pack to packed powder. Although it improved tremendously from last year it still doesn't have the stability of a cambered board at very high speed. Powder- This is borderline excellent and we cant really argue with someone who wants to call it Excellent. The YES The Optimistic and the Temple Cummins are probably two of our favorite Twin/Twinlike powder boards out there. The old Camber Temple Cummins did very well in pow but the C2 BTX is a whole new level in double ender pow riding. It can make a board that should be ok in powder almost ride like a powder board. We had a day with about 1 to 2 feet of powder and then we found our way into some deeper powder from some wind loading and this board kept it's nose up even though we didn't lean back. It's like adding 3-6 CM to the board but you still have that smaller board maneuverability and feel. This board is stiff and fast so it carried it's speed well through the flats on your way back to the chair. If you want one board to do anything but still perform exceptionally well in powder then this might be your board. We haven't experienced many other boards with a similar shape that can ride like this in powder. It changes the way you think about riding when it dumps and could almost be a powder specific board killer. Turn Initiation/Carving- Probably the most important part of a board. Even though this board is pretty stiff it can turn like a intermediate/beginner board. When we first ride a board we take as many quick turns as possible. This board turned as fast as we could lean and took almost no effort to get this thing to respond. One of the riders at the Good Ride said if it turned any easier he wouldn't like it. He felt that he still liked the cambered board for initiating a turn. Another rider (me the editor) loved this board and felt it was a pleasant surprise to have a board respond so quickly and still ride so fast. Usually you sacrifice speed for turnability. If you haven't tried C2 BTX it's definitely different than a traditional cambered board and a reverse cambered board. It's still a tough call on a groomer day though. It does turn well and hold an edge it just doesn't have the stability of a cambered board on hard pack at high speeds. It does a great job for a rocker board though. When it comes to carving the Billy Goat does a pretty good job. You can lean into it pretty hard and the tail doesn't wash out but it doesn't have that super fun feeling that camber and some hybrid camber boards have. Speed- C2 BTX has helped eliminate some of that that sketchy feel at high speeds but it's still a little loose/squirrely. For a board of these designs and shape it still does a good job and is better than most C2 BTX boards out there. Weight- Its well built and damp so don't expect it to be a feather. You can expect to have this board last for several years. Edge Hold- Even though this board has a mellow MTX cut (almost un-noticeable from some angles) it's stiffness really makes the Billy Goat hold an edge in just about anything you will want to ride on. This will hold well on hard pack and hold very well in ice....if you have to ride on it. Flex- Pretty Damn Stiff! This and the phoenix we feel are mervins stiffest/fastest boards. these boards both are made to hold an edge and eliminate chatter at almost any speed. There are other companies that have stiffer boards but these are up there. The weird thing about the Gnu Billy Goat is that when riding it doesn't feel incredibly stiff for an all mountain/freeride board. Jibbing- Not really designed for jibbing but it will be OK if you want to hit the jibs in the park. Having the tip and tail slightly up made the board less catchy when screwing around. Switch- The front nose is much taller and it's very hard to center your board so you would think that riding switch on this somewhat twinish directional board would not be that easy. That being said you can ride switch surprisingly well on the Billy Goat. We think C2 BTX has more emphasis on turning with the center part of the board and the tips turned up. It's not going to be like the riders choice but it will be fine to give your calves a rest traversing to the spot you want to drop in and for those stops in the park. Rails and Jibbing- uhhhhhh we didn't want to ruin this pretty board so we will guess that its ok but there are much better boards for rails and jibs. Pipe- Pretty damn fun. medium/stiff directional boards usually do pretty well in the pipe. This can climb a pipe wall very well and is pretty forgiving coming back down for a board so stiff. Jumps- For natural jumps this board is excellent. It's also very easy to generate your own air and lives on the poppy side of life.
A quick look at the 2012 Gnu Billy Goat
A quick look at the 2012 Gnu Billy Goat Split Board
The Good Ride Take on Hybrid Rocker SnowboardsThis is what we call a snowboard that has rocker in the center and then a camber bend at the tip and tail. The end result is the tip and tail are still off the ground but it helps bring some good qualities that people liked with camber to rocker. The camber usually keep’s the board from washing out when you lay into a harder carve and for the most part provide a more balanced all conditions ride compared to continuous rocker or camber. This is still nothing like camber board and it provides a loose forgiving catch free ride. Hybrid Rocker comes in all riding styles from Freestyle to Freeride and is a solid next step from where it started with continuous rocker. Hybrid Rocker is usually pretty poppy, floats well in powder, catch free and very forgiving. The one complaint is it can still be unstable flat basing or one footing in some conditions like hard pack or ice. The major companies are working on this problem and it’s been getting better since this was introduced. Most love this loose feeling and get use to the squirrely nature in certain conditions. We at The Good Ride feel this is one of the better shapes out there so give it a try.
Company InformationGnu Temple Cummins Billy Goat 2012???4-time Mt. Baker Banked Slalom champion and billy goat freeride line master Temple Cummins is a committed snowboarder. Temple has worked closely with the Gnu design crew since he was 13. These days he is a man who knows what it takes to make a snowboard you can count on when you get yourself in a little deeper than you should have, need to lay down a perfect carved turn against the grain to keep the boarder cross jocks a little lower on the podium or dork around with friends and family. Temple rides his own C2 BTX Freeride power freestyle geometries. The best features of camber and banana technology combined for aggressive all terrain riders… you get the end-to-end stability and pop of camber at each end with the proven carving performance and soft snow float of banana tech between your feet. Solid momentum carrying construction, Anvitex Dampener, Farmed eco woods, sintered base. Temple, Forrest Burki and Matt Edgars put it to the test all year long. This board will not let you down. MSRP: $539.95 USD ?SIZES 156, 159, 162, 165 Graphic by Bend, Oregon’s Adam Haynes of Stickfort.com. Adam can draw better than you, but he would never tell you that. He is a quiet, humble, backwoods, cliff droppin’, Baker Banked winning, illustrative ninja. More at Stickfort.com. CONSTRUCTION
Gnu Temple Cummins Billy Goat 2011Billy Goat C2-BTX Description: Temple's Freeride Tool Temple’s new Billy Goat model is just that, a brand new board. Featuring revolutionary freeride and power freestyle C2 BTX geometries. C2 combines the best features of camber and Banana Technology into one all terrain design for aggressive experienced snowboarders. You get the end to end stability and pop that camber offers combined with the carving performance and soft snow float of Banana Tech between your feet. Temple has won the Mt. Baker Banked Slalom many times and C2 BTX is his geometry of choice, whether carving perfect efficient turns for a time, negotiating an icy exposed chute to get to the pow that no one else can get to, or jibbing around teaching son Cannon the ropes. When it comes to solid power snowboarding with a knack for smooth flowing fine tuned edgework, Temple knows what he wants in a board. Solid construction, Anvitex dampener, stable, strong farmed eco wood cores, sintered bases,this board will not let you down.. Sizes: 162 About the Art: Artwork by San Francisco based artist and illustrator J. Otto Seibold. J. is especially known for his work on children’s books such as- Mr. Lunch Takes A Plane Ride, Olive And The Other Reindeer, which he made together with his wife, Vivian Walsh. For more artness, check out - Jottodotcom.com Construction: C2 Banana-Camber w/ Magne-Traction .75 Shred Tech Sandwich Construction - Asner dampening Directional Twin Shape Double sintered UHMW sidewalls Quasi Glass - Mervin BA Eco farmed Wood Core Sintered 9900 Alloy Base 2010 Gnu Temple Cummins Billy GoatBy: Temple Cummins Temple's new billy Goat model is just that, a brand new board. Featuring revolutionary freeride and power freestyle C2 BTX geometries. Solid construction, Anvitex dampener, stable, strong farmed eco wood cores and sintered bases...this board will not let you down.
C2 Power Banana is designed for aggressive all terrain freestyle riders and features Banana Tech rocker between your feet combined with cambers at each end of the board.
SpecsGnu Billy Goat 2012
2011 Gnu Temple Cummins Billy Goat
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Gnu Billy Goat Snowboard review
Snowboards - Snowboard Reviews
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4.7 (3) |
User reviews
Average user rating from: 3 user(s)
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Click in and hold on, this board rips
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful
I've been on it abit over 10 times now in every condition. It took some getting used to but the more I ride it and test it, the more I like it... and I loved it since the first ride.I'm 5'10 160lbs with >300 days in 24 winters. I haven't tried many different boards, but I did check out a few of the new camber/rocker styles, this is my fav. The Good Ride's review seems to be bang on. POW: It's better in the good stuff than my old M3 160" camber, don't have to lean back as much in the flat spots which saves a lot of back leg burn. But it still digs in if you wanna plow. SPEED (100km/h test): 1st try failed (with extenuating circumstances) at around 90km/h (according to the gps speedo in my phone) 2nd try (once I healed up. haha oopsy) passed. Excuses: It was mostly cause of the stiff new boots and me not having a proper warm up, the board was partly at fault though, it floats in air at speed, I go about 25% further at over 80km/h than I did on my old camber this made me land on the next roller and get abit off balance, tried to flick the edge abit and save it, the board slipped out and I flew, cursing as loudly as I could for awhile. I blame the funky flex, it's floppy at first, you have to push into it to get the edge to grab, but this is barely noticeable, unless going fast and trying to just flick the edge abit. FUNKY FLEX: It's like this board has 2 stiffnesses. Floppy for the first bit, but keep pushing and it gets stiff, push into the stiffness doin a wheely or falling forwards on a hard landing it gives enough to hold you without going over like you do when pushing into a camber. The floppyness is what makes the biggest diff between this board and my old camber... charging chop. It feels like a cadi, I'm relaxed rippin 80 on chop or bumps that would feel abit sketchy at 70 on my old board. It's also really cool for stiff jumps (snowghosts and stumps). Flexes at first to let the nose bend for the jump but stiffens up for good pop on the way up. That's why I say strap in and hold on, I often lean back abit getting ready for something like a jump to slow the board down and lurch me forwards but it doesn't happen, this board is unstoppable, so I often feel like I'm just trying to keep up with it... getting used to it now, happens less. CARVING: Edge digs into anything, I find myself making turns more than I used to just for the fun of it. |
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Reviewed by KStyle
February 21, 2011 |
epic
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0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
I really enjoy this board first day I took it out I stuck to groomers mostly because I was really exploring so once I got the lay of the land I really started off pushing it for speed and I was really surprised on the high speeds how responsive it can be the edges really are solid not over baring so I took it out for round two on a crowded Sunday and that responsive edge came in handy dodging people so I started some tree runs and that was pretty sweet I must say I was so impressed with the speed that I downloaded an app on my Droid to see how fast I can go and I was mated out at 30 which is a solid speed on a not so good day with mush and choppy runs from the skiers I will say love this board and can't wait for a powder day to ride it out
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Reviewed by kevin
December 09, 2010 |
Billy Goat of Love
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
This was a sick board and I was really impressed with the look and feel as well as the construction. First day that I rode this a powder day and there was a lot of obsiclues out and about. This made for some really tight and reactive turns in some fresh and the Bill Goat eat it up with out braking a sweet. The reverse camber on this board is different from the other gnu's and Lib-Techs it is not as aggressive as the banana tech, but the edge control is great and turns sharp with you being grabby. The Billy Goat also floated to quite nicely in the snow and floated through turns. This ways a great all mountain board I would recommend it to anyone that likes to ride peak to park.
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Reviewed by Russell Baldridge
February 25, 2010 |