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Gear Review | Stompede Nordstau Splitboard

Versatile powder splitboard

by Nikolas Burger 12/08/2022
Adrian Sauter
Nikolas Burger
"Nordstau! North jams regularly provide the Nordkette, Innsbruck's local mountain, with massive amounts of fresh snowfall. [...] We designed this board for just such days!" writes the manufacturer Stompede about the split version of the Nordstau snowboard released last year. We tested what it feels like to draw the first lines in the fresh powder, but also how the board behaves in other snow conditions, on around 20 days.

The still relatively unknown company Stompede Snowboards has set itself the task of producing affordable snowboards and splitboards of outstanding quality. In order to achieve this goal, the company deliberately avoids intermediaries and advertising in the form of sponsored team riders. Stompede thus opened up the principle of direct shipping, already familiar from other areas of outdoor sports, to the snowboard industry.

CONSTRUCTION

Equipped with a swallowtail, rocker in the nose, early rise starting in front of the front binding and a very wide profile, the rather compact board has absolutely no floatation problems even in the deepest powder snow without losing effective edge length. The slight camber between the bindings gives the board a certain pre-tension when riding, which has a positive effect on edge hold and also generates more stability on jumps or drops. Personally, I wouldn't buy a board without camber as it simply loses too much stability when riding. This board shows that the compromise between flotation and stability can work quite well.

The stiffness of the board (according to Stompede: medium stiffness) allows you to ride fast and small bumps or tracked out slopes don't pose any major problems.

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DEPARTURE

Firstly, I'll talk about the riding characteristics in powder snow, i.e. the conditions for which the board was developed. There's not much to say here: it's great fun and delivers what it promises. With my height (184 cm) and weight (75 kg), I have no floatation problems with the 159 cm version of the Nordstau Split. In fact, I think 154 cm would have been more than enough. The board is also very manoeuvrable in deep snow. Cliff drops with landings in deep snow feel good, as the danger of digging in the nose is very low due to the good flotation.

I was surprised by its good properties on the piste. Carving on the piste works so well that on days with less snow I preferred to use the Nordstau Split instead of my piste board. Thanks to the wide shape, there is no risk of losing edge hold (at least with my shoe size 42.5) as the toe or heel never touch the piste. Unfortunately, this is also a small disadvantage: the effort required to edge up is relatively high as the edge is further away from the foot. This was clearly noticeable on long days. The radii on the piste are rather large, so it was no longer possible to carve easily on steeper terrain, as the speed would otherwise quickly become too high. But then you can switch to drifting without any problems. The board forgives mistakes and I estimate the risk of tipping to be very low, which - according to Stompede - is due to the "reverse sidecut technology" in the nose.

On icy touring days, the board scored with good edge hold. As already described in the last paragraph, the wide shape offers advantages and disadvantages. Especially in steep terrain, the width of the board ensures that no protruding heels or toes reduce the edge grip.

On the other hand, edging tends to be more strenuous, which is particularly noticeable with long traverses.

ASCENT

The conversion of the board is comfortable. The plastic clips on the nose and tail are high quality and do not come loose when riding (I had this problem with other splitboards). The metal clips from Karakorum (further inside the board) are very good, as you press the two halves of the board firmly together by closing the mechanism.

The Kohla skins (also available on the Stompede website) can be fitted even when the board is assembled, which offers some minor advantages. The fastening is very good and can normally withstand longer tours. If the skins are often put on and taken off, they should be worn close to the body so that they stick well the next time you put them on. A little snow sometimes gets between the nose and the skin on the sides, especially if you are skinning up more often. However, I haven't had any major problems with this because the attachment to the nose and tail is very good.

The edge hold of the board is good on the ascent, which is thanks to the camber. The large width of the board offers an advantage for toe-in in fresh powder, as it generates more lift. However, as soon as it gets steeper and harder, the leverage forces kick in and edging becomes strenuous or even difficult, especially if soft boots are used. Ascending in an existing ascent track can sometimes be a little difficult, as the two halves of the board are wider than normal touring skis. This should be clear if you want to ride the board in all conditions.

Adrian Sauter
Nikolas Burger

WEAR AND TEAR

Due to the poor snow conditions this winter, I already have a few scratches in the base, but it seems very durable to me. The topsheet is snow-repellent and has no problems at all in terms of durability. (Report after 20 days of use).

CONCLUSION

My expectations of testing a pure powder surfer were exceeded by far. Above all, I was surprised by the good riding characteristics on the piste, making the Nordstau Split for me a board that can function both as a quiver extension and as the only board for all conditions. And if the conditions are as we all want them to be, nothing stands in the way of unlimited riding fun.

Since this season, Stompede has also seen positive developments in terms of customer satisfaction:

  • Crash Replacement = In the event of irreparable damage, the board can be sent in for a discount on a new board.

  • Satisfaction Guarantee = You have up to 100 days from receipt of the board to carry out a maximum of 3 test days with it. If you are not satisfied with it, you can send it back.

ADVANTAGES / DISADVANTAGES

+ good buoyancy

+ easy to ride board

+ Stable at high travelling speeds

+ Good handling characteristics in powder snow as well as on the piste and in hard conditions

+ Good workmanship, high-quality materials

+ Price/performance

- disadvantages caused by the large width, which occur on long crossings and when climbing steeper sections

DETAILS

Length (cm) 149 154 159
Nose Width (mm) 309 320 331
Waist Width (mm) 260 269 277
Tail Width (mm) 287 297 305
Turning Radius (m) 8.2 8.5 8.75
Stance Width (cm) 54 (46 - 62) 56 (48 - 64) 58 (50 - 66)
Surface Area 4035 cm² 4313 cm² 4583 cm²
Flex Medium - Stiff Medium – Stiff Medium - Stiff
Preis Splitboard 649 € 649 € 649 €
Preis Felle: 199 € 199 € 199 €

Surface: ISOSPEED IS 7200

Topsheet:  ISOSPORT

Wood core: ash - poplar

Flex: Basalt - Triaxial

The board was provided to PowderGuide free of charge by the manufacturer. You can find out how we test it in our test statement.

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This article has been automatically translated by DeepL with subsequent editing. If you notice any spelling or grammatical errors or if the translation has lost its meaning, please write an e-mail to the editors.

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