Construction and Materials

The Distortia feels nimble underfoot thanks to a wood core made from a 50/50 blend of traditional springy poplar and super lightweight Swiss paulownia. A hollow carbon ‘Super Tube’ has been positioned right down the middle to boost pop further. If you can’t get this board into the air then we’re afraid you’re doing something wrong!

There’s more carbon built into the lay-up via X-shaped fibre strips that run cross the inserts. These reinforce the deck right where it’s under the most pressure, and transmit energy from the bindings into the edges faster. Now, all that might make it sound like the Distortia is intimidatingly stiff, but the carbon is positioned only where you really need a little extra pep. Sure, it’s a lively ride, but the topsheet features a biaxial glass weave that’s torsionally mellow – so the overall flex is super relaxed – and with no carbon at the nose or tail it’s an easy board to lock into presses and load ollies.

Since the Distortia’s natural habitat is the park, it features an extruded ‘Super Slick’ X base. It’s not quite as quick as sintered P-tex but it can withstand a beating better and doesn’t lose as much performance when the wax has gone – both a useful bonus if you’re gonna be spending your day sliding rails and boxes.

There’s not a lot to say about the graphic, except that it manages to include a cat, an acid house smiley face, a peace sign AND a great white shark. Amazing.

“If you can’t get this board into the air then we’re afraid you’re doing something wrong!”

Roundup

Bataleon have packed a hell of a lot of tech into this board, but it never feels gimmicky or unnecessarily stiff. At heart it’s just a friendly freestyle deck that makes learning stuff easier, but with the help of that 3D profile and some premium elements within the construction the Distortia proved amazing fun to ride almost anywhere on the mountain. Speed freaks might pine after a faster base but that’s pretty much the only gripe. It’s really the complete package.