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Best Carving Snowboards 2022-2023

Chosen by the Whitelines Test Team

Turning’s cool again. Good news for everyone who’s too scared/shit/injury prone to hit the park. Actually, just good news for everyone, especially with the number of carving specific snowboards available this year. No longer the hard-booted, lycra-clad, estranged cousin of snowboarding, carving has properly returned to centre stage and now everyone can join the turn ’n’ burn revolution.

It seems like most brands out there have introduced a carving specific model to their line now. For some, it’s pretty much their sole purpose. Take the KORUA Shapes’ Yearning for Turning crew, or the Slice and Dice carving maestros at Nidecker Snowboards. They don’t seem to be in a hurry to take a lap through the rail line any time soon.

“No longer the hard-booted, lycra-clad, estranged cousin of snowboarding, carving has returned to centre stage”

So, what is carving and why’s everyone so hyped on it again? In its most basic form, it’s simply turning through the arc using only the sidecut of your snowboard, as opposed to skidding or using torsional rotation to turn.

With that in mind, there are a few specs to be on the lookout for when choosing a carving focussed snowboard. Obviously, anything with a sidecut and a reasonably sharp edge will have some capabilities of sliceing a clean line over the groomers, but to cut through the industry jargon, there are three things that will make a board primed for railing turns: a positive camber, directional shape and a reasonably stiff core.

Camber

Not every board in the list below features a full tip-to-tail camber, but it’ll still be the dominant profile for the board’s running length. The classic bend gives you increased stability, extra grip, and rapid response between the edges. Though not the most forgiving of profiles, for the carving purists out there it remains the gold standard for riding on the edge.

Livin’ life on the edge | PC: Ed Blomfield

Directional Shape

Be honest, if you’re in the market for a carving snowboard are you really that likely to be spending your afternoons in the park or spending half the day riding switch? A directional shape and sidecut are crucial for giving you rock-solid turn initiations and continued grip, through the arc and out the exit of the turn.

Core

A core built with stiffer, stronger woods will inject a little life and dynamism into every turn, but it’s often the added materials that give a carving board its unique characteristics. Materials like carbon or kevlar feature heavily to increase snap and absorb some of the inevitable chatter you get at higher speeds, while some boards feature genuinely mind-blowing technology that nearly requires a BSc in Physics to fully understand.

After that, it’s up to you if you want to opt for a snowboard with extra width in the waist, an asymmetric or disrupted sidecut, or some nano-particle, supercharged, sintered base. While many of the boards below represent some of the most cutting edge technology and shapes in snowboarding, they all hark back to the good old days of the sport’s origins – they’re all about the turn.

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Best Carving Snowboards 2022-2023


Nidecker Mosquito Snowboard 2022-2023

Whitelines Choice Winner: Best Carving Snowboard
PRICE: £585, €630, $650

Of the three models in Nidecker’s ‘Snow Surf Quiver’, the Mosquito is our number one pick. It’s a great example of a modern volume-shift design that can be ridden around 10 centimetres shorter than your standard deck. An updated silhouette for 2022/23 sees slightly more angular corners but, honestly it’s more of a cosmetic change. Performance remains much the same – and that’s a good thing. With that stubby tail and extended nose it’s a dream to ride in powder, but the beauty of this one is just how well it carves and slashes across the whole mountain. Unleash your inner John John!

Who Is The Nidecker Mosquito For?

Riders who are happy to swerve the park and try something a bit different. They love greybird days in the trees, and agile turns on the piste. And they probably own a wetsuit.

MORE INFO:
NIDECKER.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Nidecker Mosquito here

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Amplid Kill Switch Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: €590, $590

No changes to the Amplid Kill Switch for 2022/23, or indeed any of the brand’s head-turning ‘Future Shapes’ subdivision of boards. Amplid’s two-season approach is sustainability done right.

It’s something Amplid can easily afford to do, given how ahead of the curve it usually is on board design. Everything about the Kill Switch screams ‘cutting edge’, even without the racing-car-grade materials you’d expect to find in such a board. It’s also a hell of a lot of fun.

Who Is The Amplid Kill Switch For?

If you’re browsing in Amplid’s Future Shapes line, our guess is that you want something atypical and exciting. The Amplid Kill Switch certainly fits the bill, but is a little less radical than some of its shorter, stubbier brethren. It’s also one of the more versatile models in the range, even if it is primarily designed for powder.

MORE INFO:
AMPLID.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Amplid Kill Switch here

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Bataleon Cruiser Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £400 / €460 / $460

Bataleon’s calling card is of course Triple Base Technology, and while there are obvious benefits for park riding (less chance of hooking up on rails and more forgiving landings) the original concept was all about more efficient turns. That’s what they’ve tapped into with the new Cruiser – a long-nosed, set back freeride weapon that corners like it’s on rails even at warp speeds. It’s no slouch in the pow either.

Who Is The Bataleon Cruiser For?

If your park days are largely behind you but you’ve still got the minerals to go fast and tackle steep stuff, you’ll find a lot to love about the Cruiser. Don’t be fooled by the name: it sounds like a mellow entry-level board but it’s got a pretty stiff flex better suited to experienced shreds.

MORE INFO:
BATALEON.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Bataleon Cruiser here

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CAPiTA Spring Break Slush Slasher 2022-2023

PRICE: £385 / €419 / $430

Why do we go snowboarding? Cos’ it’s fun as hell, right? Corey Smith’s fleet of party wagons are a staple in the CAPiTA line, fully embracing the weird and wonderful side of snowboarding, they bring creative shapes and experimental thinking very much to the forefront.

If you’ve not had the pleasure of riding the Spring Break Slush Slasher before, then saddle up buddy because this is pure, unadulterated good times. With a more responsive profile and a deeper sidecut for 22/23, we already loved the board but the updated Slush Slasher had our team of testers raving.

Who Is The CAPiTA Spring Break Slush Slasher For?

You’ve been around the block a few times, this is by no means your first rodeo and you’re looking for something a little different to inject some joy into your days on the hill. Powder is preferable, but you’ll happily settle for a warm spring day blasting around with your crew.

MORE INFO:
CAPITASNOWBOARDING.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 CAPiTA Spring Break Slush Slasher here

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Gnu Banked Country Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £530 / €580 / $600

Back in the Whitelines 100 for the second year running with a few choice upgrades for winter 2023, the Gnu Banked Country once again had our test team frothing. It devours steeps, chomps up powder bowls and eats technical descents for breakfast.

There’s no shortage of snowboards that talk a big game and claim to dominate across a variety of terrain, but the Banked Country is a ride that knows exactly the terrain it’s built to govern. In bounds or off the beaten track, you get a consummate playmate that wants to ride hard and fast, and won’t be afraid to take any prisoners.

Who Is The Gnu Banked Country For?

Rookies, this one ain’t for you. The Banked Country is for confident, athletic and advanced riders. You’re a fiend for powder, but Mt Baker Banked slalom is the highlight of your year. One board to encompass both your passions. How delightful.

MORE INFO:
GNU.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Gnu Banked Country here

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Head e-Pulse LYT Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £520 / €600 / $659

Head has a long history of experimenting with electronic chips in snowboards. As far back as the mid-2000s it was offering versions of the KERS system (a name familiar to motorsports fans), and it’s still at it today with what it’s calling EMC (Energy Management Circuit) Technology. The Head e-Pulse LYT aims to harness this technology to deliver a smoother ride from lighter materials, but it’s far from a one-trick pony.

Who Is The Head e-Pulse LYT For?

This one is for those keen on carving, charging and dropping the odd cliff here and there. Spinners and flippers need not apply. If you also like your board tech to come with a dollop of complicated physics, you’re laughing.

MORE INFO:
HEAD.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Head e-Pulse LYT here

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Jones Mind Expander Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £540 / €600 / $600

When the Jones Mind Expander first appeared, it was hard to say whether or not it would have staying power. The quality and fun factor were undeniable, but it cut right across the rest of the Jones brand’s identity – a brightly-plumed parakeet amongst a pack of padding snow leopards.

Fortunately for us all, it found its audience and spawned more variants than a certain infamous airborne virus. While we’d encourage you to check out the twin, split, youth, women’s and ‘Ultra’ versions, this year we’re singling out the original and best.

Who Is The Jones Mind Expander For?

The best way to get out of a rut is to dig new ones! If your standard all-mountain board isn’t doing it for you anymore, take this out on a slushy day and see if you can’t rediscover your joie-de-vivre in amongst all the carving and slashing.

MORE INFO:
JONESSNOWBOARDS.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Jones Mind Expander here

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KORUA Otto Plus Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: €749 / $849

Faced with so many weird and wonderful shapes in the KORUA line, it might seem odd that we’ve selected their most normal-looking silhouette for an award. But the Otto Plus proves you don’t need to wave goodbye to the park if you’re serious about your turns; it’s a carving machine at heart, with enough tail to switch things up at the drop of a hat, blurring creative lines across the mountain. A quiver killer with a difference, then.

Who Is The KORUA Otto Plus For?

Enjoyed those Yearning For Turning edits but not sure you’re quite ready to ditch your trusty twin for a board that looks like a pencil (and might even be called a pencil, too)? The Otto Plus is your gateway drug.

MORE INFO:
KORUASHAPES.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 KORUA Otto Plus here

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Lib Tech Lost x LIB Rocket Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £555 / €630 / $630

The flagship board in Lib Tech’s Lost x Lib Collection, the Rocket was dreamed up by legendary surf shaper Matt Biolos. Our favourite place to ride the Rocket was in the spring slush, but that’s not to say it can’t handle firmer conditions or steeper terrain. The profile and construction of the Rocket mean it’s a veritable demon in deeper snow and it’ll dig a trench with the best of them – just as any great freeride focussed snowboard should!

Who Is The Lib Tech Lost x LIB Rocket For?

You’re a strong rider who wants a powder board that can be taken out of the locker any day of the season. You’ll ride a bit of anything, but your park rat days are probably behind you. Surfy turns and eurocarves are more your bag than front boards and down-flat-downs.

MORE INFO:
LIB-TECH.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Lib Tech Lost x LIB Rocket here

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Nidecker Thruster Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £525 / €550 / $570

A new addition to the Nidecker roster last season, the Thruster once again impressed the crew to come up trumps and make its way back into the Whitelines 100 for the second year running.

A mash-up of the now defunct Princess and Platinum models, everything about the Thruster screams ‘Premium’- from the top shelf tech and materials used to the sleek aesthetic, this isn’t a snowboard for the faint hearted or those pinching pennies. Advanced riders looking for something that’ll track like a ballistic missile, but that isn’t just limited to digging trenches on freshly groomed corduroy should definitely consider taking a closer look at the Thruster.

Who Is The Nidecker Thruster Pro For?

Who’s the Thruster for? Well, it’s easier to say who it’s not for: it’s one of the stiffest, most aggressive snowboards in the Nidecker line. A real wolf in wolf’s clothing. Inexperienced riders will likely find it a bit much to handle.

MORE INFO:
NIDECKER.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 Nidecker Thruster here

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YES. Greats Uninc Snowboard 2022-2023

PRICE: £540 / €600 / $600

YES. classify The Greats as a freestyle snowboard, and if our team of testers are anything to go by, it does that with apolomb, but the clever shaping and sidecut theory here elevate The Greats to a level of carving and on piste performance that most park boards can only dream of. Using biomechanical theory to enhance the way your body works in unison with a snowboard, YES. have created a revolutionary deck that’ll ride park as well as it digs trenches.

Who Is The YES. Greats Uninc For?

You’ve been around the block a few times and and you’re looking for something a little different. Although YES. put the Greats firmly in their freestyle category, we’d definitely call it more of an advanced all-mountain option, aimed squarely at chargers who refuse to compromise on performance, wherever they decide to go.

MORE INFO:
YESNOWBOARD.COM

Selected for the Whitelines 100 – take a closer look at the 2022-2023 YES. Greats Uninc here

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