Construction and Materials

They had to keep the Emoticon’s ingredients pretty straightforward to bring it in at such a competitive price. That said, everything about its construction is tried and tested – beginning with a full length poplar core. OK, there’s no fancy paulownia or bamboo in here but there’s a reason poplar remains the main wood species found in snowboards: it’s light, and it’s lively. A biax topsheet is torsionally pretty mellow – in fact the board is also quite soft from nose to tail – so you can manipulate it easily and lean into those presses. Make no mistake, despite its incredible edge control, the Emoticon is a super friendly ride.

Finally, an extruded base keeps the cost down and offers a good amount of durability. It’s not as quick as sintered equivalents but unless you wax your board regularly and are a full-on speed freak, the chances are you won’t notice.

“Make no mistake, despite its incredible edge control, the Emoticon is a super friendly ride”

Roundup

If you’re in the market for a fun, versatile women’s snowboard on which to perfect your carves, progress in the park or just blast around resort – and you don’t want to break the bank – we can’t recommend the Emoticon highly enough. In fact it embarrasses many other all-mountain models that are far more expensive. Superb.