Snowboard bindings for the freeride, boardercross, and carving community from Catek.
 
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 Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: jmedslc 
Date:   10-28-04 17:10

hey folks,
just came across these bindings and am impressed.
out of curiosity, what does the freeride pro offer over the normal freeride binding?

i'm planning to mount my new bindings on a ride timeless 67 for deep powder riding at snowbird, utah. i'm aggressive, all mtn rider with virtually no pipe/park time.

should i go for the pro? why?

many thanks,
jmed



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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: Pre-School Rider 
Date:   10-28-04 17:59

Yes, you should put this binding on your Wish List! Why? It cants, tilts, and has built-in lift.The tilt/canting means you can customise the bindings To Fit YOU,not that you Adapt to the Binding. Big difference,Enormous even. It's super-solid, almost bullet-proof. Snow dosen't jam in it, as it has spacing under your feet. You can run high angles, instead of being stuck riding Sideways on your board, and At Speed, that's a huge advantage(as is seeing where you're going!). In my 27 years of riding snowboard,only the old Burton 3-strap from '89 comes close to being the kind of breakthrough that this binding is.It'll change how you deal with snow. The 'downside' is in weight (though it ain't bad) and in vibration transfer(something Pow-Hounds need Not worry about),and that if your fingers are wet,they might stick to the shiny metal parts in severe cold... Otherwise, this binding Is Better than anything else out there, if you're a FreeRider at heart.

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: swt 
Date:   10-28-04 18:06

Jmed:

The Freeride Pro adds Nidecker's Carbon 900 Pro straps.

I have Freerides and Freeride Pros and there is definitely a difference in the ride characteristics imparted by the strap sets. The Pro straps offer increased boot control, better pressure distribution, added durability and a more "locked-in" feel.

On the other hand, the strap set on the straight Freerides allows a bit more lateral movement, which is nice for hitting the jumps, teaching the kids, etc.

Based on your comments, I think that going to the Pro would probably be a worthwhile upgrade for you. Regardless though, the straps are just the icing on the cake with the Freeride series bindings -- the disc and the plate make all of the difference compared to other soft bindings.

swt

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: jmedslc 
Date:   10-28-04 19:01

thanks for your response.

yes, i am looking for more boot control and a stiff platform. i've been looking at the drake matrix, as the strap is really wide and the LBS guy gave props to the drake for that 'locked in' feeling. these catek bindings look pretty bomber.

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: jmedslc 
Date:   10-28-04 19:05

cool thanks. as for the weight issue, how much heavier are we talking? i didn't see a weight for these on the site....

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: swt 
Date:   10-28-04 21:46

The thing that no other binding out there can match is the Freeride's cant/lift system and the stability and performance of the Catek baseplate.

The straps do look nice on the Drake, but it will never match the Freeride when it comes to performance. The Freeride is just a totally different caliber system.

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: sandy 
Date:   10-28-04 23:48

The weight of the freeride/freeride pro's is pretty comparible with the Drake matrix, ride lx, or burton p1 so that is really not that bad, but they are definately not as light as a pair of burton c-14/c-16/c-60's. I have two pairs of the basic freerides and the weight has not bothered me because the performance is so much better with these bindings that it is worth it. I have burton leather straps on one pair of my freerides and they are an improvement as well, but I have not tried the nidecker straps so I cannot comment on that, but the Nidecker C900's were a great binding when I demo'd them so I am sure that the freeride pro response is awesome with the nidecker straps.

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 Re: Freeride/Pro upgrade worth it?
Author: db 
Date:   10-29-04 12:12

I have a pair of nidecker carbon 900 (2004) (size large) new in the box.
4 sale!! nice to have a back up pair of bindings when you buy the freeride pros!

please make offer before they go to e-bay!

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