Ride EX Review And Buying Advice

Ride EX 2016 - 2010 Review by The Good Ride

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The Ride EX is their entry level binding that has some good tech at this price point but it also has some flaws as well.  For example, they have canted footbeds to make the ride easier on the body.

Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  No one is perfect and we do make money from the “Where To Buy” links below, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average riders’ perspective.

Days: 1
Riders: James, Peter
Boots: Burton Imperial, Nike Kaiju
Boards: Never Summer Proto,

Flex: Good medium soft flex bordering on medium.

Adjustability: Some adjustability but not as much as some bindings.

Comfort: Not bad but the toe strap isn’t that comfortable to Peter and I.  Because of the rubber webbing we had to crank it down a lot and the narrow sides bit into the boots collapsing the sides.

Heel-Toe Response: Nice smooth forgiving response.

Tip-Tail Response: It’s not bad but it’s not like many bindings these days that don’t have a dead feel underfoot.  You can still butter and press a mellow flexing board no problem.

Boot Support: The ankle strap fit well around our boots and we had no complaints there.  We just had complaints with the toe straps.

Ratchet System: Not a great ratchet system.  Ride’s low end ratchets and straps have broken over the years often on us and sometimes even the demo’s in shops we see are broken or aren’t working right.  It’s been getting better the last couple of years but we are still a little hesitant to recommend them.

Shock Absorption: Nice padding for an entry level binding.  It’s pretty damp and the shock absorption is pretty good too.

There is nothing special about this binding except it works well for the price. Our only real complaint is their ratchet system isn’t as reliable as their higher end bindings and we have heard of issues with reliability.

There isn’t too much difference from 2010-2015 there are a few small tweaks but for the most part, it’s the same binding as the previous models. The 2014 and 2015 Astro Glide Ratchet system is better than past years but we are still a little weary. Also the 2014 Ride EX has a slightly different high back.  It offers up about the same ride as before but it’s just a little bit different and I believe a little lighter.