Gentemstick Barracuda HP 2024 - 2020 Review by The Good Ride

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Ethics Statement

We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  We do make money from the “Where To Buy” links, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average riders’ perspective.

How This Review Happened

We borrowed this for an extended demo and then returned it.
Size: 158
Days: 5
Conditions:  Everything from hard groomers to messy spring groomers and even some powder and an early morning slackountry time with Drift Boards.
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-195lbs), Grant (Size 11 6’ 160lbs), Zobel (Size 11.5, 6’ 180lbs), Jimbo (Size 11, 5’11” 160lbs),
Boots: Adidas Tactical ADV, Adidas Response
Insoles: Sandsole Custom Insoles,  Footprint Insole Technology Gameghangers Low Profile
Bindings: Union Atlas, Union Strata, Union Falcor,

Similar Boards (but not the same) That We Compared This To: Capita Spring Break 158 Powder Glider, Jones Mind Expander, Gentemstick Mantaray 156, Korua Dart, Korua Pencil, Gentemstick Rocket Fish, Gentemstick Rocket Fish HP, Gentemstick Chaser, Gentemstick Chaser HP, Gentemstick Barracuda

Set-Up

21” Wide. 36 front +12  back. Close to Reference and Set all the way back.

Approximate Weight

Feels light.

Sizing

The Gentemstick Barracuda HP is a pretty good fit for my size 9’s and it handled my 185lbs pretty well too. However, all the other guys with size 11’s all would have been much happier with the regular Barracuda.

Flex/Buttering

There is a good bit of energy in the Gentemstick Barracuda HP and it has a very lively energetic flex that is easy to butter off the tail as well.It has that ultra-light kind of feel to it.

On Snow Feel/Ability Level/Skidded Turns

The Gentemstick Barracuda HP rides pretty far back on the tail but and you are further back but for some reason, it doesn’t feel quite as far back as the Rocket Fish rides we tried against it. It’s a very surfy directional ride that for sure prefers a positive stance and a little more weight placed into the edge in the front foot but you can put weight on the back foot too like you would with more common freeride boards. It is stable and very easy to one foot/flat base but doesn’t feel catchy.

Edge Hold

Really good grip for a board of this type that doesn’t have any disruption in the sidecut.

Turn Initiation

Pretty fast edge to edge and while it doesn’t feel as super turny/quick as the Rocket Fish style rides it sure does turn quickly.

Turning Experience/Carving

Looking at the Gentemstick Barracuda HP, you would think this is only a powder board but you would be really missing out if you didn’t take this out on groomers and lay that rail into the snow. It really has a good spring out of the turn and while it likes circle carves it felt like it turned a less tight radius than the Chaser, Chaser HP, Rocketfish, and Rocketfish HP. Higher speed carves are really good in comparison to the other Gentemstick’s we had for demo but still isn’t like the Korua Pencil or Dart. It was a very articulate stylish carver.

Powder

The Gentemstick Barracuda HP can float. Just looking at it on the table you can see what it is capable of. This is just a little more narrow than the Barracuda so if your specs match up well then it will float just as well as the Barracuda for you. All that taper, the massive amount of early rise before the nose starting almost before front binding, all that nose, and a lot of taper in the tail make this a really exceptional powder floater. Set all the way back at a 22.75” stance which you can get a difference between Nose and Tail of 15.75” or a 7.85” back from center of the board which is super far back.

Speed

The base is super-fast and has the kind of glide that can give a little extra distance to your traverse which is always appreciated. It can mean the difference between getting right back to the chair or having to unstrap and walk a bit. The board is pretty damp for this Alternative Freeride Family of Gentemstick Boards but the Gentemstick Barracuda HP isn’t going to be the kind of board you want if you like to point it all the time. It would chatter way too much.

Uneven Terrain

The quick turning Gentemstick Barracuda HP can weave in and out of bumps really well but it doesn’t power over messy or bumpy snow that well. It can buck you around a bit in uneven snow if you try.

All in all the Gentemstick Barracuda HP was one of my personal favorites out of the Gentemsticks boards that we got to demo this year. It had some of that magic that I love from the Gentemstick Mantaray in the sense that it works with more than just one type of riding style but also gives you a very floaty, directional, setback, kind of ride that has an effortless float in powder.