Gentemstick Chaser On The Table and Written Review 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: 156 (only size)
Days: 4
Conditions:    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), Nick (Size 10, 160lbs, 5’8”) Stephen (Size 12.5, 215lbs 6’3”), 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

Similar Boards (but not the same) That We Compared This To:
Gentemstick Mantaray 156, Korua Dart, Korua Pencil, Gentemstick Rocket Fish, Gentemstick Rocket Fish HP, Gentemstick Chaser HP, Gentemstick Barracuda, Gentemstick Barracuda HP

Set-Up: 21” Wide. 36 front +12 back. Close to Reference

Approximate Weight: Feels light

Sizing: The Gentemstick Chaser worked fine with my 185lbs and size 9 boots but really shined for Zobel’s 11’s Grants, size 10.5’s and Jimbos 11’s as well. It’s a better mid/wide board but not too mid/wide for riders like myself to enjoy it as well.

Flex/Buttering: The Gentemstick Chaser has a pretty medium to med/stiff flex that feels a good bit softer in the tip/tail when buttering on snow.  It has an easy but lively flex to it that is loaded with pop. It feels very lite and snappy.

On Snow Feel/Ability Level/Skidded Turns: The Gentemstick Chaser has a ton of taper and you really feel it. Riding the Chaser needs most of the weight on the front part of the board. It seems like a board that you would steer from the back foot but instead, it needs a lot of front foot weight and a very positive/directional stance to steer it without the tail washing out. If you aren’t used to this style of board it will take a day to a few days to get used to this kind of steering in comparison to most back foot weighted freeride board to this it will be super different. It one foots and flat bases well, skids turns easy enough and it’s not a locked-in catchy type of ride. It needs a very directional stance angle like +12 on the back and +36 on the front. Otherwise, it won’t ride as well.

Edge Hold: There is pretty competent edge hold and while it doesn’t grip like the Mantaray or Stingray it does really well for a board of this shape and width without having a disrupted sidecut.

Turn Initiation:  Even though the Gentemstick Chaser is a pretty wide board and especially so on the front half it turns pretty quickly and it is the kind of board that does a good job transitioning from edge to edge but also can make a hard right or left in a tight spot if you need to. I found the Chaser HP to be much faster because it worked with my boot size better but I did enjoy the slower more smooth turning of the Chaser.

Turning Experience/Carving: When setting up with a pretty positive directional stance and lots of pressure on the front part of the edge the Chaser comes alive and has a very springy fun turn. It’s not a board you want to charge with and make high speed carves but it really is a different experience underfoot than most freeride boards we tried. It likes a very articulate carve.

Powder:  This could easily be your dedicated powder board and it really shines when it comes to easy directional float. There is just soo much nose and surface area upfront that it would be hard to find conditions that would make this struggle. Then you have all that taper and soo much set back on board too. When set all the way back the difference between nose and tail is 12” and the set back from the center is 6” which is super far back.

Speed: This is a very light chattery board and it just isn’t for bombing but the base is super fast and has amazing glide. You don’t get this to point it.

Uneven Terrain: The Gentemstick Chaser can buck you about and all that lively flex doesn’t absorb chatter as easy as some boards when riding in bumpy, messy soft snow or hard uneven groomers. It likes good conditions best but it’s still not a total mess for those that like all day resort riding.

All in all the Gentemstick Chaser is a very unique board and if your riding style/stance angles match up with this type of board then you can have a great life together.