Gnu Impossible Series 2014 - 2012 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.

The 2013 and 2014 Gnu Impossible Series are almost exactly the same.

Size: 155 and 159
Days: 15+
Conditions: Everything to Hard shitty snow to 1.5 feet of thick sierra powder and everything in between.
Riders: James, Jimbo, Peter, Kyle, Mary and a few others
Boots: Burton Ion, Burton SLX, Burton Imperial, Nike Kaiju, DC Judge, Nike Zoom Ites, Salomon Synapse
Bindings: Burton Cartel, Burton Cartel Limited, Burton Diode, Flux SF45, Flux DS30
Set Up:   22.5″ and 23″ wide 15 front -15 back centered.

On Snow Feel:   It’s one of those rare super aggressive all mountain freestyle twins but it doesn’t have the consequence that most aggressive all mountain freestyle boards.  It’s one of the only forgiving aggressive all mountain freestyle boards we have come across.  It has the flex and speed of a directional all mountain board like the Phoenix Series but is stuffed into a true twin shape.  If you like the speed of a stiff directional all mountain board but like to ride switch as much as you ride regular the impossible series is one of the best choices out there in this limited category.  This EC2 BTX is not like the Attack Banana which left most of our riders felt it was really loose and unstable. The impossible series shows another mostly stable side of EC2 BTX that we all really liked.  It’s still a little loose in harder conditions but it’s better than most hybrid rocker boards we rode….and we have ridden a lot of hybrid rocker boards.  This had the ability to ride well at higher speeds and give you a little more of stability than your average hybrid rocker board. It’s not a super playful butter around kind of board but it’s fun to attack the mountain at higher speeds regular or switch, pop off jumps and haul your ass pickle around.  You can also slow it down and cruise as I did here.

Powder: I had a day with some moderately thick sierra snow that was 6″ in some places and up to 1.5 feet in others.  The Impossible series had an easy float and somewhat surfy ride to it that you wouldn’t expect from a twin with a centered stance. Maybe it’s the flatter hybrid rocker profile that seemed to want to plane very well over the snow or maybe its something else but it sure did float well for a twin. If you ride in thick snow areas this will work very well but have some limitations in the deep stuff compared to directional/set back rides like the Phoenix Series C2 Power BTX model.  I’d rather be on those boards in 3+ feet of Sierra cement.  However, I would be fine with this in 3 feet of light fluffy snow like you find in Colorado and Utah. So yeah pretty impressive here.

Turn Initiation and Carving– The board turned pretty well.  It wasn’t a struggle but didn’t feel easy like it’s asymmetrical shaped brother the Riders Choice PTX.  It’s an aggressive board made more for people who like to earn their turns. If you like to lay into a carve the Impossible series is one of if not the best boards in the Mervin line and one of the best hybrid rocker boards we leaned into a hard carve with.

Speed: It’s hard to believe this is a hybrid rocker when you straight line.  It keeps it’s speed very well in a cat track and has a nice glide to it.  It’s got the same kind of speed that a

Uneven Terrain: Not bad here when it comes to dealing with bumpy end of the day groomers or hard weird off the groomer kind of snow.  It’s not as shock absorbent as some of the other boards in the line but it does a pretty good job for its flex.

Weight- It felt a little lighter than most Mervin boards which are usually closer to the heavy side. It’s still not that light.

Switch: We did notice that riders who aren’t as comfortable riding switch were more comfortable with the impossible series just like with the PTX Riders Choice.

Rails/Jibs– Not the Impossible series strong point but it’s ok. More for the rider who likes to hit an occasional wide box or mellow bonk but it’s not ideal for technical rails.

Pipe: It’s really fun in the pipe for those that like to charge the pipe. Because it isn’t forgiving like some other Mervin boards its a little shy of excellent.

Jumps: There is a lot of spring for a board that feels so flat. It doesn’t pop like the Riders Choice but it’s very responsive when it comes to generating your own air.  Going through the roller coaster line is excellent though.  It’s better with the big jumps but not bad with the smaller kickers as well. The aggressive but forgiving ride comes into play here as well.

The Impossible Series is a really fun board but it’s hard to recommend for the price. If this is just too expensive then take a look at the Forest Bailey Space Case or the Gnu Metal Guru. They both aren’t as good as the Impossible series but offer a similar and stable ride at a pretty good price.