The Gnu Ladies Choice is different in 2014 and many will appreciate the changes. The Ladies Choice 2013 use to be a women’s version of the men’s board but starting 2014 it changed up a bit to be more of it’s own board. The Addition of EC2 BTX changes up the ride a lot. It makes it a little more like a combo of the old Ladies Choice and the Men’s Space Case.

2014 and 2015 Gnu Ladies Choice Review

Before the C2 BTX was loose like the men’s Riders Choice. The 2014 EC2 incorporates similar EC2 from the men’s side that offers a little more stability between the feet than the old C2 BTX.  It’s still forgiving and playful but offers a little more stability for mountain riding. Also the edge hold isn’t as grippy which is more advantageous for riders who see softer conditions often but still like to have a bit more grip when the conditions get hard. That’s the major change with the 2014 vs. the 2013.

On Snow Feel:  There is a much more of a stable ride giving this a little more of an all mountain freestyle feel that allows you better flat basing and one footing. It’s still a great park board like the old model and the pop is almost there too. It’s very close to being called stable where the 2013 Ladies Choice is closer to bordering on loose between the feet. Basically thie Gnu Ladies Choice EC2 BTX can handle conditions on the firmer side better than the older model before getting loose.

Powder:   A little more of an easier plane over powder than the older model and it makes the ride just a little bit better.  It’s pretty good for a twin in the deep stuff but the thicker the snow gets the harder it takes to stay afloat. If you like to ride switch a lot in powder then you will love this board but if you are use to setting it back to float better then you could have issues when it gets deep and thick.

Turn Initiation and Carving:   The asym thing makes it a lot more fun edge to edge regular or switch if you ride close to a duck stance. Carving is a little more fun because it feels like the tip/tail engage more out of the turn which is weird because the camber is less pronounced but it feels like a bit of an improvement.

Speed: Little improvement here with stability at speed too.  Pretty fun. Extruded bases aren’t sexy or the fastest but it’s pretty good for this type of base.  It’s got a decent glide.

Uneven Terrain:   Same great board for dealing with a crowded chewed up Saturday filled with bumpy snow.

Edge Hold:   The edge hold still grips ice and has some visible bumps between the feet.  What we all liked is the MTX mellows out after the bindings so it’s less grabby in softer snow but still grips when you are on hard snow to ice.

Flex:  Very similar playful buttery flex that still has a lot of umph for the mountain.

Switch:  The Asymmetrical side cut makes for easier switch riding than a true twin.  If you aren’t a strong rider you will find it easier to ride this switch than a true twin with a normal symmetric side cut. .

Jibbing: It’s not the Lady Pickle or Narrow Skate Banana but it has solid skills in the jib park. As the board get’s softer the jibbing gets easier.

Pipe: It’s a pretty good pipe board but most prefer the older models stronger edge hold in the pipe.

Jumps: Good spring still and very fun lapping the jump park or just ollieing off natural features on the mountain.

The Gnu Ladies Choice has been a long time coming. The Gnu Riderss Choice has established itself as one of the leaders of the modern freestyle rides out there so it’s about time Gnu made a ladies specific version of this.  The hybrid rocker shape does have some short comings but the advantages far outweigh its flaws. This is a great freestyle ride that also isn’t bad at all outside of the park.

On Snow Feel:  It’s a little more loose than most C2 BTX boards but it has more spring and all around park playfulness making it an excellent park board. It’s loose but at a certain point the camber at the tip/tail make it less washy than it feels it should be.  We’d say that due to the pretty loose feeling between the feet we felt it better suited in the park than the mountain. We felt the TRS Narrow (women’s model) was a better all mountain freestyle ride but at the same time less poppy.  On a few occasions you could feel the board want to turn side ways (get squirrely) if you flat base or one foot the board.  This sensation is not going to stoke you out.  If you give a little pressure to either edge then you eliminate that feeling. Some get use to it and others try to keep it on edge as much as possible.  This is a slower speed play around the mountain kind of board and a great do everything kind of park ride.

Powder: A twin with a centered stance isn’t ideal for powder but we have to say that the Ladies Choice does a very good job for it’s design.  If you like to take on the powder world regular and switch the Ladies Choice will be very fun thanks to the fact that it always tries to point up instead of down like camber does.  If you want to stay afloat and don’t ride powder switch you might like a board  with a set back stance instead.

Turn Initiation– The C2 Pickle shape is slightly easier to turn than the standard C2 BTX but it’s still pretty close.  It borders on super easy and even most entry level riders wouldn’t have that much trouble on this board.

Speed: The Ladies Choice is pretty damp for a Twin but the significant rocker between the feet make for a little bit of a squirrely ride when picking up speed on a flat base. It feels like the board wants to make quick turns you don’t at higher speeds.

Uneven Terrain: At the end of the day the Ladies Choice did very well negotiating the ruts and weaving in and out of all the people. It’s thick and strong so it protects the pain from a bumpy ride.

Approximate Weight- You get a reliable board that will last a long time and with that comes a little extra weight.

Edge Hold: The MTX side cut with all year models might have the most aggressive grip in the snowboarding industry. For some it’s almost too much but if you live in icy regions or ride in crappy conditions the Riders choice will grip even the blue ice if the edges are sharp.  Some complain that the side cut is too grabby in softer conditions but others don’t mind this so much.  It’s all personal preference so it’s up to you to decide here.

Flex: The Longitudinal Flex is very middle ground of medium but it will soften up over time like all boards do.  It’s pretty medium when it comes to the torsional flex. Still this is more aggressive than your average Twin and that is why it’s fun everywhere.

Carving– This is still a twin with a hybrid rocker shape which is not the best for carving but it’s pretty good.  You can lay into a carve in all good conditions and also some pretty crappy conditions. There is a little spring or pop out of the turns thanks to the little bit of camber in the board but it’s not like a camber or mostly camber board.

Switch: This to us was easier riding switch than even a true twin thanks to sidecuts that are shaped according to the duck stance most riders use on a twin. If you are a really technically sound rider switch you might not like it but if you are like most of us who are weaker switch than regular you certainly will.

Jumps: The Ladies Choice is very lively and popy on jumps and we were pretty surprised by this.  You can hit a big kicker or find enough ollie power to generate your own air.  If you are lapping the roller coaster section of the park you will not be disappointed.  It can handle small to massive and none of us had any issues with the Riders Choice here.

Jibbing– Rails and boxes aren’t terrible for this board even though its a little on the stiff side of the park world.  If this is your staple you might want to look for something else but you can hit a mellow jib or two.  It’s not for those that like the long, big kinked out rails and jibs. One thing to note is the more you ride it the more it will soften up so over time it will become closer to good when it comes to rails.

Pipe: The pipe was incredibly fun.  It climbed the icy morning pipe wall without an issue and took just a little pressure on the edge to set your line up the wall.  We weren’t ripping through it but you could see that this board would be very forgiving on any sketchy landing if you went bigger.  It’s not going to save your life but it can help you with minor miscalculations.  We’ll leave going big for the kids who’s balls are bigger than their brains.  Most of us are a little older so now our brains are now bigger than our balls