Lib Tech Travis Rice Pro HP Pointy 2016 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.

Size 161.5

Days: 1
Conditions: hard
Riders: James and Jimbo
Bindings: Union Charger
Boots: Burton SLX, Burton Ion
Set Up: 23 inches wide Centered 15 front -15 back

Just want to make this clear that all Lib Tech Travis Rice Pointy models are mid/wide size boards. It’s not ideal for smaller size feet and fits a size 10.5 US to about a size 12 US rider.

So most of you know how Travis Rides and his name is on this board so it’s been designed for him. Travis has a very modern approach to riding the mountain so it’s not a typical all mountain board.  It’s for those who like to ride switch as much as they ride regular in any condition and for those that don’t turn much.

This review is from a Mid / Wide rider’s perspective and I focused more on the feedback from riders from Jimbo who has a 10.5 size boot than my own. This personally was not a board I’d want to have on my size 9 boots a lot.  It was fast and poppy but just too slow to turn and it felt like it was a lot bigger than a 161.5.

On Snow Feel: Our first few runs we were very impressed by the stability and speed of the Lib Tech Travis Rice Pro Pointy. It rides big and has a very fast base. The Travis Rice Pro Horsepower had that runaway momentum feeling of speed like you get with some of the fastest boards in the industry. The only thing holding it back from being a super bomber excellent board when it comes to speed was the hybrid rocker profile.  It’s really good for hybrid rocker but it’s still not as stable as the old camber models.  The shallow sidecut doesn’t like you to turn. Even for a mid/wide boot, the T.Rice Horsepower is much more for straight lining than turning.

Powder: The Lib Tech Travis Rice Pro Horsepower Pointy models are very good in Powder for a true twin. The board planes very well and you can attach the mountain just like you are in a park riding switch and regular. This is like the Salomon Sick Stick but made for mid/wide feet.  We miss the older models that had a setback stance and would love to see one of the Pointy models have a.75”/-20 mm set back.  It would really help the average rider who doesn’t ride switch all the time set the board back and get a little more directional float. Some might prefer the Horsepower model because it’s a little lighter without sacrificing that sturdy chunder busting feel.  It’s also a little grippy in thicker powder but its’ not terrible either.   It’s not nimble between the trees kind of board but instead a straight line a chute kind of board.

Turn Initiation: The T.Rice has a pretty shallow sidecut depth that’s happiest going straight.  It doesn’t like to turn without some effort.  The pointy is still much easier to turn than a camber board but compared to other hybrid rocker boards these might be the most difficult. This is not a bad thing but it’s just different and many people who normally don’t like hybrid camber turn initiation might like this slightly sluggish type of feel.

Carving: It definitely took more effort to carve out a turn than other C2 BTX boards but we really liked it. You could really lean into a turn and get your belly close to the snow with a little effort.  It’s not a very tight radius carve but instead, it’s got a wider carve going on.  The Pointy was our favorite board to do this on and this particular model seemed to have just a bit more snap out of the turn than the heavier C2 Power model.

Speed: Very fast for a board of this shape and camber profile. Its base is pretty fast and glides a long time along flat cat tracks. The board is pretty stiff and damp.  It’s a little shy of hanging with the super fast big ass directional freeride bomber boards but it’s faster than most Twins out there.  It’s definitely an aggressive board made for speed regular or switch. Of the two Pointy boards, I would say that the Horsepower model is a little softer and chatters a little bit more than the regular version.  That’s the price you pay though for getting a lighter board.

Uneven Terrain: its shallow sidecut depth and moderate turning nature make the board a little more challenging edge to edge when trying to negotiate bumpy terrain quickly but it does absorb shock at slow speeds pretty well for such a stiff board.  It’s not the best ride at the end of a Saturday afternoon groomer run or sifting through moguls to find some leftover tree stashes with some untracked powder.

Edge Hold: The magnetraction sidecut is much more aggressive than many in the Mervin line and keeps you going in icy conditions.  It can grip a little too much in thick soft snow but it’s a great board for those that see hard conditions more than soft.

Flex: All models are pretty stiff but the Travis Rice Pro Horsepower Pointy has a little more of a snappy lively feel than the non-horsepower models. All models aren’t’ that easy to butter either.  You have to be a pretty strong rider to butter this board past the hybrid rockers natural profile.

Switch: All models are very easy to ride switch.

Approximate Weight:  This

Jibbing: This is not a jibber board.  I can think of so many other boards I’d suggest before this.

Pipe: The edge hold is soo powerful you can ride if the pipe is completely iced over. It’s shallow sidecut and larger size wasn’t ideal and it felt like a lot of board to throw around. The Horsepower feels a little more snappy wall to wall than the standard pro model but we’d rather be on the Blunt.

Jumps: Pretty good spring and the board is pretty snappy for being this stable between the feet.  Usually, you sacrifice pop for stability with hybrid rocker but this doesn’t. The pointy is more about jumping natural terrain and we’d rather be on the blunt in the jump park.

It’s hard to say get the Horsepower Pointy over the regular pointy but again often times at this price point decisions aren’t 100% based on logic.  I have to admit the graphics always seem to be better with the Horsepower models and the snappier lighter ride does make a bit of a difference.