Nidecker Alpha 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 and this is our unfiltered opinion. 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.

A break down of how it rides and who it is for

How This Review Happened:

Borrowed this for an extended demo and sent it back.
Size: 158
Days: 8+
Conditions: Everything from summer snow at Mt. Hood to over 1 foot of pow and an early morning slackountry time with Drift Boards & Union Rovers
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-190lbs),
Boots: Burton Kendo
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers
Bindings: Union Atlas & Nidecker Supermatics
Redunancy: Strapins in my pant pocket too.
Jacket: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Tusk Jacket, Volcom Guide Jacket, Burton Gore-Tex 3L Treeline Jacket, Jones Peak Bagger Jacket. Burton AK Helitak Gore-Tex Jacket
Pant: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant, Burton AK Gore-Tex 2L Swash Pant, Burton Gore-Tex Ballast Pant
Helmet: Smith Maze
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Clutch Glove, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove, CG Habitats Work Glove, Drop Tahoma Mitt,

Similar Boards (but not the same): Korua Otto, ,YES NSB, Endeavor Pioneer, Endeavor Ranger, K2 Manifest, Yes Typo, Jones Frontier, Ride Algorythm, Ride Wild Life, Borealis Tundra, Tahoe Labs Directional Twin, Yes Basic Uninc, Cardiff Lynx,

James’s Set Up: 21.5” Wide. Sance Angles +18/-3, +18/-9. Close to Reference on groomers and Set all the way back in pow.

Approximate Weight

The Nidecker Alpha felt pretty light and about the same as the APX version.
(We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores there is no consistency in a boards weight)

Sizing

The Nidecker Alpha worked well enough for my boot size but felt like my 185lbs was almost too heavy. I couldn’t go up another size so if I were to own this it would for sure be the 158. I’m also more into having a board that turns well for my boot vs. match my weight perfectly as I hate not being able to turn a board when I need it to turn.

Here are some ideal US boot sizes for the Nidecker Alpha boards. You can of course go bigger or smaller depending on your riding style, your boot’s footprint, and how hard you carve. But these work best for not turning the board slower than it should be and not having the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag.
148: 6-7
153: 8-9
158- 9-10
162w- 11-12

For weight I would stay close to what Nidecker recommends weight ranges or even go a good bit lighter than their max recommended weight. If it comes down to boot size or weight, I would make sure it fits your boot first and then your weight a close second.

Shape/Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

The Nidecker Alpha is tapered directional but doesn’t feel super tapered. Just like the Alpha APX, the spoon tech in the front foot seems to bleed into the effective edge and can wash with too much weight there.

There is a healthy bow of camber with the Nidecker Alpha but with the lifted sides and maybe a touch of early rise before the nose it’s pretty forgiving. It is also stable and only a little washy if you weight too hard off the front foot in harder snow.

Flex Personality

There is a pretty medium all mountain to mountain freestyle flex happening here.

The spoon nose makes it more difficult to nose butter and it often washes out on you when most normal noses wouldn’t. The pop is really good but not there with the Alpha APX.

Uneven Terrain

The Nidecker Alpha doesn’t have the pop of the APX but does better in uneven snow. Id does better in hard microbumpy snow but also softer thicker uneven snow. Still it’s not ideal and it can buck/bounce around but it’s a decent all day ride.

Edge Hold

There is pretty competent edge hold as long as you don’t count as much on the front foot vs. the back.

Speed/base glide

The base glide is not as good as the APX but it’s close and has easy glide.

Pointing it isn’t ideal either as this isn’t very stiff for a slightly tapered directional board. This isn’t for those who like to point it but it has competent mountain speed.

Turning Experience/Carving

The turn initiation is pretty quick edge to edge and when on edge there is a pretty balanced turning experience that leaned a little more on the turny side. If you really lean into a carve there is very good spring out of the turn if you center weight or back foot weight your turns. It isn’t for those that like a stiffer board for high speed carves but I had fun at moderate speeds.

Powder

I thought with 4mm of taper, a bigger spoon nose than tail and a -3.25” set back on board at a 22” stance width would float better than it did but I found it behind some of it’s peers. The spoon nose seems to help a little with float but mainly gives it a really smooth fluid turning experience in pow. It feels a little more like an all mountain board in pow than a freeride board but at least a good all mountain board.

Switch/Pipe/Jumps

There is a lot more nose than tail but it is for sure doable switch. Not bad tracking into a jump either. It seems pretty doable in the pipe too. Even jibbing should be ok with this easier flex but just be careful with nose butters.

Conclusion

So overall, the Nidecker Alpha is a pretty fun poppy and playful ride. Having a mountain freestyle flex in a mildly tapered directional flex was enjoyable.

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