The Soul Shift Snowboard 2024-2025 Written Review Review by The Good Ride

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A Breakdown Of How This Rides And Who It Is For

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How This Review Happened:

I liked it so much I asked to keep it (only do this with favorites).
Size: 159
Days: 4+, but I’m keeping this and plan to ride it much more.
Conditions: Pretty hard but not full on ice, good groomers, perfect groomers, thick uneven snow and decent powder with the help of Drift Board Bindingss on Union Rovers
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10”, 185-190lbs)
Boots: Ride Torrent, Ride Fuse, Ride Deadbolt,
Insoles: F.I.T. Gamechangers
Bindings: Union Atlas
Redundancy: Strapins in case boots or bindings break.
Jacket: Jones Mtn Surf Anorak, Skyline Fuse Jacket,
Pant: Jones Mountain Surf Bib, Jones Mtn Surf Pant
Helmet: Smith Maze
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Drop Tahoma Mitt,

Similar Boards We Like (but not the same): Korua Dart, Korua Café Racer, Weston Japow, Moss Jellyfish, Gentemstick Barracuda, Nidecker Beta

James’s Set Up: 21.5” Wide. Sance Angles +24/+6, +27/+9 back, +30/+15, +18/-3. Close to Reference on groomers and set all the way back in powder.

How It Was Tested

Almost every day I rode this, I tested it against the Fukai, Tree D, and Tree DX. One day, I took it out and compared it to the Old Shift to get the feel and one day against the Weston Japow.

Approximate Weight

Feels normal to a little on the lighter side for this length and width. (We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores, there is no consistency in a board weight)

Sizing

This 159 Soul Shift on paper seems pretty wide for my specs (size 9, 185-195lbs,5’10”), but on snow, this feels like it’s made for me. With really tapered boards like this, it’s good to ignore the waist width and nose width and instead check the tail width. If it’s a little more narrow than non-tapered boards you ride like this is at 29cm then it’s often going to work.

Sizing is all about finding a balance between what fits your boot size and your weight for how you like to ride. Height comes in a distant 3^rd. Some prefer control, so matching the boot size is the priority. Others prefer dampness over control and like to size up. Regardless, you have to be most careful about finding the right boot size. If it’s too wide, you can’t turn it, and if it’s too narrow, you get the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag.

Here are some ideal US men’s boot sizes for these boards.
159: 9-11
163: 11-13

For weight, I would stay close to Souls’ recommended weight ranges or a little below because these are poppy boards. 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

Very tapered, very directional, and very set back. What I thought was interesting is the Soul Shift Doesn’t feel super tail light/nose heavy. Many boards with 3.5cm of taper feel soooo nose/heavy tail light, but on snow, it really doesn’t. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very tapered, and you feel that, but just not as much as you think.

Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

The 2024 Soul Shift has a lot more spoon nose vs. the 2022 I owned. It was barely noticeable with the older model, but the new one is very pronounced. There is a moderate but noticeable lift in the tail, too. Then you have this healthy bow of camber from almost tip to the tail. Usually, boards like this can feel edgeless and washy, but this doesn’t. There is a little drift flat basing in softer snow off the tail, but that’s it. Once you lean into a turn like you would a non-lifted board, the edges engage, and there is none of that washy feel. Even in harder snow. Not sure what Soul is doing with the Shift but it’s pretty cool. You get this smooth easy turning experience in powder/soft without any discernable issues in harder snow. After a few turns, I had completely adapted. Surprisingly, it felt the most drifty/slightly washy in softer snow, which is usually the opposite of how lifted tech works.

Flex Personality

There is a pretty medium/stiff flex from below the nose to the tail. The nose is medium. The tail keeps its flex to pretty much the end, and it feels like you have contact with the snow almost to the end of the tail. I was surprised I could somewhat easily butter off the tail. I was even more surprised that this somewhat stiff flex could pop so easily on an ollie or little hit.

Uneven Snow

When you get the really lively flex of the Soul Shift in soft, uneven snow, it bucks and bounces, but it doesn’t feel fatiguing or unruly. The older model I had did better here. Harder, uneven snow is handled pretty well. The edges stay quiet and hold well throughout the turn.

Edge Hold

Soul has a really exceptional grip for no disruption, and it edged easily into harder snow.

Speed

With this much taper and a sidecut that lives on the more back-footed/turny side of things, you would think the Soul Shift can’t go straight, but it does.

Base Glide

The base is clear, and I just don’t enjoy that as much as a black base, but it glides well and is the upper tier for sure. They are just not there with the super-fast bases you see on high-end Jones, Korua, Cardiff, or all Gentemstick and Moss bases. If you get a P-Tex Gun, it will not leave black flecks in the clear P-tex and will repair nicely.

Turning Experience/Carving

The Soul Shift looks like a pow board, but I’d say it’s a groomer board first and a pow board second. This board carves hard and pops so hard out of the turn. This is truly an excellent every man’s carver. It shines a little more on back-footed carves but can still center weight or front-foot weight carves without getting washy. You can set it up slightly duck, but the more posi you ride it, the more it shines. The Soul Shift Initiates a turn pretty fast, too, for my size 9, and I never felt like I was having trouble turning it in any condition.

Powder

So, after I did the old Soul Shif Review, I got some good powder, and it did pretty well. Nothing exceptional compared to many swallow-tailed peers, but well. The new, much longer spoon nose completely changed this ride, and it’s almost like a dedicated pow board. I actually like this better than the Soul Blower 162 for powder because it’s easier for me to turn in all kinds of powder. The 162 was just too much board for me in anything but clean, deep pow. Yeah, the Blower floats better, but this is just more manageable in all conditions.

Regarding set back on board vs. sidecut the Soul Shift has lots of directional float. With a 21.75″ stance width set all the way back, you can get

Final Thoughts

I was really surprised at how much I liked the lifted sides/spoon tech in the nose tail. It had an almost negligible effect on the turning experience, and if anything, it made it a little better. On top of that, it’s close to being an excellent powder board as well. I did like the old construction better. It felt more durable and maybe a little more damp. I’d love to see that return, but I sure do love this new camber profile.