Stranda Descender Written Review Review by The Good Ride

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An Un-Paid, Un-Biased Breakdown Of How the Stranda Descender Rides And Who It Is For

How the Stranda Descender Was Tested:

I borrowed the Stranda Descender for an extended demo and plan to send it back when the rep returns to the US. The Descendsame day, same boots, same bindings with the Jones Flagship, Flagship Pro and United Shapes Cadet.

I was not paid to do this review, and it comes from an honest, objective perspective with no brand oversight.

Size: 158
Days: 5
Conditions:Semi-hard but fun, ok pow, great pow and great groomers
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10”, 185-190lbs). I’ve tested and compared 800+ boards
Boots: 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 Pant, Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant, Skyline Faze Pant
Helmet: Smith Method, Smith Scout, Smith Maze
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Mitt, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove, Drop Tahoma Mitt,

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

Similar Boards to the Stranda Descender We Like (but not the same):

Amplid Souly Grail, K2 Alchemist, YES PYL Uninc, Weston Backwoods, United Shapes Cadet, Burton Gril Master, Jones Flagship Pro,

Approximate Weight

The Stranda Descender feels on the light side of medium without being an ultra poppy but ultra chattery ride, either. (We don’t put in the exact weight because, with wood cores, there is no consistency in a board’s weight)

Sizing

Stranda thought I should test the 161, but they could only send a 158. I found it good enough for testing and got a good taste of what the Stranda Descender is, but I’d get the 161 if I owned one. It’s only a touch wider so it won’t be much harder to turn but better fit my weight with the extra length.

Sizing is all about balancing what fits your boot size and your weight for how you like to ride. If your boot is too wide, you can’t turn it; if it’s too narrow, you get the dreaded Toe & Heel Drag. Your weight is a close second to boot size because it determines how the board will feel under your foot.  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.

Here are some ideal US boot sizes for these boards.
158: 9-10.
161 9-10
1562w:11-12
166w:12-13

I would stay close to Stranda’s recommended weight ranges as they are pretty fair and then. If it comes down to boot size or weight, I would ensure it fits your boot first and then your weight a close second.

Shape

The Stranda Descender has a pretty standard freeride shape with about 9mm of taper, but it doesn’t feel very tapered or washy like some can. It feels pretty centered and between the feet.

Camber/On Snow Feel/Ability Level

A decent amount of camber goes well past the inserts with minimal early rise near the tail and a little more before the nose. It feels almost like full camber but a bit more forgiving. It is more for advanced to expert riders, but a strong intermediate can handle it if they are okay with catching an edge here and there.I love the way this tracks one footing and all around the mountain. It’s very stable.

Edge Hold

Stranda has a slight disruption near each insert, and it really helps with the grip. The Descender can hang in icy snow but it’s best for that snowment type of snow you want to ride but need a good edge to do it.

Flex Personality

The flex between the feet is pretty stiff, but the nose is much softer where the rocker starts, and then it keeps getting softer towards its end. The tail is stiffer but has enough give to butter for sure.

The pop is lively but not bucky, and I loved how it ollied. It out-popped the Jones Flagship, which was about the same as the Flagship Pro but softer than both. It was a little more lively than the United Shapes Cadet, but it was close.

Uneven Snow

The Stranda Descender did very well in uneven snow despite being so lively and easy to pop. It did a very good job of absorbing chatter or bucking in all conditions.

Speed

The fast base, the semi-straight line-friendly sidecut, and the pretty damp construction do a great job of going fast.

Base Glide

If you look at the specs, the base doesn’t seem fast with the name Durasurf 4401, but I found it to be almost Gentemstick fast, which truly has a special glide. I found it just as easy to glide, if not a touch faster, than the Jones Sintered 9900 base. When well waxed, this can get you out of most long traverses, and I was super impressed.

Turning Experience/Carving

I could quickly initiate a turn with the 158, and the 161 should be pretty similar. When I got it on edge, the Stranda Descender didn’t accelerate super fast across a groomer or into a circle carve, but it’s very doable and great at medium radius to pretty down-the-line narrower high-speed turns.

There was a lot of drive and spring out of the turn with the Stranda Descender. I felt this was a notch up from the Flagship, Flagship pro, and in good condition, about the same as the United Shapes Cadet. In harder snow, this did a little better.

Powder

I found the float was more than competent in deepish powder, but I compared this board against some great to almost excellent freeride boards in pow. It’s a decent low-angle pow board, but it’s best in medium to steep terrain.

I could get -3.875″ set all the way back at a 22″ stance width. That’s good for a freeride board but not great these days. In comparison to the Jones Flagship and Flagship Pro, they were -4.75″ back from the center of the board at a 22.8″ stance width, and even though I couldn’t get all the way back, the extra rocker and spoon tech made the float and turning experience better. The United Shapes Cadet had a set back of -5.5″ at a 22″ stance width, which blew them all away even though it didn’t have any lifted sides in the nose or tail.

If you like more landing gear in the tail in the deep stuff, you can center the other boards just as well as the Descender.

Switch/Jumps/Pipe/Jibs

It’s a very doable switch, and I could see the big air potential of the Stranda Descender for sure.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I was impressed with the Stranda Descender, and I’ll be recommending it a lot moving forward. I just wish there were more sizes to recommend.

Ethics Statement: This review has zero brand oversight. This is our best effort at an honest, objective review to help you, the consumer.
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