United Shapes Deep Reach Snowboard Review

An In Depth Video and Written Breakdown of the United Shapes Deep Reach Review by The Good Ride

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United Shapes Deep Reach Snowboard Review by THe Good Ride

How The United Shapes Deep Reach Was Tested:

I borrowed the United Shapes Deep Reach for a few days thanks to the Shop at Mt Bachelor

Size: 156 & 162
Days: 2
Conditions:  and an early morning slackountry time with Drift Boards & Union Rovers
Riders: James (Size 9, 5’10”, 185-195lbs). I’ve tested and compared 800+ boards and close to 1,000 if you count different versions of the same Model over the years.
Boots: Nitro Team TLS
Insoles: Footprint Kingfoam Orthotic Elite
Bindings: Union Force
Redundancy: Strapins in case boots or bindings break.
Jacket: Skyline Fuse 3L Jacket
Pant: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant
Helmet: Smith Method
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 We Like (but not the same):

Capita Spring Break Powder Glider, Burton 3D Fish, Soul Blower

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Construction / Durability / Weight

The United shades deep reach is pretty normal in terms of weight and OK in terms of durability but the top sheet can chip and scuff pretty easily. (We don’t put in the exact weight because with wood cores, there is no consistency in a board’s weight)

Sizing

If I was riding deep powder only I would go with the 162 united shapes deep reach. If I was doing a little bit of everything groomers and powder I’d probably go 159 and I’d also go 159 if I saw a lot of tracked up powder throughout the day. the 156 was a little too small for my specs.

Like most snowboard brands united shapes does not focus too much on boot size and focuses a lot more on weight and they should treat them equally. But at least they’re pretty good with recommended weight.

Sizing is all about balancing what fits your boot size (most important), weight (second most important) and height (third most important) for how you like to ride. If it’s too wide and it’s hard to turn but too narrow and you might boot out which often slams you into the ground.

The Good Ride’s Conservative / Safe Recommendation

149: 8-9

153: 8.5-9.5

156: 9-10

159: US 9.5-10.5

162: US 10.5-11.5

There are often up to 2 or 3 sizes that will work for your specs. Size down for more control and size up for more speed/stability/carving power. Here are some ideal US boot sizes for these boards. 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 and Setback

United Shapes Deep Reach is very tapered, very directional, very set back on board. You really feel the difference between that smaller tail and that much bigger nose.

Camber/On Snow Feel

The United Shapes Deep Reach has camber almost to the tail going well past the front inserts. Then it starts to early rise before that big floaty nose. On groomers, this camber profile combined with the very tapered, very directional shape really does feel nose heavy and tail light. It feels a little lopsided. And while it tracks well, it doesn’t track as well as some mostly camber boards just because there’s so much nose and so little tail. I would say this is more for advanced expert riders and maybe a committed intermediate who sees a ton of powder and knows they want to go with a really directional ride. This nose heavy / tail light feel goes completely away in powder though.

Edge Hold

You’re primarily going to be riding United Shapes Deep Reach in powder. But if you want to take it out on groomers, as long as you have a lot of back foot weight, this will have competent grip. It’s not a hard to icy snow specialist, though.

Flex Personality

The United Shapes Deep Reach is Pretty stiff Between the feet and pretty much down to the tail. The nose is very soft though which is great for powder riding. There’s pretty good pop too and this really ollies easy when loading off the tail

Uneven Snow

If you size it right, the United Shapes Deep Reach is a good all-day ride, especially for somebody sees a lot of tracked up uneven powder days. You have to fight through a lot of that to get to the good stuff, and this is going to do just fine.

Speed

When United Shapes Deep Reach in powder, there’s really no limit. If you size this correctly, it’s fine. But if you’re in tracked up uneven snow, you do feel a little nose heavy, a little tail light. So it’s not the best for straight pointing it. But if you need to do a straight line here or there to get as far as you can up a hill to start hiking or to make a long traverse, this will work pretty well. The more you ride it, the more you get used to that very tail-light feel.

Base Glide

The base glide is very good, upper tier for sure. I love all black bases and when well waxed, this has easy but not exceptional glide. I will say the base is a little soft and it can get thirsty it needs to be waxed every few days for it to really keep the glide going.

Turning/Carving

The United Shapes Deep Reach has pretty quick turn initiation for those who want an easy turner in the trees. If I had a 59, I don’t think I’d ever feel uncomfortable because this just loves to initiate a turn, especially in powder. It’s really quick and easy when you get it on edge.

And let’s say you want to go out and carve groomers. One thing about this, it needs a lot of back foot weight, more than most tapered directional boards. I tried setting it up Pozzi, I tried to drive more off the front foot and then move it to a center weighted and then back foot weighted turn out, and it would wash on me a lot. You really feel light in the tail, so you really have to put a lot of back foot weight.

I felt the same way slightly duck it like -3/+18 front and the same way 24 front plus six back. Nothing I could do with this board got the tail to hold better unless I just put a ton of back leg weight on the board throughout most of the turn. So I like a back foot weighted carve, but I also like a center weighted and front foot weighted carve too. And this was just too much back foot weight for me. You really have to lean into it, and I was getting rear leg burn carving. So it really comes down to personal preference, but this shines more as a powder board for sure.

Powder

When I got this 162 Deep reach on that deep day, this was a great choice. This is a very good floater. It’s the best of the United Shapes boards I’ve tried. I would like to get on the Experiment though, that looks like it would be a step up from here. But let me tell you, this Deep Reach is no slouch. It just has easy, smashy, turny, directional float.

I love having that camber in this profile. It feels like it gives it a little extra spring out of the turn, even in powder. I thought it was a very good powder experience. I think a lot of people could have a good time on this board. And when it comes to set back on board, I didn’t get to measure the 162, but the 156 with a 21.5-inch stance was 5.875 inches back from center of board. That’s pretty far back, but it feels even further back because that little tapered tail is so small. Surface-area wise, you don’t feel like you have much behind you and you have a lot of nose floating. It’s a very easy floater for sure.

Final Thoughts

So overall, I enjoyed this board in pow but not as much on groomers as United Shapes says it would feel on their site. It really took too much back leg weight for my taste to get this to not wash out carving on groomers. But in powder, this thing jams. And if you’re looking For a mostly powder board with good camber pop off the tail, the United Shapes Deep Reach could be a great solution. I think a lot of people could really enjoy this.