Arbor

Refining and revamping their board line, Arbor has merged its Westmark and Blacklist boards into one, still dubbed the Westmark, though now built with a mid-wide shape. The change is meant to cater to riders with larger boot sizes, who don’t necessarily want to ride larger boards. The board widens underfoot to accommodate boots anywhere up to or over size 12, before tapering in again for a smaller overall profile. A parabollic rocker, the Westmark has grip tech to keep control underfoot.

Brand new for 2015, Arbor introduces the Shreddy Krueger, a setback mountain rocker that rips like a pow board while still maintaining a solid grip if you want to shred a little hardpack. With contact points underfoot and a wide nose, the Shreddy Krueger toes the fine line between park board and pow slasher; its the best of both worlds.

Spy

After debuting their Happy Lens sunnies last year, Spy is bringing the popular tech to its goggle line. Heading into 2015, all of the brand’s spherical goggles will come standard with a Happy Lens, meaning that more light will be allowed through the lens’ UV barriers to boost serotonin levels and literally improve mood. Improving upon its tried and true Doom goggle, Spy is introducing the Bravo, a smaller version of the Doom that also comes with Spy’s lock steady quick change system. Moving on to team effort pieces, Darrell Mathes and Eero Niemela both have sweet new pro models coming out, but the real story lies in Spy’s latest collabs. The first, with Danny Larsen, featuring Larsen’s own artwork; the second, a collaboration with Seventh Letter, which resulted in a bold, bright goggle unique to Spy’s line.

APO

APO has been making huge moves in the snowboard market recently, and 2015 will feature its greatest innovation to date. The brand’s new splitboard is revolutionizing the game, simplifying and speeding up the process of transitioning from touring mode to riding. APO is introducing a system that simply utilizes one small lever, that locks the splitboard binding to the board in one quick motion. Simply step onto the mount with APO’s Special Ops binding, flip the lever, and you’re ready to ride. The board itself comes together like a door hinge, with male pieces on one side of the interior cut fitting together with female pieces on the opposite plank. The two fit and fold together in seconds, making APO’s new splitboard one of the most stress-free, time effective set-ups to ever hit the market. Back to basics, with a focus on function and simplicity. You’ve gotta check this one out for yourself.

Howl

Howl has made a name for itself as a brand based on basic, simple styles with a unique flair. Keeping true to their roots, Darrell Mathes & Howl team riders Keegan Valaika and Joe Sexton helped create a few key pieces that will make their mark in 2015. First up, and brand spankin’ new, is the Benton glove, a leather glove with muted spike accents across the back of the hand. Mellow, but with a definite edge. The Baker, Howl’s tried and true mitt, is back, new and improved with fresh colorways, one of which is pot-themed. Go figure. The brand is also adding two sweet new pro models to its line up, Joe Sexton’s a vintage style mitt, made of high quality leather, with a patch accent. Keegan Valaika’s glove is also a mitt, with the Gnarly graphic stitched on the back, accompanied by an ever handy roach clip conveniently sewn into a zip pocket. Up next: K2’s Enjoyers board line, Quiksilver’s TRice x Mike Parillo collabs, the latest tech from TNF & a mountain of innovations from Jones…

Up next, a full gallery of photos from K2, Travis Rice’s signature series from Quik, Island fever from The North Face & a slew of new shapes from Jones.