words: Brendan Barry
Just before heading to Steamboat for the Slash & Burn Banked Slalom, someone mentioned that a DC Supernatant had landed at the Snowboard Mag office. Standing at 6′ 2″ and currently riding a beat 155 park board, this 158 directional with factory edges and an untarnished base sounded pretty appealing in terms of swiftly navigating through a series of rock-solid berms. An agreement was struck — if I reviewed the board, I could ride it.
When you pull into Copper and it’s sunny, it’s going to be a good day.But one day ripping berms wasn’t enough; I wanted to explore more terrain on the board. So I held onto it for a bit and took it to Copper Mountain to put it to the test on a variety of terrain — park, trees, steeps, groomers and sidehits.
Photos: Taylor Boyd
A nautical theme nowhere near the sea.Graphic: 22/25
I like the woodgrain topsheet of the board. The nose has an ocean landscape with waves breaking that subliminally introduce a surfing vibe into your riding. The tail has a giant octopus that looks like it was taken off the Kraken rum bottle. In between the bindings it appears Moby Dick is being choked by the Kraken octopus.
I enjoyed the minimal branding and focus on artwork for this board very much. The base reads “Dee Sea” with an anchor in between — a subtle touch of branding and a great alternative to the typical DC logo.
The same edge that holds a carve will also punish ‘SLOW’ signs.Carving: 23/25
This thing carves like a dream. I was able to lay an edge into soft springtime snow and still felt comfortable on icier patches. The Supernatant handled both rock-solid chop and thick spring powder throughout the chairlift-accessed terrain I encountered at Steamboat, Copper and Howelsen Hill — where I rode it in the Slash & Burn Banked Slalom.
The Supernatant is an excellent banked slalom board. The Slash & Burn course was rock-solid and rutted, and the Supernatant held an edge through the berms. However, I do think its edgehold could be increased with a slight boost in stiffness. Standing at 6’2”, a 158 was the perfect length for me to ride on a technical course and I was able to maneuver the board through tight turns.
The Supernatant is directional, but not too directional to rip park on.Jumping: 22/25
When it came to catching air, I appreciated the positive camber profile on the Supernatant. It was present enough to provide snap when popping ollies and offer stability on landings, yet it was mellow enough not to make the board feel grabby edge-to-edge.
To me, the Supernatant’s directional profile didn’t hamper its ability to perform backwards, though I don’t spend a considerable amount of time riding switch. If you spend most your time in the park and are looking for a board that performs exactly the same regardless of which end is pointed downhill, this might not be the one for you.
Pushin’ through hot pow.Float: 24/25
From its mid-wide waist width to its directional profile, the Supernatant is designed to float — and it did. I didn’t get to experience a full-blown powder day on the board, but where I was able to find deep patches in the trees, the nose wanted to plane above the snow.
Though the 26 centimeter waist makes the Supernatant slightly more buoyant than other boards its length, to me it seems there is room for a length option in the line larger than 158.
Scrapin’ with a factory edge.Overall Ride: 91/100
DC markets the Supernatant as a powder board, but really it’s an ideal all-mountain board. I rode it through tight turns the in trees, icy berms at a banked slalom, bombed steeps and was even able to fide a bit of fresh snow. It performed in all scenarios.
When you’re trying to collect your thoughts after a day of board testing, it’s best to do it with a cool one. #oneglovebudThe reference stance is 24 inches, which I think is too wide to take advantage of the Supernatant’s shape. I set my stance at 22 inches and pushed it to the back of the insert pattern, allowing myself as much nose as possible.
For the rider who is looking for a strong yet nimble all-terrain charger, this is your vehicle of choice.
As an added bonus, the graphic is easy on the eyes and should be agreeable with the aesthetic preferences of most snowboarders.
Learn more about the DC Supernatant here.
See also: All-mountain chargin’ and jibbin’: The RIDE Snowboards Helix reviewed