Initially I was looking for a Gnu Temple Cummins to replace a 2002 model that I got stolen. I was super happy with that board but I couldn't find it anywhere in Denmark. I stumbled over the Stylus on www.blue-tomato.at and after lots of thought and research I decided to buy it. This board is VERY high-tech! It has lots of cool features which can be seen just by looking at it(unfortunately the pics on duotone's website doesn't show this). The cap construction is VERY cool looking and there are carbon stringers (v-qualizers) which can be seen on the deck. I LOVE this!! It looks cool! These features and lots more are of cause supposed to make the board better in ways you can read more about on www.duotone-snowboards.com I must say I think the graphics SUCKS! A taxi made out of yellow dots?? At least it disappears somewhat when you mount your bindings ;) So how does it perform? Its LIGHT! At 2.7 kg it’s extremely light! This is very noticeable when you ride the board. I went from a Gnu Temple Cummins with Drake F60 bindings to the Stylus with Burton CFX binders. My current setup is MUCH lighter than anything I've ever tried before. This helps when jumping, but also gives you a livelier feel when riding. It's a huge difference when carrying the board around. You really feel it. The board is ultra staple. No matter the speed the board just doesn't vibrate. There is never a control issue. The stability and the low weight makes the board kind of disappear under your feet. That is the coolest feature of the board. In 7 days of blasting in all terrain in Val Thorens, I never experienced anything unpredictable from the board. You can totally count on the board to do whatever you want. The board holds an edge very well. I was able to do all kinds of turns at all kinds of speed. Especially on my toe-side, I was really able to dig the edge into even pretty hard-packed slopes. We had everything from deep powder to hard-pack during the 7 days. No ice though, so I can't say anything about that. It's a fast board! On flat sections it keeps up speed. I was running faster on a flat bottom than anyone else. I overtook everyone! The bottom is bright orange and I actually used it to signal by position when I waited for my girlfriend at the bottom sometimes  Ok, she’s no racer – but the point is that it’s fast. Especially it keeps its speed very well. It's also easy to ride flat and land after big jumps. I was able to land more 180ies than last year and riding switch is no problem. Because of the stability when riding flat I was much more confident riding up to a jump and did so with more speed. You can ride powder with this board, though it's not really a powder board. You must be careful not to sink the nose. The Temple Cummins is better at this. After adjusting my technique a bit, I rode powder quite well. Just don’t take this board for long backcountry trips. The board seems very solid. Even after standing in line with psychopath skiers who just can’t wait their turn, the board looks surprisingly well. It doesn’t chip as much as Gnu does. I read a review by some guy who broke his board and I was worried that the low weight could have this side effect. But I haven’t had any issues what so ever and I think he was just unlucky. As you may have guessed I’m crazy about the Stylus. The way it just behaves like you expect and the speed makes it a blast to ride. For the aggressive rider who wants something high-tech that performs – this is it! I’ll give it a 9 for the versatility and performance. I don’t give it a 10 because the graphics really suck. But I can live with that...

----=( For more info on this board E-mail me @ jannik@stikaf.dk)=----

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