RIDE Back Talk Review
| OVERALL RATING 4.5/5 | $449.95 RETAIL | SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SNOWBOARD SHOP |
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The following RIDE Back Talk review is an alloy of opinions. That is, it’s the result of an admixture of experiences from different riders, including Pigpen and Veronika Perfilyeva. Also, the tattoo artist in the proceeding photos is Bear Patton of Anchors & Ink in Bend, Oregon. Bear has done work on Pigpen, and is AH-MAZING. Check out her work on IG, show her some love, and book a fucking session. You won’t regret it.
RIDE Back Talk Snowboard: Who Might Ride It
First, let’s start with the graphics on the RIDE Back Talk because why the fuck not? Out of all the boards we’ve reviewed from the 19/20 season, the top sheet and base graphics on the RIDE Back Talk snowboard are a Gold Snow favorite. No joke. They are sparse and simple with a style that’s somewhere between poke-and-stick and the classic American tattoo. They’re female-forward—though not in an annoyingly rah-rah girl power kind of way—and they employ a typography that reminds us of medieval scrollwork. So yeah, we just adore the Back Talk’s graphics and could totally see them as worthy additions to some of our own inked oeuvres.
““...yes, lil’ mama, the RIDE Back Talk is your number one stunna.””
Aesthetics aside, who might ride the RIDE Back Talk? Well… do you love the sound and feel of a sintered P-Tex base leaving pieces of itself behind as it glides across metal, plastic, or wood? Do you appreciate a park board that can press, but that’s definitely not a noodle and that definitely offers stability elsewhere on the mountain? Are you into the improved heel-side turn initiation offered by an asymmetrical twin shape? Do you want a snowboard that can stand tall and stand proud in the park, but that doesn’t fold over when it’s time to make turns or explore other terrain? If you found yourself nodding uhhuh to all of the above, your mouth agape in semi-awe, then yes, lil’ mama, the RIDE Back Talk is your number one stunna (shout out to Birdman).
Ride Back Talk On-Snow Feel
We rode the RIDE Back Talk on groomers, lapped it through the park, took it off a few small side hits, brought it out to see and experience the rest of the mountain, and let it rip out in the open. And you know what? That bitch could hang. In fact, here’s what Veronika had to say about the RIDE Back Talk: I really like how fast and sturdy it feels, yet playful and maneuverable. It also has good pop. Not too stiff, not too soft, a perfect in between. This board felt like it was already broken in and ready to rip… It also felt a tiny bit softer than my RIDE Saturday board… the Back Talk is a bit more narrow in the waist than the Saturday, which gives it that playfulness in quick, tight turns.
““This thing is a darling in the park and demonstrates surprising stability almost everywhere else.””
And as for the rest of us who had some time on the RIDE Back Talk, we concur. We would also add that the Back Talk is a smooth operator when it comes to ollies, making it up the sides of the pipe, getting onto rails, and of course riding switch. This thing is a darling in the park and demonstrates surprising stability almost everywhere else.
Why the RIDE Back Talk Might Not Be For You
While we wouldn’t use it as our main all-mountain board (RIDE categorizes the Back Talk as an “all-mountain, park” board), we wouldn't not use it as our all-around get around board. If you know what we mean.
If you don’t know what we mean, here it is in slightly less vague terms… While the RIDE Back Talk has enough stability and stiffness that you can venture out of parkdom on it and still have a blast—plus it has the whole asym twin thing going on, which gives more bite to your heel-edge turn and thus (potentially) more confidence and control while making turns out in the wild—we wouldn’t keep it as our main broad for all-mountain.
And about that asym, there’s something about it (on almost ANY board) that Pigpen isn’t entirely sold on. According to her, it’s “totally fine and great to ride—I can feel the difference in how the heel edge digs into turns… yet there’s something about asymmetrical twins that doesn’t seem to track right for me. As I said in my Never Summer Funslinger review, I could get all emperor’s new clothes and proclaim to be over the moon for asymmetrical twin boards, but… I’d just be fooling myself and everyone else. Still, I’ll very happily rock an asym twin. They’re just not my first choice.”
They are, however, one of Veronika’s first choices. She doesn’t notice anything different on the asymmetrical twins she’s ridden, including the Back Talk. In fact, she’s pretty into them. Different sticks for different chicks, you know?
Why Buy the RIDE Back Talk, Plus Some Parting Notes
Ah, parting is such sweet sorrow. But alas, it’s time to jump off and leave you with one last pinch of wisdom to digest, plus a song to get down and dirty to (or at least get lodged in your head) while riding the RIDE Back Talk.
And so, if there’s one more thing we could say about the Back Talk—which we can, ‘cause this is our own goddamn dog and pony show—we would say this. The RIDE Back Talk is tits. Three of them at once. Enjoy.
Tunes to Ride by With the RIDE Back Talk Women's Snowboard
If we could still access our illegal Napster downloads from just after the turn of the century, sure as hell Still Fly from Big Tymers would be in there. Can’t get enough of the Birdman.