This fall has brought hints of El Nino and whispers of a snowboard from Loaded Boards. It is confirmed that one of those is true and we pray for feet of fresh powder all season. With fourteen years of revolutionary skateboard design under their belts, Loaded Boards is proud to announce the arrival of its inaugural snowboard, The Algernon.
First up, a little bit of history on Loaded. In 1995, Don Tashman, an avid snowboarder and Columbia University Student, wanted to emulate the feeling of the perfect snowboarding carve on the streets of NYC. Don figured that the best way to make a skateboard feel like a snowboard was to construct it like a snowboard. Moving back home to LA in 2000, Don intensified the prototyping process, exploring various shapes, materials and construction techniques. With lots of support from friends and family, The Vanguard was birthed in June of 2002. With active camber, wide stance, flexible deck and sidecut, the Vanguard brought snowboarding to the pavement. The board was met with much success and remains a staple for Loaded today. Never one to rest on his laurels, Don enlisted rabid fans to further develop new boards and push what was possible in skateboard design.
Today Loaded Boards produces a full line of skateboards designed for riding styles
ranging from Downhill Racing, Parks/Pools, Freeride and Soulful Carving. Loaded also manufactures a skateboard wheel collection under the Orangatang brand. The company is an international success with distribution in 57 countries and over 1000 core shops. Loaded’s reach and following is evident in its world class Ambassador program consisting of over 100 pro skaters located everywhere from Manila to Moscow.
Headquartered in the creative community of Culver City, CA, Loaded manufactures all of its boards (skate and snow) with Ernie DeLost in San Diego. Ernie is responsible for many advancements in snowboarding (kick tails, channel track binding system, sublimated graphics, to name a few) and is recognized in the Vail Snowboard Museum. His first boards were hand built in a converted chicken coop in upstate NY in 1977 under the Snowtech brand. He then partnered with Chuck Barfoot in 1985 where they continued to advance snowboard design. Ernie went on to build and managed the Taylor-Dykema factory in 1991, making boards for Lamar, Barfoot, Arbor, Joyride, World industries, H-street, Limited, and many others. Ernie opened his own factory, Capital L Manufacturing in 2003, and through a mutual close relationship with Chuck Barfoot, teamed up with Loaded. In 2012 Loaded put an emphasis on snowboards and Ernie expanded his factory to allow for parallel production of both skate and snow. Loaded is honored to work with such a master craftsman and build amazing boards in the USA.
On to the snow. The Algernon is an All-Mountain-Freeride board developed, tweaked and tested over the course of many years. Simplicity and a devotion to detail are the hallmarks of this board. Nothing is extraneous and nothing is left out, creating a uniquely accessible, intuitive and responsive ride perfectly at home on the resort as well as the backcountry. The seasoned rider will immediately relate to the refined styling of Loaded’s snowboard.
Now for the details. The Algernon utilizes a custom Loaded Bamboo core that is run from tip to tail and edge to edge without additional materials, stringers or sidewalls. The elimination of sidewalls reduces weight, allows for reliable flex and a snappy, uninterrupted edge to edge feel. Bamboo provides the perfect combination of responsiveness and dampening resulting in a smooth yet uniquely lively ride. Hand inlayed cork footbeds further reduce vibration and complement the bamboo aesthetically. The Algernon shape is directional, yet twin between the wide points with a slightly longer nose for powder. The profile is Loaded’s Mustache Camber, a subtle combination of camber and early rise allowing for solid edge hold, powerful snap,and an intuitive feel while being less catchy than a traditional camber. The stance is centered on the sidecut with the addition of extra binding inserts for a very set back riding position perfect for powder. You can hit the steep and deep in the morning and lap the park in the afternoon all with the same board. The Algernon comes hand sharpened and de-tuned with a full layer of wax for protection and storage. Scrape and go. The Algernon will be available in a 150, 154, 157 and a 160 wide. Product proud and industry innovators, Loaded offers a Limited Lifetime Warranty on every board they produce.
Building a snowboard from scratch allowed Loaded to develop a new sizing system for the Algernon. Typically boards are designed for a specific rider, usually a pro, and then scaled up and down from that template. Loaded wanted every size of the Algernon to ride as intended without losing any resolution from scaling. To do so, Loaded created a formula considering boot size, stance width and rider weight and then applied this to each individual board size; essentially creating four unique boards that all ride exactly as calculated.
Loaded Boards initiated a Zero Discount philosophy with their skate sales and distribution. Initially unsettling to shops and consumers, the Zero Discount policy is now widely accepted and provides a skate industry benchmark in margins and pricing. The snowboard industry is in a state of reflection and revival. The old practices of deep discounting and overproduction are not viable in the current industry climate. Loaded is confident that by applying the Zero Discount policy to snow, keeping production in the USA at a very healthy rate, and by only updating graphics when a major construction change occurs they can keep prices at a sustainable level for all parties involved in the sales process. Crazy, maybe, but Loaded has witnessed the effect this policy has had on a once fledgling longboard market and is confident with the potential in snow.