Weston Backwoods Splitboard

This is my go to board and splitboard for bigger powder days. its obvious with its shape while it would excel in those conditions. What surprised me the most though was how well the board performed in firm, icy, and groomed conditions. The sidecut is perfect and itll be great this spring. From Cat Skiing on our deep days to guiding and teaching this spring this board rips and the fun really surprised me.

Weston really nailed it with the backwoods and it's the only powder specific board in my quiver which gets used a bunch during the winter season here in Colorado. The camber-dominant profile and 10mm setback on this board not only makes it really nimble and quick riding through those tight tree runs but it is super reliable on crud and non-ideal conditions as well. I've even taken this board on some really steep and tight couloirs just for the hell of it and it ended up being really fun, great edge-hold and gave me a lot of confidence. While I do prefer a twin shaped board for that type of riding, the backwoods can really do it all and it's just an all around amazing board. This was the only board I took on a trip to Japan and it did its job keeping me afloat in some of the deepest snow of my life. For reference I'm a small rider at 5'9 130 lbs and I ride the 152 which is the same size as my inbounds boards and it is the perfect size for me so with that being said I really don't see the need to size up on the backwoods unless you just want a bigger board but for me it doesn't feel necessary at all.

The backwoods has been my board for choice for years. This board shreds everything. Steep lines, open bowls, packed trees. I have never had an issue with my board and the tech that keeps it performing day after day. The 157 for me at 150lbs and 5'7" is the perfect fit. I couldn't recommend this board enough. Love it so much that I am planning on getting the carbon!

Note: I am a Weston Team Rider but I would have given this same review regardless. The Weston Backwoods is one of my favorite splitboards. I've tried other models and other manufactures over the 18 years I have been in the backcountry but keep coming back to the backwoods for backcountry riding. It has become my go-to board for use throughout the season while recreationally touring as well as while guiding and teaching avalanche courses for my profession. Highly recommend this board to anybody out there who is doing everything minus maybe primarily hitting backcountry booters. I find myself enjoying this board ride and feel in pretty much every condition that I have encountered.

Once the snow gets deep the backwoods is the board I'm grabbing. This board floats great and rides better. The beauty of this board is I can ride it in chest deep pow and not feel like my back leg is on fire because the nose just wants to stay on top no matter what I do. Then once the storm has passed and the snow settles its easy turning feels super surfy and fun. For being as directional as it is, the pop in this board is really quite surprising. I've felt comfortable sending anything from big pillow lines to boosting backcountry kickers. This is an easy riding board that's happy in deep snow making tight turns in the trees to big terrain surfing huge turns. It keeps a smile on your face all day.

The Weston Backwoods is such a versatile board despite it's powder oriented shape. I use it as my daily driver in all conditions and terrain. I ride a wide and it rips on groomers, can easily snake through tight trees and is plenty stable on both crud and icy terrain. It will ride switch, but that's where it falls a little short compared to a true twin or even directional twin.
Powder. This is where the Backwoods really shines. This board is so fun on deep days making effortless turns and keeping the nose up without a swallowtail.

Super fun split that can handle pretty much all conditions. I've been rocking the Backwoods here in the PNW and it has been awesome. Super nimble and floaty in the PNW pow. I always have a smile at the end of my runs. Goes uphill really well. I recommend this board to anyone looking to get into splitboarding. Whether your new to the sport or an experienced rider, you can't go wrong with the Backwoods Split.

This board is my daily driver. It is billed as a powder board but don’t let that fool you! This board handles steeps, plows through chunder and is the ultimate powder machine! Weston‘s board construction is phenomenal, a super energized poppy and responsive wood core sandwiched between a bomber, top sheet and super fast base! I have rode over 100 days on this board and with a proper tune is as good as the day I took the plastic off. For reference I am 5‘11“ 145 pounds and ride the 157 cm.

Backwoods 160 Carbon Split
Rider: Male 5’10 185 LBS (Not including pack)
Boots: Phantom Atomic Backland Pro 27.5
Bindings: Phantom M6
Skins: Jones Nomad Pro
I decided to test the Backwoods Carbon 160 split and Ridgeline 162 split in the same 4 zones in Tahoe in early December. Generally for 3 of the 4 zones you start around 6600’ and summit at around 9000’. Early season brings variable and elevation dependent snow. With some storms and zones you can yo-yo the top ½ to 2/3 of the area, have lunch, and get the better snow at the higher elevations. This worked out great for testing these boards in great snow up top and difficult snow at the bottom.
The uphill. The first 800’-900’ were firm on the skin track, which is pretty standard for the skin track in this zone. I’m generally pretty quick to put on my Split Crampons around here as I’ve been humbled too many times. These days were no different. About 200’ before the bench the wetter “Sierra Cement” transitioned into classic blower pow on many of the early days.
I was a bit concerned with how a board with so much taper, and designed for Pow, would handle touring up steep, frozen hard pack shin tracks. I tried multiple different styles of kick turns and round turns. The board toured uphill great with the perfect toe piece placement giving you a slight upward angle as you lifted your foot. I thought the shape might prove difficult when following a established skin track but this wasn’t an issue, even when we encountered breakable crust.
The Ride. There was a ton of SWE and snow density changes within the upper snowpack between storms and during storms as well. The Backwoods did great in all of them. If there was one condition that it didn’t perform well on it was when we’d get it to the elevations where it rained on top of snow. It felt classically sluggish and slow in those conditions, but most of the boards I’ve been on in these conditions felt that way. It didn’t help this was in flatter terrain. On the lower elevation, variable frozen ice tracks I knew we would encounter I was pretty skeptical, especially for a carbon board and a hard boot set up. While this certainly was a standout as far as performance, no turning ice to pow here, I was generally impressed with how this tapered, carbon, stiff, set up was able to keep and edge and blast over the frozen used snow. It was significantly better then some of the other boards I’ve used in these same conditions. The board has great energy and dampening at higher speed traverses and holds an edge great. This is only the 5th carbon I’ve tried. I did not notice a big difference in torsional rigidity or overall stiffness in comparison to the solid non carbon version. I think that’s one of the best things about this board is you can demo or buy the solid version first then bring it to the backcountry. I’ve demo’d, rented, borrowed, tested, used, and worked on somewhere around 15-18 different split boards from 7 different manufacturers. Most boards were pretty good but had one area of needed improvement. The Backwoods 160 Carbon Split is now my go to board when I’m Guiding in the Snowcat. If I knew I was on a bit more variable conditions or with less snow I’d use the Ridgeline 162. You really can’t go wrong with either of these in the solid or split versions. They are backed by a 4 year warranty which from a guiding perspective is a great added luxury. I’m careful with my equipment but on it often. I’m confident on this board and highly recommend it, especially if your going to be on good snow

This board truly slay both the uphill and the downhill. I tour this board through icy skin tracks and set fresh tracks with ease. The ride down is killer in all conditions whether wide open or in tight trees! So fun!!