2021 Jones Snowboards Overview

Comments

1. Tim says

   October 12, 2020 at 6:10 am

   Hey Nate,

   Thanks for the in-depth reviews of the Jones line so far. Really excited to see your review of the flagship. In the meantime, the Stratos seems like an incredible board for what I want to do, but curious on how you felt that it handled uneven terrain, and how the 3D base felt?

   Reply

   • Nate says

     October 13, 2020 at 10:44 am

     Hi Tim

     Thanks for your message.

     You can see my review of the Flagship here

     I found the Stratos good in uneven terrain. An excerpt from my upcoming review of the Stratos:

     Good maneuverability for it’s flex – so getting through tight spaces was actually pretty good, and going over bumps was fine too.

     And it feels really damp in crud and does a good job crashing through it.

     I like the 3D base. Good in powder and helps to mellow out the ride a little – I’d say it helps in uneven terrain.

     Hope this helps

     Reply

2. David H. says

   September 30, 2020 at 4:11 pm

   Hello Nate,

   46 y/o that snowboarded when I was younger, and skated. I’m looking to get back into the sport and am considering the Ultra Flagship or the Stratos. My riding style is I like to carve, slow or fast, and get on powder whenever possible. Which one do you think would be the better choice? Thanks for the advice;)

   David

   Reply

   • Nate says

     October 1, 2020 at 10:29 am

     Hi David

     Thanks for your message.

     I haven’t ridden the Ultra Flagship, but based on the regular Flagship and the Ultra Flagship’s specs, it’s going to be a very stiff board and one that would require really good technique and physical strength to really enjoy – and not the easiest to ride at slower speeds, I don’t imagine, based on other similar boards I’ve ridden. Coming back into the sport and going straight onto an Ultra Flagship, probably not that recommendable, IMO.

     I think the Stratos would be a much better option. It’s certainly no noodle. It’s still a 7/10 flex board and freeride oriented for sure. It’s not going to hold you back performance-wise, IMO, but be an easier transition back into the sport.

     If you like the look of the Flagship, I would recommend going to the regular Flagship before going to the Ultra Flagship.

     Hope this helps with your decision

     Reply

3. Seb says

   September 30, 2020 at 12:19 am

   Hi,

   I know you’ve not published your Stratos review yet but I would love to have you opinion.
   I’m intermediate, 33 years old rider, so I’ve not my legs of my twenty anymore and I’m hesitating between the MT and the Stratos.
   I use to shred at slow speed, buttering, quick jumps, side hits, doing some flat tricks and sometimes I’m riding switch. I do not plane to flight over massive kickers or to do some advanced jibbing and rails, that’s not the goal, I’m not a high level freestyler but I’ve a strong skateboarding past so I love to do some basic tricks (180, grabs etc) when I saw a kicker. To resume I love to have fun 🙂
   For now carving is not something I’m attracted with.
   In these last years I really appreciate freeride more and more I’m looking for a board who float well in pow, which will require less effort than my current board but I still want to have some fun in park or sidehits. The stratos looks fine but I’m wondering about the freestyle aspect of this one so :
   – Do you think the Stratos is enough playful to give me the ability to make some fun moments at the park when powder isn’t here ?
   – Or do you think the MT 2021 (with the extra setback and the new spoon) will be enough to have fun in powder without to be too physical ?

   Thanks for your work on this site !

   Reply

   • Nate says

     September 30, 2020 at 9:50 am

     Hi Seb

     Thanks for your message.

     My instinct for you is to go with the Mountain Twin. The Stratos is a nice board if you’re looking to predominantly carve, bomb and ride powder, but doesn’t go as well in the park. It is better than the Mountain Twin for carving, speed and powder, but it’s also a board that takes more strength to ride and is not that well suited to freestyle stuff. Not something that’s easy to slow down and play around with. So although you don’t get quite as much for powder/carving/speed from the Mountain Twin, it is considerably better for being playful and doing freestyle. From what you’re describing, I think the MT will have the best mix of attributes for you. And in the freeride stance (40mm setback) and with the new spoon base, it’s pretty good in powder and I think the trade off for a small hit in powder performance for a bigger increase in freestyle/playful/agility is the better bet for you, IMO.

     Hope this helps with your decision

     Reply

     • Seb says

       October 1, 2020 at 12:57 am

       Thanks for your quick reply Nate !

       I’ll certainly get the MT with your advices, even I love the Statos’ top sheet ! ^^
       If in your opinion the Mountain Twin 2021 has enough freeride abilities to float effortless in the powder and let me play on side hits the rest of time, so it will be my board !
       I was thinking to choose Union Atlas for bindings, do you confirm that’s a good idea for the 2021 MT ?

       Thanks again !

       Reply

       • Nate says

         October 1, 2020 at 10:30 am

         Hi Seb

         You’re very welcome.

         Yeah, I think the Atlas is a good match for the MT.

         Reply

         • Seb says

           October 4, 2020 at 4:12 am

           Hi Nate,

           I saw that the Strata is much lighter a better for buttering than the Atlas but has a mini disc system. I have read somewhere that minidiscs are not compatible is set back inserts…
           So if I want to use the new freeride stance on the Mountain Twin I have to choose the Atlas, right ?

           Thanks for your time

         • Nate says

           October 5, 2020 at 11:27 am

           Hi Seb

           As far as I know the Mountain Twin doesn’t have any extra inserts that require you to have non-mini-disc. The freeride stance setup is within the standard insert pack. You could setup any board in a similar stance to the Mountain Twin’s freeride stance, it’s just that on the Mountain Twin they actually label it on the board, to make it easier to set up there. But you’re essentially just moving the front binding back one set of holes, to get that freeride stance versus reference stance.

           There are a few boards out there with “slamback inserts” now, so I definitely get the confusion. And on those boards, you can’t use a mini-disc to setup in those “slamback” inserts – sometimes called “blowerback” and other things depending on the brand. But unless it’s changed for the production model, the Mountain Twin doesn’t have any extra holes that are 4cm behind the insert pack, in the case of “slamnbacks” etc.

           So, if you wanted to go Strata, that would totally work.

4. Murphy says

   August 11, 2020 at 1:05 pm

   Did the 2021 Mountain Twin lose its directional twin shape and setback and move to a true twin shape?

   Reply

   • Nate says

     August 11, 2020 at 1:39 pm

     Hi Murphy

     Thanks for your message.

     Mountain Twin is still a directional twin for 2021. The nose is 1cm longer than the tail and it still has a 20mm (3/4″) reference setback stance.

     E.g. the 157 has a 23.5cm tip length and 22.5cm tail length. I confirmed this when testing the 2021 model too.

     The slightly confusing thing is that Jones states the “stance setback” as 0.0 in their catalog (i.e. centered), but the reference stance is 600mm (on the 157). At the 600mm reference stance there is a 20mm setback. The catalog also shows a “Centered Stance” of 580mm. If you setup in that centered stance, you can be centered on the effective edge of the board (but would still have that 1cm longer nose). But in the “reference stance” there is a 20mm setback.

     Also to note that on the 2021 Mountain Twin, Jones has marked a freestyle stance and freeride stance. The Freeride stance sets you back a little further (580mm on the 157, but with a 40mm setback) and the freestyle stance is the centered stance (at 580mm on the 157). Then reference is 600mm. A little confusing but it does makes sense. I actually rode the 2021 Mountain Twin with a 560mm stance, but with the same reference stance setback of 20mm, just because I find 600mm too wide for me. So there are a few possibilities there.

     But certainly there is still a subtly longer nose than tail, so not a true twin, even if you center up on it.

     Hope this helps

     Reply

5. Zuzu says

   July 17, 2020 at 7:48 am

   Nate,

   Thanks for the content, you’re the man. Curious to get your thoughts on UMT vs Assassin Pro?

   Thanks!

   Reply

   • Nate says

     July 17, 2020 at 10:25 am

     Hi Zuzu

     Thanks for your message.

     UMT vs Assassin Pro.

     This is just a label thing, but just to note: They’re in slightly different categories to me, but are close to being in the same category. I would say that the UMT is an aggressive all-mountain board, whereas the Assassin Pro is an aggressive all-mountain-freestyle. However, the UMT is bordering on aggressive-all-mountain-freestyle and the Assassin Pro is bordering on aggressive all-mountain. So they’re at that end of their categories where they come close together in that respect. That said, they are different feeling boards too for sure.

     The UMT is a smoother, damper feeling ride vs the snappier feel of the Assassin Pro.

     Beyond that, the UMT is also a little stiffer. The new 2021 UMT, IMO, isn’t as stiff as the previous models, but it’s still a little stiffer than Assassin Pro. I would say Assassin Pro 6.5/10 and UMT 7.5/10 (older models more like 8/10).

     And some subtle performance differences too – the UMT a little better for powder and just a touch more stable at speed. The Assassin Pro better for jumps and just a touch better for switch (but very subtle).

     Hope this gives you more to go off

     Reply

6. Big Guy says

   July 13, 2020 at 10:39 am

   Can’t wait to see the review on the new Mountain Twin. When will you be releasing that review? Thanks!

   Reply

   • Nate says

     July 13, 2020 at 11:30 am

     Hey Big Guy

     I will likely be updating my Mountain Twin review for the 2021 model sometime late August/early September. Keep an eye out around that time

     Reply