Hello and welcome to my Niche Maelstrom review.
In this review I will take a look at the Maelstrom as a Freeride snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Maelstrom a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and also see how it compares with other Freeride snowboards.
NOTE: This review has not been updated beyond the 2023/2024 model.
Overall Rating
Board: Niche Maelstrom
Price: $569 (USD recommended retail)
Style: Freeride
Flex Rating: Stiff (8/10)
Flex Feel: Stiff (8/10)
Rating Score: 83.2/100
Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards
Of the 40 current model freeride snowboards that we tested:
- The average score was 83.8/100
- The highest score was 90.8/100
- The lowest score was 75.0/100
- The average price was $644
- The Maelstrom ranked 26th out of 40
Overview of the Maelstrom’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Maelstrom’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
Style: | Freeride |
Price: | $569 - BUYING OPTIONS |
Ability Level: |  |
Flex: |  |
Feel: |  |
Smooth/Snappy: |  |
Dampness: |  |
Playful/Aggressive: |  |
Edge-hold: |  |
Camber Profile: | |
Shape: | |
Setback Stance: | Setback 20mm (0.75") |
Base: | Sintered |
Weight: | Felt Heavier than normal |
Sizing
LENGTH (cm) | Waist Width (mm) | Rec Rider Weight (lb) | Rec Rider Weight (kg) |
|---|---|---|---|
148 | 240 | not available | n/a |
151 | 244 | n/a | n/a |
154 | 248 | n/a | n/a |
157 | 252 | n/a | n/a |
160 | 256 | n/a | n/a |
163 | 260 | n/a | n/a |
166 | 264 | n/a | n/a |
* the 148 and 151 are new sizes for the 2023 model
Who is the Maelstrom Most Suited To?
The Maelstrom is for those that like to bomb, carve and float in powder. It's not terribly versatile because outside of those things, it wasn't a board I loved.
So unless that's all you like to do, then it's not a one-board quiver, IMO, but could work as your charge/powder board in quiver.
Certainly not for a beginner. You gotta really take charge of this board or it will take you for ride.
THE Maelstrom IN MORE DETAIL
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Maelstrom is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: Niche Maelstrom 2023, 157cm (252mm waist width)
Date: March 24, 2022
Conditions
Sunny with barely a cloud in the sky.
Temperature: 30°F (-1°C) in the morning, warming up to 36°F (2°C) in the afternoon.
24hr snow: 0" (0cm)
48hr snow: 0" (0cm)
7 day snow: 27" (69cm)
On groomer: Hard packed but not icy.
Off groomer: Icy and crunchy to start but softened up as the day went on.
Setup
Bindings angles: +12/-9
Stance width: 21.3″ (540mm)
Stance Setback: Setback 3/4" (20mm)
Width at Inserts: 10.39" (264mm) at front insert and 10.31" (262mm) at back insert.
Rider Height: 6'1"
Rider Weight: 180lbs
Rider Boot Size: US9.5 Adidas Tactical Lexicon ADV
Bindings Used: Fix Yale: M
Weight: 6lbs 13oz (3100grams)
Weight per cm: 19.75 grams/cm
Average Weight per cm: 18.59 grams/cm*
*based on a sample size of around 200 models that I’ve weighed in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 & 2023 models. So the Maelstrom was heavier than normal on the scales - and felt that way on snow too.
Powder
Nothing to test in on the day but have had this board in a small amount of powder before and felt really good.
It's also got the specs. Some taper, a longer nose than tail, plus a healthy amount of rocker in the nose.
Carving
This board can carve. It can feel a bit hooky at times, but when you when you really lay into it and in the right conditions it can lock in a really big carve.
Turning
Ease of Turns/Slashing: Not the easiest to turn. Edges feel "heavy".
Maneuverability at slow speeds (nimbleness): Not super agile, but not super sluggish either. But you do have to fight it a bit to change edges - so whilst you can do it relatively quickly, it's certainly not effortless.
Skidded Turns: Felt quite catchy at times.
Speed
You can bomb with this board. It feels fast and it feels really stable at speed.
Uneven Terrain
Crud: It doesn't get bucked around easily in crud but it it's not immune to it. And when you do get thrown off your line, it's not the easiest to correct.
Trees/Bumps: It's not the most agile and whilst it's also not a complete tank, it does take effort to make quick turns, so it can get quite fatiguing in trees.
Let’s Break up this text with a Video
Jumps
Not designed for it, so wasn't expecting much. Wouldn't be my board of choice for hitting jumps.
Pop: A normal amount of pop, but not easy to access. You've got to put it in to get it out.
Approach: Didn't love the heavy edge feeling/catchiness. If you locked in and charged it and had no need to adjust your line on the way it did fine, but when having to make corrections, it didn't feel great.
Landing: Nice smooth landings when you get it right. Really solid. But not overly forgiving when you get it wrong.
Side-hits: Not great. Easier access pop and maneuverability were lacking. And that catchiness wasn't super confidence inspiring.
Small jumps/Big jumps: Neither was ideal. But it can handle bigger jumps well, given its stiffer flex, but not super forgiving if you get it wrong.
Switch
Not terrible but it is fairly directional. And that catchiness doesn't make transitions feel the nicest.
Butters
Not the easiest to press and the flex point felt a bit weird. And it feels quite different in tail vs nose. But certainly not what this board is designed to be.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
RATING | SCORE WEIGHTING | |
|---|---|---|
POWDER | 4.5 | 22.5/25 |
SPEED | 4.5 | 18/20 |
CARVING | 4.0 | 12/15 |
TURNS/SLASHING | 3.0 | 6/10 |
CRUD/CHUNDER | 3.5 | 7/10 |
TREES/BUMPS | 3.0 | 6/10 |
JUMPS | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
SWITCH | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
TOTAL after normalizing | 83.2/100 |
The Maelstrom is good at what it's meant to be good at. Bombing, carving and finding powder.
Outside of that, it wasn't a heap of fun. But if those things are your bread and butter and there's not much else outside of that you like to do, then you shouldn't be disappointed in this board.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the Maelstrom, or if you are ready to buy, or if you just want to research prices and availability, check out the links below.
If you want to check out some other freeride snowboard options, or if you want to compare how the Maelstrom compares to other freeride snowboards, then check out the next link.
Hi Nate,
I’ve seen a good deal on a 21/22 Maelstrom 166.
Im 6’5, 240lbs. Size 12 boot. Would this be a good fit?
I like shredding the whole mountain, like side hits and jumps, but have a few boards in the quiver already dedicated to that, so not a deal breaker.
I keep seeing your review for the 21/22 pop up, but can’t access it. Was it previously a top ten freeride board? If so, has it changed drastically for this season?
Thanks! And keep up the great content 🤘
Hi Ryan
Thanks for your message.
We had it as a top 10 freeride board previously, but after re-testing the 2023 model it didn’t make the top 10, partly because it didn’t score as well as when we’d tested it previously and partly because other boards that were new to us or that we retested scored higher and were preferred. But it’s still a board we like, just not quite as much as we used to. I think it’s a good size for you and if you’re looking for more of a charger/stiff board to add to your quiver, I think it could work well for you.
Hope this gives you more to go off for your decision
Hey Nate,
Thanks for the reply. I’ve decided to go for a burton skeleton key 162 instead. I get the impression the maelstrom is maybe a bit too serious and freeride focused, and hoping the SK strikes a nice balance between hard charging and fun which is what I’m after..
Got a really good deal too on ‘ it too, so I’m looking forward to testing it out.
Thanks again for the help and the most excellent site. Cheers 🙂
Hi Ryan
You’re very welcome and yeah, the Skeleton Key is a good balance between charging and fun, IMO. If you think of it at the time, would be interested to hear how you get on, once you had a chance to get it out on snow.
Hey Nate,
Yeah for sure! Can’t wait for the snow now lol, will let you know how it goes as soon as I get a chance to get out on it. 🤙🏻
I’m 5’6″ 200# Boot size 10.5
Would the 163 be appropriate for me?
Hi Mike
Thanks for your message.
I would go 160 for your specs. It should be wide enough and that’s the better length for your specs, IMO. The 163 would be on the big side for you, IMO. Unless you’ve ridden a board that long for years, I wouldn’t go that long. But the 160 should work well for your specs, IMO.
Hope this helps
Hey Nate,
I’m in a sort of similar situation. I have size 11.5 Burton driver x’s. I have been looking at this board as a daily driver (mostly just carving on groomers) and was wondering if the 163 would be wide enough to get those far over eurocarve turns. I’m 5’11 160lbs so I think the 166 might be out of range. Thanks!
Hi Craig
Thanks for your message.
For eurocarves I think the 163 would be too narrow, with 11.5s, even low profile boots like Burton Driver X. Also, I think 163 is too long – unless that’s a size that you’re used to riding and know you like it. But otherwise, I wouldn’t go that long for your specs. I think you’re better off looking for a wider, shorter board. Plenty of options for good carvers in a better size for you, IMO.
Hope this helps
Hi All,
just wanted to share the weight of the 166 version of the board, as I’ve noticed you add it from time to time.
It is 3163grams for the 166, for a 19.05g per cm.
Cheers
Hi Bogomil
Thanks for that! Always good to get more specs and I didn’t get a chance to weight the Maelstrom when I rode it, so that’s awesome. 🙂 Much appreciated
Hi Nate,
I’m looking at the Niche Maelstrom for my next board. For some stats I’m 6’3′, about 180 pounds and I wear a 11.5 Ride fuse boot.
My first question is about sizing, as I know the taper will come into play. I’m not sure what size to be looking at 160+?
My second question is do you think this could work for a daily driver if I like to charge? I mainly snowboard out East and I have a park board for when I like to play around.
Appreciate all you do on this site.
Thanks in advance,
Cole
Hi Cole
Thanks for your message.
Yeah, I reckon this would definitely work as a daily driver, given that you’ve already got a park board and that you like to charge.
Size-wise, I think it’s between the 160 and 163. With the 160 you might be pushing it width-wise though. It’s around 266mm at the back insert (at a 540mm stance width). If you were to ride with a wider stance width, which I’m guessing you probably would at your height?, then you’re probably looking at more like 268-270mm depending on how much wider you went. Then it becomes doable, but still on the narrow side. Binding angles come into play too. Ride boots are fairly low profile, so that helps, but if you really like to lean into your carves, then it’s pretty tight.
The 163 I think would give you enough leeway. It’s still no the narrower side for 11.5s, but more doable, if you wanted to go up to that length. Certainly I would say if you wanted to use it as a daily driver and wanted to slow it down and play around sometimes, then I would say 160 is the better bet. But if you’re predominantly going to be charging on this deck, then I think the 163 is certainly doable, and should give you enough room width-wise. If you’re riding with a straight back binding angle (like 0 degrees, 3 degrees, that kind of thing) and like to eurocarve, kind of thing, then even the 163 is pushing it width-wise, but otherwise I think you’d be alright.
Hope this helps
Hey Nate,
Long time lurker, first time commenter.
I’ve been considering three boards for this coming winter for hard charging. The Maelstrom, Flagship, and BSOD. I was really interested in the Maelstrom earlier this summer, and probably should have bought one, but I was a little hesitant as its got a strong taper. I’m just not really sure what size would fit me best.
I have a 10-10.5 boot, and weigh in at ~90kg on a heavier day. I was thinking the 163 Maelstrom would be the size for me as maybe the 160 would be just a little too narrow on the back foot for really getting the board on edge. My alternatives would probably be the 164 Flagship, or the 162 BSOD.
Am I on the right path for sizing? I would really appreciate any advice you might have.
Hi Andrew
Thanks for your message.
Making a rough assumption about height (sizing is predominantly weight and boot size, but I do like to consider height to some extent), I would say something around that 161-163 range would be a good bet in terms of sizing. So, yeah I would probably look at the 163 for the Maelstrom largely because you’re looking for something hard charging. The 160 is definitely an option still, and might be leaning more that way, if it was something you were also going to ride in the trees or something like that. I don’t think you’d have too many issues width-wise on the 160.
The Flagship has a shorter effective edge vs overall length vs the other 2, so I think going up to 164 makes sense. 161 a possibility. Could be pushing it in terms of width though on a 10.5 boot if you’re going to be ripping carves on it. Though I had no issues on the 158 Flagship with size 10s. But again, given that it sounds like you’ll be predominantly hard charging, I think the 164 makes the most sense.
The 162 for the BSOD would be a good size for you, IMO and no issues with width there.
If you were worried about how much taper, just note that the Flagship (2020 and 2021 models) has a similar amount of taper as the Maelstrom. The BSOD has a very subtle taper.
Hope this helps with your decision
Thanks for following up Nate, I really appreciate hearing your thoughts on those boards.
I usually ride shorter boards (currently have a 56 Orca and a 60 Dart) that make life in trees easy. I’m 6’3 though and thought my quiver could use a big ripper like the 163 Maelstrom. If you don’t think the 160 would be an issue with width, would I be at risk of having too much board with the 63? I’ve never had a board that big before, so I’m not really sure what to expect if it is both long and super stiff.
Cheers!
Hi Andrew
If you’re used to shorter and going to be riding in trees, then the 160 is definitely doable – if you think you’re going to feel more comfortable on that, then it’s definitely an option for you.
The Orca does ride big – so the 156 probably feels closer to a 163, IMO. I rode the 153 and felt closer to a 160 to me. But in saying that, the Maelstrom gets quite wide by the time you get up to the 160, so it certainly doesn’t ride small either. Definitely doesn’t ride as big as the Orca, but big enough I would say, that you won’t be pining for a bigger size, if you’re used to riding around that kind of size.
Thanks for the review, I appreciate what you do with this site.
A bit of a story and a question: I am a charge hard and fast, rip steeps kind of rider; I hike to chase steeps with pow on resort. I can afford to own multiple boards, but I prefer just sticking to one.
I bought the 2020 Jones Flagship this year, coming from the 2015 DC Supernatant. I loved carving on my Supernatant, but it was definitely a little rough at speed and didn’t handle uneven end of day snow well. Enter the Flagship; it bombed better, rode uneven snow better, floated better. It was a little softer than my Supernatant (I like a stiff board) but that was fine. The only initial negative was that I was getting washout at the rear when laying down a carve, but I figured how to pressure my back foot to get rid of that. Loved the fast base, loved bombing on it. It honestly could have a little more response/springy when carving, but I made that work and the ability to bomb straight was good trade off.
Only problem, the flagship base is soft; I did 3 PTEX repairs on it after 8 days on it, when I only did one on my Supernatant over 3 years of riding it. Then, I destroyed my Flagship riding some rocky chutes here at Big Sky earlier this week (the lines were epic though…).
I am looking at replacing my Flagship, but due to the issues with the softer base I am thinking of going with something else. I demoed boards yesterday, and was left disappointed for different reasons:
Rossi XV: loved the float, speed, maneuverability in trees/moguls; magnetraction was just too much and wanted to grip while bombing straight lines, locked the carves in without allowing me to really adjust my carve radius.
Burton flight attendant: just boring. mediocre float in pow. it can carve but doesn’t give me power/rebound. in the trees/moguls it was ok, not great. Edge hold on icy snow sub par. base plain slow, but it did need a wax. just a boring ride in general.
LibTech EJack: middle of the road between the Burton FA and Rossi XV. better edge hold without being overly locked in like the XV. it carved well enough, but I feel I missed more camber spring due to its profile. Slower in trees/moguls than the XV. Faster base even though it needed a wax, but not as fast as the XV and not fast enough for me.
Sorry for all the writing, but to get to my question. I’ve looked at your ratings for multiple boards, and the Maelstrom seems to hit the highs for me (speed, carving, pow).
1. given my experience with the above boards, do you think that the Niche Maelstrom would be a good fit? I can’t demo it here (maybe I can demo it in Colorado from EVO, but not sure things will line up). I need it to bomb straight lines, can it do that well without significant chatter like I felt in the XV?
2. Considered the jones carbon flagship which supposedly has a harder base; but I am pretty sure while I would love its bomber speed, I would hate riding it in the trees/moguls or on end of day resort crud – agree?
Thanks for taking the time to read this, sorry it is so long, open to any suggestions you have.
Hi Tatnai
Thanks for your message.
I haven’t experienced the softness of the base with the Flagship – but I don’t ride for more than a day on most boards, so don’t get the chance to really test that. So, I don’t know that the Maelstrom would be a big improvement in that sense – it could be, but it might not be too.
But otherwise, I think it could work. Some things to note.
– Not the dampest board in the world, but not super chattery either. I don’t remember the XV being overly chattery though, so can’t guarantee you’ll feel it as less chattery. But I found it crashed through crud pretty well.
– Not the most maneuverable at slower speeds – so if you’re going through tight trees and not going that fast through there, that could be one downside – it’s slower in that sense vs the XV and Flight Attendant. I also found the Ejack Knife not that maneuverable in trees, and I would say it’s similar to that, in that sense
– It’s got good edge-hold without being overly grippy, so I think you would definitely like that aspect about it – and it’s certainly got the carving, speed and powder performance that you’re looking for, IMO
– I found it just a touch stiffer than the Flagship. I did find it stiffer than the FA, Ejack Knife and similar to the XV.
So overall I think it would work, but just some caveats there. The other’s I would consider would be the GNU Mullair, Never Summer Chairman & YES Pick Your line. But with the Mullair it has a similar camber profile to the Ejack Knife, which you may not be that fond of (I loved that board, but if you don’t like the feel of that kind of camber profile it may not be for you). It is more maneuverable in the trees, and I found it a better carver than the Ejack Knife too. The Chairman also has rocker between the feet, so there’s that to consider if you’re not sure about that kind of camber profile. The Pick Your Line is certainly one I would look into as well.
In terms of the Jones Carbon Flagship. It’s something I haven’t ridden, but I suspect that it may not be that great in trees, though I couldn’t say for sure. It certainly sounds like it’s stiffer than the regular Flagship – which usually means less maneuverable at slower speeds, but hard to say to what extent having not ridden it.
Thanks so much for the thoughtful reply, extremely helpful.
I think I need to try the Mullair and YPYL.
Enjoy the rest of the winter.
You’re very welcome Tatnai. Hope you enjoy the rest of the season too!