Bataleon Goliath Review

Overview of the Goliath’s Specs

Who is the Goliath Most Suited To?

The Goliath is best suited to someone looking for an all-rounder of a board that strikes a great balance of being good at everything. It's ever so slightly on the playful side of the playful-to-aggressive scale, but it's still something you can get a little aggressive on when you feel the need. 

It's not quite beginner optimal, but it is a pretty easy board to ride, so high-end beginners might be OK with it and certainly fine for low intermediate riders. But really fun for more advanced riders too, who want that softer end of medium flex and something that's easy to throw around. 

Goliath DetailS

Bindings angles: +15/-15

Stance width: 560mm (22″) 

Stance Setback: Centered

Width at Front Insert: 265mm (10.4")

Width at Back Insert: same as front insert

Rider Height: 6'0"

Rider Weight: 180lbs

Rider Boot Size: US9.5 Adidas Response ADV

Bindings Used: Burton Malavita M 

Weight: 2800grams (6lbs 3oz)

Weight per cm: 17.95 grams/cm

Average Weight per cm: 18.71 grams/cm*

*based on a sample size of around 250 models that I’ve weighed in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024 models. It was a little lighter on the scales vs the average and even lighter feeling when riding.  

Powder

No powder to test in on the day, but based on feel and specs, it would likely be around average. It's got a slightly longer nose than tail but is twin in every other way, so not a lot going for powder there - but it does have the 3D shaping in the 3BT base, which helps. 

Carving

Like most Bataleon boards, the engagement point on a carve is a little deeper into the carving motion than typical. But when you get used to that, it's a pretty good board to carve on. It's not an epic carver by any means, but not bad either. 

Turning

Ease of Turning/Slashing: Really easy to initiate turns on this board and really fun to slash without consequence. 

Maneuverability at slow speeds: Really quick edge-to-edge at slower speeds. Really easy and quick to maneuver overall. 

Catchiness: It's going to be really hard to catch an edge on this board. Just felt super catch-free.  

Speed

It's no speed demon. Gets a bit wobbly when opening it out to moderately fast speeds. It's not terrible either and you can certainly ride it up to reasonable speeds and still feel stable on it. 

Uneven Terrain

Crud/Chunder: Does get bucked around pretty easily in and is a little chattery in crud/chunder. That light feeling doesn't help in this area. But it is easy to readjust your line when you do get knocked off line. 

Trees/Bumps: That quickness edge-to-edge made this board really fun in trees and bumps. Super easy to maneuver through. Would be OK if there was powder in the trees. 

Jumps

So fun! I found it struck a really good balance of all factors for jumping, ollying, side hits etc. 

Pop: Nice and easy to access this board's pop and there was a touch more when you wound it up. Full value for pop too because of its lightness.

Approach: Not super stable for faster approaches needed for bigger jumps, but stable enough and nice and easy to make adjustments/speed check etc. Just the right mix for me.

Landing: Solid enough on landings - and nice and easy to speed check when needed after landing. Forgiving of errors and a good amount of tail for tail heavy landings.  

Side-hits: Super fun on side hits! Had that easy pop and maneuverability which made side hits super fun and easy. 

Small jumps/Big jumps: Medium is its sweet spot. For larger jumps it can feel a little wobbly on approach and landing. But that's the only reason I wouldn't give this board a 5/5 for jumps. For small to medium jumps it's a 5/5. 

Switch

It's got a slightly longer nose than tail but other than that, it's pretty much twin. And it feels great riding switch. And transitions were super easy and never feared catching an edge. 

Spins

Great for setting up and landing switch, light, poppy and easy to swing it around. All the makings of a great spinning board. It's not fully twin and whilst I didn't do any big tricks, it's going to have the same slight downsides with big tricks as it does on big jumps. 

Jibbing

I felt confident jibbing with this board and I'm not a strong jibber. 

Butters

It's pretty easy to butter. It's not ultra easy, you've got to put some weight into the tip/tail, but not that much effort required. 

Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

Overall, the Goliath is a great all-rounder, capable of almost anything. 

It's only real weaknesses are in crud and at high speeds, but even then, it's not terrible or anything. It tackles everything else with an energetic snap that had me grinning ear to ear after riding it - and definitely left me wanting more time with it!