Hello and welcome to my Jones Ultra Mind Expander Snowboard review.
In this review, I will take a look at the Ultra Mind Expander (UME) as a freeride snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the UME a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how it compares with other freeride snowboards.
Overall Rating
Board: Jones Ultra Mind Expander
Price: $779
Style: Freeride
Flex Rating: Stiff (8/10)
Flex Feel on Snow: Stiff (9/10)
Rating Score: 80.4/100
Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards
Out of the 35 men’s freeride snowboards that I rated:
Overview of the Ultra Mind Expander’s Specs
Check out the tables for the UME’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
Style: | Freeride |
Price: | $779 |
Ability Level: |  |
Flex: |  |
Feel: |  |
Turn Initiation: | Medium-Fast |
Edge-hold: |  |
Camber Profile: | |
Shape: | |
Setback Stance: | Setback 20mm |
Base: | Sintered 9900 |
Weight: | Normal |
Sizing
LENGTH (cm) | Waist Width (mm) | Rec Rider Weight (lb) | Rec Rider Weight (kg) |
|---|---|---|---|
150 | 252 | 120-170 | 54-77 |
154 | 256 | 130-180 | 59-82 |
158 | 260 | 150-200+ | 67-91+ |
162 | 264 | 170-220+ | 77-100+ |
Who is the Ultra Mind Expander Most Suited To?
The Ultra Mind Expander is a great option for those looking for a really stiff mid-wide, highly directional ride. A good mix of performance for powder, carving and speed.
Definitely not for a beginner and not recommended for an intermediate rider. It's pretty stiff and you want to be on your game and ready to ride it or it will ride you.
The Ultra Mind Expander in More Detail
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Ultra Mind Expander is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: Jones Ultra Mind Expander 2020, 154cm (256mm waist width)
Date: March 19, 2019
Conditions: Sunny and really warm! Perfect visibility.
First thing quite crusty off groomer and quite hard and semi icy on groomer. Poorly groomed too - bumps and ruts and divets everywhere.
Softened up a little later which was nice.
Bindings angles: +15/-15
Stance width: 560mm (22″)
Stance Setback: Setback 40mm
Width at Inserts: 280mm (11.02") at front insert and 264mm (10.39") at back insert
Rider Height: 6'0"
Rider Weight: 185lbs
Rider Boot Size: US10 Vans Aura
Bindings Used: Burton Malavita M
Weight: 2860g
Weight per cm: 18.57 grams/cm
Average Weight per cm: 18.45 grams/cm*
*based on a small sample size of 51 boards that I've weighed in 2019 and 2020 models. The UME is slightly heavier than the average, but given it's overall surface area, it's relatively light for it's length. However, all that said, it felt quite heavy on snow to me.
Flex
Really stiff. It's not a slightly stiffer, cambered Mind Expander. It's a considerably stiffer, cambered Mind Expander.
Powder
Didn't have any powder to test on on the day, but it's specs suggest that it would be a good ride in powder. It's got a long, wide nose, vs a much narrower, shorter tail.
Whilst there's only moderate setback on effective edge on reference stance, the overall setback on the board is considerable. All of that plus a good bit of rocker in the nose and the spoon bevel base (3D Contour Base) makes it well setup for ride the soft and fluffy.
Carving & Turning
Carving: Feels nice to carve. That's where this board prefers to be, over a regular turn.
Maneuverability at slow speeds: Not very agile at slower speeds. The board feels much better when you've got some speed up to help throw some momentum into changing edges. At slow speeds it feels like you've got to put a good bit of effort in to transition edges.
Skidded Turns: Not very friendly for skidded turns. This board wants you on edge.
Speed
The conditions weren't really conducive (not super flat/smooth) to really open it out (rutty and cruddy - not very well groomed that day). But even in those conditions I felt really stable and confident at speed on this board. I would say it's best feature for sure - just so stable.
Uneven Terrain
It powers through crud and anything like that (see speed above).
But for bumps that you want to weave through it's not great. Not nimble enough for my liking for that.
Let’s Break up this text with a Video
The Ultra Mind Expander part of this vid comes in at around 1:38.
Jumps
Too stiff to be really fun for jumps for me, but there's some pop on offer if you're willing to put the effort in to extract it.
Pop: Good pop, but you need to put it in to get it out.
Approach: Really stable for when you need to pick up speed and just bomb it to the lip, but not nimble enough for me for anything beyond a straight hit.
Landing: Super solid on landings, but not that forgiving if you don't stomp it.
Side-hits: Not nimble enough for my liking and not easy enough to extract the pop.
Small jumps/Big jumps: Best for big air when you just want to straight air it and need a solid landing from a large jump.
Switch
Nah, pretty unnatural for switch. You can do it of course, but not the best.
Spins
Felt heavy/difficult to get the board around and not great for landing/tacking off switch for 1s, 5s etc. Not something I enjoyed spinning on - but not what this board is designed for either.
Jibbing
Nah- but again, not what it's designed for.
Butters
There's something there that moves in the tip and tail when you try to press it, but not much. Takes a lot of strength/effort to try to butter this one.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
RATING | SCORE WEIGHTING | |
|---|---|---|
POWDER | 4.0 | 20/25 |
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 | 3.0 | 3/5 |
SWITCH | 2.0 | 2/5 |
TOTAL after normalizing | 80.4/100 |
Overall, the Mind Expander is a best of a board. If you're looking for a board that's great for bombing the mountain on groomer days, but can ride the powder well on pow days, then this is defintitely an option - assuming you like your board nice and stiff.
Be ready to take charge of this board - nothing casual on this thing - be ready to ride hard the whole time you're on it.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the Ultra Mind Expander, 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 Ultra Mind Expander compares to other freeride snowboards, then check out the next link.
Hey Nate
I’ve been riding the Hovercraft for the past two seasons and I’m thinking it’s the kind of board you go with for the rest of your life cause its pretty much perfect for all kinds of conditions from early morning hard pack to pow. Since i’m going for a one board quiver, there have been times where I’ve had some second thoughts whether I should have chosen the Ultra Mind Expander or the Storm Wolf instead. My main concern is having a board that holds as much edge as possible cause I love going down the piste on full speed. I know all three are pretty much the same in terms of profile and specs but I would like to know your opinion as well
Hi Alexi
Thanks for your message.
I think it depends on how you ride. The Hovercraft can be a good one-board-quiver, if you’re not really doing anything freestyle. None of the 3 you mentioned would I consider a one-board quiver for myself because I like to also do things like butter, hit rails/boxes, jumps, spins, slash around and ride switch etc, but if you’re not doing anything like that they all can be.
If you’re predominantly riding fast on groomers, carving and hitting powder, then they all work as one-board quivers. The Ultra Mind Expander can handle a little more speed just because it’s stiffer but other than that I would take the Hovercraft over it. Better in powder, as good on a carve and something that you don’t have to be riding full throttle all the time to enjoy it (which is what I found with the Ultra Mind Expander). So in some ways the Hovercraft is more versatile.
I haven’t ridden the Storm Wolf, so I can’t say for sure but on paper it certainly looks suitable for what you’re describing. It’s in between the 2 in terms of flex. Again, not what I would call a one-board quiver for myself, but if powder, carving and speed is your go to, then it could be for you.
Hope this gives you more to go off for your decision
Hi Nate!
I need your help 😊
I can’t decide which big mountain,pow board to buy. Can you help me?
I’m 5’9″ ft and 190-200 lb advanced little bit expert
I’ve a snowboard to groomer’s and park but I would like buying to freeride backcountry and tree boards
I watched to much video but I don’t know 😅
I’d like buying the next specifications:
3D, stiff 7-8 max 9, directional or directional twin
Jones Ultra Mind Expander
Jones Ultra Mountain Twin
Jones Flagship
Jones Aviator 2.0 Ltd.
Jones Stratos
Burton FT 3D double dog
Burton FT 3D Daily Driver
Capita super DOA
Thank you for your answer
Hi Norbert
Thanks for your message.
The first board I would cross off the list is the Super DOA, because it’s not very good for powder. A great board, but it’s biggest weakness, IMO, is in powder – it’s more of an aggressive all-mountain-freestyle board than a freeride/powder board. The Ultra Mountain Twin (UME) is pretty good in powder and a good option as a stiffer do it all board, but whilst it’s good in powder, it’s not awesome in powder – and since you’re looking for something more powder specific, I would probably cross that off too. The Aviator 2.0 Ltd isn’t a board I’ve ridden (I’ve ridden an older version) but being full camber I don’t think it would be amazing in powder – it does have the 3D base, but I can’t see it being better than the UME in powder. It’s got a little more nose than the UME, but there’s no rocker anywhere, so it’s likely similar in powder to the UME overall, IMO.
The Ultra Mind Expander I found very stiff – like 9/10 flex, so it’s doable within your range, but at your max. It’s better in powder than the UME, but not quite as good as the likes of the Flagship.
The Flagship and Stratos are both good options for what you’re describing, IMO. With the Flagship being the one I would lean to. It’s better in trees and powder, IMO. From the Jones options I would say go Flagship, but the Stratos would also certainly work well.
The 3D Daily Driver is decent in powder and could be an option, but I wouldn’t consider it as good as the likes of the Flaghip.
I haven’t ridden the 3D Double Dog, so I couldn’t say for sure, but on specs, it looks more powder oriented than the Daily Driver, so that’s something could certainly be an option too.
I think I would be weighing up between the Flagship, Stratos and Double Dog for your purposes.
Hope this helps