Hello and welcome to my K2 Medium snowboard review.
In this review, I will take a look at the Medium as an all-mountain-freestyle snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Medium a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how it compares with other all-mountain-freestyle snowboards.
Note: This review is currently not updated. We last rode the 2020 model and while not a great amount has changed, there have been some changes and its different enough and long enough ago that it needs a re-test before being updated. We hope to acquire a 2025 model to test early in the 24/25 winter - or failing that we will try to get on a 2026 model later in the winter.
Overall Rating
Board: K2 Medium
Price: $549
Style: All-Mountain-Freestyle
Flex Rating: Medium (6/10)
Flex Feel on Snow: Medium (6/10)
Rating Score: 75.8/100
Compared to other Men’s All-Mountain-Freestyle Boards
Of the 33 current model all-mountain freestyle snowboards that we tested:
❄️ The Medium ranked 27th out of 33
Overview of the Medium’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Medium’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
Style: | All-Mountain-Freestyle |
Price: | $549 - BUYING OPTIONS |
Ability Level: |  |
Flex: |  |
Feel: |  |
Turn Initiation: | Medium |
Edge-hold: |  |
Camber Profile: | Hybrid Camber - K2's "Twin Camber Baseline" |
Shape: | |
Setback Stance: | Centered |
Base: | Sintered 4000 |
Weight: | Normal |
Sizing
LENGTH (cm) | Waist Width (mm) | Rec Rider Weight (lb) | Rec Rider Weight (kg) |
|---|---|---|---|
141 | 244 | 90-160 | 41-73 |
144 | 244 | 90-160 | 41-73 |
147 | 244 | 90-160 | 41-73 |
149 | 244 | 110-180 | 50-82 |
152 | 247 | 120-190 | 54-86 |
154W | 258 | 130-220 | 59-100 |
155 | 251 | 130-220 | 59-100 |
157 | 252 | 130-220 | 59-100 |
158W | 262 | 130-230 | 59-104 |
159 | 254 | 130-230 | 59-104 |
* the 141, 144, 147 are all new for the 2024 model. The 2024 model looses the 160W that the 2023 model had.
Who is the Medium Most Suited To?
The Medium is best suited to those looking for a freestyle oriented board that can ride the whole mountain too.
Not for beginners, but intermediate rider's should be fine with it.
The Medium in More Detail
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Medium is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: K2 Medium, 155cm (247mm waist width)
Date: March 10, 2019
Conditions: Mostly sunny and perfect vis.
Groomers were on the firmer side, but not overly hard - and really well groomed - especially first thing, was smooth going and could really confidently bomb and lean into some deep carves.
Got a little cruddy as the day wore on, but was never too bad.
Off-groomer was tracked, but there'd been recent fresh snow a few days prior and there were still some good patches of untracked fresh snow.
Bindings angles: +15/-15
Stance width: 550mm (21.7″)
Stance Setback: Centered
Width at Inserts: 257mm (10.12")
Rider Height: 6'0"
Rider Weight: 185lbs
Rider Boot Size: US10 Vans Aura
Bindings Used: K2 Line Up, Large*
* Important Note: for all other brands I use my test bindings to test boards. Unfortunately with K2 and Ride they don't allow other bindings to test with. This makes it difficult to really tell what is giving the feel. Whilst the snowboard is typically the bigger difference maker, bindings can certainly alter the feel of a board. Please take this into consideration for this review, as some of the feel may have come from or at least been influenced from the bindings. I try each year to see if they can let me test on my own bindings, but haven't worn them down yet! I am exploring other avenues for testing K2/Ride in the future, so that I can test them more accurately.
Powder
Not a great feel in powder. And the specs don't suggest it either.
Carving & Turning
Carving: Not amazing but OK.
Maneuverability at slow speeds: Didn't like riding this board in tight spaces or at slow speeds. Whatever the opposite of turning on a dime is, that's what this was.
Overall edge-to-edge speeds: Just didn't like how it transitioned from edge to edge. Felt slow and grabby - whether riding fast or slow.
Skids: Had a bit of a catchy grabby feel which made skidding turns quite difficult. I also found the same thing with the other K2 board and the Ride Machete I rode that day, so I don't know what was up with all those boards.
Speed
Felt pretty stable at speed and this is when this board felt at it's best.
Uneven Terrain
The lack of maneuverability made it difficult and not fun to ride when tyring to weave through bumpy terrain. Really disliked riding it in the trees.
Let’s Break up this text with a Video
Jumps
Pop: Some pop there, but took a bit to extract it. I didn't find it an easy popping board.
Approach: Stable for faster approaches but not nimble enough for trickier approaches or setting up for spins.
Landing: Pretty solid for landing straight air.
Side-hits: Not nimble enough and easy access pop would have been nice too.
Small jumps/Big Jumps: Probably medium is it's sweet spot.
Switch
Apart from the fact it had the same grabby/catchy feeling riding switch, it's otherwise the same riding switch. Just in this case, it wasn't a positive thing that it was the same riding switch!
Spins
Didn't feel that comfortable setting up for or landing spins on this board. The spin itself was pretty easy to get around, but the overall spinning experience wasn't great.
Jibbing
Just didn't feel comfortable approaching jibs on this board. Otherwise I think it could be OK.
Butters
An OK amount of butterability, without being super buttery.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
RATING | Contribution to Final Score | |
|---|---|---|
JUMPS | 3.5 | 14/20 |
CARVING | 3.5 | 7/10 |
TURNS/SLASHING | 3.5 | 7/10 |
SWITCH | 4.0 | 8/10 |
SPEED | 3.5 | 7/10 |
SPINS | 3.5 | 7/10 |
BUTTERS | 3.0 | 6/10 |
JIBBING | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
CRUD/CHUNDER | 3.5 | 3.5/5 |
TREES/BUMPS | 3.5 | 3.5/5 |
POWDER | 2.0 | 2/5 |
TOTAL after normalizing | 75.8/100 |
Overall the Medium isn't a board I enjoyed riding. It had a grabby/catchy feeling and felt like it was trying to return to flat basing and that you had to kind of fight it to keep it on edge.
That, plus the fact that I was riding it without my control bindings, makes this review potentially an inaccurate portrayal of this board, but it's the feeling I got from the board, and I just describe it how it feels.
Not sure what was up with it (and the other K2 and Ride boards I rode that day). Conditions were good and other boards I rode that day felt good to ride. Whether it was something to do with how they were tuned or something? Not sure.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the Medium, 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 all-mountain-freestyle snowboard options, or if you want to compare how the Medium compares to other all-mountain-freestyle snowboards, then check out the next link.
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