This Ride Agenda review is intended to review the Agenda for its suitability as a beginner snowboard. Most beginner snowboards also have another function. For example the Agenda is also suitable for Freestyle riders.
This review will rate the Agenda on how it rates as a beginner board (rather than as a freestyle board).
Let’s see just how good the Agenda will be for beginners.
Overview
Product: Ride Agenda Snowboard
Style: Beginner/Freestyle
Price: $329.00 (USD) recommended retail
Flex: Medium-Soft (3/10)
My rating: 98.5/100
Quick Glance at the Specs
If you are considering this board here’s a quick look at some of the board’s specs.
| Style | Beginner/Freestyle | Flex | Medium-Soft (3 out of 10) |
| Ability Level | Beginner to Intermediate | Feel | Stable |
| Weight | Normal | Turn Initiation | Easy |
| Camber Profile | Flat to Rocker | Shape | True Twin |
| Stance Setback | Centered | Edge-hold | Medium Snow |
O.k. let’s take a look at the Agenda in detail.
Stability and Turn Initiation
The Ride Agenda has a flat to rocker camber profile which is great for beginners. The flat section between the feet and under the feet offers stability and the rocker sections towards the tip and tail makes it easier to initiate turns and reduces the chances of catching an edge.
Stability score = 5/5
Turn Initiation = 5/5
Flex
The Agenda ticks has what I would consider the ideal flex for a beginner board – medium-soft.
Ride rates the Agenda a 3 out of 10 in terms of flex, and I’d agree with this (1 being the softest and 10 being the stiffest). Again, this is ideal for the beginner and makes the Agenda easy to control and forgiving of errors.
But at the same time not so soft that it affects edge-hold too much.
Flex rating score = 5/5
Price
The Agenda is really reasonably priced. Understandably beginners are typically willing to invest less in their first snowboard so in my opinion a new beginners board should be anywhere from $299 to $399 (USD).
Obviously the cheaper the better (unless money isn’t a factor for you) so the cheaper the board the better the score it will get for price. The Agenda is $359 which is a really reasonable price for a new snowboard. If you can find a previous season’s model you could get it even cheaper.
For perspective the average price of 44 boards I rated as beginner boards was $451.
Price score = 4.5/5
Sizing Options
Getting the right sized snowboard is important at every level – but particularly for beginners. The right sized board for your weight, height and ability level will help to speed up your progression.
There seems to be plenty of sizing options for the Agenda both in terms of length and width – see table below.
| Size (Length) | 147 | 152 | 156 | 159 | 153W | 157W | 161W |
| Waist Width (mm) | 246 | 249 | 252 | 255 | 258 | 261 | 264 |
| Weight Range (kgs) | 34-57 | 45-68 | 57-80 | 59-82 | 57-80 | 68-91+ | 73-100+ |
| Weight Range (lbs) | 75-125 | 100-150 | 125-175 | 130-180 | 125-175 | 150-200+ | 160-220+ |
Learn how to find the right length board here and the right width here.
Shape & Stance
The best shape for a beginner snowboard is a true twin shape and the best stance is a centered stance, IMO.
These two things help the beginner to get their balance and helps with easy balance whilst progressing. The Agenda has both a centered stance and a true twin shape.
Shape score = 5/5
Stance score = 5/5
Base
The Agenda has an Extruded base. This is the best base for beginners as it isn’t as fast (which is a good thing for a beginner) and reduces the cost of the snowboard. It’s also lower maintenance than a sintered base.
Base score = 5/5
The Final Score
Now let’s see how the Agenda did overall.
| FACTOR | RATING (OUT OF 5) | CONTRIBUTION TO FINAL SCORE |
| Flex: | 5.0 | 20/20 |
| Stability: | 5.0 | 20/20 |
| Turning Ease: | 5.0 | 20/20 |
| Price: | 4.5 | 13.5/15 |
| Shape: | 5.0 | 10/10 |
| Stance: | 5.0 | 10/10 |
| Base: | 5.0 | 5/5 |
| TOTAL | 98.5/100 |
The Agenda, as a Beginners board really ticks all the boxes and would be the perfect choice as a board to learn on – and at a reasonable price. No surprise then that it made my list of the Top 5 Men’s Beginner Snowboards.
Hi Nate,
I have been snowboarding for quite some time now but don’t go very often through out the year so I consider myself to be intermediate level. Lately, my riding style has been freestyle. I am too afraid to hit big jumps but I still like to hit jumps at slower speeds and love box & skater rails. I’ve been looking for my first board because I am over renting bad boards and not getting the most out of my ride. I want a board that is playful to hit jibs, butters, and do some 360s but I also want something that will allow me to ride all-mountain. I want something that is forgiving and has good control for carving, I like going fast but don’t feel too comfortable bombing just yet. I am 5’6 about 155 lbs and wear size 8.5 boots. I have complied a list of fairly priced boards that I think are a good fit for me but don’t know which one to pick, can you help? Thanks in advance!
1) Salomon Sleepwalker 2022, 151cm
2) Sims The Day – Ocean snowboard 2021, 151cm
3) Ride Agenda 2022, 149cm
4) Salomon Pulse 2022, 149cm
Hi Mikey
Thanks for your message.
I don’t know the Sims The Day, but the rest are boards that you should find easy to butter and hit jibs with and are forgiving. None of them are going to give you a lot of stability at speed or super carving ability. But if you’re not carving too hard or riding too fast they will be OK. Just don’t expect them to be super stable at speed or anything. My pick would be the sleepwalker for what you’re describing. And I think it’s in a good size for you as well.
Hope this helps with your decision
Hey Nate,
I m pairing this board with Burton Custom Re:Flex. Do you think that’s a good combo?
Amir
Hi Amir
Yeah, I think the Custom Re:Flex is a great match for this board and a great beginner binding.
I’m thinking about getting a 157W for a good deal tomorrow. Do you think it’s too wide/ or will be hard to get edge to edge with size 10 boots?
Hi Paul
I wouldn’t personally go with a wide version. I ride 10s as well and typically don’t like boards this wide. If you have the option to go 156 or 159 (depending on your height/weight specs), then I would personally do that instead.
Hope this helps
So I’m an intermittent rider just landing 360s and grabs over jumps + board slides on rails. My local always has had a deal where I would get a free renail with the purchase of a lift ticket so until a few months ago I would just get a Burton 155 v rocker. Late fall we went up to Copper Mt so I bought a used k2 viper (Wich is just a basic camber mid flex beginar board no thrils) mainly because it was supper cheep and came in a package with a bunch of other really nice stuff, but I didn’t really like it. Coming from a full rocker I missed the ability to just spin around without caching an edge. This said it was really fun to bomb down hills with and I do love that carving ability down the blacks but I also really like to ride park and have the playfullnes of a park board. Something like the never summer proto or funslinger would probably be my ideal board but I’m looking at used boards because I have a low budget.
I am 6ft. And waigh 140lbs with size 11 boots
I am currently looking at (in order of best deal):
Ride agenda 151
Alibi sicter 158
Skate banana ?
Gnu Riders choice 157.5 (kinda spendy trying to talk down price)
If you could just give me some advice that would be great!
Hi Max
Thanks for your message.
Sounds like you’re ideally looking for a hybrid camber or hybrid rocker board – to give you that ability to both bomb and carve with more confidence (camber) but still have a bit of a looser feel and be good for jibs and butters etc. There’s certainly a lot of options that would help you achieve this but I understand that you want to go for something on the cheap – which does limit the options a lot.
In terms of length, I would say that something around 154, 155 mark is a length for you, given your specs and preferred style.
In terms of width ideally you’d be looking at between 254mm to 264mm in terms of waist width, if you ride with a reasonably angled back binding (i.e. 12-15 degrees) and between 261mm and 266 mm] at the waist, if you ride with a fairly straight back binding angle (i.e. 0-3 degrees). Add a couple of mms if you like to carve deep and take off a couple off mm if you have low profile boots (e.g. recent Adidas, Burton, Ride and Vans).
From your list I would say:
~ Ride Agenda 151: This isn’t to give you that carving ability. It’s a flat to rocker and quite a soft board. And since you’d be going down to a 151, that would make it even more soft and playful. Fun for jibs/rails, butters and playing around and for small jumps. But for larger jumps and riding at speed and carving it’s going to be lacking. Also, even going back to 2010, I can’t see this board being offered in a 151 – so unless it’s really old, I think the seller means the 152. My other concern with this is that it’s likely too narrow for you, even if you ride with +15/-15 and have low profile boots.
~ Alibi Sicter 158: I have zero experience with Alibi snowboards so I can’t really say much about this one. But it does look like it has a hybrid profile and a mid flex, so is likely to be versatile. The 158 is longer than ideal, but has a better width for 11s than the 152 Agenda.
~ Skate Banana: Really fun board. Mostly rocker – just a little bit of subtle camber. A little bit softer than medium in terms of flex. I found it a very loose/playful board. Depending on the size could be a good option. You can check out my review of this at the link below. Not sure what year your looking at but this board hasn’t changed too much over the years. Size wise, the 153W, 154, 156 or potentially 156W if you ride with a straight back foot, but otherwise one of the other 3 would be best.
>>Lib Tech Skate Banana Review
~ GNU Riders Choice 157.5 – from what you’re describing this would be pretty much ideal for what you’re looking for. Not the cheapest board going around that’s for sure – but for good reason. I think the 157.5 is getting a bit long to be ideal, ideally the 154.5 (though the 157.5 is a better width for 11s) but otherwise would be a great choice.
>>GNU Rider’s Choice Review
Hope this helps
I am 140-145 lbs and 5’7 and have a shoe size between 11.5-12 brand depending. Short guy, big feet which makes board shopping a pain!
Should I go for the 152 with the 249 waist or the 153 wide?
My last board was a 157W and it was a heavy brute to board with which is why i’m going so small now.
Just wondering if the overhang would be an issue?
Hi Trever
Definitely go with the 153W. The 152 will more than likely cause toe/heel drag issues.
But I’m not surprised that the 157W felt like a brute. That’s definitely too long for you, IMO. I think you’ll appreciate the size down to 153 – and I’d say that the 258mm waist width should accommodate, especially if you get into 11.5s. Also, if you haven’t already got boots, to give yourself a bit more leeway, you could look at Burton, Ride and Adidas boots – these tend to be the most low profile brands. And Vans have improved a lot in this area recently too.
But yeah, definitely 153W, IMO.
Hi Nate, I’m just starting to snowboard and wanted to ask you a few questions to see if this board would be the right fit for me. I live on the east coast and we get alot of ice on the mountains, would this board carve on ice? Is it a all mountain board? Also if you can help me with a board size? I’m 6ft about 210lbs boot size 11.
Hi Yuriy
This probably isn’t the best choice for the east coast – it’s not great in icy conditions.
In terms of length, I think that, generally speaking something between 158 and 160 would be good for you – based on your specs and ability level.
In terms of width – something with a width of roughly 255mm to 261mm would be good for your size 11s.
The following I think would be good options for you that will ride well in hard/icy conditions but are still suitable for a beginner – and come in an appropriate size for you.
~ Niche Aether 158 (262mm waist) – all-mountain-freestyle
~ YES Basic 159W (261mm waist) – all-mountain-freestyle
~ YES Typo 159W (261mm waist) – all-mountain
~ Rossignol Templar 159W (260mm waist) – all mountain
The Agenda is more of a freestyle board – the boards I have recommended above are either all-mountain-freestyle or all-mountain.
Hope this helps
That was very helpful, thank you so much. I’m looking at the YES basic or typo. Can you help me out with which boots and bindings would go with this board for a beginner? I went snowboarding few times, rented the equipment and ended up falling in love with the sport.
Hi Yuriy
I would check out the following links to get some ideas on boots and bindings.
~ Top 5 Beginner Snowboard Bindings
~ Top 7 Beginner Snowboard Boots
If you have any questions about specific bindings or boots, let me know.
If you’re looking at Burton make sure to go with the “Re:Flex” option. Burton bindings come in two different models – “Re:Flex” and “EST” – the EST model won’t fit on a YES snowboard (or anything other than a Burton snowboard) but the Re:Flex model will and all other binding brands will. You might find the following usefull also.
~ Snowboard Boot Fit
~ Snowboard Binding Sizing
Awesome that you’ve fallen in love with snowboarding – it’s hard not to, IMO!
Thanks a lot Nate. That was very helpful.
You’re very welcome – hope you have an awesome rest of your season!
Hi Nate,very helpfull your post.I`M a beginer also I already bought my first board the Ride Agenda and now i m looking for bindings.The things is that i guess i have to buy the boots first in order to buy the bindings.the sizes of the bindings must fit the same size of the boots?
Hi Razvan
I think it’s always a good idea to buy boots first. But if you can’t, or don’t want to, you can usually predict your snowboarding boot size based on your shoe size. Typically your snowboard boot size will be either half a size down from your shoe sizes (US sizing) or it will be the same as your shoe size (depending on the brand of boot and on the shape of your foot).
So you should know roughly what size your boots will be. But it’s not always the case – if you can, then it’s a good idea to get the boots first.
Thank you Nate.
Nate, I’m going snowboarding for the 2nd time very soon. I did pretty well my first time out and definitely want to continue, but I’m looking to buy instead of rent this time to help accelerate my learning curve. Based on the research I’ve done (some of which you helped me with), this board seems like a really good fit for me.
I’m 5’11” and weigh 200 lbs. I wear a size 11-11.5 US.
Any thoughts on sizing?
Thanks!
Hi R.H.
I think the Rid Agenda is a good choice for you and will definitely help you to progress over hiring a board.
I think that the 157W would be a good size for you based on your specs and because you are a beginner. The other potentially appropriate size would be the 159cm but my only concern with that is that it may not quite be wide enough for you. So I’d say the 157W would work the best.
Hope this helps
This post has made my research job a lot easier. I have never snowboarded but I really want to. I was looking for a good board for a beginner when I found this post. I’m bookmarking this for later.
Thank you!
Derek
Hi Derek – thanks for stopping by – glad I could make your snowboard research easier. I know how difficult it can be when you’re first looking!
Hey Nate. I’m new to all of this and have been looking in to purchasing my very first snowboard and you’ve helped me choose the best one for me to start with. Thanks for the recommendation, I’ll be sure to purchase soon.
Hey – glad that it was helpful. Picking a good beginner snowboard will really help with the speed of your progression.