Slash Vertical Snowboard Review

The Slash Vertical doesn't slap you in the face and say "here I am!"

But it also doesn't cower when you need it to come through for you. And that's for anything and everything. I didn't find it to be a board that immediately struck me as being a force to be reckoned with, but there was nothing that it struggled with either and just quietly did what it needed to do. 

In this review, I will take a look at the Vertical as a mellow freeride snowboard.

As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Vertical a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how it compares with other mellow freeride snowboards.

Overall Rating

Board: Slash Vertical

Price: $649

Style: Mellow Freeride

Flex Rating: Medium (5/10)

Flex Feel on Snow: Medium (5.5/10)

Rating Score: 85.0/100

Compared to other Men’s Mellow Freeride Boards

Overview of the Vertical’S Specs

Check out the tables for the Vertical’s specs and available sizes.

Who is the Vertical Most Suited To?

The Vertical is best suited to intermediate to advanced riders who want a board that can take on pretty much everything on the mountain, but with a freeride leaning orientation, in a way that's not too demanding but also strong enough that it doesn't crumble when you ride it a little aggressively. 

Would be a great one-board quiver option for the right rider and also would work well as a compliment to a more aggressive freeride board and/or powder specialist and/or park board. 

Not for beginners, but anyone over a beginner should get on fairly well, at the very least, with this board, IMO. 

TEST/REVIEW DetailS FOR THE Vertical

O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Vertical is capable of.

Demo Info

Board: Slash Vertical 2025, 161cm (259mm waist width)

Date: February 13, 2024

Powder

On the day I had some powder stashes here and there, and it did quite well. Again, this isn’t a niche board for anything in particular, so you probably won’t choose it for your Heli trip, but it’s a solid performer when the snow starts to pile up.

Carving

I really like it for carves. It’s not a full-on, lay it out and go deep board, and has a speed limit, but for your everyday carving it was really fun.

Turning

Ease of Turning/Slashing:  I found the verticle needed very little effort to initiate turns and/or break the tail loose and slash whenever I wanted.

Maneuverability at slow speeds: Especially for being a little a longer, in the 161, that I typically ride, I was impressed at how well it rode at slow speeds. I could make quick little turns and maneuvers with ease.

Catchiness: I could feel some catch in the tail at slow speeds similar to the Slash Straight, which I also tested that day, but it wasn’t as obvious. There was enough catch that I wouldn’t label this as super forgiving, but it’s also not overly demanding.

Speed

I might choose a non-committal word like, “fine” to describe its capacity for speed. It’s not a board to test your limits on, but for most speeds it poses no problems.

Uneven Terrain

Crud/Chunder: As the snow got more and more cut up, the Vertical showed some limitations in being able to plow through it and not get bucked around. Better in smooth pow, better for playing in bumps, but still decent enough for the rougher stuff. 

Trees/Bumps: It has enough forgiveness and agility to be a good bump/tree board. I could whip out quick turns, slash them out a little bigger, or pop little airs whenever I found a good spot for it. 

Jumps

Pretty consistently good across all the sub-categories involved with jumping.

Pop: A good amount of pop and it’s nice and easy to access across a range of jump types and sizes.

Approach: Plenty of control/stability, and easy to adjust as needed, helps you feel good going into your takeoff.

Landing:  Stable and supportive but also forgiving when you don’t nail the landing perfectly.

Side-hits: Really liked it for side-hits and felt confident hitting whatever I could set my eyes on. 

Switch

Decent on transitions, but not completely catch-free feeling. Not overly difficult to ride switch but not a switch ego booster either.

Spins

A little bit of catch in the tail but nothing too bad. Overall setup and landing was fine. The 161 was longer than I'm used to for spinning, but even with the 161 it wasn't too challenging. But not ideal either. Taking off and landing switch was OK too but again, not ideal. 

Didn't rotate after landing and completing an under-rotation after landing was doable. Not the easiest, but also not too difficult. About average there. 

Jibbing

Jibs are fine but not stellar. This was another area that it’s better than the Slash Straight, but it’s more of an all-around performer than a jibber. Not something I would personally take down the jib line regularly, but a stronger jibber shouldn't have too many issues with it. But still not going to be the ideal board for it. 

Butters

Not quite as easy as my control board, but easier than the Slash Straight, and nothing that requires too much force and locks in well. Decent for tranisitioning too. 

Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.

I really enjoyed the Vertical and it was even one size up from what I usually ride. It’s a great option as a one board quiver for the right rider; no big downsides and able to do pretty much everything.