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YES Optimistic Review

Last Updated: May 7, 2024 by Nate

YES Optimistic Review

Hello and welcome to our YES Optimistic review.

In this review I will take a look at the Optimistic as a Freeride snowboard.

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

Note: The 2024 model was the last released model of the Optimistic.

Overall Rating

YES Optimistic Review

Board: YES Optimistic

Price: $549 (USD recommended retail)

Style: Freeride

Flex Rating: Stiff (8/10)

Flex Feel: Mid-Stiff (7/10)

Rating Score: 84.2/100

Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards

Out of the 40 Men’s Freeride snowboards that I rated:

  • The average score was 83.8/100
  • The highest score was 90.8/100
  • The lowest score was 75.0/100
  • The average price was $644 (USD)
  • The Optimistic ranked 20th out of 40

Overview of the Optimistic’s Specs

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

Specs

Style:

Freeride

Price: 

$549 - BUYING OPTIONS

Ability Level: 

Ability Level high intermediate to expert

Flex: 

Snowboard Flex 7

Feel:

Snowboard Feel Semi Locked In

Smooth/Snappy:

Smooth Snappy Bar 5

Dampness: 

Chattery Damp Bar-07

Playful/Aggressive:

Playful Aggressive Bar 6

 Edge-hold:

Edge hold Icy Snow

Camber Profile: 

Hybrid Camber | YES's Camrock 2-4-2 (rocker-camber-rocker)

Shape: 

Tapered Directional

Setback Stance: 

Centered on effective edge (but definitely not on overall length of board)

Base: 

Sintered

Weight: 

Felt Normal

Sizing

LENGTH (cm) 

Waist Width (mm)

Rec Rider Weight (lb)

Rec Rider Weight (kg)

151

256

110-150

50-68

154

262

130-170

59-77

157

266

140-200

63-90

161

268

150-210

68-95

Who is the Optimistic Most Suited To?

The Optimistic is best suited to riders who want to ride in only one direction, have a tool that will handle deep powder, but can ride trees well, whether there's powder or not - and when there's not powder, is still fun to carve up the groomers with. 

Not for those who want to ride switch a lot, butter around or take in the park or side hits a bunch. 

So not a one-board quiver, unless you're riding doesn't include anything in the paragraph above. 

Not for a beginner, but more accessible than it used to be for intermediate riders. Has become an easier ride than it used to be. 


THE Optimistic IN MORE DETAIL

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

Demo Info

Board: YES Optimistic 2023, 154cm (262mm waist width)

Date: March 3, 2022

Conditions

Cloudy with some patches of blue at times. Really high cloud so visibility was all good.  

Temperature was -2°C (28°F) degrees. No wind. 

24hr snow: 4cm (1.5")

48hr snow: 23cm (9")

7 day snow: 64cm (25")

On groomer: Some icier sections in places but for the most part medium firmness with some softer areas. Fair bit of crud with not all that much groomed but some well groomed areas as well.

Off groomer: Some left over freshies! Untracked in places even. Mostly tracked but some nice untouched spots to explore.

Set Up

YES Optimistic 2023 review

Bindings angles: +15/-15 (Nate) and +12/-9 (Fraser)

Stance width: 22″ (560mm)

Stance Setback: Centered (on effective edge)*

* but nose (316mm long) is considerably longer than the tail (156mm long) so overall setback on board is more like 80mm setback - so quite a lot.

Width at Inserts: 10.75" (273mm) at front insert and 10.71" (272mm) at back insert.   

Testers: Nate and Fraser

Fraser Specs: Height: 6'1" | Weight: 180lbs | Boot Size: US9.5 Adidas Tactical Lexicon ADV | Bindings Used: Fix Yale (M) 

Nate Specs: Height: 6'0" | Weight: 180lbs | Boot Size: US9.5 Adidas Tactical ADV | Bindings Used: Burton Malavita (M) 

Weight: 6lbs 8oz (2960grams) 

Weight per cm: 19.22 grams/cm

Average Weight per cm: 18.59 grams/cm*

*based on a sample size of around 200 models that I’ve weighed in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 & 2023 models.  Whilst the Optimistic appears to be heavier than normal, the fact that it's a wider board, it's more normal, given it's extra surface area. And it felt like a normal weight when riding too.

Powder

We had a bit to test it in, which was nice. It wasn't an epic pow day or anything, but there was still enough to get a good feel for how it would perform in powder. And it was really nice. 

No surprise there either. It's got a really long nose and really short tail and it has some taper. And it now has a bit of rocker in the tip and tail. 

Carving

Whilst it's not as hard a carver and not as good for carves at high speeds as older models were, it was still able to lay down some pretty aggressive carves. Now more fun for shorter/sharper and more moderate speed carves than it used to be though. 

Turning

Ease of Turns/Slashing: The Optimistic turns quite a bit easier than it used to. That's probably largely down to the rocker sections in the tip and tail and softened up flex. 

Maneuverability at slow speeds (nimbleness): Again, those rocker sections and softened up flex help this board to be more nimble at slower speeds. Now quite a bit more fun in the trees. Overall pretty quick edge-to-edge and not too much effort required to get it to change edges either. 

Skidded Turns: And to continue the trend, the new model is easier for skidded turns - and again the camber and flex changes are likely the reason. 

Speed

It's pretty fast for it's size/shape and has good stability at speed. Not quite as good as the old model was - that thing could charge. But still decent. And I personally can take the speed performance decrease for how much better it feels riding slower now.

Uneven Terrain

Crud: Takes quite a lot to buck this board around. And when it does, you can correct your line pretty easily. 

Trees/Bumps: Pretty quick edge to edge and that small tail really helps when weaving through tight trees - reducing the chances of catching your tail on a trunk or branch. 

Let’s Break up this text with a Video

Jumps

Not ideal, but not what it's made for either. 

Pop: There's some OK pop in there. Some if it is easy to access, but the rest of it you have to wind it up a bit to extract it. 

Approach: A good mixture of stable at speed but also pretty easy to make corrections on. 

Landing: Pretty solid when you nail it just right, but not great when landing tail heavy. Not surprisingly, given how small the tail is.

Side-hits: Nice for lining them up. But pop is not super explosive or easy to access and again, you want to get the landings right and not too tail heavy. 

Small jumps/Big jumps: Better for smaller jumps where the consequence for landing tail heavy isn't as big.

Switch

Nah, not great. Still doable, but with that small tail and big nose, it feels pretty weird riding switch. Transitions to switch not too bad though. 

Butters

Not super easy to press, but certainly easier than it used to be. But feels really different pressing the tail compared to the nose. 


Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

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

RATING
(out of 5)

SCORE WEIGHTING

POWDER

4.5

22.5/25

SPEED

4.0

16/20

CARVING

4.0

12/15

TURNS/SLASHING

3.5

7/10

CRUD/CHUNDER

3.5

7/10

TREES/BUMPS

4.0

8/10

JUMPS

2.5

2.5/5

SWITCH

2.5

2.5/5

TOTAL after normalizing

84.2/100

The Optimistic has had quite a few changes for the 2023 model and it's become a mixture of the old Optimistic and the old The Y. Yet somehow I liked it quite a bit more than either of those boards previously. Not sure how that works but there it is!

It's still not my favorite board in the YES line, but I found it considerably more fun than it used to be. Really good for trees, particularly so when there's powder in there.

As it goes with snowboards, the decrease in flex is considered a downgrade and this has also resulted in a lower price - going from $669 on the 2022 model to $549 on the 2023 model. The Y was only $449, so I guess it's a nice middle ground. 

Changes for the 2024 Model

The 2024 model looks to be unchanged, apart from the graphic. 

Changes for the 2023 Model

The 2023 model is now a mixture of the 2022 Optimistic and 2022 The Y (the Y has now been discontinued).  A summery of those changes below: 

  • Glass gone from triax + carbon on 22 model to Biax on 23 model
  • Flex down from 9/10 on 22 model to 8/10 on 23 model, according to YES. Fraser and I felt it even softer than that - more like 7/10. 
  • Camber changed from "full camber" to "2-4-2" Camrock
  • Basically looks more like The Y now, except that the Y had a "Full Poplar" core and the 23 Optimistic has a Poplar/Paulownia core.

In terms of ride, it's a little less bomby and less capable of a hard charging high speed carve, but has become much easier to turn and slash and performs better in the trees. It's overall a less aggressive and more fun ride. For the shape it feels like the personality is more suited to it than it's previous personality and for me it works better like this than it used to. 


More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online

Check out the links below for more info on the Optimistic, where to buy or if you are researching prices or available sizes.

  • US
  • CA

>>YES Optimistic at evo.com

>>YES Optimistic at backcountry.com


YES Optimistic 2024

If your keen to check out some other Freeride options or to see how the Optimistic compares to other freeride decks check out the link below.

My Top 10 Freeride Snowboards

PAST REVIEWS OF THE OPTIMISTIC

--YES OPTIMISTIC 2019-2022--

YES Optimistic ReviewHello and welcome to my YES Optimistic Review.

In this review I will take a look at the Optimistic as a Freeride snowboard.

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

Overall Rating

Board: YES Optimistic

Price: $669 (USD recommended retail)

Style: Freeride (Short/Wide)

Flex Rating: Stiff (9/10 on YES’s flex scale)

Flex Feel: Stiff (8.5/10)

Rating Score: 79.1/100

Compared to other Men’s Freeride Boards

Out of the 32 Men’s Freeride snowboards that I rated:

  • The average score was 82.8/100
  • The highest score was 90.7/100
  • The lowest score was 70.9/100
  • The average price was $619 (USD)
  • The Optimistic ranked 28th out of 32

Overview of the Optimistic’s Specs

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

Specs

Style:

Freeride

Price: 

$669

Ability Level: 

Ability Level Advanced to Expert

Flex: 

Snowboard Flex 9

Feel:

Snowboard Feel Semi Locked In

Turn Initiation: 

Medium

 Edge-hold:

Edge hold Icy Snow

Camber Profile: 

Traditional Camber (modern camber - a small amount of rocker before contact points) 

Shape: 

Tapered Directional

Setback Stance: 

Centered (on effective edge)

Base: 

Sintered

Weight: 

Normal

Sizing

LENGTH (cm) 

Waist Width (mm)

Rec Rider Weight (lb)

Rec Rider Weight (kg)

151

256

130-180

59-82

154

262

150-200

68-91

157

266

180-220+

82-100+

161

268

180-220+

82-100+

Who is the Optimistic Most Suited To?

The Optimistic is great for anyone looking for a really stiff ride and mostly wants to carve hard, bomb down and find fresh powder whenever it's available. 

Being short/wide it sets itself up to be a tree riding contender, but it wasn't nimble enough, particularly at slower speed, to be a great tree board for me. Most likely those who enjoy banked slaloms would love this board though. 

Certainly not for the beginner - far too stiff and aggressive, and unlikely that an intermediate ride would enjoy it either. 

The Optimistic in More Detail

YES Optimistic 2019 ReviewO.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Optimistic is capable of.

Demo Info

Board: YES Optimistic 2019, 157cm, 266mm waist width

Date: March 16, 2018

Conditions: Sunny as! So yeah, perfect vis. Snow was pretty soft on groomer – mustn’t have been cold enough in the morning to ice up. But pretty crunchy/icy off groomer. As close to zero wind as you can get.

Bindings angles: +18/-6

Stance width: 585mm (23”)

Stance Setback: Centered (on effective edge)

I measured 570mm (22.4″) from the center of the front binding to the nose and 405mm (15.9″) from the center of the back binding to the tail. So although it’s centered on the effective edge, you are quite setback over the overall length of the board. This isn’t surprising given the nose length is published as 320mm (12.6″) and the tail length just 160mm (6.3″).

Width at Inserts: 272mm (10.71″) at the back insert and 274mm (10.79″) at the front insert

Weight: 2900grams (6lb 6oz)

Weight per cm: 18.47grams/cm

Average Weight per cm: 18.21grams/cm*

*based on a small sample size of 24 boards that I weighed. So pretty much bang on the average of the boards I weighed. And given how wide this board is, it’s pretty light for it’s overall surface area.

Powder

Didn’t have any fresh snow to speak of but given the feel of this board and it’s specs, I would say it rides very well in powder.

Even though it’s technically a centered stance along the effective edge – the nose is twice the length of the tail! Which gives it a 160mm (6.3″) overall setback along the overall length of the board on the 157 (which is really quite a lot!).  The nose is also wider than the tail (a 6mm taper) and there is oodles of surface area, with the width of this board. There’s very little in the way of rocker – it’s pretty much all camber, so that detracts a little but overall very well suited to riding powder.

Carving and Turning

Unsurprisingly, the Optimistic is a great carver. And that’s not surprising given it’s stiffness and camber.

It’s certainly an aggressive carver and it’s something that you really need to get up on edge and something that you need to take control of – or it will take control of you.

Edge-to-edge it’s a little slower than I would have liked – it has tight radius turns for sure, but initiating those turns was relatively slow, I found.

Definitely not one to skid your turns on. Needs good technique and prefers to carve over everything else.

Speed

Really stable at speed, without being an out and out bomber. But yeah takes a lot to get it wobbling that’s for sure.

Uneven Terrain

Wasn’t nimble enough in bumps to be that fun going between them – and going over them wasn’t the most fun either. I preferred it in well groomed flat terrain (and it would be great in fresh powder too).

In trees it’s not quite as good as I was hoping – with that short tail, I was looking forward to getting it in there, but it’s just not nimble enough for my liking in trees. Of course would be better in trees if there powder in there!

Jumps

There’s certainly some pop in there – but it’s hard to extract – you’ve got to really load it up to get it out.

Landings are really stable and solid, and that’s not surprise given the camber, the width and the flex.

Approaches to large jumps is good but for approaches to side hits, it’s not nimble enough for my liking.

For spins it’s not great, given that landing and taking off switch isn’t amazing, the pop is difficult to extract and the torsional flex felt quite stiff. Took some effort to get it around.

Switch

Even though it’s centered on the effective edge, it still feels weird to ride switch – and with that taper and the really long nose – even if it’s not making contact with the snow – it just doesn’t do it for me riding switch – but certainly doable.

Edge-Hold

Felt very good in hard/icy snow, which is typical of a lot of YES boards, I’ve found.

Score Breakdown and Final Verdict

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

RATING
(out of 5)

SCORE WEIGHTING

CARVING

4.5

18/20

TURNING

3.5

7/10

POWDER

4.0

16/20

SPEED

4.0

16/20

UNEVEN TERRAIN

2.5

7.5/15

JUMPS

2.5

5/10

SWITCH

2.5

2.5/5

TOTAL after normalizing

79.1/100

It's not often that I don't rave about a YES board - and for good reason, I usually get excited on them. But the Optimistic didn't push my buttons as much as most YES boards do. 

It's just a little too stiff for my tastes - and that with being relatively slow edge-to-edge, makes it not the best in the trees for me, which is what I would likely get this board for mostly. 

That's not to say that it's a bad ride in the slightest. It's fun to carve and would work a treat for a banked slalom most likely (I didn't take it in one), is good at speed, and would most likely float really well in open terrain powder. But it's just not a board that would serve a purpose in my particular quiver, and not one that got me excited like a lot of YES boards do. 

The 154 is likely the better size for me, but in saying that I recently rode the 2020 YES Y (which is like a slightly softer Optimistic, with a bit of rocker in there) in the 154, and whilst I preferred it, I still didn't get excited about it, in the same way that I do for the PYL or the new 2020 Hybird which I absolutely loved. 

Not sure what it is about it, but it didn't push my buttons the same way that it obviously has for others, or in the same way other YES boards do. 

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Filed Under: 2019 Snowboard Reviews, 2020 Snowboard Reviews, 2021 Snowboard Reviews, 2022 Snowboard Reviews, 2023 Snowboard Reviews, 2024 Snowboard Reviews, Men's Freeride Snowboard Reviews, YES Tagged With: YES Optimistic 2022-2023, YES Optimistic 2023-2024, YES Optimistic Review

About Nate

Nate is passionate about and loves learning new things everyday about snowboarding, particularly the technical aspects of snowboarding gear. That, and becoming a better rider and just enjoying and getting the most out of life.

Comments

  1. Kamil says

    January 28, 2024 at 9:37 am

    Hi,

    I am advanced rider, mosty carving the groomes, no fs. I have capita bsod for bombing which is a great bombing and carving board. Now I am looking for 2nd board for chilin days, on which I can carve at slower speed, which is fun to ride, but no FS. I consider Yes Optimistic, what do you think? Any other options?

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Nate says

      January 30, 2024 at 4:11 pm

      Hi Kamil

      Thanks for your message. Yeah, I think the Optimistic could work well for that. Note that the 2022 model and models earlier than that were stiffer, more aggressive boards. But so long as you’re going with the 2023 or 2024 model, it should work well for that, so long as you size it appropriately for your specs and purpose.

      Hope this helps with your decision

      Reply
      • Kamil says

        January 31, 2024 at 9:16 am

        Thanks! I am 183 cm, 100kg, eu44.5. Do you think 157 would be fine for me?
        Can you compare this to Salomon Dancehaul?
        Thanks!

        Reply
        • Nate says

          February 2, 2024 at 1:37 pm

          Hi Kamil

          Yeah, I would go 157. You could ride the 161 too, but given you want it to be more mellow and more optimized for lower speeds, and because you already have the BSOD, I think the 157 would work best.

          Dancehaul is:

          – A little more mellow/easy going again – and softer flexing
          – Not as damp a touch snappier
          – Not as good in icy conditions as the Optimistic
          – Not as good for speed/carving as Optimistic
          – Better for slow speed turns/slashing and better for trees/bumps

          Reply
  2. Manos says

    March 19, 2022 at 2:17 pm

    Hey Nate,
    I am currently on a Yes Standard which I love as a daily driver. I am searching for a carving board just for bombing groomers. I am leaning towards the Optimistic 21/22 currently on sale. Any thoughts?

    Reply
    • Nate says

      March 21, 2022 at 2:10 pm

      Hi Manos

      Thanks for your message.

      It’s a really good carver for sure, IMO, so I think it would be a good choice for what you’re describing. The only question mark is the taper. Some don’t like too much, or any taper, for a purely carving board. I found the Optimistic carved really well despite the taper – and it’s not a massive amount of taper on the Optimistic either – around 6mm.

      Hope this helps

      Reply
  3. Rasheed says

    March 3, 2022 at 8:15 pm

    Hey Nate,

    Hope all is well. Just curious, if I was to get the yes optimistic 230 lbs, 6’0, 11.5 tactical adv which size would you recommend. The 157 vs 161. I own the 159 in the greats and the 164w is my preferred for the PYL.

    Reply
    • Nate says

      March 4, 2022 at 1:33 pm

      Hi Rasheed

      All is well here, hope it’s well with you too.

      I think both could work for you, depending on how you were thinking of using it. I’d say 161, given it’s not going to be that wide for your foot size, but the 157 could certainly handle your size, if you were looking for a maneuverable board to ride trees with – that kind of thing. In terms of float (assuming you would want to be using this board in powder – as that’s one of it’s best qualities) , you would of course get better float out of the 161, but the 157 would still be decent in powder for you. But if you’re mostly wanting to ride fast or open terrain powder, then I would go 161.

      Funny, I just rode the 2023 model of this board yesterday (the 154, which I really liked). But the 2023 model is quite different. It’s now more like The Y, but with a lighter core, I think (The Y isn’t getting a 2023 model). Irrelevant if you’re looking at the 2022 model, but just in case you were looking at 2023 model.

      Reply
      • Rasheed says

        March 4, 2022 at 3:16 pm

        Thanks for the response. My go to board is still the PYL 164W as my do it all board. I plan on having this along with with my mind expander for my powder boards. I like to to ride trees as well which the mind expander is great in and I’m hoping to alternate with this board. Hmm… would you recommend I wait for the 2023 model and get that in 161? I haven’t pulled the trigger yet but strongly considering.

        Thanks again,

        -Rasheed

        Reply
        • Rasheed says

          March 4, 2022 at 3:17 pm

          Also any changes in the ride quality for the yes line up? The PYL? Standard?

          Reply
          • Nate says

            March 5, 2022 at 6:05 pm

            Hi Rasheed

            The PYL has gone back to more how it used to be – they’ve softened it up a touch again – and they’ve added a PYL Uninc, which is a stiffer version (more like the 2022 PYL). The Standard is much the same as far as I can tell (but I didn’t ride it) – they have brought out a Standard Uninc – essentially a slightly stiffer Standard, but with full camber. Super fun!

        • Nate says

          March 5, 2022 at 6:04 pm

          Hi Rasheed.

          I definitely preferred the new 2023 Optimistic in trees versus the previous versions, so if you were going to use it for that quite a bit, then I would personally wait for the 2023 model. Also, if you were going to be riding trees a lot, I would consider the 157. But if you were to use this board for trees only occasionally, then I’d go 161 for the extra float for deeper powder in open terrain and stability when riding it fast.

          The Mind Expander is awesome for trees (just got on it again in the 23 model and it rips trees!)

          Reply
          • Rasheed says

            March 5, 2022 at 6:21 pm

            Thanks! I saw the spec on a New Zealand website and it seems like the weight specification is similar to the Y which maxes out at 210lbs. I’m 230lbs and saw that have similar profile to the Y 2-4-2 profile as well. Thanks for the heads up!

  4. Ben says

    December 4, 2021 at 9:12 pm

    Hi, Nate, thanks for the detailed review. I’m looking for a hard carving snowboard and looks like optimistic is a good choice. I’m 6 feet height and ~160 pounds, what’s the best size for me? 151 or 154? Also do you have any other carving board recommended?

    Reply
    • Ben says

      December 4, 2021 at 9:14 pm

      I usually wear a size 9 or 9.5 boot

      Reply
      • Nate says

        December 6, 2021 at 12:05 pm

        Hi Ben

        Thanks for your message.

        For the Optimistic for your specs, it’s a tough call between the 151 and 154. I would say roughly a standard all-mountain size of 157/158 for your specs, assuming a perfect width. Given the width of this board, you definitely want to size down with 9s, it’s just whether sizing to a 154 or 151 is better. I think both would work, but I think it’s going to depend on what you want to get out of the board mostly.

        If you want something that’s really good for bombing at high speeds and doing big arcing carves, take no prisoners and aren’t too worried about maneuverability in tight spots, then I think the 154 would be the ticket.

        But if you want a board that can carve tighter and still give you some maneuverability at slower speeds, whilst sacrificing a little stability at speed (this board is pretty burly, so it’s still going to feel pretty stable, even in the 151 for your weight, IMO), then I’d go 151.

        Hope this helps with your decision

        Reply
  5. Tim says

    June 10, 2019 at 3:16 pm

    Hey nate,

    They have a hybrid on sale here in NZ. 157. Quick few questions. Fast edge to edge? Great for trees and deep light snow? I want something for japan. Also lay a rewarding carve on groomers? Need responsive bindings for it?
    Sorry to jump the gun before you have the review.

    Many thanks
    Tim

    Reply
    • Nate says

      June 11, 2019 at 11:28 am

      Hi Tim

      Thanks for your message.

      If the 157 is a suitable size for you, then I think the Hybrid would work really well for what you’re describing.

      I didn’t get any powder to test it in, but based on the specs (nose is longer and wider, setback 40mm on effective edge, wider too for good amount of surface area) and based on how the PYL rides (which has some similar characteristics to the Hybrid), I would say that it would float great. It’s nice and nimble whether riding at slow speeds or riding faster – so that’s also in it’s favor for riding trees. But you would want to be sizing down a little from your regular size – as it’s a shorter/wider shape, you’d want to take off some length. The 157 felt just right for me (6’0″, 185lbs, US10 boots). Ordinarily I would be looking more like 159-161 in terms of length, for this type of board – if it was regular width. So, it would really depend on your specs. If 157 isn’t sizing down for you and you don’t have bigger boots, then it won’t be as nimble feeling.

      It carves pretty well. Word for word from my notes “not a hard carve master but still very good on a carve – a surfier rather than aggressive feel”. So yeah I don’t think it will leave you wanting on a carve on the groomers. Thought it wasn’t quite as good as the PYL on a carve, but I rate the PYL as a carver.

      I rode it with Burton Malavitas – so not the most responsive bindings in the world. I wouldn’t go any less responsive than that. I would rate it a 6/10 in terms of flex. So anything with around a 6/10, 7/10 flex would be the best match, IMO.

      So yeah, I think it would be a great option for what you’re describing – so long as the 157 is a suitable size for your specs. If you let me know your height, weight and boot size, I would be happy to give you my opinion on size suitability.

      Hope this helps with your decision

      Reply
  6. Tim says

    April 1, 2019 at 7:06 pm

    Hey nate I can tell you a couple of things why you might not have liked it.
    1. you def should be on a 154 or even a 151. It’s a lot of board
    2. When I first took my 154 out I had malavitas in it and found it a lot of work and didn’t like it.
    Threw some now drives on and wow what a difference. You def have to put some responsive bindings on it to get it humming.
    I’ve bought some falcors to throw on it so hope they work because of changing binding size.
    I also think a 151 could work for me.
    Anyway try a smaller size!
    Cheers nate!

    Reply
    • Nate says

      April 2, 2019 at 2:32 pm

      Hi Tim

      Thanks for your message.

      Yeah, I was looking to get on the 154 for sure but only had the 157 to test. And I agree that more responsive bindings would be a better bet for this board. I did ride the YES Y (new for 2020) in the 154 though, and thought I would like that a little more. Granted I was on Malavitas then too. The Y is a slightly less aggressive, slightly softer variation on the Optimistic, so I thought that, and being 154 would work with the Malavitas. However, I did prefer the 154 Y over the 157 Optimistic, just not quite as much as I thought I would. I know a lot of people who do love the Optimistic though, and I definitely want to get on a smaller size, and get some more responsive bindings on it and see how it goes then.

      On a side note, I also rode the 154 Jones Ultra Mind Expander – talking about a lot of board for its size! Wow!

      Thanks for your input. Always appreciated.

      Reply
      • Jarod says

        May 12, 2019 at 1:26 am

        How was the Y? Fun board or not really? Looking for something interesting to rip around the small resort.

        Reply
        • Nate says

          May 13, 2019 at 10:25 am

          Hi Jarod.

          The Y was OK, but not my favorite YES board. I preferred and definitely got more excited about the new YES Hybird. That’s a super fun board – and something a little different – YES call it a cross between the PYL and the 420. That was my preference personally. The Y is a slightly toned down (not as stiff, not as aggressive in the camber profile) Optimistic, but it’s not that toned down. Very subtly. Still quite an aggressive, stiffer feeling board. I would personally find the Hybrid more fun for a small resort.

          Hope this helps

          Reply
    • Fred says

      April 15, 2019 at 1:40 am

      Hey Time & Nate,
      What’s your weight and height?
      I’m 5’10” and 185lbs.
      I’m thinking a 154 would be good for me, but wondering if even a 151 would be better.
      Thoughts?

      Reply
      • Nate says

        April 15, 2019 at 1:47 pm

        Hi Fred

        Thanks for your message.

        I’m 6’0″, 185lbs – size 10 boot. You could probably get away with the 151, if you’re looking to make it a bit more nimble and a little less aggressive, depending on boot size.

        Reply
        • Fred says

          April 16, 2019 at 12:29 am

          My boot size is 10.5.

          The 151cm is harder to find at a good price right now.

          You think the 154cm would be good?

          Reply
          • Nate says

            April 17, 2019 at 4:46 pm

            Hi Fred

            154 is what I would probably usually recommend for you for this board. It’s probably something that you could ride at 151, just because of how much board it is. But if you want to get the full experience of it, 154 would be the best size for your specs, IMO. Like I say in the review, I wasn’t the biggest fan of it, but I think 154 would have been a better size for me. Both the 151 and 154 should be wide enough for your boots. The 151 would actually be what I would consider a “good width” for your boots – which in this case possibly isn’t the best thing. The Optimistic is designed to be wider – and that’s why you ride it shorter. But if you went with the 151 you would be sizing down without having that extra width – the 154 would still be sizing down, but is a wider board for your boots – so sizing down makes more sense. So yeah, I think 154 is better suited – but if you were looking to tone the board down a bit in terms of aggressiveness and to make it more nimble the 151 would do that.

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