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.
Overall Rating
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 35 Men’s Freeride snowboards that I rated:
Overview of the Optimistic’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Optimistic’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
Style: | Freeride |
Price: | $549 |
Ability Level: |  |
Flex: |  |
Feel: |  |
Smooth/Snappy: |  |
Dampness: |  |
Playful/Aggressive: |  |
Edge-hold: |  |
Camber Profile: | Hybrid Camber | YES's Camrock 2-4-2 (rocker-camber-rocker) |
Shape: | |
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 |
*sizing is the same, but they adjusted the weight recommendations. However, IMO they were more accurate before. The 154, IMO, can easily accommodate 180lbs - as it felt the perfect size in this board for both me and Fraser.
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
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 | 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 to 2022 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.
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.
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?
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
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.
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.
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
Also any changes in the ride quality for the yes line up? The PYL? Standard?
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!
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!)
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!
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?
I usually wear a size 9 or 9.5 boot
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
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
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
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!
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.
How was the Y? Fun board or not really? Looking for something interesting to rip around the small resort.
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
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?
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.
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?
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.