Bataleon Whatever Review (Full Season)
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- My full season review of the Bataleon Whatever and the 3bt on the board.
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#WilAlexander #Bataleon #whatever
Thanks for such an awesome honest review, very hard to find these days
Thanks, I try my best with the gear a I can afford to get on.
Extruded base? The new model at least has a sintered base I believe
You're right, I didn't notice that one change. Looks like Bataleon is actually only using sintered bases now. Nice catch. It'll be interesting to see what effect that has on how dirty it gets.
I’ve been going back and forth between the regular whatever and the beyond medals
I’m 5’11 and 175lbs I was thinking of the 154 beyond medals or the 157 for the regular whatever which one u think?
Honestly depends on where you're riding. The only real difference is the stiffness, where the Regular will be more playful, and the Beyond Medals will be more responsive. If it's smaller terrain and you're looking to play around and have fun I'd say the regular, it it's steeper, big jumps(40ft+), or you're really trying to charge then you may want to go Beyond Medals.
I'll still send the regular Whatever off big and steep stuff, but I know how to use the loose flex to my advantage.
Thanks for the review 👊🏾
You bet
Having the board for a year do you think that its too soft? Im asking because the beyond medals version this year is a bit stiffer (like goliath 6/10), however I remain convinced that the softer will be better - what's your take?
After having the first day back the other day, it really just depends on your riding style and how much effort you want to put in. The softer flex makes press easier, but does make off center landings a bit tougher to hold onto.
If your spinning bigger jumps 40+ ft, then stiffer might be the way to go just to have more stability on landings.
I will say the soft flex saved me when I went over an ice chunk in the middle of the run at high speed. The board flexed more than rebounding which saved me from getting bucked.
Awesome review much appreciated Wil. If you have any thoughts comparing the Whatever to the Twinpig and which board you prefer or how they are different in the park: jibbing, jumping & around the mountain: powder, piste, etc it would be awesome. Thank You!
I think the Whatever is probably a more rounded board than the Twinpig. Depending on your height the tight radius on the Twinpig can be tricky. The Whatever is more of you classic all-mountain twin with a hint of directional in just the tip and tail.
Fantastic, great help comparing the two boards, could not find Demos. Leaning toward the 162W Whatever. Currently ride a 169 skunk ape & 163W stump ape at 6'5" 225lbs, but want softer for training rails, butters, jibbing, spins etc. Stoked for your channel, Thank YOU!
I just recently bought the Beyond Medals version. Regular Whatever is way to soft for me and I would only use it in park or slush. I also like the looks of BM 😁 Got it in 159W and I’m a true size 12.5 though most boots come only in 13. At the inserts it measures about 28cm so not ideal but it’ll do for a quiver board.
Makes sense, with 13's I would have stepped up to the 162, those extra mm in width make such a difference
@@WilAlexander agreed! Every mm counts. Even with boots I’m always looking for the most reduced footprint right after the fit. Sucks for guys like us but st least we have some options now if not many.
162 is a little big for me so I didn’t want to go down that road. I’m also eying the party platter in 157 for next season. I had it in 152 past season and I loved that board.
Hey awesome review and content 👍🏻.. I am torn between Bataleon Whatever - Salomon Dancehaul - Lib Tech Terrain Wrecker, for a one board for everything, can u share your thoughts on this? Thx in advance..
Honestly the Whatever is my board of choice for everything except icy conditions. I like the 3bt over the Lib tech Rocker to make turning easier and catch free. The pop on the Salomon will probably be better than the other two. I rode the Assassin a few years back and that thing was incredible.
Sounds like you aren't in love with this board- I was considering this or the burton process camber- have you ever ridden one? Do you have a favorite board or make?
So the longer I've been on other boards since, I've found that I like the Bataleon more and more. Only place it falls short is clean carves.
If I had my ultimate choice, I'd probably want something a bit stiffer (like the Beyond Medals Whatever or the Goliath) with the most minimal 3bt.
What are your recommendations for wider boards, Im a size 15 inter/exp rider , thanks!
Left a long comment for you on my Demo Day Video. But check for boards with Nose/Tails wider than 318, a lot of companies will have some in around that (even though that's still probably too narrow for you)
Hey would you recommend for a quickly advancing beginner looking for his first real board?
6'2" 190lbs 11.5us and I want to start riding more park but still have an all mountain board
Not sure what all mountain board you're on, but I wouldn't discount it completely. There's been a growing trend in snowboarding moving back to riding not true-twin boards for park, pipe and everything in between.
I think the Whatever is a great beginner to intermediate board, but getting too used to 3bt can also make you forget some of the basics that are vital if you want to graduate to a more advanced board.
I’m 6’2ish 140ish pounds with a size 12 boot. I’m thinking of getting the beyond medals version in a 156W. What do you think? Thank you for the review
Based on those stats I would need more context. My initial thoughs are at 6'2" and a 12 boot, I'd say the 159w wide would be better suited for you, but at 140lbs you'd be better of on the standard Whatever.
The Beyond Medals is a stiffer board that I would probably only recommend to you if you think you might get bigger or if you plan on doing more advanced riding - large jumps (40ft+) and consequential rails.
There's almost nothing worse than getting a board that is too stiff. Not being able to flex a board limits your riding in so many ways.
Like myself at 6'6" 210lbs is pushing the 162w's recommended weight, where a jump to the stiffer Beyond Medals would respond quicker to my weight than the standard.
Hi Wil, thanks for the video.
I am at low intermediate, starting doing some small jumps, carving, some off-piste powder, etc.
Been looking for board atm, but undecided whether to go with Burton Process or Bataleon Whatever. Bataleon seems very forgiving, which would make it easier to progress... not sure.
What's your take?
I've never ridden the Process, but based off the weight recommendations it would seem the Process is a bit more stiff than the Whatever(maybe little softer than the Beyond Medals Whatever).
In my growing age, I'm becoming more and more fond of directional twins over true twins. With a directional twin it will allow you to float a bit more without shifting your stance and when you do, extra float. The additional nose over tail effects spins under 900 less than people lead on.
As far as progression, I would lean more towards the Process. If you want an easy ride, the Whatever.
I’m 5’10 arround 170lbs should i get 154 or 157?
You can really go with either. Going small will be a bit more playful while going bigger will be a tad bit more stable. With how soft the board is, I would probably go bigger.
When you break it down there's only 3cm in total length difference.
Im 6’4 and at 215lbs should I go 162W or 159W?
I'd go with the 162, especially if you have 13-14 boots. Anything to get that extra width. Been riding an ultra wide board lately and it's a game changer in terms of riding feel.
Notice any differences compared to the 2023?
The change from a extruded to a sintered base was the only real difference in these boards. Can you tell much a difference? Barely. Keep a look out for full review soon.
How would the Whatever compare to other boards you’ve ridden in terms of flex? Been eyeing this board but questioning if it’s not stiff enough for me so the BYND Medals version def sounds great. You said this is a cruising board def considering it along those lines just not sure 100% off 3bt and the stiffness
It's definitely on the softer side, but not so soft that I cant take it fast. Also take into account I'm on the upper end of their weight recommendation and with my height can out a lot more leverage into the board. I actually like the softer flex in moguled terrain and is actually really nice in heavier pow because you can feel the nose flex pushing against the snow.
ii have the goliath, i find it has too much flex for my taste(i had for years a way stiffer twin board), i can t imagine how flexy the whatever is.....i guess it s a good thing i didn t pick it..
True. Every brand's flex ratings are different. Could be that Bataleon's 4-6 is someone else's 3-4.
It doesn't help for me that I'm at the upper range of their recommended weight, so board flex is a bit easier for me to throw around.
I'm a little confused about the washout you mention. Is it due to 3d on the ends of all the battalion models or more just the whatever?
The washout is mostly due to the 3bt - you have to get over on a decent angle to engage the full edge. With weight in the middle, the 3bt has a saucer like feel in the nose and tail.
I'm 6'5 for a size 14. What's been your experience booting out? I bought an UW Skunk ape thinking I needed the width. Also, what bindings do you ride? Ride's won't adjust far enough back to the heel side to stay centered
Only booted out a few times all season, but it was on decently steep runs with solid conditions.
I ridden a bunch of bindings over the years. Depending on the discs in your bindings, you might be able to turn them 90's so the shift is edge to edge instead of tip to tail. If you cant do that, I'd get new bindings - most in the middle range (Nitro Team, Union Force [if they fit your boot width]) have the ability to shift the heel back to center your boot.
It sounds like a lot of people went with the Twin Pig. I moved to CO, a year before COVID, learned how to snowboard and went every week on my TwinPig. Towards the end of the season, I caught an edge and hurt my knee. Halfway through COVID, I moved and missed the past two seasons. Like @Mitchell Carson said, the TwinPig felt boaty and for my first time back on the mountain, looking for something a little less catchy that I can relearn and progress on, which led me to look at the Bataleon Fun.Kink.
I'm 6'2", 225 lbs. with a size 13 - 14 boot, depending on the boot. I'm into crusing the entire mountain, more groomers and off piste than park, but also like freestyle. I'm not really worried if I have to get one board for a short period to relearn, and another not long after, if I need to. I just want to have fun, get back on the mountain without having to worry about catching another edge, right from the start. I've been looking at the Bataleon Fun.Kink, Yes Standard, Goliath, Goliath+, and now also the Rome Warden, but I'm open, if you have any suggestions. At this point, I would think of myself as a complete beginner again.
At your (our size) and the boards you listed I'd probably stick to the Bataleon Whatever 162w or Goliath 172w. The widths on the other are all pretty standard "wide" not the Wide Wide we need. That boaty feeling tends to go away with time on the baord, but catch free will be good for getting back on board. The Whatever is just a shorter more flexible version of the Goliath. So you kind of have the option of a bit more playful and fun, or more of a hard charging board.
@@WilAlexander man, appreciate all the help! I’ve never ridden anything near a 172, but I’m down to try. I know this is probably a stupid question, but is it still nimble enough to get around trees? The 162 Whatever also sounds legit.
@@donvirgo I've only gotten on the Skunk Ape 170UW and it felt amazing. That thing has like a 9 meter radius or something, which likes to carve more than turn. But I'm sure with time, I could get used to it. I thought my Nidecker Era was boaty for the first few times I rode it and now anything with a tip tail under 317 feels so small.
@@WilAlexander Nice! The only board I’ve owned is the TwinPig, aside from riding an old trashed out 164 camber loaner board, which I learned on, and a couple of reverse camber rentals. I saw Zeb do some crazy things on that 203 Nitro Cannon and he’s not tall, so I guess with the right skill and practice, anything can be nimble. Would you go with the 172 Goliath over the 167, since they’re both over 27.5? Is it the total extra volume of the 172 which makes the difference?
So the waist width is the thing small reps will look at because they dont know any better. A dude that's 5'10" with a size 10 boot doesnt have to worry about booting out.
My 14's measure 345mm in length.
Whatever 162w -274 waist, 322 Tip/tail will give you less than 298 mm under foot
Goliath 167w - 275 waist, 321 Tip/tail will give you less than 298 mm under foot
172w - 279 waist, 324 Tip/tail will give you less than 301 mm under foot
A normal "Wide" board 266 waist, 313 Tip tail - 289 under foot
For me I try to get my tip tail as close to my boot length. The closer that its, you can handle deep carves and steep terrain way easier. Getting used to the edge to edge is just a matter of getting use to a board that actually fits you vs riding a small guy's pow board.
Is this board softer and less stable than the 18/19 assassin you had?
In terms of stiffness, it's overall softer. The Assassin had a pretty stiff middle and really loose nose and tail, where the Whatever is a more consistent softness (softer center than the Assassin, stiffer Nose/Tail).
Stability - The only place the Assassin fell apart for me was between edges when mostly flat, but that was only a bit of chatter in the soft Nose/Tail.
Finally found a snowboarder whose height and weight is kinda like mine. Since there aren't many truly wide snowboards for big riders like me (195 cm, 92 kg) I end up choosing Bataleon, Stallion model and I'm pretty happy with it. I'm not doing any extreme carvings or anything (just learning) but even if I did, my toes and heels wouldn't allow that, because they are larger than the board for about 2 cm from each side (my shoes 12.5 US).
I just wanted to share my sadness about the fact that you simply cannot use most of these cool looking snowboards like Jones, Capita and bunch of others if you have big feet
I feel you. I recently came across a small brand that handmakes all their boards and they make a Monster wide board. I've only ridden it a couple times in crappy conditions, but I'm looking forward to riding it this year and hopefully having something that lets me ride like everyone else, lol.
@@WilAlexanderNever heard of them. But it would be great to see a review of such a snowboard
The new Whatever has a sintered base
Found that out when they released all the details.
hi mate, nice review, just your opinion : i m same us you just couple pounds less and mostly ride cruizing,carving, pow , almost never park, will this board be good for that or i should look somewhere else . been on ride machete for years but now want a change . thanks.
I think you'd enjoy it. I'm not sure about the flex of the Machete, but going from a predominantly rocker board to this would be a good transition a normal camber board. The 3bt is honestly a game changer in lazy cruising - not having to worry about edge catch in the flats is sick (can lose some edge hold on flat firm terrain)
@@WilAlexander machete flex is probably 6 - 7 and it's almost flat under foot ,overall I m very happy with it but just looking for new board to get more out of it on pow days .
good info thanks for the review
No problem 👍
Thanks for this!
No worries!
Damn nice ring
thanks babe
I am size 13 feet plus I like carving so I really appreciate this review. I love bataleon’s 3bt but I need their widest option. I also need it to be pretty short cuz I’m only 165 pounds 6’ 1” so I might go with the 156W. I use to ride a Ride TwinPig and a Marhar Lumberjack, they were perfect I just wish they had 3bt which is why I’m so hype for this Whatever board.
You can probably be good on the 159w or even the 162w. The soft flex with the 3bt makes the board easier to control than other longer boards.
With 13's you're probably looking at a 32cm boot length. You'll likely not notice, or may even enjoy the added length to get the extra .5-.9cm in width to have better control carving.
@@WilAlexander 159w vs 156w is a tough decision, I use to ride a 157 ride twinpig and it felt very big, but at the same time it had a 328mm tip and tail width with a 270mm waist. Meanwhile the Whatever 156w is a 268mm waist, 313mm tip and tail. I am currently riding a 152 Lumberjack X with a 273 waist, 314 tail, and it fits great. But at the same time the 3bt of the Whatever is gonna make it feel like a smaller board with it being more nimble. Man I am being picky maybe I should just demo a 159w and see how I like it. I'm also only on my 4th year snowboarding so having something smaller might be better for progression.
I also wish they used a less exaggerated version of 3bt such as Bataleon's jib 3bt where the up rise of the 3bt isn't so big. This might mitigate some of those issues you were talking about and allow you to have more edge contact. Btw their new Party Wave twin looks pretty cool in 159.
@Mitchell Carson So the Big you're talking about is what I would call "Boaty" - How much effort it takes to go edge to edge. I like to talk about Big as in length and how easy it is to turn/spin.
For instance I rode the Skunk Ape 170UW (329N/326T) Edge to edge wasnt bad, but the spin rate was aweful - The board's rad if you want to go fast and carve, not great in tight turning situations.
Considering the industry "standard" is 5'9" is a 156. At 6'1" you'll probably actually feel more at home on a 159 over a 157, where you can let the board do more of the work.
@@WilAlexander Just tried the 159 out for the first time. It's the longest cm board I have ever ridden but you were right it does NOT have a boaty feeling. I love this board, I have only ridden it once for half a day but I think this is the greatest board I can possibly get with my big feet and low body weight. This board has such explosive pop too, the camber is SUPER high yet doesn't feel catchy. I guess that is the magic of 3bt.
I only have a few complaints. The first is the slowness of the board. Maybe it was just the snow today, but I have a feeling Bataleon is marketing their extruded base as a sintered base this year....the base does not look sintered to me, although I could be wrong. And my next complaint is I wish this thing was twin, but I had no option to go for a 3BT twin board with my foot size and weight. If this board was twin, it would be a few cm shorter, and still the perfect width, which I would love. But hey switch riding did not feel bad and I just gotta get use to it.
Have you ridden the Aviator 2.0 Wide?
I havent, unfortunately Jones makes "wide" boards for short guys. 308 tip/tail on the 163w is basically a standard board. Widest in their lineup that would be close to fitting me is the Mountain Twin, and even that is narrow at it's 168 length
@@WilAlexander 210lbs and 11.5 not dragging with the 59W but it definitely bigger then the lib 57 I have but if ya get the chance take it for a lap rails hard carves hard for trees I do prefer the Gremlin.
@@jasonrobertson5479 Both of those boards are out of the question for me. Weight's not really the issue, it's the 14's I'm rocking. They measure out to like 350mm. With a 308 tail width my boot hangs off over an inch on either side. Makes it so I can only lean the board over a tiny bit before booting out.
@@WilAlexander damn that sucks man!
@@jasonrobertson5479 yeah. I should probably asterisk parts of my reviews for this only applies to big boots, lol
I may of missed it but what was your overall opinion? Did you like it? Are you still going to be riding it? Switching to something else this year?
This will likely end up being a quiver board more than a everyday driver, just because I like to have a bit more control of my edges around the nose and tail. I'll likely use it early season and slushy days.
@@WilAlexander out of curiosity what’s your daily do everything board?
@@zackbutler950 I'm still hanging onto a 2019 Nidecker Era. Keep in mind, I cant fit onto most companies "wide" boards.
@@WilAlexander that’s true lol. I forgot about that.
@@zackbutler950 If I was just riding park though the Salomon Assassin was sick when I had it. Great pop, good flex. I just never really got a hang of the multi radius sidecut
would you be able to feel the difference in width from the 154 to the 156W?
That’s a huge jump. A lot of major brands have their 165s at the same width as the 156w. Your going from 301 to 313 tip tail. I’ve done 5mm jumps and it’s felt like a boat for the first few days.
@@WilAlexander regarding the 2023 Bataleon Whatever the waist width is only 1.1cm wider and the tip and tail width is 1.2cm wider, I wouldn't of thought that would make a lot of difference considering such a small increment.
@@keanzy5399 you'd be surprised. I can tell the difference on non-3D boards from 313-317-324 and wont even get on anything in the 301 area anymore. The extra millimeters at the bottom make exponential differences as you go up. How big are you (mainly height and boot size)?
@@WilAlexander Im 6ft and my bootsize is about a 10/10.5 the reason im inquiring is because I live in Australia and the stock for the 2023 bataleon beyond medals whatever is essentially sold out so my only option is really the 156W. im mainly looking to ride powder which I wouldve thought extra width would be helpful. But im all ears
ive been riding generic rental snowboards for the past 5 years though so when im comparing the 154 to the 156W its not like I would be able to tell the differance because ive not ridden either size before, especially not 3bt. but it would be interesting to hear if you think I would have a problem manoeuvring the board with the extra width as apposed to if I was to buy a similar board in the 154.
Best review of 3bt I’ve seen thanks.
Appreciate that