Behold, the Cobra, the newest inception from Never Summer Industries. Hailed as their most versatile, highest performing all mountain slayer, I was excited to see for myself how this stick would handle. Could it charm this picky shred enthusiast? Turns out, yes, and then some!
Shape
Derived from the top selling Proto CT, the Cobra is a directional board with a twin-ish look and feel. Never Summer’s Rocker Camber combines great edge hold and stability, with catch free playfulness and float. Couple that with a slightly set back stance, exaggerated nose, and a shorter quick spade tail, and you’ll be right at home banging around off trail and surfing the deep stuff. To keep things nimble, the tips have been blunted to drop swing weight, and the side cut is playful and predictable.
Flex
In NS’s line up, the Cobra’s flex falls at a 5 out of ten. It’s also right in the middle as far as dampening goes. Over all it feels stout flexing by hand but a bit softer under your feet. This means a stable, chop-busting platform that eats up bumps and vibration but still gives you the free feeling you get with a more forgiving flex.
Weight
In the past, I always found NS boards to be on the heavier side, due to their super durable and damp construction. Not the case with the Cobra! This board is as light, or lighter, than any board of similar size in my quiver. My guess is that this comes from the new Super Light core and Carbonium top sheet, which is a new, lightweight scratch and chip resistant top sheet material that looks like a carbon weave.
Pop
The dual carbon matrix located under the bindings gives the deck a great, snappy feel weather your popping off a mogul, hitting a manmade park jump, or in the pipe. The RC design lets your ollie come from right under your foot, so fast action emergency ollies are a breeze. Also, it had a very predictable snap to it, and never sent me in to the air feeling wonky.
Handling
The best thing about this board is that it took no getting used to. Right off the bat, both regular and switch, it felt like I had been riding this deck my whole life! Quick turns through trees, high-speed straight lines, spinning off the lip, all predictable and effortless. It has just the right amount of board feel to dampening ratio for a smooth ride regardless of terrain or snow conditions. The Vario Grip sidecut gives you an added contact point bump between your feet for killer edge hold.
Overall Impression
Shape
Derived from the top selling Proto CT, the Cobra is a directional board with a twin-ish look and feel. Never Summer’s Rocker Camber combines great edge hold and stability, with catch free playfulness and float. Couple that with a slightly set back stance, exaggerated nose, and a shorter quick spade tail, and you’ll be right at home banging around off trail and surfing the deep stuff. To keep things nimble, the tips have been blunted to drop swing weight, and the side cut is playful and predictable.
Flex
In NS’s line up, the Cobra’s flex falls at a 5 out of ten. It’s also right in the middle as far as dampening goes. Over all it feels stout flexing by hand but a bit softer under your feet. This means a stable, chop-busting platform that eats up bumps and vibration but still gives you the free feeling you get with a more forgiving flex.
Weight
In the past, I always found NS boards to be on the heavier side, due to their super durable and damp construction. Not the case with the Cobra! This board is as light, or lighter, than any board of similar size in my quiver. My guess is that this comes from the new Super Light core and Carbonium top sheet, which is a new, lightweight scratch and chip resistant top sheet material that looks like a carbon weave.
Pop
The dual carbon matrix located under the bindings gives the deck a great, snappy feel weather your popping off a mogul, hitting a manmade park jump, or in the pipe. The RC design lets your ollie come from right under your foot, so fast action emergency ollies are a breeze. Also, it had a very predictable snap to it, and never sent me in to the air feeling wonky.
Handling
The best thing about this board is that it took no getting used to. Right off the bat, both regular and switch, it felt like I had been riding this deck my whole life! Quick turns through trees, high-speed straight lines, spinning off the lip, all predictable and effortless. It has just the right amount of board feel to dampening ratio for a smooth ride regardless of terrain or snow conditions. The Vario Grip sidecut gives you an added contact point bump between your feet for killer edge hold.
Overall Impression
F.Y.I: Never Summer snowboards are awesome! We’ve all known for years that there is this little factory in Colorado that makes fun, bomb proof snowboards by hand. But the time has come to let it be known to the entire world! I think the Cobra is a super solid all mountain attack weapon, capable of taming any terrain you may find with smooth, responsive handling, power where you need it, and a predictable ride. And you can’t go wrong when you’re talking about a 3-year warranty. This deck is straight up fun, and charmed me into being a Never Summer fan for life!
