So far, it has been a little harder to get my gear together this season. After taking some time off to live in NYC and not snowboard as much for the last couple of years, I'm happy to be back with a vengeance. But putting my gear back together has been a challenge and a tough decision process. After thinking about it for a while, I finally decided to ask Lance Pitman, founder of Illuminati Snowboards for a board. I know it's a quality product; I've always backed their program and wanted to try one but never did. So I called Lance up, we discussed my options and he said that he had a board in mind. When I came home from Vegas and ripped open the box, there it was. It was the board I wanted all right, but I knew immediately whom it really belonged to. This was the board Nic Drago was riding last season when he broke his pelvis in Silverton, CO. A tragic accident for all of us, Nic's injury was a very emotional and serious event. (Don't worry; Drago's a trooper. He's even riding already, YEAH NIC!)

Anyway, Nic knew what was going on and even though he suggested that the board might be cursed, we agreed that I should ride it in his honor. First thing to do was remove some of Drago's stickers. A cool looking sticker job no doubt, but it was his...not mine. I had to bust out the Goo Gone to remove any leftover sticky goo, and I left the BlueBird and Illuminati stickers on. I continued with Drago's slanted theme, and started to stick away. After about three hours of neurotic nonsense...this is what I got. I left room to add SNOWBOARD stickers later, and a Chris Ferris sticker that I need to get made. I rode this board four days in Alberta this past week and I have to admit, she turns real nice. A stiff, snappy flex with an aggressive sidecut and great shape make the hybricon tear up the groomers, rip through the powder and pop off those jumps like a springboard. Thanks to Nic for his approval and to Lance even though he didn't even tell me that this was Drago's board. I still need a Brian Iguchi model for the deep days Lance, so how about a new one this time mofo? I still want to try some other boards this year, specifically an Academy Chad Otterstrom and a Sapient Kurt Wastell. If anyone is riding those models, leave a comment and let us know what you think.