Chosing the Right Bindings

Most people will tell you that boots are the most important part of your setup. True, and bindings fall into second place. With the right boots and bindings, you can pretty much ride any board without much trouble. As far as traditional bindings go (we'll get into step-ins later), there are three main types.

1. All aluminum
2. All plastic (actually, most of these are made of nylon, usually reinforced with fiberglass or something similar)
3. Hybrid. Like it sounds, usually part nylon, part aluminum.

Before getting into specifics, some general binding info. A softer flexing binding is going to be better for people starting out, as they are forgiving. This allows the rider to flex the binding some without the board reacting instantly, possibly putting them on their butt. These bindings also work well for the jib- loving box and rail guys for the same reason; they can tweak and shift their bodies while on a box without the board over-reacting. Now, the flex comes from several places. First, the baseplate will flex a certain way heel to toe, as well as side to side (like when you pull your knees together to flex the board). Secondly the highback, which will dictate how responsive your heelside turns are. Lastly, the ankle strap; softer allows forward flex, stiffer offers more support. Usually a softer baseplate will also have a softer highback and ankle strap.
Stiffer bindings are generally better for freeriding, going fast, and maintaining stability. Many pipe riders like stiffer bindings too, for the quick response time. The stiffness makes these responsive; when you shift, the bindings are going to turn your board. Quickly. For the accomplished rider, this may be a good thing. Again, a stiffer baseplate will usually have a stiff highback and ankle strap. The firm ankle strap gives one great support on toeside turns, as well as more stability all around; jump takeoffs, landings, riding fast through variable terrain. The downside would be some loss of flexability, both forward and side to side.
Other details. Toe straps. These days, most toe straps are going over the toe, as opposed to over the foot. Over the toe for most people is more comfortable, as it does not put much pressure on the front of the foot and also helps pull the foot back into the binding. This is mostly a personal preference, take your pick!
Highback rotation. I will not buy a binding if the highback does not rotate, and while most people don't bother, it is one of the single biggest adjustments that can be made to your bindings to improve your riding. Stand over your board and look down over your front binding. Since you have the binding angled forward, the highback is no longer parallel with the heel edge. By rotating the highback so it is even with your heel edge, heelside turns will be much easier and more responsive towards your efforts. As far as freestyle goes, the highback will be out of the way of your legs when tweaking laterally or medially, so you can tweak out airs and jibs and do them with even more style!
Padding. Typically, the higher end the binding, the more padding it will have. If you jump or do other high impact riding, this might be worth the extra cash.
Another price note: A decent, quality binding starts around $100, and can run over $400. Anything much less expensive should probably be avoided. Bindings have a lot of parts and cheap bindings are a nightmare to find parts for, as well as often being of poor design. Also, and this is a generalization, but usually the softer flexing bindings are going to be less expensive, and the stiffer ones will cost more as they have a little more tech built into them to make them stiffer.
Try before you buy. There is nothing wrong with bringing your boots with you to buy bindings. I sure want to know how that strap feels over my boot before I spend another $250. Also, all bindings fit differently, so I need to see how my boots fit in there. Most bindings are made in 2 or 3 different sizes. Loose gives some play for the freestyler. Tight gives the freerider a little more support. Just because they match your board doesn't mean they feel good on your feet! Like boots, try a few pairs on. See the difference between a $100 binding and a $300 one. Try a soft one, then a stiffer one. Make sure the buckles are easy to use. Again, this is all personal preference.

Ok, let's start with aluminum. And before we get into this, don't believe people who tell you that aluminum bindings do not flex. Bullshit. Burton's three highest end boards are made from aluminum, and they flex just fine. It is just a matter of how much aluminum and where it is on the binding. You can purchase soft and flexy, or stiffer and supportive. A supportive aluminum binding tends to run less expensive than an equally stiff nylon binding because the nylon needs a lot of carbon or fiberglass reinforcement to equal that of aluminum, raising the cost.

Nylon. Like I mentioned earlier, plastic-looking bindings are most likely made of nylon. To make the binding stiffer, companies will add fiberglass to the nylon, and carbon for a really stiff ride. Nylon bindings tend to be more damp (absorbs vibrations) than aluminum, which is why you see extra padding under the baseplate of many aluminum binders to absorb shock. One downside to an all nylon binding is that the heelcup is usually fixed to the rest of the baseplate. That means that you must use the round binding disk to center your feet on the board. A medium flex nylon binding might have 15% fiberglass built in, while a really stiff one may have 30% carbon built in. Just some things to look for when shopping.

Hybrid. Typically, a nylon baseplate with an aluminum heelcup. Many companies prefer this construction as the nylon baseplate is softer, allowing the board to flex lengthwise, while the stiff heelcup is responsive from heel to toe. This construction also allows (usually) one to center their foot on the board by adjusting the heelcup, and then the center disc can be used to make minor tweaks to their stance width. This is usually true with aluminum bindings as well.

And then.... Not sure what is best for you? Let me confuse you with this: if you ride a soft boot and want more support, then a stiffer binding can help. Conversely, if you ride stiff boots, you might not need all the support of a stiff binding as well. Also, a well designed binder should allow for strap adjustment. Some like the ankle strap high on the foot for support and ankle/ heel hold, others like it low for flexibility. Like I said, try before you buy!

This just in! Now that rockered boards are making a showing, bindings are being developed to work with them. Cants. Cants angle you feet inwards using a wedge in the footbed of the bindings. This allows for wider stances, as the cants will angle your knees together some. This makes turning easier, and takes some pressure off the knees. Also, with the rockered nose and tail curving up, the wedge of the cant makes it easier to get pressure onto the tail, essentially giving the rider more "pop". This was in vogue in the 80's and early 90's, and hopefully cants are back for good! Another early 90's technology that is coming back are baseless bindings (and similar tech designs). The idea here is to eliminate as much (or all) material from under foot as possible. This allows the board to flex fully, eliminating "dead spots" under the bindings, while allowing much greater feel of the snow underfoot. With better technology than 15 years ago, these are much improved over their forefathers. Some companies are using flexible baseplate material or flexing or folding binding discs to accomplish similar results. Snowboard technology has really been spreading its wings the last few seasons, it'll be interesting to see what stands the test of time.

Step-ins. Speaking of standing the test of time, step-in bindings turned up in the mid 90's and have since gone the way of the dinosaur. Still, nobody likes having to sit and strap in at the top of every chair. The first wave of step-ins by design made the boot act like a ski boot, providing all the support. Many of these boots were uncomfortable, and were only compatible with one system (at one point, there were at least 5 major step-in systems on the market, all different and incompatible with each other). The new systems all use regular boots, and just have easy entry bindings. We'll get into these in another post, but again, this is new technology (for the most part), so we'll see what lasts and what falls by the wayside.

Now you are armed with the info to find yourself the perfect pair of bindings. Take your time setting them up; it will make all the difference in your riding! Also, read my Shoe Goo blog so everything doesn't come loose on you on the hill!