2012 No Way! Catalyst Used and Reviewed

No Way is an upstart company making 2012 their debut season.  As a small company out of Reno, Nevada, the No Way Catalyst is their flagship does-it-all model available in three sizes, 150, 153, and 156 in both traditional and reverse camber.  With a sturdy tri-axial core, the Catalyst performs from steeps to jumps, jibs and everything in between.  It’s true that No Way is an advertiser with the Angry Snowboarder which makes it hard to write what will be a quite positive review, but what can be said? A good deck is a good deck, and the fact is that the Catalyst charges, tried and true; so let’s take a look:

Board: No Way! Catalyst

Size: 153, 156

Camber Option: Traditional or Reverse (Flat between bindings with micro-rocker at the tips)

Bindings: 2009 Flux Super Emblems

Stance: 23″

Angles: +18º/-12º

Boots: Thirty Two Boa

My Weight: 175lbs…ish

Resort: Boreal/June Mountain

Conditions: Early season slush at Boreal, mid-winter/spring-like epicness at June Mountain

Preconceived Notions: All I knew about this board was that it had a tri-axial core, reverse camber, and would cause beautiful women to be irresistibly attracted too me.  So, I pretty much expected a solid deck that would cut through chop but give me a little trouble over jumps since I’m notorious for popping reverse camber decks too hard and getting thrown back.

Flex: Somewhere around medium stiff, but with the micro reverse at the tips definitely pressable.

Stability: Tri-axial core, as in the Catalyst doesn’t get easily bucked around. Point through choppy spring park conditions with ease and get that trick when nobody else can handle the ruts.

Ollies/Pop: Nice and snappy. No surprises given the tri-axial weave. Solid off kickers

Butterability: The micro-reverse camber makes this board incredibly buttery.  Riding it you wouldn’t think it that pressible but rock to either tip and it locks right in.

Cruising: Solid.  Cuts through chop well; initiates nicely edge to edge.

Jibbing: I love having flat camber between my bindings. Locks boardslides nicely and the micro-reverse makes for some steezy presses.  The added pop from the triax makes getting onto those taller features a breeze.

Rider in Mind: If the Big & Tall store carried snowboards they’d stock the Catalyst.  Perfect deck for a bigger rider that needs something stable to get down in the park. If you are a hard charging park rat, this board is a good fit for you as well.

Personal Thoughts: I had a really good time on this deck.  At 6′ 1″ and 175-180lbs I definitely fit the category of Big & Tall as far as snowboarding goes and was pleased to find a deck I could ride at smaller sizes that performed like a bigger, sturdier one while keeping it’s to park oriented roots.  I think No Way! has a good flagship product on their hands and I hope their debut season meets with success so they can expand their line; I see good things coming from them.

What They Say: “The Catalyst is our park-street oriented board and is your deck of choice for taking your park or street game to the next level. with a full aspen core and soft-mid flex for both jibs and kickers. this board comes in both traditional camber and Rocker. The true twin shape also allows for uninhibited switch riding.

The Catalyst features top end materials, Tri-axial glass for added strength and pop and a sintered 4001 base for extra speed and durability. All of our boards are built by hand in Reno, Nevada by skilled craftsmen. Unique to only our boards is that every one is waxed by hand with a traditional iron to allow the base material to be preforming at peak speed right out of the box.

As well as top end materials and craftsmanship The Catalyst also features new Babe Magnet Technology. When we went to talk to our board designer about it he told us it was “It’s all in the wood”. He seems to be somewhat secretive about it. But if you find large numbers of attractive females like to be around you when your on this bad boy we figure the new technology is working.

The artwork features an array of historical characters who advocated aggression, which is exactly what we want our riders doing, getting aggressive on the mountain and going all out.”

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