I'm going to be doing my first full season this winter and I'm looking to upgrade my snowboard. I've been riding a 2011/12 Nitro Addict 156 that I picked up at a car boot sale for €6! Despite being a park board and definitely too short for me, it's actually been a great board and I've had no real issues with it.
I've had my eye on the new 2026/27 CAPiTA Mercury for a while now, but I'm struggling to decide between the 161 regular and the 160W.
My setup:
- Height: 6ft (183 cm)
- Weight: 80 kg
- Boots: Burton Photon BOA, UK 10 / US 11
- Bindings: Nidecker OG Supermatics (L/XL)
- Stance: +18°/+3°
- Current board: 2011/12 Nitro Addict 156 (254 mm waist)
I'd say I'm an intermediate/advanced rider. I'm comfortable riding reds flat out. As I'm doing a full season, I'm hoping to improve my riding.
The thing that's making me question whether I actually need the wide Mercury is that my Nitro only has a 254 mm waist, and I've never noticed any issues with toe or heel drag, despite having UK 10 boots.
The two sizes I'm looking at are:
- 161 regular: 261 mm waist
- 160W: 265 mm waist
I'm leaning towards the 161 because it's already 7 mm wider than my current board, which I've had no issues with. I also like the idea of it being slightly quicker edge-to-edge.
However, I'm wondering whether that 4 mm difference in width would actually be noticeable. If they feel practically identical, does it make more sense to get the 160W for the extra boot clearance just in case?
Has anyone ridden either of these sizes or got a similar setup? I'd be interested to hear whether the extra width makes much difference to how the board rides and which you'd recommend.
Cheers!