sailorette’s diary - a diary writen by a sailorette for her loved ones to read after returning safely home from sea

So lets just have a sum-up here. The years only a third of the way through and I’ve already managed to visit three (or four, if you’re a Scottish Nationalist) countries. They recommend save the best for last, and I would almost agree.

Perhaps it was my new board, or maybe it was the food and the local beer, maybe the rather picturesque scenery had something to do with it and that the lack of fresh snow and left-over jetlag from New Z that just melted away.. but I ♥ Switzerland!

First thing : the journey. Sam, Anneli, Nico and I flew out of London City Airport: a small town airport in a massive capitol. You’re checked in and through security in a matter of minutes and arrive in what appears to be a pub / waiting area. The flight was so fast - that might have something to do with what I was comparing it to (26 hours to New Zealand) - accompanied by lovely little Swiss Air chocolates, and two sudoku’s later we arrived in Basel. I ♥ London City Airport

But enough about that - how about my new board? Well… it was perfection. Bindings? Snugger than a snow bunny in a bun. Sam had been taunting me as he’d just had a weeks snowboarding in exactly the same resort (rather an unplanned coincidence), and had “gotten so much better.” By day two, I was (almost) leaving him in the slush. I ♥ Arborâ„¢. I ♥ Rideâ„¢.

And all of this wrapped up in the dramatic range of the Swiss Alps.

This weekend I leave for switzerland and having purchased a beautiful new bamboo arbor push board I went on the quest to find the perfect bindings.

It was rather difficult. The final contenders were the Burton Lexa and the Ride Delta and Ride Beta. I was looking for one that would react better off-piste and would be more solid than my forum recon bindings.

The Burton Lexa took the podium. She looked like a good all-mountain binding that would fit perfectly with my burton boots, but even as she was rattling away about “on the toe straps” and non-tool adjustability, I remembered I’d been out with her like before and love was not in the relationship.

The Ride Delta sat cooly in the background and didn’t say a thing. He knew that if I was the right person, he wouldn’t need to give a big speech. I was at first a little dubious about his aluminium frame.. but soon his differences won me over.

So heres to a glorious relationship between snow, aluminium and bamboo.

Ride Delta RRP: £140
Arbor Push Board RRP: £350