Gear Review: 2023/24 Arbor Candle Rain 155 Snowboard

Arbor is hands down one of the most reliable companies in the world of snowboarding, and they recently dropped their 2023/24 snowboard line. One of the featured snowboards of this season’s drop is the Pat Moore-designed Candle Rain camber board. For those that are not familiar, Pat Moore is a legendary snowboarder who has been in the game for quite a while; he has appeared in films including Travis Rice’s The Art of Flight, and has competed under the brightest lights at competitions such as X-Games. Referring to the board, Moore said:

“What Candle represents to me is the indefinite pursuit of growth. Whether you are progressing, riding, finding new places to explore, or teaching the next generation, there is always an opportunity for your next step.”

The Candle Rain is a stiffer board that excels in powder and big mountain conditions as well as at the resorts. This year’s Candle model is the first installment in Arbor’s Candle collection and is a directional twin that offers the perfect float through the powder. It can be purchased in a variety of sizes ranging from 149-161. Like all of their other boards, Arbor’s Candle is manufactured with 100% solar energy and maintains Arbor’s vision of using sustainable materials to produce the highest quality gear.

Arbor sent me the new Candle to try out, and when it came I made sure to wait for some fresh snow to get a proper first impression. On my first day riding the Candle, I went to Vail, Colorado for a nearly 12-inch powder day; needless to say, it was my best day of this season so far. I arrived early enough to ride untracked powder for a few hours while still dodging the crazy Saturday crowds. I immediately went to Chair #11 and found some steep, cliffy runs. The Candle had me floating through all of the powder and felt stiff and responsive. It is always good to have confidence before jumping off of cliffs, and with this board underneath me, I felt that I had as much control as I have ever had on a snowboard. I am used to riding park boards, regardless of where I am on the mountain, so it was extremely refreshing to have a board meant for the big-mountain terrain I so often find myself in.

Once the cliffs got a bit tracked out, I relocated to the trees for a few runs and then sped down a groomer or two to cap off an early but thrilling day. In the trees, the stiffness and responsivity of the board had me feeling great. I was able to cruise control through some pretty deep Aspen groves, making some smooth turns given the relatively early season conditions (even with a pow-day, Colorado’s snowpack is still below average for this time of year). At the end of the day, blasting down a couple of groomers had me very impressed; the edge control provided by the Candle is unparalleled and the board’s overall pop is exceptional. On both my toe and heelside, I felt a stable response and a timeless reaction from the board regardless of my speed or snow depth.

On the days I’ve been on the hill since my powder day at Vail, I have gotten to experiment with this board, trying to analyze its strengths and weaknesses. To be clear, by far and away, the Candle’s greatest strength is how well it handles powder. I got to ride the board in some legitimately deep snow at Vail and Keystone as well, and the Candle’s float and stability are crazy. In the powder I got to ride, my board felt like a hot knife cutting through butter, just perfect. Taking this board into the park is where things have gotten weird, but a board this stiff, which is specifically designed for big mountain riding, is quite the contrast to a much ‘flexier’ board that is designed to be sliding on metal or hitting jumps. Still, though, for my intermediate skill level as a park rider, this board performed. For what it’s worth, the board’s stiffness only helped me clean up my approaches and landings to rails and jumps. With so much edge control comes the need for meticulousness and precision in order not to catch an edge, so hopefully this board will help me continue to progress both in and out of the terrain park.

I could not be any happier that Arbor sent me a new Candle Rain to try out, as this snowboard exceeded all expectations and performed in all types of terrain. It is worth noting that since my first powder day riding the Candle, I have encountered some icier runs, and this board dealt with them about as effectively as any board will. Arbor’s new line of snowboard gear dropped right in time for the winter season and the holidays, making the Candle Rain the perfect, timely gift. I am stoked that it is still early in the season and that I will have many more powder days to experience on the new board! Let’s all pray for snowier days ahead!

To learn more about the board, or to look for another reason to buy it, the product/launch videos have sensational clips of Pat Moore ripping through deep backcountry powder and talking about what the board means to him.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C0zx7dHuZLS/?hl=en

Candle Rain Camber Specs: 

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