In this one I sit down with Corran Addison from Soul Stick and we get into that core question he throws out: do you want to skate down the mountain, or surf it? I love hearing design philosophy straight from the shaper, because it forces me to think beyond marketing terms and back to what a board is actually trying to do under your feet. We talk about Corran’s background, how water sports and “Soul Waterman” thinking bleed into snowboard shapes, and why surf-inspired boards aren’t just a trend—they’re a different approach to how you initiate and finish turns. From there we get nerdy in the best way: what makes a good kids’ snowboard, why tapered boards often feel easier to turn, and why a mildly directional stance can help newer riders build turning confidence faster. We also touch on the idea that goofy vs regular doesn’t matter nearly as much as people think, and how tail design choices—like a softer swallow tail instead of just adding rocker—can give you support without killing the surfy feel. Then we walk through key Soul Stick boards (the first builds, progression into 3D shaping and stiffness changes, plus models like the Blower, Fukai, and Pitch Wing) and finish with my favorite takeaway: change your stance for the situation, and ask yourself what originally drew you into snowboarding in the first place.