Jones Hovercraft 2.0 Snowboard Review: For Big Powder Days

The Hovercraft 2.0 has a little bite on the edges that Jones calls Traction Tech, which cuts through hard ice but doesn’t impede carving in any way. I don’t think Traction Tech is as reliable as Lib Tech’s Magne-Traction (same concept, but with a few additional constraints), but this board has held its edge in critical areas very well.

This is by far the best board I have used on trees. Despite its width, it turns deftly in unpacked snow, where these quick directional changes are critically important. In March 2024, I took this board on a road trip to Northern California, Idaho, Montana, and Washington. At some of those stops it had not snowed for days, and whatever was in the open had been explored, but when I took this board among the trees I always found fresh snow. On those special occasions when I took it out into a large, steep snowfield the board had a casual, surf-like feel. It glides well even on flat surfaces.

The Hovercraft 2.0 is also arguably the most durable snowboard ever produced. It is the first snowboard made with Jones’ new Re-Up technology, which upcycles components from used surfboards. Jones found that 95 percent of snowboards can be recycled, and that’s where this board’s wooden core comes from. It features recycled steel in its sides, recycled ABS in its sidewalls, a carbon-neutral flax fiber topsheet, and a bio resin that reportedly cuts CO.2 33 percent increase in emissions compared to traditional epoxy. This wand comes pre-treated with natural wax that is biodegradable and does not contain any fluorocarbon chemicals like PFAS.

This shouldn’t be surprising, as founder Jeremy Jones is not only a well-known snowboarder, but also the founder and president of Protect Our Winters (aka POW). But it’s good to see companies putting their money where their mouth is.

Ultimately, there’s a lot to like and very little to dislike about this board, but it’s for a specific type of rider looking for a specific experience. If your focus is mostly on groomers, this board is nice, but it doesn’t really stand out on hard pack. For intermediate to advanced riders who want to spend as much time as possible hunting powder on ungroomed terrain, surfing steep slopes, cutting big turns, exploring trees, and still doing some playful carving while getting back to the lift line, the Hovercraft 2.0 is an absolute delight.

It’s an absolutely fun machine that has given me some of the most memorable races of my life. It has usurped my favorite K2 Excavator as my favorite board for powder days. If this interests you, this board is highly recommended.



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