The 2024 Capita Ultrafear Snowboard is a twin-tail snowboard perfect for anyone looking for a park-focused board. It is fantastic at hitting rails and jumps in the park, and is a three-time winner of the Transworld Good Wood awards. This has been my main freestyle snowboard for the past season, so I wanted to share my review on how well it performs in the park as well as in other types of terrain.
It’s been a couple years since I’ve owned the Ultrafear but I remember why I loved it. The best part was I still love it. It’s a board that is built for freestyle but delivers on all over avenues of the mountain.
First Impressions
I bought this board and couldn’t wait to ride it. Now that the snowboard season has begun, I took it out for a few days and honestly didn’t like it at first. Why? Well, because the parks weren’t opened yet. So for my very first impression, I was forced to appreciate this board as an all-mountain board which it isn’t. The first note is that if you’re looking to do more all-mountain riding than park riding, consider the Capita DOA. However, if you spend a lot of time in the park, that’s where the Ultrafear shines over the DOA. Once the parks opened, I got to really appreciate the Ultrafear in contrast to the DOA. The Ultrafear is a park beast. It is phenomenal at butters, jibs, and jumps.
Why the Capita Ultrafear?
I chose the Capita Ultrafear snowboard because I’ve spent a lot of time in the park last season and wanted to get my first dedicated park board for this season.
The main attributes I looked for in a park board were these:
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- I wanted a soft to medium flexing board at around a four out of a ten rating.
- It needed to have a positive camber profile.
- It needed to be able to jib and be well rounded enough for hitting jumps.
One massive push for me to buy the Camber Ultrafear was that it was upgraded to Capita’s camber Resort V1 Profile. I love that upgrade because it is the same profile as the Capita DOA, which I was used to riding already.
If you’ve ever ridden the Capita Ultrafear in the past, it might have been a very different feeling snowboard. After the 2021 version, this board was upgraded to a camber profile. Capita kept that change in the new version of the Ultrafear. Additionally, this is the first year they are also offering an Ultrafear with a flat camber profile too. It’s called the Ultrafear Reverse Camber.
Basically, the board profile now has a positive camber section between your feet, flat under your feet, and a slight reverse camber (rocker) right before the tip and tail. In previous years the board was primarily flat between your feet, and now there is some camber to give it more pop.
Capita Ultrafear Camber Profile
How the Ultrafear Rides
One of the highlights of the Ultrafear is the handling. It takes very little adjustment to ride this board and it’s one of those boards that I honestly think any level could ride. It’s an easy transition into turns, doesn’t catch and allows the rider to really maneuver the board on the snow versus the board maneuvering you. It has good response with clean initiation into turns. It’s surprisingly stable on longer radius turns but short turns are a blast with it. For a freestyle board, the Ultrafear definitely handles on its own. The Ultrafear handled the same regular as it did switch.
Carving
The Ultrafear camber is a smooth ride that is great for taking slower, more drawn-out wide turns. This board has a catch-free feel to it, and it can butter or press with very little effort. While this is a fun board to carve around with, it is meant more for someone who is interested in riding the park over it being a carving focused freeride snowboard.
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Jibbing
The Ultrafear shines on rails and boxes. The camber profile hugs the rail while the rocker sections in the tip and tail make it easier to spin in and out of features. Additionally, the board is around 4-6cm wider than most boards in its class. The added width combined with the flexible torsional flex help give the board a skate like locked-in feel while hitting rails.
Jumping
It gives you an extra little boost of pop for hitting jumps or ollieing on flat. The hybrid camber profile helps you land your spins if you’re slightly off-axis. This board is probably perfect for small to medium sized jumps in all conditions. It can be right at home hitting large jumps too. However, I’d be careful if it was icy out. The Ultrafear can wash out while landing on ice when your weight is slightly off balance.
Flex
On the spectrum, the Ultrafear is on the middle of the range for overall flex. It’s meant to be a stiffer freestyle board, not as soft as the horrorscope and not as stiff as the mid range boards. The longitudinal flex feels a tad stiffer which helps for the overall handling of the board. Torsionally there’s some give and play to the board which helps for quick response. The nose and tail are still soft enough for playing around on and float in any powder.
It is on the softer side with a 4 out of 10 flex rating. The Ultrafear is a snowboard that can butter and press easily. As you read about this deck, you will notice that Capita rates its flex as a 5.5 out of 10. I can’t entirely agree with that. Compared to the DOA, which is rated at a 5.5 out of 10, the Ultrafear is closer to a 3.5 or 4 out of 10. Its a more flexible medium. It is the perfect park board for both jibs and hitting jumps.
Pros and Cons
Likes
- Softer flex - I like its softer mid-flex.
- Wider waist width - I like that it is slightly wider than the other boards in my quiver. The Ultrafear has a stable feel to it as you ride.
- Fast base / Easy to Maintain Base - The base on this board is fast, perfect for jibs, and doesn’t require a lot of maintenance.
- Lightweight - I love how lightweight this deck is. It is the lightest board I’ve ever owned.
- Easy to ride / Catch free - I love the catch-free feel of the resort V1 profile.
- Great for learning to spin off jumps - The Ultrafear is an incredibly forgiving board to hit jumps with.
- The design - Lastly, I love looking down and seeing this graphic when I look down.
Dislikes
- Riding on ice - Unfortunately, the Ultrafear doesn’t carve so well on ice or rutted-out terrain.
Features
- Perfect 4/10 flex - It is pressable and yet still perfect for jumps
- It is durable - Carbon Aramid Body Armor
- Hybrid positive camber profile of the board is playful when you need it to be and aggressive when you need it to be (Profile was updated back in 2022, and now it has more pop.)
- Lighter than ever - now has the P2 Superlight core
- Fast, easy to maintain base
- 360 Edges
- It has a damp feel for a softer board - there is cork built into the deck to absorb shock and keep it riding smooth
Who Is the Ultrafear a Good Fit For?
The Ultrafear is a great fit for any rider who wants to spend time in the park or the streets perfecting their rail game. If you’re going to be jibbing and jumping, this is the deck for you. This deck can be good for riders of any experience level, too. If you’ve been riding reverse camber boards, the Ultrafear will be a great entry into riding a positive camber board thanks to its catch free, flatter nose and tail.
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Capita Ultrafear Snowboard Specs
| Size (cm) | 147 | 149 | 151 | 153 | 153Wide | 155 | 155Wide | 157 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rider Weight (lbs) | 90-150 | 90-150 | 100-150 | 110-170 | 110-170 | 120-180 | 130-190 | 140-200 |
| Effective Edge (mm) | 1129 | 1147 | 1166 | 1182 | 1182 | 1198 | 1198 | 1213 |
| Tip Width (mm) | 289 | 292 | 295 | 297 | 302 | 299 | 304 | 301 |
| Waist Width (mm) | 248 | 250 | 252 | 254 | 259 | 255 | 260 | 260 |
| Tail Width (mm) | 289 | 292 | 295 | 297 | 302 | 299 | 304 | 301 |
| Sidecut Radius (m) | 7.6 | 7.65 | 7.7 | 7.8 | 7.86 | 7.9 | 7.96 | 8.1 |
| Stance Range (in) | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 26.6 |
| Stance Range (mm) | 584 | 609 | 609 | 609 | 609 | 635 | 635 | 675 |
Additional Benefits
The Ultrafear has been upgraded to include Capita’s Carbon Aramid Body Armor in the latest version. The body armor protects the contact points while increasing the pop and responsiveness of the snowboard. Capita also managed to decrease the vibration you would feel riding this by adding more cork into the edges.
The cork added in the body armor sides of the Capita Ultrafear adds to the durability and dampness of the board.
The pointed nose and tail act as reference points to help you balance while hitting rails and jumps. I use these to know that I am directly centered on the rail or going off the lip of the jump.
Overall Rating
| Considerations | Rating Out 5.0 |
|---|---|
| Resort Riding | 4.25 |
| Powder | 3.3 |
| Carving / Turns | 3.7 |
| Responsiveness | 3.85 |
| Speed | 4.65 |
| Ice / Poor Conditions | 3.5 |
| Switch | 5.0 |
| Jibs | 5.0 |
| Jumps | 4.65 |
| Durability / Quality | 4.75 |
| Buttering | 4.8 |
| Fun to ride | 5.0 |
Editor’s Rating of the Capita Ultrafear: 4.4 out of 5 stars
Bindings to Pair With
The Union Strata is a lightweight freestyle binding with a six out of ten flex rating. These bindings are perfect to pair with the Capita Ultrafear. These are some of the most responsive freestyle snowboard bindings you will find on this list.
- Pros
- Shock absorption
- Lightweight
- Flex in highback and baseplate
- Minidisk compatible
- Soft and surfy board feel
- Upgraded no-slip hardware
- Cons
- Not the dampest binding. These are best suited for park riding rather than going fast on rough terrain.
- Sizes
- Small (US Men’s 6 - 7.5), Medium (US Men’s 8 - 10), Large (US Men’s 10.5+)
If you are looking for a lightweight, flexible, yet still responsive binding, check out the Union Strata.
Final Thoughts
The Capita Ultrafear is the perfect park snowboard. It has technology built into it that makes it easy to jib, jump, and press. Additionally, it carves well outside of the park. The only potential downside I found was that it doesn’t carve well on steeper pockets of ice or rutted out terrain.
Overall Impression: The Capita Ultrafear receives a unique shape for this year but don’t let it freak you out, it’s the same popular Ultrafear for good reason.
If you are looking for a dedicated park board to add to your quiver, get the Capita Ultrafear.