New Catek Freeride Pro

[eddie]

Now that looks a little better. From the looks of the older model online and after seeing them in person I knew that the straps were not beefy enough for my liking. The addition of the Nidecker's Carbon 900 Pro strap system looks pretty good.


Hey Tilldog, maybe we can all demo those next year.
:rolleyes: Me thinks me want to try them, maybe buy them.

Anyone else give the freeride a try? What did you think?

Oh yea, this would help- http://www.catek.com/freeride.htm

[D-Sub]

personally I think its kinda lame that a $270 pair of bindings doesnt come with top quality straps in the first place and then when it does the price jumps dramatically

more than a small turnoff, IMO

[D-Sub]

I knew someone was going to get defensive.

oh well.

yes, the plate bindings are expensive, but they include an attachment system that doesnt need to be modded (well, for most) to get them up to par

the catek freerides, apparently the stock straps were just kinda crappy...

they look like super nice bindings, but the way I see it, skimping on some plastic parts (that realistically cant cost that much but are definitely essential to the performance of the binding) is lame.

heh. lets see where this one goes

[D-Sub]

Originally posted by cmc
"I ride the FRs and the FR Pros. Both are stand-out products with incredible performance. IMO"

Dsub..I have seen SWT ride the Frs and the FR Pros, he stands out in them. I have seen no one ,actually, ride softboots so well.

thats cool! But I certainly wasnt questioning anyones riding ability, Catek's design or pricing, OR the validity of swt's opinion

I am just of the opinion that a product should be "darn good" from the start, and have read varying opinions on the quality of the catek freeride straps.

I shoulda just kept my opinon to myself anyway, since Ive not used them. The stock straps are probably plenty good.

[eddie]

I shoulda just kept my opinon to myself anyway, since Ive not used them. The stock straps are probably plenty good.

Express your opinions freely; the point for this thread is for me (and the BOL masses) is to learn from other people's opinions. Just because some responses are a little hot from possible misinterpetation of what is written doesn't mean you should feel sorry for sharing your opinion. Besides, understanding conflicting opinions will help you comprehend your own better.

If there were any changes that needed to be done to the bindings it was definately better straps, a bigger highback, and an easier way to see the binding angles while you set them up.

With a top of the line binding system, I can understand the high price. The best softboot bindings out there go for something near the same price.

[D-Sub]

hold on tho...I never said the price was high for the Catek freeride. I think its a GOOD price for such a fine example of engineering!

I just think that it detracts a bit to have the straps, the mechanism for hold and response, be questionable.

but..theyre not questionable in everyones minds, so..thats what I meant about keepin my mouth shut

until I ride the cateks for a steady season, I really shouldnt have an opinion:)

as for the price of TD2s...good god please dont raise it! or at least until after I score my pair:)

:)

[slam]

Originally posted by Bob Jenney
D-Sub,

Please don’t keep your opinions to yourself. Don’t be scared off by the recent flame war that went on here. We need people to keep an open dialogue.

As far as pricing and design is concerned I have several comments:

1) A small manufacturer like Catek does not do the volume that would generate lower manufacturing costs for both CNC and molding plastic parts. The cost for R&D for plastic parts can bury a small company. Therefore, the retail price needs to be a bit higher to cover these costs.

2) Evolution is a part of any product development. The Freeride was an amazing product from the start, but once there were enough of them out there being used on a regular basis, people began to ask for a step up in the strap. This is a perfectly normal upgrade in the product life cycle.

I'm sure Jeff did some serious research to find the best system he could. Once he found it, he had a choice to make regarding costs. Either he could lose money and keep the binding at the same price point, or cover his costs and maybe make a small profit to allow him to do more R&D. The former does not help anyone as it makes an already fragile industry even more so.

3) The pricing for both the TD2 and the Olympic are WAY below what they should sell for. As someone who is intimately involved with the development of the TD2 and many other consumer products, the retail price is an amazing deal.

As an example, look at after market parts for motorcycles or cars. There is FAR less machining and design time in most of those products. Yet they sell for twice the money.

So, while the price may seem high, who else is making the sort of commitment to this sport that people like Jeff, Fin, Sean, Bruce, Chris and others make. None of them are going to make their millions. They all do it because they love the sport and hope to make a living doing what they love.

Bob gave some very good reasons why the price is high for the catek free ride bindings.

However, If I bought premium soft bindings today, full retail price, $229 would be the least i would spend (Drake Matrix) however i would probably spend closer to 250 (nidecker carbon 900 or Drake Podium for example) then I would want a lifter, like the Palmer Power Link, not because I have big feet, but because I like the ride. this would cost me at least $59 for the low end ones, bringing my total to about $310, plus most likely 10 dollars shipping, $320.

Now the cost of the catek bindings, which includes the plate is $329, which appears to include shipping, so its pretty on par for a premium binding, especially since it includes the plate.