By Dylan Smith

I have been riding the RPP Osprey for 3 weeks now and feel I have enough riding to give a review. I’ll start with the deck. When taken completely apart it is a very light deck, I don’t know the exact weight but it is definitely the lightest deck I’ve ever held. It is the most intricate and impressive construction I’ve seen.

The trucks are very precise and well built; nice and light as well. The only thing I would adjust with the trucks would be that the kingpin be flipped when put in. This would make bushing changing easier and basic tightening easier as well. I would also put standard hardware on the board (only the bolts and nuts that hold the trucks to the board) on the board; skate tools do not have the sizes necessary to take apart this board. I changed out the hardware and flipped the kingpin and this made adjusting everything easier.

The ride: this is an extremely stable board and fun for everything. I’ve rode it as a downhill board and a freeride board. It is the most stable drop –thru board I’ve ridden. I took it up to 43 mph (about 70kph). Smooth ride even at those high speeds. I love how stiff the board is; perfect for speed. For freeriding this board is amazing. The deep concave really locks your feet in. This makes it great for sliding and cornering. This also helps in a speed tuck; locks your feet in right where you need it.

Probably one of my favorite features of this board has to be the plastic fenders. They save the board from curbs, which I’ve hit twice, and usual wear and tear from sitting in my car trunk. There aren’t even signs of damage to the fenders. There are very shallow scratches from hitting the curb but that’s better than hitting the actual board, and they are scratches not cuts or cracks. I’m extremely happy about this board. It is now my everything-board, freeride or downhill.