Hi JR,

I do not have experience on that particular board, but I can tell you that Arbor boards are VERY well made and everyone I have talked to that owns one loves it.  As for that size, that should work for you.  A 24.9 is a touch narrow for a size 11 boot, but if your boot is relatively low profile (and the heel and toe tapers upwards at the edges to help prevent drag) then it could be just fine.  Otherwise, you may want to find a board that is a bit wider, like a 25.2 or like that.  As for length, you might not want anything longer than a 159 for everyday use.

Hope this helps.

I have the Burton Missions and I love them.  What I have found is that dispite the light weight material they are made out of, they are virtually just as stiff as my friends that are made out of aluminum, and lighter too.  So they are super repsonsive for beginners, but light enough not to weigh you down if you want to catch some air.  The only problem I have had with mine is that one of the toe straps doesn't fully catch when I have it tightened all the way down.  The strap seems slightly stripped.  I am going to send them back at the end of the season to have it looked at and replaced.  So far it has not been any problem while riding, it hasn't came loose or undone.  But if it gets too bad I at least have a pair of Burton Freestyles as back ups. 

Yeah. I used to have cartels and i love them....they are so comfortable and a very light but responsive binding. You cant go wrong buying these. The capstrap is perfect to it never comes off and it actually goes around the toes. But you cant go wrong buying any burton binding.

a good rule of thumb to follow is go by weight rather than height. also the length
of the board will affect speed and turning abilities.

at 190 5'8" you can ride boards between 148 and 158.
on the 148 side, you'll have much more control over turns and
stability, yet speed might become an issue.
on the 158 side, you sacrifice turning ability (not leaps and bounds,
but you'll definatly reconize a difference), but you'll have more speed
and floating ability for powder because of the long surface area.

the width should be ok. 11.5 and up and you start talking about wide
boards. at an 11 you can probably get away with riding either wide
or regular, but if you choose regular stay at the high end of the numbers.

there really isnt any magic formula to sizing up a board though. most board
finders just get you into the ball park. my advice is to ride all the numbers
in between hard and see which responds better for you and your ride preference.

i ride a forum manual 147 for the park and rails due to its flex and i ride a
forum grudge 154 for riding the whole mountain minus the rails.

rome makes some killer snowboards too that will probably be in your price range,
as well as palmer. i learned to ride on a k2 dart from about 12 years ago hahah.

play around with a few boards at your local shop. bend em, feel em, stand on em,
have fun. if you find one you really like, you can usually go online and find the
year before models at a pretty big discount, and alot of times the only thing that
changed is the graphic.

hope that helps!

jrv -

I dont think flex should be a concern for learning to cruise the mountain. if your goal was
rails or kickers it might be good to think ahead and get a flexable board suited to what
your aim was. I think sticking in the middle, 4-5-6, would be a great place to start. Most
boards fall into this category anyways, so it makes for easy pickings as well.
I know thats kinda vague, but usually the extremes of both sides have specific styles that
go with them.

I noticed the board you picked doesnt tell the flex, but by the descriptions its more than
likely a midlevel.  Arbor has nice boards this season for sure!

... Are there any board company you could recommend that fits the profile I am interested in.  Well made and good price point to me (up  to $300)?  ...

Well, I can check that out for you and let you know if you haven't already picked one up.

... Also, are there any boots you could recommend that is low profile?  ...

... I already purchased a binding and got a Burton Mission for $90.  Are these bindings OK?  ...

Missions are awesome!  Where did you score them for only $90?

Frosty,

I haven't bought my board but I am leaning towards Arbor as of now.  I will check out Sims as well thanks.  Any recommendation on boots would be great as well.

I got my binding from a board shop called Fastlane in Burbank, CA.