Curated Snowboard Expert Everett Pelkey got his hands on the 2023 Bataleon Evin Twin this spring and put it to the test at Powder Mountain in Utah. Check out how it performed in the carving, freestyle, and freeride categories, but consider the fact that each and every rider is different; if you have any questions about the Evin Twin or need recommendations on which board would be best for you, reach out to a Snowboard Expert here on Curated.

Before we get started, it's worth noting that Curated Experts are not sponsored by any brands. All of these reviews are completely unbiased.

Brand Claims

What does Bataleon claim about this board? Bataleon claims the Evil Twin is their staple & the fan favorite. It's been around the longest. They know what they're doing, and they keep updating it every year, adding extra little pieces here and there to make it that much better. It's a super fun jib board and somehow they found a way to make it great on the rest of the mountain as well.

Overall Impressions

What is your overall impression of this board? First impression was, man, I felt like I finally brought the East Coast to the West Coast. I was able to really just mess around, pressing this board, and get that jibbing style with the confidence of riding bigger features. It was super cool blending those worlds together, and the triple base technology allowed me to really press those butters but also feel really good initiating turns and getting into more chundery sections. I felt like the nose would stay up a lot better than you would even expect. It's a lot of fun playing around on this board.

Carving

How does it turn? So this carved a lot better than I expected. The ‘superwalls’ have a larger edge catch when on these sidewalls, so you're able to really dig it in further than you would expect on a typical jib board. It's a lot of fun, and I was able to keep super stable. I wouldn't take it into the most off-piste conditions, it's not going to thrive in that. It's not the dampest board, but you're still able to get in solid turns for a very heavy park-specific board.

Freestyle

Could you speak about playfulness and pop? Freestyle. Man, this board is incredible for freestyle. It is soft underfoot, super light, it feels like the way it plays around the nose and tail that it has rocker, but it's just a true twin camber board, which is nuts to me because you get the super stability of camber, but the playfulness of a typical jib board that tends to lean in the rocker direction (even though there’s none in the board). It is really a blend of that medium flex, that triple base technology, and that true camber all the way through on just such a light board, that it's stable, fun, and reliable. You can really press it and tweak anything you want. I feel like rails have got to be a ton of fun on this thing, but even hitting side hits, I could boost off everything. There's a reason it's a fan favorite out of Bataleon's collection.

Freeride

How would it be in powder? Freeride is definitely at the bottom of the list, but it's not ruled out. It still can do it. You're still able to take this out even if there was a fresh day, with that 3D base technology, you're getting the contour to the bottom of it, so it's going to be like a boat. It's going to float. It's going to keep you up above that water and snow just plowing right through it. You're going to stay up and above having a blast but still being able to rip around butters no matter what conditions you hit. This thing is a lot of fun. I wouldn't take it in the most hardcore, steep terrain in technical areas, but if you're ripping a resort, and you see some conditions that weren't groomed, but still looks like a fun time, go hit it. You have nothing to worry about with this thing.

What kind of terrain would it perform well on? My conclusion on the Bataleon Evil Twin (besides wanting to put it in my line-up of boards at home, it is so much fun) is that it’s the true essence of a park rider, but being able to leave the fenced-in area of the terrain park and go and explore the rest of the mountain. Even on those powder days, you still can get away with the board like this. You can enjoy powder days on this thing. It makes it fun. It knows what it's doing. It goes more places than you would ever expect, so you can really use this for more than what it was originally designed for, and it just expands out to further demographics than meets the eye.

Recommendations

Who would you recommend this board to? I would totally start off by recommending this board to true park riders. It's a lot of fun. It is super stable. You can really tweak it, but it's not an actual soft noodle jib board, it’s more slope style. It's not going to be the most technically heavy, but they did add the carbon reinforcements to get a bit more stiffness to it while keeping it super light, and it retains the liveliness and playfulness in it which is a lot of fun.

Who should avoid this board, there are better options for them out there? I wouldn't recommend this for people who are more all-mountain cruisers, people trying to get out onto more technical terrain, or even lapping trees continuously. People that want to stay on the ground, you don't need this board. There are other boards out there that Bataleon makes that fit that so much smoother. But if you want to get around, mess around, and turn everything into just a full-on just playful park, that's where this board is meant to be.

There are thousands of boards out there for all different types of riders. If you need help finding the right board for you, reach out to Everett or another Snowboard Expert here on Curated, and they'll help get you on the right setup. Note that the 2024 version of the Bataleon Evil Twin is linked below - same tech, just different graphic: