1. The AG is one highly engineered board, but all that technology disappears when you hop on it, and this directional twin-shape was our favorite all-mountain board.

2. Heavily reverse-cambered boards, with a rocker shape from tip to tail, can be a little squirrelly for riders used to traditional decks. But with a subtle take on the design, the AG is just right: It floats through powder, soaks up chop, and cruises groomers with ease.

3. While most boards have just one consistent sidecut, the AG's sidecut is strategically scalloped in spots. This design, called Magnetraction (and first developed with Gnu's sister company, LibTech), means more contact points with the snow, which translates to extremely quick edge-to-edge transfer and stronger hold when tearing down groomers.

4. The board's namesake core is made of a genetically engineered aspen/bamboo/balsa hybrid that grows in a single tree. Testers liked the mash-up: "Tremendous takeoff strength and tons of pop when unloaded," said one. The core is a bit lighter than most, too, "which made spinning effortless," said another.

5. In addition to the sustainably harvested core, the topsheet is an earth-friendly polymer, made of castor beans, that boasts one of the highest strength-to-weight ratios in the industry.
$600 gnu.com