Spark R&D Surge ST Pro Review

The Spark Surge ST Pro are Spark R&D's premium, high-performance, lightweight splitboard bindings. The ST stands for “Smooth Touring,” which is Sparks proprietary overmolding system that decreases friction on the touring components. The Pro comes with lighter materials than the regular Surge, including aluminum hardware and Pebax plastics. The highback on the Surge Pro is the stiff Rip n' Flip Asym highback, which has 0-22 degrees of forward lean adjustment and a -13 degree negative lean in walk mode. The bindings come with the touring brackets but do not include the pucks you need for ride mode, nor the Step Locker. These items need to be purchased separately.

The Spark binding adjustability is among the best we have seen, and these bindings offer a wide range of adjustments to fit any boot. The puck system is also one of the most widely adjustable mounting systems and allows for fine-tuning of stance width, angles, and fore/aft positioning.

Downhill Performance

The Surge Pro is a stiff, high-performing splitboard binding that likes to charge. We enjoyed this binding for its lightning-quick response and its stability at speed, though it may not be for everyone. The Surge Pro has a solid metal baseplate and a generally stiff flexing chassis. Spark uses a puck system to attach the bindings to the board, which is a simpler interface but is more old-school in terms of performance. The stiff chassis of the Surge Pro, combined with the pucks, creates a very stiff connection with the board, which is responsive, but at the cost of board feel. Foot steering capability and slow-speed performance take a hit here, and this binding can feel pretty twitchy in these situations. Once you're carrying some speed, though, the binding is quick and fun edge-to-edge.

The stiff chassis of the Surge Pro is paired with Sparks Pillow Line ankle strap and a stiff asymmetrical highback. We found that although the highback is listed as stiff, it is pretty forgiving torsionally. The high back is supportive vertically, but the softer torsional flex keeps the binding from being too unforgiving and gives a bit of dampness to the whole system. The pillow line ankle strap is quite stiff and can make even the most destroyed boots feel responsive again. For toeside turns, we thought this was nice for quick edge engagement. Where this whole system will leave you hanging is in more freestyle or surfy applications. If you're looking for ankle mobility, you won't really find it here. For sheer downhill stability, though, the Surge Pro is a top choice.

Uphill Performance

The Surge Pro is a comfortable and efficient binding for uphill travel. The biggest uphill advantages the Surge brings to the table are how easy the risers are to use and how light the binding is. The Surge Pro features Spark's whammy bar risers, which easily swing out from under the binding with a simple push from the top of your ski pole. Compared to all the other bindings we have tested, this is one of our favorite risers from an ease-of-use standpoint. The downside to these simple risers is that they are quite narrow and flexible. This translates to less stability while sidehilling, and we found we couldn't direct as much pressure to our edges with these as with other riser systems.

Spark's ST Tech is most pronounced at the touring pins' pivot points on the brackets. Here, the overmolded plastic creates a bushing effect where the pins rotate, and we found it friction-free while touring. This allows for easier kick-turning as the ski tail falls away more easily. The Pillow Line straps and -13 degree lean of the highback make for a comfortable touring experience, and we never experienced any hot spots or pressure points. If you plan to spend long days in these bindings in cold environments, we recommend getting the aftermarket foam pads from Spark to put on the baseplate. This adds some nice dampness for the ride, but we really like that it takes our boot off the cold metal and insulates it a bit more.

Transitions

We have long heralded Spark's binding interface for its simplicity and ease of use. Not much has changed here, and the Surge Pro uses the tried-and-true Spark interface. This system has minimal moving parts, is rugged, deals with icing well, and has a generally fast learning curve. To switch into ride mode, you simply slide the binding over the pucks and snap down the T1 snap ramp on the binding. Typically, just sliding the binding over the pucks will clear away any ice. At times, snow can get jammed up in the back of the track on the binding, but only in the worst conditions. Lightly knocking the binding on your hand or the board, or toggling the whammy bar, usually clears it out.

Transitioning to touring mode is just as simple as ride mode. Simply slide the bindings off the pucks and then slide the pins into the touring bracket, snap down the ramp, and you're good to go. We haven't ever experienced issues with this icing or failing. For ride mode, Spark offers two pucks, canted or flat. Setting up these parts is maybe the most challenging part of the setup, and the canted pucks seem to fit in the alignment tool worse than the flat pucks do. It is worth taking your time with this setup, as misalignment will make transitions challenging, or even impossible to slide the binding over the puck.

Weight

The Surge Pro is one of the lightest bindings in our test and a great choice for those looking to shave grams for big days. Where Spark saves a lot of weight is in its interface. The pucks and simple touring mounts cut a lot of weight compared to other systems, giving the company some wiggle room to add weight to the binding if needed. The actual Surge Pro binding is quite lightweight itself, though. Spark uses aluminum hardware and some lighter plastics to cut weight here. This aluminum hardware is also provided for the interface to help lighten things.

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Should You Buy the Spark Surge ST Pro?

Riders looking for a strong and responsive binding in the lightest weight package will appreciate the Spark Surge ST Pro. For long days in the mountains and big lines, we think this is a rock-solid platform that is simple to use and reliable. These attributes are pretty valuable in a splitboard binding, and are likely worth the lack of boardfeel for a lot of riders. Riders looking for a surfier feel should look elsewhere.

What Other Splitboard Bindings Should You Consider?