Designer: Antoine Floquet from Nidecker

Q&A with Antoine Floquet about the reimagined Nidecker Megalight

Antoine Floquet is the Senior Engineer & Product Manager at Nidecker, and his mantra is “less is more”. His passion for precision and snowboarding mechanics transpires in how he explains the whys and hows of the redesign of Nidecker’s staple: the Megalight. He says it’s the boldest version of the board ever built. 

“I took inspiration from islands and their lagoons – calm water protected by reef barriers.”

But, is it? Let’s dive in!

Hey Antoine, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. What was the “aha” moment that kicked off the Megalight redesign? What was the riding problem you were trying to solve and how does that tie into Nidecker’s ‘Different by Design’ ethos and rider-owned heritage?
The Megalight dropped back in ’98 and in almost three decades we’ve only touched it four times. When we do, it’s because we’ve got something really worth unleashing.

I’m always sketching ideas, but usually the tech isn’t ready, isn’t affordable, or just doesn’t ride the way I want. Once in a while, though, after endless protos and iterations, we hit gold with our factory partner. This 5th generation was one of those moments – we unlocked multiple breakthroughs at once!

To be real, I’m not out here solving rider “pain points”.  I’m making our factory sweat, haha. But every Megalight has always had its own ride DNA and a world-first tech story. This one’s no exception – it’s probably the boldest Megalight we’ve ever built.

What do riders usually notice right away about the Megalight?
The new W26 Megalight hits you with insane power edge-to-edge and tip-to-tail (big shoutout to the Forged Carbon Cells and Titanium Blades). At the same time, it rides silky smooth thanks to Orbital Cushioning. Oh, and did I mention it’s featherlight? The Zero G Nose is hollowed out, filled with forged carbon. Max power, zero dead weight.

What specific trade-offs did you embrace to get that surfy agility without losing high-speed precision? How did you make it light without making it twitchy?
That’s all 3DN Tech. Exclusive to the Megalight. We shaped the waist in 3D so you can charge full gas with laser precision, but also throw it around when you just wanna slash and play. It’s like having a race car that drifts on command. Manufacturing it takes Swiss-level precision, but it’s totally worth it.

How do the shapes of the nose and tail help in deep snow and in cut-up resort snow? You removed wood and used forged carbon in the nose – why that architecture versus a lighter core taper, and what did you learn about flex, flutter, and durability/repairability in real-world abuse?
That combo of nose shape, taper, and the Pow Diffuser tail channels makes this thing float like a dream in pow. The forged carbon nose – with wood carved out – is crazy light but still reactive, and it chews through chopped-up resort crud like nothing. Take it into a sketchy, blown-out couloir and it just bulldozes. The only limiter is your legs.

Long days are tiring. What did you do under the feet to cut down on chatter and fatigue without muting the board’s liveliness?
Bindings kill some vibration, but loads of it still shoots straight through the insert-to-screw connection. To fix that, I took inspiration from islands and their lagoons – calm water protected by reef barriers.

On the Megalight we mill a channel around the insert pack, pour in a liquid gel that hardens during construction, and it stays there like a shield. It blocks vibrations before they hit your feet. That’s how this board keeps you riding longer, harder, without frying your legs.

Let’s talk speed. What simple tune or care tips will help riders keep this base feeling fast all season?
Keep your edges dialed, wax often – you know the drill. But even if you’re lazy on the tune bench, the new race-grade graphite base is stupid fast. Like, point-and-pray kind of fast.

Where did you test prototypes, and who rode them? Tell us about one change from testing that made the final board noticeably better.
This board has literally been everywhere: Asian domes, icy groomers, steepest lines in Verbier. And each test session made us tweak something – shape, flex, dampening – until basically everything evolved. The final board is the sum of all those sessions, just perfected.

Where does Megalight sit next to boards like the Thruster and Ultralight?
The Megalight is its own beast. The brief was simple: “Build the best all-mountain. No limits. No rules. Just make it happen.” We even had to invent new tools and machines to make it real – like forming steel edges in 3D for the tail channels.

So yeah, Ultralight doesn’t even need to exist right now.

Versus the Thruster? I’d say it’s its older, stronger, more tech-obsessed brother. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Thruster – it’s simple, clean, and a high-end does it all. But the Megalight? It’s Thruster under technical steroids. 

If someone rides an all-mountain board now, how should they choose their Megalight size and what should they consider about the rest of their setup to get the best out of the board?
Step one: get Supermatic® bindings. No debate. Boots? Nidecker – always. Rift PRO or Kita APX both lock in perfectly with the Megalight.

Board length? Don’t size down. In pow, more surface = more float. Ride your usual size and let the board’s tech do the work.

What promising idea did you kill to make Megalight better, and which of its technologies might show up on other boards in future seasons?
Nothing got cut – every crazy idea somehow made it in as we built new tech and new machines to make it happen. And yeah, some of those tricks will definitely bleed into other models. Which ones would you want to see spreading across the line?