OOT snowboarders - help me get started

[Thanir]

Once the season starts I suggest trying out Tahoe Donner Ski Hill in Truckee. Its a great beginning hill that has cheap beginning packages....with that said I would suggest taking a lesson there. I have been in the ski industry for 10+ years, and a lesson will be very helpful. Also any cheap hill is going to be the best place to go as you wont need 90% of the terrain at a bigger hill.

I believe Mt Rose has a locals day which is 2 for 1 and its always a good deal.

[young Nut]

Thanir:

I will definitely look into Donner. I am 100% sure that I will take some lessons to start with. Everyone I have talked to say that they are extremely helpful and not that expensive. I think it will be worth it.

I have 'skiied' Rose before a few times but never boarded there, so I know some of the layout. It is a little expensive though to pay for a whole mountain lift ticket just to learn. I'll keep that 2 for 1 deal in mind, as a buddy of mine also moved out here and wants to get into boarding with me.

Any other Tahoe area recommendations or good beginner spots you know of?

[Thanir]

Oh almost forgot....every ski season at UNR they have a huge ski/snowboard ski swap sale. When I ran a ski shop in town we would bring a bunch of last years old equip and sell it there super cheap. A lot of shops will bring used equipment, and a lot of the reps will bring in last years clothes....all at really cheap prices. Usually this takes place like the end of this month or next month.

Other than Tahoe Donner, Donner Ski Ranch, and Soda Springs (both on the summit) should be fairly cheap...in fact Soda might be cheap everyday, and I think Donner Ski Ranch usually has a cheap midweek ticket deal

[mornelth]

[ QUOTE ]
great post DMB, I'll look into those clothing suggestions.

Also, a side question: I used to skateboard from about 5-14 years old. I did half pipes and things of that sort. Will the skateboard background help at all with snowboarding?

[/ QUOTE ]

Sup,

I worked as a snowboard instructor at Hunter Mtn., NY for 3 years, so I may be the most experienced snowboarder in this thread [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img].

You got some great advice on clothing and protection gear (heed it all) and I won't repeat it.

The one that may get lost among others is this :

TAKE A LESSON.

Inquire with your local mountain about package deals - 99% of resorts if they are 1 step above a mom-and-pop-1-lift type deal will have a beginner's package which usually includes boots-and-board rental, a lift ticket and a lesson. Usually you get GREAT value out of it. And once you take your first lesson - DO NOT STOP. Just like improving in poker is a lot faster if you ask for advice - so is with snowboarding. Take a second (level II) lesson. Once you somewhat digested it - take a 3rd.

Snowboarding VS skiing - harder to pick up, easier to get better at. First 2-3 days will SUCK and you will feel like a complete n00b falling all over the place. Keep at it - once you get the hang of the very basics (stopping, breaking, getting up, turning) - things will improve fairly quickly. If you hit the slopes once a week this season you'll be on diamonds by spring (unless you are like REALLY uncoordinated). Skateboarding experience will help to an extent, as will skiing experience.

Congrats on the choice of the sport, if you spend at least 5 days on the slopes on a snowboard your skiis will be on e-Bay...

P.S. I do not visit this forum nearly often enough, so if you have a question or whatever - please feel free to PM me, I'm on 2p2 in general just about every day.

[tyler_cracker]

i am an "expert"[1] skiier, but i have been snowboarding a few times and virtually all of my friends are one-plankers.

buy equipment from the inside out. comfortable waterproof clothes are your first priority. they are the cheapest things to buy, the hardest to rent, and the most likely to find a use somewhere else in your life (you can always use a good, waterproof coat).

if your local mountain doesn't rent safety equipment (helmet, wrist guards), go ahead and buy those too.

next, find a pair of boots. there isn't tremendous difference between snowboard boots -- fit is EVERYTHING. they should feel tight in the store because they will pack out over time. you also want boots that you can get good and tight on your feet. different companies have different mechanisms for doing this. removable liners are also nice, because you can get your boots good and dry overnight.

(never leave your boots near the fire/radiator to dry; it's bad for them.)

by the time you're ready to buy your bindings and board, you will want to avoid the step-in bindings you'll probably get in rental (where you've got a big metal rod on the bottom of your boot that snaps into a big metal plate on the board). these systems don't give you good control of your board. you will instead want the kind where you gimp off the lift, sit down in a big mass with the other silly snowboarders, and go click-click-click-click-click with the plastic ratchet until you're ready to go.

pay no attention to the skiiers flying by you, halfway down the mountain before you've even stood up. we're not laughing at you; we're laughing at, um, something else.

when you're a beginner, you aren't going to know what kind of board best fits your riding style, so getting something cheap that fits you is probably fine.

if you can afford it, and you know that snowboarding is something you're going to pursue, buy all your gear sooner rather than later. it's easier to get better when the variables don't change every time you hit the slopes (new pair of rental boots, new rental board with different angles for your feet, etc.).

also remember that snowboarding has a much steeper learning curve than skiing. on the plus side, once you overcome the steep part of the curve, you'll be comfortable riding on most of the mountain (or at least most of the groomers).

where are these "great ski slopes" you now live near?



[1] by "expert", i just mean that when you see those signs that say EXPERTS ONLY SKULL AND CROSSBONES!!1!, that's where i'm usually skiing.

[Thanir]

[ QUOTE ]
Congrats on the choice of the sport, if you spend at least 5 days on the slopes on a snowboard your skiis will be on e-Bay...

[/ QUOTE ]
Hmmm I dunno, Ive been on skis most of life, and been in the ski/snowboard industry over 10 years, and I still love my skis over a snowboard [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

[adsman]

Some good advice already. I'll add my 2c...

Boards. I've been boarding for a while and I have a lot of mates who are instructors and we almost all swear by K2. They just make great boards. I used the zeppelin last season, just wicked.

Boots. Boots are more important than the board. You can get away with a cheap board. You cannot get away with cheap boots. A bad pair of boots will inhibit your learning curve.

Season Pass. Buy a season pass because you will save a lot of money if you're going up a lot. If you buy a day pass then you have to stay up all day to get your monies worth. With a season pass I often pop up for a couple of hours of boarding. This is obviously if you live close to the slopes.

But I think the most important thing you need to realise is the extremely high level of discouragement that you will feel on the 2nd and 3rd day of boarding. You will want to quit. You will want to throw your board at someones head. This is normal. I learnt without lessons. I recommend that you get some lessons. Save yourself the heartache.

ps, learn how to get off the skilift without looking like a dweeb.

[cardsharkk04]

Sorry to hijack, but any opinions of people who use skis like these:

[Aukai]

Bindings- I agree that most step-in systems are total garbage. Back when I was a patroller though, I discovered the Burton system, and it's hands-down the best step-in system there is, and for my money better than straps. You can step in on the fly (I step in as I get off the chair), there's an external highback so it rides like straps, and it's fail-safe. I'll never ride with anything else again.

But that's neither here nor there, and you should get what you think you'll like. Do not get any other step-in system though, the rest are worthless.

Brands of stuff won't matter much to you at this point, just make sure with your jackets and pants that you're getting snowboard-specific stuff (and not North Face for example).

Your skate background will help immensely. You'll be riding park and pipe in no time. The hardest part for you will be learning not to pivot off your back foot the way you do when you skate, but that'll come in your first lesson. It takes a few hours to stop trying to do that. And once you master the toeside turn, you'll be money, baby.

Once you get it dialed and start making runs through the park- or through the trees- you'll be hooked for life.

[tyler_cracker]

cardshark,

skiblades (or whatever you call them) are really fun in sloppy spring conditions or on a crappy, icy day or in the park. even i laugh at people who would sacrifice surface area on a reasonably nice powder day.

you need to be comfortable with yourself to wear them, though, because everyone will say, "dude, those are so gay."

my usual response is something like, "these aren't what make me gay; the fact that i want to SIIYP is what makes me gay."

i am a homosexual, however, so YMMV.