OOT snowboarders - help me get started

[gusmahler]

I snowboarded for the first time last April. It was a lot of fun, but I fell a lot, including one fall at a good speed where I bruised my ribs--I felt that for weeks. Altogether, I spent 2 days on the hill. About 90 minutes the first day. About 2 hours the next. I never "got" it. For me, the toughest thing is that the instructors kept telling me to lean forward (because I kept leaning backwards), but I couldn't. I get the feeling that once I get over that fear of leaning forward, it'll come to me fairly quickly.

The other hard thing is just getting up. I'm out of shape, so your mileage may vary. But, as a beginner, it was impossible for me to get from sitting on my butt in the snow to standing up on the board. I always had to turn around on the ground, so my toes were against the ground before I could get up.

But I had a lot of fun and look forward to doing it again this season.

As for wrist guards, I never got any, figuring that keeping my fists clinched will prevent the natural reaction of putting my hand out. But I'll be sure to get some before my next trip.

[Tron]

If/when you get a helmet and wrist guards, get a cool helmet from a brand like Red so you don't look like a total nerd and a wrist guard/glove combo so, again, you don't look like a total nerd.

[adsman]

One more thing that needs mentioning, although it may be obvious. Get insurance. You have to be a complete moron to go boarding without insurance.

[whitelime]

I've snowboarded maybe 10-15 times in my life and the biggest piece of advice I can give you is to make sure your boots fit super tight/snug.

[splashpot]

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


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Be prepared to be made fun of.

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Really? I think they look slicker and cooler than normal skis. IMO, regular skiers look much dorkier than snowboarders (I'm a skier). I was thinking about trying the short ones this winter. Why would people make fun of these?

[john voight]

Hi. Listen to my INfo and You WilL go FAr Cowabungaa dude

Okey, for your first board you want a short flexible board that is lite. Ask the dude @ the shop for this criteria. Or if you buy used online (as I sugest) craigslist.com, go to a site that hast hight/bord length chart and get one thats a bit shorter. This way you will

1. go slower
2. manage turns better

When first starting, make sure to put 70% of your weight on back half of board. This will ensure stability. Face the board strait down hill and w/ your whole body try to "spin" the board into a turn. The rotation must start from top body and gradually move down.

Spend 1-2 days on making left turns and right turns. Always keep your front edge up so that you dont fall.

On third day try linking turns. This will be very difficult @ first. Focus on useing your upper body to power your lower legs into powerful turns.

Turning effectively is the absolute key to pwning

If the conditions are icey I honestly suggest you don't snowboard. The experience my ruin your craveing to ride. Ice is very difficult to ride on.

I will go on the record that I can prolly pawn 97% of the ppl who responded to this thread when it comes to back country riding (non-gromed regions). I wll gladly challeneg anyon who skis Squaw to join my on slopes around x/mas time.

[john voight]

2nd challeneg is to figure out how many speeling errors I have in my post

[Tron]

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


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Be prepared to be made fun of.

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Really? I think they look slicker and cooler than normal skis. IMO, regular skiers look much dorkier than snowboarders (I'm a skier). I was thinking about trying the short ones this winter. Why would people make fun of these?

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Seriously.... Snowblades/skiblades/short skis are far and away the most toolish piece of eqiupment you could possibly use on a snow-covered mountain. Think about how much rollerblading sucks and then multiply that by 1,000.