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 Well, I finally conquered my fear of snowboarding. After getting badly beat up the first time I tried it with my friend Mark from high school (come to think of it, I messed up my shoulder skiing with you, Mark--maybe there's a trend?), I have been afraid to try it again. That was probably five or six years ago.
So when I asked Diane's nephew John, who's out visiting us Idahoans, if he would be interested in snowboarding while he's here, I rather shocked myself. Last I had thought about it, I figured I probably would return to the trusty old skis, but I guess deep inside, I didn't want to walk away from the sport having failed at it. That's not good for the ego. Not that an ego is ever really a good thing to have. So John and I set out to Bogus Basin to "shred the slopes," as it were. That we did, along with some of our ego as well. All in all, though, I think we did pretty good. We did what we set out to accomplish--I conquered my fear of snowboarding, and he didn't break any bones on his vacation. Beginner snowboarding tips My snowboarding advice comes from the school of hard knocks. Back when I first tried it, I didn't take lessons (my first mistake). Then I tried out the intermediate slope on only my third run (definitely my second mistake). Now that I can actually make it down an intermediate slope, I feel eminently qualified (I'm joking, of course) to share what I've learned about this exhilarating sport.
Don't fight the hillAfter my first attempt at snowboarding, I was mentally and physically exhausted. I felt conquered, as if I'd been chewed up and spit out. Every muscle was fatigued and my head hurt from whacking it so many times against the hard packed snow. The reason I felt this way is that I was fighting the hill for control of my board. I was crouched during each run and tense the entire way down the slope, which just made me more exhausted when I started the next run. What I learned this time around is to relax in an upright position. You don't need to crouch down and force the board around using your strength. You control your board by the gentle shifting of your weight, and the gentle movement of your rear foot to act as a rudder. This should form a gentle "s" shaped path down the slope. Note the repetition of the word "gentle." That's important. When in doubt, carve the slopeFrequently, you'll get going a little too fast. It's important to always feel in control, so when you start feeling like your speed is getting away from you, remember this fairly effortless way to regain control. Simply carve deeply into the slope with your board until you get down to a comfortable speed. The idea is to scrape the side of the mountain to reduce your speed instead of letting gravity have control over you. Scrape your front edge into the snow if you are facing the hill, or your back edge whille your back is to the hill. Never, ever, get these mixed up. It's painful. When you've reached a comfortable speed again, it's probably time to transition to the other edge. Transition lightly from one edge to the other I have found that the key to a good run is alternating edges smoothly down the hill, and the key to that is the transition from one edge to the other. Most of my falls have occured because I either did not transition at all (I stayed on the same edge too long), or I goofed the transition and caught an edge. I've found that I can do a beautifully executed face plant when I catch my front edge while my back is to the hill, and an equally graceful whack to the back of my head when I catch my back edge while facing the hill. To transition smoothly, I found that I need to take some weight off my board momentarily. I use the resistance while on one edge to push off gently to "lighten up" for the transition. This keeps the board floating on the surface of the snow while I slide my rear foot around like a rudder to present the next edge. There is a dramatic difference between the feel of carving an edge and transitioning to the next one. You should hear scraping while you're presenting an edge, punctuated by silence as you transition. There is definitely a rhythm to snowboarding, and it's worth the effort to get it down. I'm now officially hooked. I guess I need to eBay my old skis or give them to Goodwill.
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