any skiiers who snowboard also?

[eternal121]

I started skiing last year and my boyfriend snowboards. I tried snowboarding one time and I was completely flustered because I didn't have the patience to learn.

I've always wanted to both ski and snowboard. So I'm throwing this topic out to see if anyone skis and snowboards or has once done one and now does the other.

I would greatly appreciate any advice/lessons. I'd love to start snowboarding also but I'm so unsure of it because of my last experience where I ended it with bruises all over and too many aches and pains.

Thanks~!

 

[volklgirl]

I used to do both pretty equally until shaped skis made the scene. Now I just have too much fun rippin it up to go back to being a knuckle dragger.

Best tips I can give you:

• Make sure your boots really, really fit and hold that heel down snug.
• Get a lesson from a certified instructor.
• Don't just borrow a buddy's board. Rent one appropriate for your size and ability.
• Keep as much weight on your front foot as you can by keeping your back knee tucked up into your front one.
• Try wearing wrist guards and knee pads (even the soft volley ball type help), until you find you're not falling so very much.
• Wear a helmet!!

FWIW, it's been so long since I really rode, I can't even get off the chair without falling anymore, but I can usually do easy blues OK. Watching my incredibly athletic hubby try to learn last year was the funniest thing I've seen in a while, and he said it was the most punishing, frustrating thing he's ever done .

 

[Jilly]

he said it was the most punishing, frustrating thing he's ever done

And do I agree with that remark!!

I took an afternoon lesson with a CASI instructor at Georgian Peaks here in Ontario. It had r*&ned the night before and froze up solid. My rental boots were too big. But I did manage to make turns and keep my balance. It reminded me alot of windsurfing - stance and direction. It also brought home how a beginning skier must feel the first time out. That was good to remember as an instructor!

But black and blue all over. I could not get up from a sitting position, so had to roll over onto my knees and push up from there. I used my inline skating wrist guards to protect my wrists. But I didn't have anything on my knees.

All I know is the learning curve is fast but painfull!

 

[perma-grin]

I snowboard too! As a matter of fact I got my first ladies specific snowboard this season. It's a Rome Blue in a 151. I like it a lot better than my son's hand me down Shaun White that was a 156. I also went back to my old Burton stepin's ( much to my son's chagrin!!!). I hated having to sit down to get the toe strap right I just can't balance on that edge to remain standing to strap in with my Cartels. I actually was featured in the Detriot Free press back in January with a couple of other Moms (who actually are my neighbors, the reporter thought it must be something in our water supply!). The article was called something like Mom's who ride. i think that I sent it to Snowhot but I can't remember. I'm not sure what took the reporter aback more the fact that there were lot's of women (not just teenage girls) out riding or the fact that snowboarding was no longer the sport of rebellious teenage boy's .Lol! He certainly emphasied all of our ages enough times! Lol! I won the age contest being the oldest at 48!

 

[eternal121]

wow, perma-grin that sounds great. So do you ski and snowboard or just snowboard now?

 

[dloveski]

My daughter both boards and skis, switching back and forth depending on conditions. For deep pow days, she prefers her 'Phish' board for floating pow shots. I also host with skiers who also board.

 

[eternal121]

Does your daughter find any similarities between skiing and snowboarding? Any recommendations? I'm really tempted to go maybe next weekend snowboarding up at Okemo but I guess I'll need some good wrist guards, especially with all the comments about the bruises. The first time was terrible for me so I'm hoping to give it a second chance.

 

[Bing]

Soon (I hope) I'll be able to say I do both.

At the end of the season in my town the ski/board shop sells everything at 50% off. Last year I bought wrist protectors & pants with hip and butt protection. This year I'll be buying Flow bindings.

I bought a cheap board ($89) at a local generic sport store that according to the pros at the real store will be shorter than I'll ultimately want (its 148 and I'm 5'11") but easier to learn on. Bought boots that fit (they're supposed to be way tight) for $ 59.00 as well.

The theory of all this buying before boarding is that it takes at least 4 times on the slopes to get the hang of it and what I'm buying in equipment is about the cost of 4 rentals on our slopes.

I'm trying it because our son skis and has taken up boarding too.

I want to get the sense of what he is feeling on the slopes on a board.

This is so out of my comfort zone it's not funny (I hate falling, yes, I know I'll fall a lot boarding) but I want to participate.

So ... you with me?

 

[eternal121]

I am soooo with you!!!

I wish I could buy some cheap equipment too so that I could learn on that instead of rental equipment but everything is so expensive. I've only been skiing for about a year so I'm not not expert of a skier but I've already done some blues so I guess I'm on my way.

I just want to relate with my boyfriend by snowboarding and who knows? Maybe I'll like it just as much as skiing.

Please PM me and keep me in touch so I guess we'll be on the journey together this year

 

[perma-grin]

I still teach skiing 3 days a week and Patrol 2 days a week on skis. I snowboard when it's not too crowded! Never on a Saturday but often on Sunday Mornings before the crowds hit. My son teaches, and competes on both snowboard and in freestyle skiing, so his tune-up lessons were a blessing! Take a lesson from an experienced boarding instructor! That is the best advice that I can give you. Oh and ask them to check your stance & angles. Depending on where you bought your board and had it set up, your stance and angles can seriously effect your ability to make a turn easily. My girlfiend bought her gear at a swap and the shop that she bought her bindings from did a horrible job of placing her bindings on the board her feet where almost to large for the bindings that they sold her. Her feet are kinda big ladies ten, so she bought a mens size 9 boot, her bindings barely fit the boot. Also because of how big her feet are she has seriously limited stance options on her womens specific board because womens boards are narrower (to acommodate a smaller foot size) than a unisex board to allow for better toe heel edge to edge contact. She would have been better off buying a softer flexing unisex board. I like both the Flow and the K2 Cinch bindings (very similar) but since I already owned the Burtons I just went ahead and used them. Kids like my son hate step-ins, he said if I wasn't so old he'd give me crap about them! Lol! I've almost completeely givin up using my carving board the slams are just to hard and violent! A soft set up is the way to go the learning curve is a lot more forgiving!

 

[volklgirl]

It's funny that I stopped boarding about the same time I quit teaching at Holly. That 250' has to be made exciting somehow!

I bought my last set up at Searchmont Resort at their end-of-the-season rental clearance. They had board (148cm), SIS step-ins, O-Sin or Rossi boots for 99 $C. It ended up being about $75 total once it cleared my CC. Then I added a Lib Tech Jamie Lynn custom board (151) for another $100 from our local swap. Here she is:

 

[eternal121]

Where are all these local swaps? OMG $100 for a Lib Tech?! I would so buy that off you if you're not using it

 

[Kara79]

I am a snowboarder as well!

At age 25 (in 2004) I was going to start skiing again, but I picked up snowboarding. I took one lesson and my boyfriend (at the time) taught me, I don't recommend that

The first year was pretty awful and painful.... I went about 25 times that year. By the end of the season I was more proficient.

I've snowboarded ever since, but recently decided I want to go *back* to skiing. I feel more comfortable on the skiis on the East Coast ice.

A few tips:

*Stay on shorter runs- It was hard to develop stamina at first. Snowboarding is very tiring in the beginning! A plus side of this is developing better ab muscles!

*Bend your knees!! I am by no means even close to being an expert snowboarder but I see people having trouble on the mountain because they are not staying low enough. I have to remind myself to keep them bent sometimes!

*Try to stay relaxed! If you stiffen up and get rigid it's hard to stay balanced.

I do have to say being on the snowboard in Utah in fresh powder was AMAZING! When my fiancee skis & I snowboard (here in VT) I am dragging behind but out there it was the opposite! I felt so comfortable in powder, if I go out West again I'd definitely be on the board!

Good luck with learning! Like someone else mentioned, it does take 5-6 times before you really get a feel for it.

 

[eternal121]

Where in Vermont do you ski/snowboard?

 

[perma-grin]

Hey Kris Wow Original sin I have't heard that in a long time. Just curious how come you bought such a small board? Just because the price was right? Gregg wouldn't let me get anything smaller than a 150cm. I bought one of his Sims demo boards Originally. PS Henry Walder qualified for Nastar Nationals! He bought a helmet and a GS suit he's going to Steamboat!! Yah gotta love it 81 yrs old still teaching skiing and racing gates!!!!!

 

[Kara79]

I snowboard Stratton and Okemo.

 

[eternal121]

Oh that's great to hear that there is someone that's in the same boat that I am and goes to Okemo and Stratton. Maybe I'll see you at Okemo one day

 

[eternal121]

I guess this is a follow up question to this whole topic....

is there anyone that has snowboarding gear thats willing to sell?

I'm looking for some starter gear and I would need a board around 141-146 cm. I'm just looking for something to get me started...

Thanks for any replies.

 

[volklgirl]

Hey Kris Wow Original sin I have't heard that in a long time. Just curious how come you bought such a small board? Just because the price was right?

That, too. Actually, the signature boards tend to be a lot stiffer than their standard all-mountain boards, so it's actually pretty nice for my size and weight considering how often I (don't) use it.

My original boards were 145 and a 165 GNUs. I found I struggled with the bigger board and had a riot on the shorter one. I guess if I did it alot or at higher speeds I'd go longer. I'd guess that the short board is part of the reason I over rotate the heel-side turn, but I'm just so meh about it, I'd rather just have fun.

 

[perma-grin]

141-146 is really short. I sell alot of tweener boards in those length. Are you really light. Different boards have different rider weight recomendations. How much do you weigh, and what type of riding will you be doing? You purchase a board just like skis based on your weight and your ability. There are a few scouch factors involved. I went with the 151 in the Blue because I am exactly on the cut off length for my weight. If I were a younger stronger, or heavier rider. I would have went with the next size up. The size that fits your weight really is dependant on weight ,ability and the type of riding that you are going to be doing most. The board that I have is fairly stiff for a wmns board but since I have been riding on a bigger Shaun White pro-model for the last couple of years this Rome board didn't feel all that stiff. A few of my girls have formed a real affinty for the rocked technology for the park and have went with next years Pandoras. I don't ride park so it wasn't that big a deal for me. For me it really got down to a toss up between the Burton Feelgood I've always liked the way they rode, the Rome Blue kind of popp-ie and the Never Summer Lotus likes to go cruisin. So I did what any good shop employee would do under the circustances, and got the board that I got the best employee price on! Lol!