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Tips for avoiding snowboarders

Cantabrigienne

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Was looking really hard for a place to sit down and eat our lunch at the local mtn. and saw that everyone had previously claimed their places with various items, including a book called "It's OK not to share." I'd take a punk snowboarder attitude over the bougie skier vibe any day!
Ha! My 9-yo nephew claims that "sharing" has been weaponized - he's young enough that he remembers preschool/kindergarten well, and he basically says that other kids bullied each other by snatching things and then screaming "share" at each other and then enlisting adults to ensure that "sharing" was enforced. Anyway, as a result, the clever tyke seems to have found a way to justify his own selfishness by claiming HIS boundaries have been consistently violated...how depressing to see all of this validated in print.
 

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So according to DH, these two should have been switched -- the snowboarder is regular footed, i.e. back foot is the right foot and out of the binding, on the lift the board is swinging into/under the skiers skis. If the boarder was on the right side, his board would not be in the way of the skier on the lift.
So regular should be on the right, goofy on the left.
Its a mess when you have skier/boarder/skier/boarder. Best to have similar footed boarders next to each other, maybe skier in the middle......
 

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Susan L

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So according to DH, these two should have been switched -- the snowboarder is regular footed, i.e. back foot is the right foot and out of the binding, on the lift the board is swinging into/under the skiers skis. If the boarder was on the right side, his board would not be in the way of the skier on the lift.
So regular should be on the right, goofy on the left.
Its a mess when you have skier/boarder/skier/boarder. Best to have similar footed boarders next to each other, maybe skier in the middle......

The issue is not that the board is under the skis on the lift, it is the direction that the boarder will take after getting off. To unload from the lift, half the snowboarder’s butt should be almost off the chair, body turned sideways allowing the board to point straight at unloading. You don’t unload the way you/your board sits while on the chair (body facing forward and board parallel to chair or under other’s skis), that is a sign of a disaster waiting to happen. Assuming that the boarder cannot unload with weight forward in a straight line, which is what most people are trying to avoid, if boarder on the left (in your photo) gets off and try to use his toes to slow down, his board will go right, getting in the way of the skier. And if he uses his heel, then the board will swing left. If you are a skier sitting inbetween 2 boarders who cannot go straight, you risk getting caught between them. So definitely do not sit in the middle. Safest is to avoid sitting with snowboarders or to be on either edge so you have the maximum room to get out of the way.
 

WaterGirl

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@Susan L seems like what ever position you are in there is a risk of the board swinging into you or the boarder falling while exiting the lift in any scenario. As a regular foot what side of the lift do you prefer to sit on? Unfortunately where I'm at if its busy and I'm on a lower mountain lift it will be hard to avoid being paired up with a snowboarder. At least having them facing the same way and not mixed G/R/G/ is a start. I do have the luxury of having DH being able to be strapped in ready to ride right off the lift, and for that reason when he is on the right I don't mind being in the middle, he will make room for me.
 

Susan L

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@WaterGirl It’s weird that I can ride switch on the slopes but can only load the lift as a regular! I personally prefer to be on the far right so I won’t be facing anybody when I unload. When I am on skis and have to ride with snowboarders, I will take the side that is on the back of the boarder next to me (so the snowboarder is not facing me). I find that alot of times if a boarder is facing me, he/she will tend to either lean on/use me to get up, or elbow me out of the way, or just free fall towards me because that’s what they are looking at.
Good snowboarders can usually avoid everyone and be gone before you even stand up! Worse are the ones facing each other, trying to use each other to balance and then end up falling together.
To be fair, it can be dangerous riding with skiers too, especially if they get off before I do, with skis parallel, then out of nowhere, wedge to slow down or turn.
 
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CarverJill

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So according to DH, the snowboarder is regular footed, i.e. back foot is the right foot and out of the binding, on the lift the board is swinging into/under the skiers skis. If the boarder was on the right side, his board would not be in the way of the skier on the lift.
So regular should be on the right, goofy on the left..

The way the snowboarders board swings depends on if they are duck footed or pigeon toed; if they are regular or goofy is less important. What it comes down to is they are sitting in the chair with their board on one foot. If they tend towards being duck footed their toe will point out away, from their their other leg. Pigeon toed it will be inward towards their other leg. I never bother to switch spots with snowboarders when getting on the lift but do my fair share of jockeying for a spot for my skis once we are on. I HATE not being able to swing my legs because a snowboarder had his/her board blocking what I consider my space.

Oh and getting off the lift I may share what direction I'm heading off the ramp and plan ahead if I have been chatting but if the person leans into me or tries to do something crazy when getting off I'm usually big and strong enough to hold my own and stay standing.
 

liquidfeet

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
So according to DH, these two should have been switched -- the snowboarder is regular footed, i.e. back foot is the right foot and out of the binding, on the lift the board is swinging into/under the skiers skis. If the boarder was on the right side, his board would not be in the way of the skier on the lift.
1550163700126.png
Actually, the important issue is not scraping skis and snowboards together while riding the lift. It's which way the boarder goes as he/she gets off the lift. You don't want a wobbly boarder heading into your space, into you, as everyone on the lift slides down the ramp. This particular boarder's board will point away from you as he gets off, an no matter how wobbly he may be he'll probably head off to the left. So you're safe from him running into you. DH is wrong, in other words :smile:.
 

TeleChica

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
My SO is goofy and slightly prefers being on the right, otherwise his back is slightly to everyone as he gets off. He's big enough that if he leans back somewhat as he gets off it could take me out. So I actually find it easier to deal with him facing me as be gets off so we can avoid one another.

My approach with boarders is mainly to make sure my skis are not on their boards as we hit the ramp, and go straight and stay as small as possible. :smile:
 

SquidWeaselYay

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I am 5'1" and my whole slope crew is boarders ranging in height from 5'10" to 6'4". Two are regular and one is goofy. The 3 of them and myself have pretty much gotten it down pat on quad lifts. I usually sit in the middle somewhere and go straight. It isn't as easy as doing it with skiers, but hey, well worth it to be amongst friends.

They are all very respectful boarders too. My husband is actually darn good in bumps and trees for being on a board.

Also, Roundtop has a really kick ass board patrol dude. I've seen him taking people down on the red sleds like a pro on the most crowded slope. Also watched him go down upper gunbarrel a few times like it was nothing at all, just a leisurely Sunday drive. That dude has some serious skills.

From my experience, it does seem to be more age and gender skewed than having to do with how you go down the slope.
 

dloveski

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I ski trees and have learned to be vigilant and watch for boarders bombing out of nowhere and when I hear or see one (or usually three as they tend to board in packs) I stop and wait for them to disappear. It's just part of my practice of defensive skiing, no matter the terrain, so it's rarely an issue for me.
 

slyfox4

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I know that most of us are skiers here...but the hate snowboarders gets makes skiers look bad and downright mean. Sure, I rag on my snowboarder BF and best friend about them strapping in, but they make rag on me for my "uncomfortable" boots or that skiing just "isn't as cool." But we joke. I have met so many skiers who are so hateful for snowboarders and at that point I stop talking to them because it's not worth it.

Because I ski with so many snowboarders, and I ski at Loon, I just make sure that I am diligent about my surroundings. I have seen lots of boarders willy nilly turn without ever thinking of their blind spot, and quite frankly, it's scary. Especially on narrower trails, I will always call out if I am on their right or left, and unfortunately I've been greeted with rude gestures or words. Not because I cut them off, but simply that I was near them and I didn't want them to move closer eventually pushing me off the trail. However, in that same respect, I have seen skiers zoom by snowboarders and the boarder might move a little closer and the skier throws his hands up yelling something...but he didn't take the time to say he was nearby. Courtesy goes both ways, so I try to do my part!
 

Serafina

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I was reading the thread on how/whether ski resorts have gotten more dangerous lately and I completely agree. I'm also at the age where I really don't want an injury, especially one caused by some jackass running into me.

Really, really don't like snowboarders ( for all the reasons listed in the other thread--know-nothing "bro" boarders, greater likelihood of boarders being drunk, high or generally out of control etc.) and thought it would be useful to pool tips on how to minimize exposure to them. First, obviously, would be to only go to resorts that don't allow them--not a realistic possibility. Second, ski during the week and avoid holidays--getting to be more of a realistic possibility as I get more seniority :thumbsup:) Third, no night skiing - I wouldn't do that anyway.

But are there resorts that gets lots of boarders vs. resorts that get fewer? I was at Vail two weeks ago, not a lot of boarders; I was at Heavenly last year and I'm not going back. In the East, I avoid Hunter and Killington. Not a lot at Stowe when I was there, but it was years ago; I'd be concerned about Mt. Snow and Sugarbush but have no experience with either one.

Are there certain types of terrain that boarders don't like? Realizing that the general advice is to ski the less popular slopes, but that's not so easy to do if you don't know the mountain already.

I'd be interested in what others have come up with.

For those of you who know/love/do business with snowboarders, apologies in advance for the stereotyping. I'm in a "safety first" mode these days.

Late to the party, but Mt Snow isn't too bad, mainly because the terrain park (Carinthia) it it's own mountain face. You get a lot of boarders headed from the summit to Carinthia on Long John, and headed out of Carinthia back to the main base also on Long John, but at least they aren't spread out all over the place...mostly. If you want tips of avoiding this stuff at Mt. Snow, send me a PM. It's been my home mountain for the better part of 10 years.
 

Serafina

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Thanks for starting this tread, I have the same question myself.

Of all the times I got hit on the slopes, they were all snowboarders except one (a kid skier on an icy slope). So I can relate. I become nervous when I am around snowboarders, then I reverted back to snow plow.

If there are snowboarders on a cat track and I am behind them, I usually call out: "right behind you." So they aware and won't make sudden movements... Other times, I just wait until they pass me.

On wider trail, I try to stay on one side and don't make wide turns. Other times, I wait to let them go first.

My question to add to the above thread:
I fell few times when I got off chairs with snowboarders.
How do you "politely" decline to share a chair lift with snowboarders? Let's say it is a busy day and lift line is very long, lifties are trying to fill all chairs....

I prefer to ski early, so that the lift lines aren't insane, and I can more or less pick who I go up with. I don't mind sharing a lift with a snowboarder, as long as I've checked him (usually a "him") out in the line to make sure he's competent with the thing. If I'm on a quad or a triple and there's a snowboarder going up who doesn't look like s/he (usually "he") has the skills to navigate the lift easily, I kind of dick around in the line and make sure a chair goes up empty between his and mine. I find that all it takes to soothe any annoyance is to comment that the [boarder] looks like they were having some trouble, and that it seemed to be a good idea to "give them some space" on the dismount.

If you're skiing at a crowded time, or in a crowded place, you don't have this kind of discretion of course...but I make bloody sure that I'm not doing either, even if that means I have to knock off before I feel like I'm done for the day. Not getting injured by something ultimately avoidable is worth it.
 

Polly

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I was reading the thread on how/whether ski resorts have gotten more dangerous lately and I completely agree. I'm also at the age where I really don't want an injury, especially one caused by some jackass running into me.

Really, really don't like snowboarders ( for all the reasons listed in the other thread--know-nothing "bro" boarders, greater likelihood of boarders being drunk, high or generally out of control etc.) and thought it would be useful to pool tips on how to minimize exposure to them. First, obviously, would be to only go to resorts that don't allow them--not a realistic possibility. Second, ski during the week and avoid holidays--getting to be more of a realistic possibility as I get more seniority :thumbsup:) Third, no night skiing - I wouldn't do that anyway.

But are there resorts that gets lots of boarders vs. resorts that get fewer? I was at Vail two weeks ago, not a lot of boarders; I was at Heavenly last year and I'm not going back. In the East, I avoid Hunter and Killington. Not a lot at Stowe when I was there, but it was years ago; I'd be concerned about Mt. Snow and Sugarbush but have no experience with either one.

Are there certain types of terrain that boarders don't like? Realizing that the general advice is to ski the less popular slopes, but that's not so easy to do if you don't know the mountain already.

I'd be interested in what others have come up with.

For those of you who know/love/do business with snowboarders, apologies in advance for the stereotyping. I'm in a "safety first" mode these days.
Sometimes they scare me, too. I am advancing intermediate, but I am careful esp when it's crowded. One thing I do to avoid boarders is when I get off the lift and to the trailhead of wherever I want to go- I look around. If there's a ton of boarders putting on their bindings, I go before they do and then eventually stop and let them pass me, or I'll usually wait for them to go because it's just easier. It's really annoying, but I found that's the easiest way. I almost got nailed by one last night so sometimes the method fails, but it has helped many times. This sounds funny, but I also look at their outfits. I hate saying it, but if they're clothes are sagged, they're likely park rats (and I'm jealous of their abilities), but those kinds can RIP and they can usually rip everything. I def. keep an eye out and let them pass because they pop out of nowhere and scare the daylights out of me.
 

HikenSki

Angel Diva
Sometimes they scare me, too. I am advancing intermediate, but I am careful esp when it's crowded. One thing I do to avoid boarders is when I get off the lift and to the trailhead of wherever I want to go- I look around. If there's a ton of boarders putting on their bindings, I go before they do and then eventually stop and let them pass me, or I'll usually wait for them to go because it's just easier.
We do something similar. If we see a pack, we will wait for them to go because we can usually tell they are going to book it down the hill and scare the crap out of us if we try and go ahead. We also try to keep an eye out for the packs and remember what they are wearing if they've buzzed one of us so as to avoid them if we come across them again. I am more afraid of getting hit by some jerk than I am of falling or hitting something of my own doing. Ugh.
 

jenniferm

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Late to the party, but Mt Snow isn't too bad, mainly because the terrain park (Carinthia) it it's own mountain face. You get a lot of boarders headed from the summit to Carinthia on Long John, and headed out of Carinthia back to the main base also on Long John, but at least they aren't spread out all over the place...mostly. If you want tips of avoiding this stuff at Mt. Snow, send me a PM. It's been my home mountain for the better part of 10 years.

Thanks! Good to know and if have an opportunity to ski Mr. Snow I'll definitely reach out.
 

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