Snowboarding 101: Tips for Beginners

Snowboarding 101 Tips

SnowSportMoves



Snowboarding 101


Hey guys, here’s a great video to get you started on how to snowboard:

First thing you have to understand as a snowboarder is gravity. Unless you’re being towed by a rope or something, gravity is your only source of acceleration when riding a snowboard. You should realize that all you’re doing is either changing it’s direction when turning or resisting it altogether when braking.  Knowing this, you should also pay closer attention to the slope of the hill. If you don’t want to move, you have to stay perpendicular to the slope and maintain constant edge pressure. Otherwise, gravity will pull you down. The board is just a plank of wood, but you’re constantly using the board’s edges to direct which way gravity will pull you.


Posture


It’s important to remember to keep your shoulders above your board. This is the best way to avoid falling. Lean back too much and your heel edge will slide out from under you.  Same with your toe edge if you lean forward too much. You also want to keep your center of gravity low, so bend your knees and keep your butt down.

It’s also a good idea to maintain soft knees as well so you can absorb all the little bumps.  If you have stiff or locked knees and your legs are straightened out, chances are those bumps will send you flying. It’s important to stay centered on your board as well. If you sit on your back foot and tail too much your nose will lift and with no edge to initiate, you won’t be able to complete the turn. So keep your body centered.


Turns


If you’re finding it hard to initiate your turns, chances are your nerves are getting the better of you. So keep telling yourself to lean on your forward foot.  Try to resist relying on your arms to initiate your momentum.  Keep them in and let your body and core do the work.  There’s no need to rush when learning turns. Take your time and brake down. If you’re switching from one edge to another, you don’t have to kick out your back foot as soon as you change to the other edge.  Take however long you need to round off the turn smoothly. Stay patient.


Falls


Eventually, when you are learning how to snowboard, you will end up falling. Often. It’s okay. The most important thing you do is to stand back up and try again.  Remember to take your time and don’t rush progress. Just make sure you have a good pair of ski gloves on to keep your hands protected from scrapes.


You’ll find as you progress, snowboarding is really all about reacting to your terrain.  The faster you can react to counterbalance your terrain, the better rider you’ll be. Last but not least, be safe and have fun out there.

See you on the mountains!


SnowSportMoves

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