 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi folks,
After my achilles heals and I'm back to full fitness again, probably May/June next year, I've set myself the goal of learning to snowboard and looking forward to it.
Our neighbour is a snowboarding instructor and has told me to get hold of some body protection. Had a quick google so have seen padded shorts, wrist guards, back protectors, elbow, knee pads etc etc.
I'm just wondering what as a beginner I should invest in and any particular recommendations? I will no doubt be on my backside a fair few times and I'm getting on a bit so recovery time takes a wee bit longer!
I already own a ski helmet so thts the grey matter covered.
Over to you folks.
Thanks, Den
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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1. Wrist guards, you will fall on them, don't break them.
2. Knee pro (vulcans will do), you will bang down on them and it just makes it a little less uncomfortable.
3. Shorts, a lot of time will be spent on your bum. even if it's not for impact protection it will be warmer and more comfortable.
Or, rule 1 plus a big can of "man up" 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I've just started learning at Chill Factore (am 48 so not as good at bouncing rather than breaking as once up on a time) and have done 2 full day lessons so far. On my snowboarding daughter's advice I've gone with impact shorts and wrist guards and haven't felt I've needed anything else by way of body protection, have been grateful of my helmet a couple of times though and would say thats the most important bit of protective gear!
We did loose one teenage girl from the beginners course at lunchtime as in her words she had 'broken her butt!'
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
she had 'broken her butt!'
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My daughter does that most trips but carries on anyway, though she does limp at times. Serves her right for going off the boxes.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Denni, I wore wrist guards for the first week, then tossed them.
As above, people will recommend wrist guards, which IMHO a good idea for safety to start. Then padded shorts, knee pads, elbow pads etc which seem more about comfort. (I assume you're going to take it steady and not try and slide up and down handrails and do mute grab double cork 1080s etc)
My recommendation is to see if you can't borrow some kit for a while, once you've picked up the basics and have done a few days in resort you'll probably not want the padded shorts/knee pads/body armour etc. (though borrowing someone elses shorts  )
Last edited by Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do. on Sun 17-11-13 11:06; edited 1 time in total
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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My impact shorts cost a tenner from ebay, new as he'd bought the wrong size and forgot to send them back in time. Wrist guards are a pair of mitts with them built in which are a bit big for my daughter and waiting for her to grow into.
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davkt,
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a bit big for my daughter and waiting for her to grow into
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Is that how you buy all your kit
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| Quote: |
Short answer: you don't need any of it
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As a learner.........really !!
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| Mitchell wrote: |
| As a learner.........really !! |
Correct.
If you check the data there's an arguable point for some less athletic people using wrist protection, but you don't need it if you learn how to fall, which is probably what you ought to do first.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| philwig wrote: |
| Short answer: you don't need any of it, |
OFFS! He's 48 not 18, we don't bounce at that age we crumple onto the point of impact, We're invariably heavier making the inertial forces much greater. Once we have the skills then yes we can make an informed decision to wear or not to wear protection, based on conditions or ambitions, but to flat out state you don't need any is arrogant and unworthy of anyone who enjoys the sport 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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You can take or leave my advice, and quote it out of context now you've managed to work out where the delete key is on your keyboard, but there's no need to be rude.
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philwig, out of context? Apologies if that's the case but I've re-read your post and I don't see where I have taken your words out of context. I agree with you absolutely about learning to fall and I'll not ask you to go look but that's something I posted in strong favour of on here 6+years ago.
However, just how many classes have you seen where the first skill taught is 'how to fall'? It doesn't happen. As I'm very much toward the old and crumbly side of the age demographic, I'm probably in a better position than you to understand the needs and whys for protection, it really is as simple as . . . we just don't bounce as well as we used to even from the simplest and gentlest of ass-plants. We have less subcutaneous fat, even around our knees, making sitting or just kneeling on the piste more uncomfortable. Our balance degrades as we age as does our twitch muscle response.
The person being rude here is the one not realising that not everyone who slides can learn or do it like you can.
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You know it makes sense.
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| robapplegate wrote: |
davkt,
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a bit big for my daughter and waiting for her to grow into
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Is that how you buy all your kit |
Nope, its just that she has a liking for some Dakine mitts with built in guards that are a bit tricky to find sometimes so I grabbed this pair of a size too big ones when they appeared ridiculously cheap in someones sale at the end of last season.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Oh and learning to fall, no mention during the Chill Factore intro courses, I know how fall from a youth spent riding horses where you'd break very soon even as kid if you get it wrong but my shorts saved a sore backside that no amount of rolling into a fall would help and I was grateful for the wrist guards on at least one occasion on a fast fall where I just didn't have time to get them sagely tucked away!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Even if you are taught to fall correctly most people still throw out their hands as a reflex action initially, after a while you learn not to but it goes against all instincts.
To add my tuppence worth, initially always wrist guards no matter what age until you're up and running then lalala.
helmet - just yes.
Impact shorts, if you have a spine, cocsiccy problem then yes, if you are an absolute beginner then why not if you can afford them, but doubt most would really need them for long.
If you really want to take the pain of learning away take a couple of private lessons, instructor will hold your hand as you navigate heel edge, toe edge and start to link turns, this is where the most falls oocur. After this you will still fall from time to time and sometimes it will hurt but nothing like those first two days on your own, touch wood.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Hi folks,
thanks for all the replies, much appreciated.
I'm 45 and my good points are I'll be back to being relatively fit after my achilles snap is fixed, I like to put 100 percent into everything I do and being ex Forces, I can take instruction well so will mostly do as I'm told and doubtful if I don't pick it up in a morning I'll throw my toys out the pram..........
Bad points, I'm a big old unit at 6ft 3, very broad climbing shoulders and when I hit the ground I tend to hit it fairly hard. I don't have any injuries or weak spots, knees all good, I'm just possibly being over cautious but on the advice of my mate, he reckons it is the way forward. Well at least wrist guards and padding on ye olde backside. (helmet obviously)
Also, my mate is happy to take me snowboarding to one of the slopes, Snow Dome, Xscape etc or for a lads long weekend to that place near Brunnsum in Holland which he regularly visits.
I appreciate the advice and with most things, differing opinions. As long as we're all having fun though!
Cheers, Den
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Denni, I was similar age to you when I learned to board, never looked back. Having bust an elbow on hard ice I also wore arm protection for a while but tend to leave them off now. I do fall quite a lot and sometimes pretty hard. Like you fairly top heavy in the shoulder department due to climbing. I fall because I push it, sometimes beyond my ability, but that's how I get better. If you have had any back problems in the past you may at some point want to consider back protection (as you would on a motor bike).
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Snowboard instructor here - I would definitely recommend a helmet for newbies. After that, my next suggestion would be some impact shorts (nursery slopes can often be quite hard/icy as they're usually lower down and some unplanned sit-downs are pretty common). I'm unconvinced of the merits of wrist guards and I really don't see any need for knee pads in snowboarding. I don't think I've ever bumped my knees in 14 years on a snowboard. Newbies do kneel down a lot, so maybe for comfort, but don't really see the need for protection.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Cheers for the reply Rob, much appreciated. Back ok despite years of abuse on my blade and 916 on track days and a few crashes....
I reckon going fully protected to start with is the way forward and take it from there. Like you, I hit the floor pretty hard sometimes so extra padding along with middle aged spread won't do me any harm :0)
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| stevomcd wrote: |
| Snowboard instructor here - I would definitely recommend a helmet for newbies. After that, my next suggestion would be some impact shorts (nursery slopes can often be quite hard/icy as they're usually lower down and some unplanned sit-downs are pretty common). I'm unconvinced of the merits of wrist guards and I really don't see any need for knee pads in snowboarding. I don't think I've ever bumped my knees in 14 years on a snowboard. Newbies do kneel down a lot, so maybe for comfort, but don't really see the need for protection. |
Hi mate,
thanks for the reply, much appreciated.
Helmet already in use from skiing and as i said above, I reckon I'll go in fully padded so I can't move and take off protection asI go!
looking forward to it.
Cheers, Den
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| stevomcd wrote: |
| Snowboard instructor here - I would definitely recommend a helmet for newbies. After that, my next suggestion would be some impact shorts (nursery slopes can often be quite hard/icy as they're usually lower down and some unplanned sit-downs are pretty common). I'm unconvinced of the merits of wrist guards and I really don't see any need for knee pads in snowboarding. I don't think I've ever bumped my knees in 14 years on a snowboard. Newbies do kneel down a lot, so maybe for comfort, but don't really see the need for protection. |
+1
Ive got a permanently (though not seriously) graunched wrist from my first week boarding. And while I did nothing permanent to my backside, by the end of my first week in really icy conditions, sitting down was done slowly and ever so gently.
Ive only ever landed on my knees once, in Milton Keynes, on a patch of ice 2 seconds after starting down the slope.
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Thing is, protections are like insurance: they only seem worth it when you have to claim, so naturally people tend to say "don't bother" if they haven't themselves had situations where they were grateful for them (or would have been). I only started wearing knee guards after once hitting an unexpected bit of hardpack and slamming down hard and painfully, and ditto with elbow pads on a separate occasion.
That said, I do inline skating to a somewhat aggressive level, and so I'm used to wearing these protections all the time anyway; hence I don't even notice I have them on when I'm snowboarding... except for the time when knee pads bring their biggest advantage, which is when you're facing uphill looking for your mates or whatever, and they allow you to drop down onto your knees roughly instead of carefully. I can see that some people might find them bulky to wear and hence not think they're worth it.
For a beginner, I think the advantages of wrist guards greatly outweighs any potential disadvantages I've read about. No matter how much you might be taught not to fall on your hands, it's totally instinctive to do so until you've really drilled it in to yourself not to. Though I guess the implication of stevomcd's comment is that he hasn't observed that in his students or that he's successfully taught them to fall correctly early on. I'll admit that suprises me though. (In my case, falling properly wasn't even something that was taught, so I fell countless times on my wrists, and bought wristguards half way through the first week when I felt that just one more fall would be enough to snap them!)
[The thread is about piste skiing really; obviously you should wear them in the park, and they're also something to consider if you're doing off-piste in rocky areas. In both those situation, personally I think you'd be crazy to not wear a helmet, and also when skiing trees. Let's not get into that topic here though.]
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Pyremaniac, I teach my clients well enough that they don't fall very much! 
I'm not entirely joking here, there's no need for people to be taking massive slams every 2 minutes when learning to snowboard. I taught someone last season who went from "never ever" to linking her first turns without a single fall. She had a pretty strong surfing background though.
When I'm facing uphill looking for my mates, I do it standing up!
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some impact shorts, wrist guards and knee pads are all i have ever used and i think is all you need. when i was learning all i had was wrist guards and after a few days my but and kness were a bit tender. So went to the shop and got some shorts and pads and never looked back, was amazed at the difference they made. i still wear them today just incase, but add that bit of extra warmth when sat on a chair lift on of the side of the slope waiting for someone.
Also a helmet, but ony for the park or off piste, never wear it if im just out riding with a mixed ability group of people.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I never wore knee pads . . . though the split patella suggests I should have  . . . until I started to telemark, a couple of trips off piste into the crud gave me some uncomfortable knocks. I have some lightweight D3o that I don't even realise that I'm wearing.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| stevomcd wrote: |
| When I'm facing uphill looking for my mates, I do it standing up! |
An outrageous waste of 10 seconds of muscle energy! Add that up over a day and that's half a descent!
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| Quote: |
stevomcd wrote:
When I'm facing uphill looking for my mates, I do it standing up!
An outrageous waste of 10 seconds of muscle energy!
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And that's assuming they catch up with you in 10 seconds, mine take considerably longer
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You know it makes sense.
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| Masque wrote: |
| I never wore knee pads . . . though the split patella suggests I should have . . . until I started to telemark, a couple of trips off piste into the crud gave me some uncomfortable knocks. I have some lightweight D3o that I don't even realise that I'm wearing. |
i think thats the key, if you spend a bit more and get some decent kit you dont even know your wearing them, my shorts and pads Alpine stars cushioned and when on i forget they are there.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Man up i say, i'm 59 & still bounce OK! Well sort of, broken ribs on two occasions, 1st when a binding broke going over avalanche debris, 2nd when skier took me out from my back side. Not sure you can wear anything to be 'seen dead in' to protect the ribs. Never hurt a wrist, nutted ice a few times but the wind in the hair, what there is left of it, on sunny days tempts me out of the helmet. Only got the helmet 2 years ago as I prefer no hat to keep cool, well down to about -10. I must admit the helmet is handy in trees and when s--t happens off-piste, and if I did the park I would wear more than a helmet.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Quote: |
stevomcd wrote:
When I'm facing uphill looking for my mates, I do it standing up!
An outrageous waste of 10 seconds of muscle energy! Add that up over a day and that's half a descent!
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You have to master the platform-build / edge-jam as you come to a stop. Then you can stan effort-free. Kneeling down and getting back up again burns way more energy... and it's so amateur-looking...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I've been clumming around with wrist guards for about the last 4 years, and the most painful thing that's happened is yanking a thumb 180 degrees relative to index finger a couple of times. Same thumb twice! Still hurts if I think about it and twiddle it around a bit, and the last time was ages ago.
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