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What's the 1 thing to advance my riding?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi folks,

I've got it into my head to try to push my snowboarding on a stage whilst we're away next week.

I'm at that standard intermediate stage, I can manage red pistes okay, and ride switch down blues and some bits of red. I'm not quite into full carves, but nearly there and I can surf my way through some powder. So just the same as 60% of the folks on the slopes...

I'm looking for just one or two simple things to really concentrate on, and wondered what people found added most to their enjoyment on the slopes? Could be about perfect technique or going fast or having fun...

So work on the perfect carve? Learn to press and butter? Work on ollies and popping for some air?



So what's made a real difference and helped you improve?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Choose the thing that interests you ? Your on holiday Smile

That said Carving is good to nail it it's an important element of the steering mix and to a degree confirms posture, balance and perhaps even equipment (and) set-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?
just try and push yourself. falling over is part of the advancement. I honestly cant remember the last run I did without falling at least once, and I doubt I've ever gone an entire day. Once you realise your not made of glass you can start to develop.

work on things as the day and weather dictates. white out and bad viz days are great for riding switch and concentrating on riding technique, sunny and cold....carving, warm and slushy with soft landings you can jump of just about anything Very Happy

getting better always makes things more fun Very Happy
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
AndAnotherThing.. wrote:
Choose the thing that interests you ? Your on holiday Smile
.


Yeah, that's a fair point! wink

It'll probably be carving on groomed pistes and silliness when it's softer.

I probably should have worded it as "What have other people found made big changes when they were learning?"
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Without seeing your riding, its always hard to judge, but choose something you want to progress in and try that. I'm doing the minor air and rail thing in between regular riding.

Something thats always worth doing now and again is checking yourself in for a 'clinic' with a good quality instructor to pick apart some of your bad habits and offer some suggestions. One of my mates just did a one week camp with Definitions and reckons it's given his regular riding and particularly his switch riding a real kick in the pants, made everything cleaner, sharper and tightened up his technique. His words were "Definitely glad I went on it - wish I had 10 years ago!"
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You'll need to Register first of course.
I'd practice varying your stance, from leant back (to rear of board), to centred, to leant forward (to front of board) - to see how it affects the ability to turn or carve.

Leant back is good for powder, but leant forward is good for carving down the steeps (one must resist the acrophobic impulse to lean back, away from the descent).

As to how much to lean back or forward, well you can experiment and see what's most effective for you.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Learning to ride switch will definitely improve your overall riding. You say you already ride switch down blues. Push it until you can ride reds too.

So few people take the time and effort to ride switch but it will massively improve your overall riding.

Take your time and gradually build up the amount of time you ride switch. When you get to a tough bit where you would normally revert to your regular riding stance, stick with it switch.

You will soon get to a point when you can ride regular or switch equally well.......honestly

This will make everything else easier......better freestyle, less tiring than riding one direction all day.

Good luck.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Gyro wrote:
You will soon get to a point when you can ride regular or switch equally well.......honestly


As the OP gives a clue to, this assumes they have a duck stance, or a stance close to it?

With my forward angled stance, I couldn't say I ride switch equally as well as regular. But then, I guess I could practice more... Madeye-Smiley
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Yep, I'm duckfoot, about +15, -10 usually.

My switch isn't bad, but would be good to commit to entire red runs instead of wimping out on the trickier bits.

We've got a 3 hour lesson on the second day, so that should guide us out of any bad habits from a 15 month hiatus. Might also get a couple of things to work on from the lesson too.

Heading home from final day of work now. 10 days off with 8 on the piste... Cool
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Gyro wrote:
Learning to ride switch will definitely improve your overall riding. You say you already ride switch down blues. Push it until you can ride reds too.

So few people take the time and effort to ride switch but it will massively improve your overall riding.

Take your time and gradually build up the amount of time you ride switch. When you get to a tough bit where you would normally revert to your regular riding stance, stick with it switch.

You will soon get to a point when you can ride regular or switch equally well.......honestly

This will make everything else easier......better freestyle, less tiring than riding one direction all day.

Good luck.


+1
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
'Close carving' ...... Allow yourself up to a three metre wide 'track' to begin with and try and get it under one eventually, where you're just rolling the board edge to edge with your feet effectively.

And this, from above:

Quote:
...... falling over is part of the advancement .......


Get yourself out of your default comfort zone occasionally, but not to the point where you're a liability to yourself and others. Only you know where that is .......

But mostly enjoy it.
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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.
@BigSouthernJesse, not seeing you ride makes pretty much any advice worthless. All I can offer is that we only advance when we are comfortable enough to relax and approach a hazard without becoming tense. It's when we stiffen and react to, rather than soften and anticipate is when t'crud goes fan shaped and bits of you break
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Quote:

What have other people found made big changes when they were learning?"


I think three things have really driven my riding forward:

Bending my knees more. No, more, MORE. Suddenly started to land drop offs etc with regularity.

Pushing switch so I can ride blue runs as good as I can normal, red runs are ok and can get down black in switch although would prefer not too. As others have alluded to its less tiring if you can switch round, and helpful for long off piste traverses where you may wish to ride it toe edge no matter which way round.

Taking a dose of "man the f up" and having a go at things and pushing my limits a bit more.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Oh, also practicing those ump turns where you keep the back of your board in contact with the snow - helpful for steep and gnarly bits but where you still want to turn. No one likes a side slider down a couloir.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
crosbie wrote:
I'd practice varying your stance, from leant back (to rear of board), to centred, to leant forward (to front of board) - to see how it affects the ability to turn or carve.
Leant back is good for powder, but leant forward is good for carving down the steeps....
Just to avoid misunderstanding: "leaning back" is a poor way to ride powder. A "set back" stance isn't leaning back. Novices often lean back to get the board to plane. That can indicate that the rider's stance is wrong, or the board is inappropriate - perhaps a park board, or a board they're too heavy for. Or it can be that the rider doesn't know how to turn, so they sit on the tail and try to steer with the nose.

For hard carving on piste, there's a weight transfer through some types of turn, but it's very subtle and it comes naturally, can't really be forced. The feeling that you have to push forward on steeps isn't a bad thing, but you don't want to actually ride on the nose.

---
"What have other people found made big changes when they were learning?"
Metal edges. Not too helpful I suppose. It's too long ago, but I have some philosophy which you can rip apart though:

Someone mentioned the other day the concept of the "Expert Beginner". These snowboarders have worked out how to get around, but they can't progress. The reason is that they have learned some bad habits which they're going to have to unlearn. They will become worse riders before they can get better. So I think you have to decide if you have the motivation for that transformation or not.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
philwig wrote:
Just to avoid misunderstanding


Thanks for clarifying.

Perhaps 'leant' is the wrong word. I was indeed trying to indicate more subtle shifting of weight/posture/attitude rather than major bending of one's upper torso.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
I wasn't sure, I find it hard to phrase those things well on the web.

As others said, without seeing people ride it's hard to say. Certainly weight shift is important to advanced riders I'd say.
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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?
I was going to make a similar point to @philwig but decided not to bother!

Weight SHIFT is important. But staying in a shifted forward or back position for any kind of riding is not helpful. With almost any snowboard turn, you want to shift weight forward (very briefly) at the start of the turn, then drive it backward through the turn.

The "expert beginner" notion I think applies very strongly to snowboarding. So many people hold onto concepts they were taught or heard about when they were learning (e.g. "Get your weight forward!") then think this is the holy grail for a lifetime of snowboarding when it's more like a basic tool to get a beginner moving around, analogous to getting really good at skiing everywhere in a snow-plough...
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Agree with alot of the above. 'Expert beginner' absolutely. Ride switch. I took a one to one tech day with Horsemouth snowboarding in Cham. Best money ever spent on snowboarding.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
stevomcd wrote:
Weight SHIFT is important. But staying in a shifted forward or back position for any kind of riding is not helpful. With almost any snowboard turn, you want to shift weight forward (very briefly) at the start of the turn, then drive it backward through the turn.


Exactly ....... If you can't feel the board being 'nudged forward'* by technique as the turn progresses, you need to work on it.

[*Difficult to put into an understandable phrase, but some might understand what I'm getting at wink ]
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You'll need to Register first of course.
Riding switch without needing to think about it is what will put you into the best 10% of boarders. I'm normally too forward facing (+18/-5) to ride switch to my best but change my angles to (12/12) for a day and then ride that day in switch, on longer trips. Carving in switch is really interesting!

It may also be that your board is holding you back now. Whilst they make snowboarding very easy to first learn, you can't truly carve with a rocker/banana shape board. You will need a cambered board, so you can load up the tips. You will be amazed at how stable camber boards are at speed too.


Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Wed 6-04-16 12:49; edited 1 time in total
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
you can carve on a rocker board, i'm not sure why people say you cant.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
@eddiethebus, you can, but you'll spend every turn knowing how much better it would be a on a cambered board... Twisted Evil
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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.
eddiethebus wrote:
you can carve on a rocker board, i'm not sure why people say you cant.


I second that, it's about technique and not board profile.
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Gyro wrote:
eddiethebus wrote:
you can carve on a rocker board, i'm not sure why people say you cant.


I second that, it's about technique and not board profile.


Just because you can peel an apple with a butter knife doesn't mean it's a sensible thing to do.
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
my advice would be to get a pair of ski's and make life better for everyone!!

Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy
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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.
^ This public service announcement was brought to you by the Fun Police.

"The Fun Police: Extinguishing the spark of human joy since 1934"
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
philwig wrote:
Gyro wrote:
eddiethebus wrote:
you can carve on a rocker board, i'm not sure why people say you cant.


I second that, it's about technique and not board profile.


Just because you can peel an apple with a butter knife doesn't mean it's a sensible thing to do.


It does if it's the only knife you have with you.
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