starting to wonder what boards are like

A snowHead

been skiing most of the time. skiing for about 7 or so years as a job but long time before that as a hobby. never set foot on a snowboard. my question is as follows: for those of you who have been standing with your feet separate on two skis for ages and ages, what happened when you put your feet together on the snowboard? does the skill translate? i've never dared to dream about snowboarding. what can a fella like me expect for skiiers who made the jump to the board

henry

A snowHead

You will get a better looking girlfriend, you will lose all desire to drive an Audi and tell people about it, and your chances of ending up on the sex offenders register will reduce significantly.

Powder days will also be much better.

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You will learn how to walk on flat icy terrain with boots that have no grip.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

...and fall off Chair and Drag Lifts without hurting yourself, while leaving a pile up in your wake. Skullie

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For a slightly more useful answer…! There is some crossover with being able to read slope topography and predicting other slope users and judging speed. Also understanding about edge pressure (although you’ve only got one to play with) and how it controls speed.

Give it a go; I went the other way and the same applies. I was a committed snowboarder for 25 years before I went back to skiing and now arguably enjoy skiing more especially when taking it steady and cruising round the mountain with my wife. But, there’s nothing quite like a powder day on a snowboard.

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@hang11, fiiiiiiirrreeeeeee. sold me. ima have to steal one from judd and given it a shot

After all it is free

able to do bot in a good level, is the best option (although i only board).
You can choose the ski in a hard pack snow day, you can choose what you want in a powder day, and you can choose your board in a slushy day, you can choose ski with the above combination if you are 100% ski in ski out, you can choose your board if you have to walk a little or take a bus

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A friend switched to boarding from skiing after 4 years. He had to start over really as what he knew from skiing didn't crossover for him. Look at it as a new sport and you will feel what is transferable pretty quickly. If you pick it up quickly and get some great snow I doubt you'll look back to skiing. He never has even though he was a slow learner and took a few stacks here and there but that's part of the fun no? A powder day on a board is the ultimate imv I've never skied and no urge to do so purely on the love for powder.

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My particular take on this is well documented - but summed up - Commit to learning to ride, take a whole week and learn properly. Don't take your skis, just ride, don't do it alone, get a friend or a session with an instructor to help you, and don't treat it as a afternoon pick-up or it'll suck as you'll only get to see the worst of riding then it'll forever be tainted.

Put it this way - I've been riding for 25 years and genuinely have never been on a set of skis in my life - if I came to you suggesting I can pick-up the thing you've spent 00's of hours doing in 3, would you recommend it?

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@Richard_Sideways, yeah but that's because skiing is hard

Id just add to what others have said - I went from snowboarding to skiing and picked it up pretty quickly - i remain a better snowboarder than a skiier but would certainly recommend giving the other a go and broadening your repertoire - personally, I ski on icy days (or with kids) and I ride on powder or slushy days.

If you think back to when you were learning:
- many were afraid of speed: well hopefully you should have go over that with you ski experience.
- many took a while to get their head around the mechanics of a turn eg weight distribution, edge angle, carving vs slipping etc: Well hopefully you understand that already.
So (easier said than done) all you have to do is get on a snowboard and apply some speed and some turns (but get some lessons)!

I also echo what has been said about committing to a week of riding - I was considering my switch (to skiis) for years but finally did a full week when my kids when on first ski trip. You do feel clumsy vs your old way of doing things and you may fall and you may be tempted to go back.. but its def worth sticking at it to get to a place where you can comfortably do either...

You know it makes sense.

I switched from snowboarding 10 years ago and never look back, well maybe one on those tricky offpiste snow conditions like crust or heavy snow.

My advce would be to try on soft snow conditions, as you will be falling over quita a lot. if you survive first week and 1001 falls, you will be fine Smile

Also get all body protection you can find.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@ed48, good advice about trying in soft conditions! I made the mistake of trying it on the Hintertux glacier on an icy December day. After getting slammed on my butt followed by slammed on my face followed by slammed on my butt for a few hours I said screw this for a game of soldiers and handed the snowboard back to the rasta dude who had said it would be easy... Mind you this was in 1987 when there were other weird things sliding around the mountain as well
(remember swingbo?).

A snowHead

Did snowboarding for a fair few years, then decided I'd go to skiing for several trips. Came back to boarding recently, thinking I'd have forgotten how to do it, but TBH, skiing actually made me a better boarder I think.... definitely have to be braver on skis on steep stuff I feel, and that's translated into being a bit more focussed but relaxed on the board and not sweating those turns on reds and blacks.

The falls are a bit less knee-breaky on a snowboard but the faceplates do still wind you massively.

A snowHead

I'm guessing the faceplant but is the worst, just as you think "I'm getting it, I'm getting it" you catch an edge and BAM!

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As others have said - do not try and learn in icy conditions - I once went on a trip with some beginners (I could already snowboard) and each day they compared bruise colours and size to knees, back bottom and face. On paper they were all relatively sporty out-doorsy types but 2 out of 4 never did it again.

If you have a choice then definitely postpone if the conditions are icy.

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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

went boarding and poo-poo it was awesome everyone is right ill probably never ski again. but im going skiing tomorrow

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@Steilhang, that think looks satanic

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Was a skier for around 10-12 years, 2 or 3 weeks a year.

Yes, there is a lot of crossover, if you understand about edge control on skis, which I'm sure you do then you'll get carving on a board very quickly. I did need the basics banged into my head with a big hammer though but boarding really is quite quick to pick up. I could do different radius proper carves on a board on my 3rd week, it took me years on skis to do this and I'm still not that competent at it.
Hated chair lifts.

Went back to skiing because boarding seems to me to be harder on the thighs and knees, and well, despite everyone saying boarding is cooler, it's just not skiing.

Also, yes it's easier on a board in the soft and fluffy stuff, but I actually think it's way more rewarding on two planks.

I'm glad I tried it though, I still have all my boarding kit just in case...probably just in case it snows enough here at home! I think it taught me a bit more about sliding that I may not have learnt quite as quick as if I hadn't tried it. (Not sure what that its though so don't ask.)

Just my twopennies worth.

After all it is free

Snowboarding should have significantly smaller amounts of rotational force on the hip and knee - decent form should keep the knee in line over the foot and operating in a regular way. Yes, you are a greater risk of a direct knock if you fall, but if that's a concern to you then you can look at some form of protection/padding.

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first few days will be frustrating, falling over a lot and catching edges just when you think you have it. (transitioning from board to ski much easier in my experience). But with some lessons your rate of progression should be much faster than a newbie as the mechanics are similar and the fear/awe of speed and steepness arent so strong.

I do both, skis my preference for flexibility and ease but a board on fresh snow is hard to beat!

I skied about 7 weeks in total. Messed up my knee playing footie and read that boarding would be better as the knee cant rotate.

I did a 6 hour course at the local dry slope before my first trip away. Booked myself into 2x5 hour beginner board school lessons. Was moved to the intermediate group within 30 mins and by the end of the week was able to come down the reds in resort and even doing a few jumps in the park. Even managed a very tentative boardslide over the box (accidentally!) and managed to land it.

Think my experience skiing definitely helped. As people have mentioned above, being able to read the slopes and understand where the spaces, bumps, icy patches are.

Catching an edge is a bit grim! Especially on the cat tracks where you stack in and have to then walk/scoot a chunk to find something downhill.

Definitely give it a go. But as others have said, commit to boarding for that week. Once you pick up the basics and linking turns the progression is really quick.

Plus the boots are SOOO much better! Cool

You know it makes sense.

[quote="Bergmeister"]

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@Specialman, I hope that exploit was preceded with the confident statement "Right - Watch THIS!"

A snowHead

I have been boarding for more than 30 years now (without having skied before) ... I tried to learn how to ski 2 years ago (so that I could keep up with Mrs F and the 2 teenage lunatics who are all experts on 2 planks) ... the process culminated in me unclicking the bindings, picking the skis up and throwing them back to the ground whilst muttering "f*ck this s*it, where's my board" in front of a lot of amused Austrians in Saalbach.

I invested in a step-on system last season (Burton boots + bindings) ... I'm 53 with some aching joints but this has given me a new lease of life on the board ...

My advice for what it's worth is spend time to learn and master the trade ... and use step-ons if you're able to : much less tiring but, more importantly, more interaction / response between the boot, binding and the board.

Good luck.

A snowHead

to be honest, i would love to be able to ski in the level i board. I would love to have a couple of race ski when the slopes are icy, or do not have to skate on the flats etc
But starting from scratch (only once tried) at 51, i think its not the best option. And usually your fears come true, so an ACL injury is something i do not want to experience right now. Maybe if i was 20? but now ?? nope....

but i am jealous when i read about people who can do both of them and really good

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@hgarland14__, Give it a go. As others have said it's worth committing to a full week or 3 of just snowboarding but it's nice to have a change sometimes.

That said I'd draw the line at split boarding for touring...

Help!!

starting to wonder what boards are like

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