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Getting off lifts.

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Given the number of recent posts by people who are giving boarding a go for the first time I thought it might be nice to offer some advice on what many people find the hardest thing to do: get off lifts! This is what works for me if anyone has other methods then I'd be interested to hear them.

Gondolas and cable cars are the snowboarders friends, there's no worrying about having one foot out your bindings as they both are, if you can't use them without falling may I suggest taking up knitting.

At the other end of the scale is drag (button) lifts, designed for skiers they're best left to skiers, more and more resorts are becoming rideable without using a drag. However, occasionally it's still a necessity so back foot out the binding and on your grip pad with enough pressure to stop it slipping, take the button and twist it 180 degrees to the way a skier would use it so the button is behind the top of your front leg (right for goofy foots) nudge the bar and hold on for your life! Keep as much weight forwards as possible and watch out for downhill sections, these are best taken by letting the board run ahead of the lift and then slowing by sliding the heel edge. Ski ruts are near unavoidable trying to keep the board flat and in between them is the best you can hope for.

Chair lifts make up the majority of the snowboarders uplift and dismounting is all in the preparation. I lift the bar well in advance and slide my bum to the front of the chair and get my board on the ground as fast as I can. Still holding onto the chair put your back foot on the grip pad; I have mine just in front of my rear binding and push my foot against the binding for more security. Once in this position stick your front arm out in front of you and give a good shove with your back hand, this should put most weight onto your front foot, I probably distribute it 90% front 10% back, having your arm in front of you helps this. Now you should be clear of the lift, if the ground is flat you can just ride it out until moving slow enough to move your back foot onto the snow and stop that way. If the ground is sloping it becomes slightly more complex you need to turn the board across the slope so as to stop normally, it might be worth practicing this on a gentle slope as having your foot out makes it feel a lot less secure, however, providing you have your weight over your front foot it will come quite quickly. The only other problem is skiers who like to stop right in front of the lift and have a chat (probably about who has the most Day-Glo colours on their one-piece): I advise yelling then carrying on if they don't get out the way Razz

I did once hear about a boarder who stopped his board on drag lifts until the button was fully stretched and then jumped using the force of the tow to do 360s but have yet to try it.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Sounds exactly what I do (when it all works!)

Another suggestion is trying not to have the chairlift full with its maximum number of people, because this will at least give you move room for error when getting off at the other end.
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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?
and another tip on chairlifts. If you ride regular always aim for the seat on far right side and if goofy aim for the left!
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Swirly, Wait until the doors open
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Swirly, Good one Very Happy I'd only add that when you're on a drag, as you say keep the weight going into the front foot (you should be able, if you want, to take your back foot off the board) but RELAX, don't tension against the pole or cable or you're going to wake up in the night with the worst inner thigh cramp you've never experienced in your lifetime before . . . you WILL wake up screaming Shocked So relax, let the lift do the work.
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Mouth, I'm goofy but tend to aim for the outside of the lift so if I get off slowly I don't get wacked by the chair as it swings round. What you say does make sense for avoiding other people easier though.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Masque, Good additional info, I try to avoid drags or only use short ones so have never experienced this, seems like something you only do once though! Toofy Grin
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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!
Swirly, I learned to board in Livigno 150M drag . . . up,down,up, down for 4 hours and of course I was fighting the cable all the way as I was still trying to lean back and tension against the pull . . . never experienced pain like it Evil or Very Mad or harder to stretch out.
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I usually use Flow bindings & try do do them up whilst on the lift.

If it is a drag lift sometimes I can only manage to get my foot in, but not the back up, then I usually flick the back up as I ride away.
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Quote:

I usually use Flow bindings & try do do them up whilst on the lift.

I do the same, often possible to flick up the back foot just before the chair comes round, and that saves leaning over and grovelling for it. That's one reason I went for Flow bindings. I did have quite a painful fall getting off a lift with one foot out. Because I fell, the back end of the board dug in and twisted my knee badly. Falling with both feet in is both less likely and less painful. However, this is frowned upon by some lift attendants, apparently because having both feet in the bindings makes it more difficult for you to get out of the way, should you fall. I don't agree, actually, as it is easy enough to roll right over, lifting the board over you. I do find, though, that on flat run outs I sometimes have to get one foot out after I have stopped and then scoot to the top of the run. But I stay on my feet longer. I am a beginner, and in a resort with quite a lot of drags, and find the advice above helpful and relevant - thanks. Definitely need to be decisive getting off chairs, stand up promptly and feel confident; don't hang back or you've had it!
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pam w wrote:

stand up promptly and feel confident; don't hang back or you've had it!


Confidence is the key! snowHead 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.
Don't underoccupy chairs if its busy - it makes you look like an incompetent or inconsiderate fool. Try to sit on either end of the chair if mixed with skiers. Get off first or last. Have no worries about running people over if they are blocking the exit ramp - its their fault not yours although if they have fallen you might be more considerate Very Happy. If you suspect someone on the chair might be less competent than you get out of their way.
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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
No particular proof to back it up but it feels to me that strapping in your back foot on a chairlift could increase the risk of a tangle while trying to get off. Control of a board with one foot out can be mastered and is a valuable skill generally so I think it is better to take the hit and practice it.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
fatbob, sometimes you get no choice, I've noticed ski schools won't load kids from their priority lane onto chairs with boarders on, in the time it takes to realise the gate's closed and there's a gap on the chair.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
as mention i try to stick to the right hand side of the chair as i find it much easier to stop quickly on the toe edge and your not cutting across people.. unfortunatly when the kids school loads on that side then the poor mite is taking a risk far greater than not wearing a helmet Shocked
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
ha ha ha i push the peeps ether side of me, gives me more room !


ha ha no only kidding i find the best way if you are stuck in the middle, talk to the peeps eitherside of you, and when you get off push yourself off the chair gets you just infront of your mates gives you and them more room wink
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Quote:

Swirly, I learned to board in Livigno 150M drag . . . up,down,up, down for 4 hours and of course I was fighting the cable all the way as I was still trying to lean back and tension against the pull . . . never experienced pain like it or harder to stretch out.


That explains the excruciating pain I was in over the weekend after just 2 hours at Xscape, most of it spent riding the drags, do doubt tense etc. Never had aches like those before (as you say inside the thighs .. both of the bu*8ers), tips above should help next time !
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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 highly recommend having a skier close to hand to grab onto when your about to fall coming off the chairlift, works for me wink

But i had hell of a time when boarding in Scotland, there was a drag lift that went on for soooooooo long, and i was in agony by time i got to top.
Think im maybe not relaxing enough.....
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I am a relatively new boarder and it is good if you are on a chair lift with just your mates if possible. Now that I have been boarding about six times I always try to sit on the right, so being goofy I can see where everyone else is heading when they also get off the lift. Oh ye and I have my arms free ........
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rayscoops, welcome to snowheads! snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead snowHead
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Cheers for the hints guys.

Using lifts has been the major worry for me when I go boarding and it was basically the only thing bothering me.

I suppose it's all about common sense when using lifts? Does the speed of the lift differ depending on the slope/run that it serves (for example, will a run that's closer have a lift that's slower than one serving a run at the top of the mountain)?

Anyone else who's puzzled by the types of lifts should click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-bar_lift

This will lead you onto chairlifts and poma lifts etc.

I'm sure I'll learn from my mistakes in the first few days!!!Very Happy
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
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Specialman,
Quote:
Does the speed of the lift differ depending on the slope/run that it serves


In my experience no, the high speed lifts will slow down in the stations to let you dismount easily, these days the trickiest thing I find is the chairs that load you off a moving carpet, I still almost fall over when I get on the carpet, although I never actually have, my free foot kind of sinks when I first step onto the carpet although it doesn't stay like that.
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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!
Thanks swirly
New to boarding 2 seasons ago and wish I had this guide to lifts before I went. I find getting off those chair lifts which drop away quite quickly the worst but it gets easier with practice. snowHead

Obvious after you try it the wrong way as I have seen happen but don't forget with 'pick axe' drag lifts the 'axe' goes behind the front leg not the back/bum as the skiers do. You may find it easier to go up these alone at first.
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Hunsbury, sharing a "pick axe" with someone you don't know sounds a bit "convivial" Laughing snowHead Laughing
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B00thy wrote:
Hunsbury, sharing a "pick axe" with someone you don't know sounds a bit "convivial" Laughing snowHead Laughing


Great for making new friends on the slopes and later for apres ski/board
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Glad to see this thread's still live. I'd like to make a suggestion for all the newbies that will make life easier for everyone wink

Spend an hour or three hoofing 50m up the bunny slope and sliding down with just your lead foot clipped in. Sounds as much fun as collecting stale dog poo but it really will teach you to keep your weight into the front of the board and how very simple changes of pressure control your board, giving you a real head start to enjoying your ride, rather than spending a week swallowing Ibuprofen, rubbing Arnica on your butt and picking stones out of your teeth.

As, what's 'best' described as, a mature boarder . . . I've come to the thought that there are a very few who are nurtured in the womb with a metaphysical snowboard . . . the rest of us need to practice . . . and that starts with the basics of walking up a hill and figuring out what makes a board work.
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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.
Masque, Yep......and that's why I'm staying a skier Toofy Grin
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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
boredsurfin, idle git rolling eyes
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Just another thought about drags.

I didn't manage to avoid them in Morzine like I hoped but given one served some fresh deep powder it was worth it but I found them surprisingly easy by keeping my back foot strapped in too. I've never tried that before but it meant i could relax and didn't even need to think about what I was doing. Might be worth a try if you're struggling and have the fear!
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