 Poster: A snowHead
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The New York Times certainly seems to think so. Have those of us who stuck with two planks been proven right? And can we have our mountains back from the shredders, please?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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did it ever have one?
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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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Here it is:
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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Boredsurfing, or his knees bending that much
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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"Snowboard boots that dispense with annoying shoelaces are available"? Is this the real reason snowboarders sprawl untidily everywhere, because they're exhausted from tying a shoelace?
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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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finestgreen, mostly they're too young to know how yet. 
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Ooohhh it hurts 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I think 'boarding took off as it did partly down to it being cool, with all the things that the boarders were doing in the backcountry but also in the park. However, being that it was very easy to learn and quick to pick up the basics, it was the obvious choice for the impatient wannabes, it was also a natural progression for skate-boarders in the winter.
Skiing has come on a long way, and it's getting easier to learn with the way ski technology has changed. Add to that, that the new-schoolers are doing as much, if not more impressive stuff in the parks and back-country, and that you can do more on skis, especially simple things like being able to ski out on the flats rather than having to walk out (and in powder that's hell) carrying your board.
Skiing's now as 'cool' as boarding, if not cooler, the presence of sno-zones and whatnot is making it more accessible, and it's always going to be more versatile. SnowBoarding will never go away, but it's no longer the only popular kid in the playground.
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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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Don't have any views on whether skiing or boarding is the more cool way of sliding down a hill, but I'm always struck by how few snowboard lessons I see compared to ski lessons. No idea if this affects uptake or participation.
Interesting to see the initiatives US resorts are taking, with lots of mini parks and stuff, and even simple things like benches at the top of chairlifts so boarders can more easily clip back in to their bindings.
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I've come nowhere close to maxxing out my potential on a snowboard - I know I have backcountry, off-piste, freestyle and park that I can yet aim for seriously, as well as improving massively on the piste - but after last week in Tignes (spending a week getting a light-heated bashing from skiers in the chalet) I'm all set to learn how to ski this summer, if only to give me the option to approach the resort in a different fashion. I saw loads of people on blades, medium length skis and those massive, wide powder planks, and I want a piece of that too. Whether I'll be any good at it will only be revealed in time, but I know I'll give it my best until I realise A) I prefer boarding, or B) I realise that I'm pap at skiing (or even both).
I know when my little boy comes to the mountains next winter he'll be starting on skis because I've seen very little to tell me that toddlers can learn to snowboard in European resorts. Even my missus who isn't keen on skiing is starting to think that she might as well give it a go, just in case it offers her something that boarding can't.
As for why I/we started boarding in the first place, that was dictated by the missus saying that unless we went snowboarding we wouldn't be going to the mountains; she didn't deem skiing that cool although i was dead set on skiing at first. Yes, it did seem a bit cooler at the time (2006) to us. Neither of us skateboarded so there wasn't that link; it just seemed the thing to do.
| rob@rar wrote: |
| ....I'm always struck by how few snowboard lessons I see compared to ski lessons. No idea if this affects uptake or participation.... |
I saw a few boarding lessons last week in Tignes, but none were ESF. They seemed to be the English-speaking outfits with no red suits in sight. But in all, I probably saw only a dozen classes taking place, although that was in part down to sticking around Les Brevierres most of the week rather than the tignes/Val border. I saw countless ski groups.
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You know it makes sense.
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Specialman, I like all the ways to slide, each has its attractions and detractions . . . one of which is schlepping all the gear arround.
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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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We had a recent discussion on a chairlift about whether resorts should have a special snowboarding pass, which would provide them with a safe place to play with their other snowboarding buddies. It would be an area devoid of any almost flat bits, with lots of nice benches for them to sit on, and special lanes netted off for the skiiers to get past them on their blind side.
It would also be cheaper, because skiiers like me would pay a bit of a premium on our lift passes to know that there was a 0% chance of ending up on a small chairlift with a boarder that is incapable of getting off the thing without trying to climb over me to escape the wrath of the swinging chair, and that when I ski down a wide empty piste there aren't going to be a group of badly dressed teenagers sitting across the thing like the booms used to contain an oil spill.
I like boarders, when they do sensible things. Like not being in the way, and when they can keep up with intermediate skiiers without scraping the living bejesus out of a fairly easy slope. Some of my best friends are boarders 
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I was thinking of writing a piece on the renaissance of snowboarding.
After years of decline I thought I noticed an increase in snowboarding numbers this year. I thought I even saw some younger snowboarders. Perhaps young people were taking it up
However the actual measures were as depressing as previously, While taking a sample on the grand col lift in Les Arcs I counted 1 snowboarder for every 20 skiers. OK this area of highly moguled slopes is not the sort of place snowboarders go, but the proportions were exactly the same as I measured during the last 3 years. I actually felt quite sad about this. I like a bit of variety. I like to see snowboarders, monoskiers, telemark and disabled skiers on the piste.
Monium, snowboarding is very fashion conscious. They are never ever badly dressed. The whole point of snowboarding is to be fashionable.
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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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| johnE wrote: |
| I like to see snowboarders, monoskiers, telemark and disabled skiers on the piste. |
well if there's fewer of the first three, then it's inevitable that there'll be fewer ending up in the last category
(I'll get my coat.....)
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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As a skier, my problem with boarders is that one board displaces as much powder as three pairs of skis. If you want to ski powder, boarders are your enemy 
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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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Jonny Jones, Some of us are NOT bulldozers . . . you'll shift more snow on a slope than I and a lot of snowheads will
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| Lizzard wrote: |
| not standing in little huddles in the middle of the piste. |
What and sit down instead ?? Preferably just over the brow of a hill 
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dsoutar, the point being taht if you're going to get all shirty about boarders stopping in the middle of a piste then possibly you shouldn't do it yourselves.
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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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Some very 'turn of the century' prejudices on display. Understandable on a forum populated by mostly middle aged skiers.
Some people just prefer it sideways. I skateboarded, windsurfed, surf and wakeboard. I tried skiing and just prefer the feeling of snowboarding. All of the really good French and Swiss snowboarders I known are better skiers than most of you lot!
They just don't.
Skiing owes a huge debt to snowboarding - a lot of the recent progression has been driven by developments in snowboarding.
If people don't do now just because it's coo well that's fine by me - those saggy arsed snot noses littering the piste these days are more often than not sporting twin tips these days.
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Children, children... Jeez some people take things far too personally.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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C'mon, we can get more butthurt per post than this! You guys are hardly even trying.
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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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Snow Hound, well said. doesn't change the fact that as evidenced by his brand rationalisation even Jake recognises it is on the downslope.
A boarder uses up 3 times as much pow? bs unless the skiers are stuck in 70s st
yle powder8 wiggles.
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Jonny Jones, I'll assume that 'statistic' is from your own extensive personal research.
Lizzard, this. Saw plenty of poor mountain etiquette in St.Anton the other week, stopping the the middle of trails, restarting without looking etc, and it seems to stem from whats attached to the neck not whats attached to the feet...
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You know it makes sense.
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| Richard_Sideways wrote: |
| Jonny Jones, I'll assume that 'statistic' is from your own extensive personal research. |
Yup. Based on observing multiple boarders sliding sideways down multiple powder slopes and very few skiers doing the same. Maybe its an observation about the average skill level of boarders versus skiers. Or maybe more boarders than skiers take on slopes beyond their ability in a vain effort to appear cool.
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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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| Snow Hound wrote: |
| Some very 'turn of the century' prejudices on display. Understandable on a forum populated by mostly middle aged, skiers. |
I'd include 'middle class' somewhere in the as well..............lol.
The one thing I've always liked about 'boarders is that most of the ones I've met are reasonably secure in what they do that they don't need to big themselves up by denigrating another's chosen discipline. I guess some of that might come from knowing you're cool, as opposed to just thinking, or telling people, you are..............
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Poster: A snowHead
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Jonny Jones, well next time you've got your I-Spy book of The Mountains out see if you can find a mogul field. See if you can find out what causes those and you can add the culprits to your Nixon-style enemies list too...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Cool? About 1% of both are cool.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
maybe more boarders than skiers take on slopes beyond their ability in a vain effort to appear cool.
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Need a fish to go with that chip on your shoulder?
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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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| Filthyphil30k wrote: |
| Cool? About 1% of both are cool. |
+1
who are we trying to kid?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I see far more skiers than boarders on slopes they can't cope with (but there are hugely more skiers than boarders where I ski, so that's probably not surprising). Not surprising there are more ski lessons than boarding lessons, too. But whoever had skateboarding lessons? And there are plenty of good skateboarders around.
It's good to do a bit of everything. Apart from anything else, some days are best for boards, some are best for skis.
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| Quote: |
stem from whats attached to the neck not whats attached to the feet...
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More like, what's not attached to the neck.
Really the issue over boarders/skiers sharing slopes is more dependent on reckless behaviour rather than what equipment you use to slide down a mountain. I've seen many skiers and boarders going far too quick on the piste for their ability - out of control and a danger to others.
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We see relatively few boarders in La Plagne, must be 'cos it's flat 
Although two pistes have rope tows to help across the flat longer flat sections.
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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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| Richard_Sideways wrote: |
| Jonny Jones, well next time you've got your I-Spy book of The Mountains out see if you can find a mogul field. See if you can find out what causes those and you can add the culprits to your Nixon-style enemies list too... |
That's my other pet hate about boarders. Constructing moguls is a public good to which every mountain user is morally bound to apply themselves. To many boarders think that they can avoid the mogul fields and allow other people to do the hard work of turning the mountain into a decent playground.
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