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calf burn

10K views 26 replies 11 participants last post by  poutanen 
#1 ·
i keep having extreme calf burn to the point i have to stop a short time down the mtn. i have it even going straight down the mtn and not turning. im running union bindings and a 172cm skunk ape.
 
#3 ·
How upright are you standing? If you try to stand straight up you may be putting tension on your calfs that shouldn't be there. With knees well bent and a proper stance you shouldn't have calf burn.

I think the healthy burn that you should have after a day of boarding is in your thighs.
 
#9 ·
Talking about the actual angle of the highback not the forward lean. If you are riding with angles on your bindings your high back should be straight with the board. So look down on the highback. The top of it should be straight with the edge of the board.. Makes sense?
 
#14 ·
Why are u riding 172 Skunk?? That board is for very big people riding very deep pow. That in itself would be a lot of work for a average sized person. Also, like the other folks said, your bindings are probably not adjusted right..... and possibly a boot issue.
 
#16 ·
6'3" 280 size 13 boot. i ride from snowshoe wv to small places like cataloochie ,nc . i bought the board after alot of the larger guys recommended it. i adjust my board high backs to the upright position. going to see if that helps with the calf burn. also seen that my from binding was not alined with the rear binding. this could have been giving me a little problem with keeping going on a strainght light while straight lining.
 
#18 ·
I live in central NC and ride the same places. I too am 6'3" and I weigh 255-260 with size 13 boots. I ride a 2013 Flow Merc 162W. Since most snow around here is man made, I think you could go to a shorter board. 172 must be a beast to throw around. It may not solve your calf issue, but I would think it would be less tiring overall. I would be interested in what other big riders think, as I want to upgrade my board next year, but I'm not sure if I should get a longer board. What I REALLY want/need to do is loose the 20-25 extra lbs around my belly!! :yahoo:
 
#25 ·
Finally figured my problems out. Calf burn was due to high back tilted forward. Riding problems were due to setup of front binding being to far to the front edge. Causing my board to run caddy corner down the mountain.
Glad we helped, how far forward was your highback angled? It should have some forward angle to it, and the more forward lean you have, the more it forces you to ride with an aggressive, athletic stance.

If you're getting calf burn from the highback, it may suggest that you need to work on bending your knees more!
 
#19 ·
I'm 6'4, 230 and sz. 13 and I ride a Jones mnt twn 161w. I only want a longer board on powder days...which this year has been limited to 4 days of decent pow. It does great for most of my off-piste/near piste and groomer days, so I can't complain at all. I am looking for a pow board (around 165-167), but with the winter we've had this year I just can't justify it.

Also, for the big feet, I've found Ride to have the best foot reduction. K2 wasn't bad, but for some reason I wasn't impressed with Burton's reductions. Deeluxe also had great reduction on some boots, but they were too soft for me.
 
#23 ·
Went to winter place Monday while the storm was coming through with six inches of powder. The 172 skunk ape loved it. Road like a dream. Made a real difference when hitting the deeper stuff and while making it over the long flat areas at winter place. I would leave my friends when there boards and skis would sink in the powder. Bombing the diamonds were a blast.
 
#24 ·
UGH! Winter Place is the worst I've been to. Definitely not laid out with snowboarders in mind. I made 2 trips there this year. My first and my last! How far are you from Boone NC? Beech or Sugar are much better places to ride.
 
#26 ·
I'm actually closer to sugar and beech than winter place. But the snow quality at sugar and beech stink. Winter place is second behind snowshoe which is the best within reasonable driving distance.
Calf burn is gone after moving high backs from a 4 to a 0. More athletic stance was achieved after adjusting my bindings to a wider stance and moving the front binding where it should be in line with the edge of my board like it should have been. When I went to move it my binding screws were loose. Lucky I was checking everything. It could have turned out bad.
 
#27 ·
Calf burn is gone after moving high backs from a 4 to a 0. More athletic stance was achieved after adjusting my bindings to a wider stance and moving the front binding where it should be in line with the edge of my board like it should have been.
Yeah, by athletic stance I mean your body positioning, not your actual board stance. Pretty much all new snowboarders, and most experienced snowboarders try to stand up too much!

There's a reason the boots, bindings, etc. are angled forward. Knees bent, doing a partial squat is a much more stable stance where your body has room to react to the terrain, and keep pressure on the edges.

Here's a post I made in another thread about bending knees. http://www.snowboardingforum.com/tips-tricks-snowboard-coaching/52820-can-you-give-me-input-my.html#post563745

Best setup advice we can give for FLAD (forward lean adjustment dial) is to lace up your boot, put it in the binding, strap it in moderately, and then adjust the FLAD so that the highback is making contact with the boot, but not putting any pressure on it. That should be a good starting place, and you can adjust from there.

If you want to work on carving, you want SOME forward lean.
 
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