Jumping/Air advice - Snowboarding Forum

pnthr30 · 01-27-2011, 04:13 PM

I am looking for some of the more seasoned/experienced riders to lend their insights.......

I am a realtively new rider who spends most of my time carving around with my 9 year old daughter (she skis), but I do enjoy hitting some of the smaller jumps.........I have wakeboard for many years, so when I began to go off jumps with my snowboard I had a tendency to turn my snowboard in the air a bit (i.e. coming across the wake) - clearly that doesn't work out so well for my landings....I also was reminded that the snow/ice is MUCH harder than the water.

Anyways, I think I have "fixed" that problem and I believe my next problem has to do with "growing a pair" and gaining more speed before I hit the jumps.....what else should I think about/work on? Any other insights would be appreciated. I know this is just a quick video, but maybe someone with a keen eye will catch something that will help me out.

Not sure if it matters, but I am a bigger rider (6'4" and about 190)...also, I'm probably older than most of you guys (35) and I don't bounce back as quickly as I used to. haha

YouTube - Pat - Quick grab

Dano · 01-27-2011, 05:05 PM

Looking good man

First ditch those speed checks. Start from a stop kind of close to the jump and go straight at it with slight toe edge pressure. This way, instead of concentrating on how "too fast" you're going, you can concentrate on staying balanced and centered over your board. Look at the lip, and then look past it. Coast off and land. As you become more comfortable with the landing start from higher above or further away from the jump, and again, no speed checks. Just hit it straight. This will give you more and more speed as you straight-line towards the jump. If you feel intimidated by the speed remember some will be lost when you hit the setup.

Next, bring your knees UP. This is different than bending at the waist and reaching DOWN. Once you're good with keeping balanced doing this you can start "popping" off the jump. Don't Ollie (not yet), just bend your knees as you hit the setup or ramp of the jump and extend your legs as you reach the lip. This will give you more air and youll have time to look around and register what's going on. Now you can see where you'll land and you can spot your landing.

Once you're comfortable with going straight at the jump, popping off the lip, bringing your knees up, and footing your landing, now you can play with different grabs. These steps will also help you step up to larger features

pnthr30 · 01-27-2011, 05:31 PM

Thanks, Dano...

Starting closer to the jump and going directly at it is a great idea....don't know why I didn't think of that.

It sounds lame, but I do spend a lot of my pre-jump concentration on trying to regulate speed instead of looking at the lip/takeoff....which causes problems with being balanced/centered at takeoff.

I don't have a problem with/fear of speed, per-se, is just the thought of landing.

With each landing, confidence is gained, right! haha

Good point on bringing the knees up - I know how that should feel from wakeboarding. Likewise, I know how to pop (don't always do it well, but I am familiar with the concept) - just haven't starting doing this on the snow yet.

justdust · 01-27-2011, 07:13 PM

If speed is an issue...maybe there is something to learn from my mistake. I was so focused on suppressing my fear to get the speed I needed for a longer jump that I forgot to focus on body position in the air. So, when I recover from my injuries

I will go back to the smaller jumps I am used to and hit them at higher speeds until I am comfortable approaching the lip of a jump at a higher speed. I think this should work, since the extra speed should just carry me farther down the landing zone on the smaller jump (and I am only comparing 10 foot and 15 foot jumps). Once I am comfortable with the higher speed, I'll head back to the 15 footer. We'll see what happens...

pnthr30 · 01-27-2011, 07:38 PM

Point taken, justdust!

Hope your injuries didn't entail more than a few sore spots and a bruised ego!

slyder · 01-27-2011, 08:34 PM

nothing worse then carrying too much speed and clearing the landing ramp and slamming hard. I would rather come up short.
Always scout and watch the speed of others this is key. From the lift they look to be going slow, but if you pace yourself next to them they are sometimes going much faster than what you thought.

YoBrian · 01-27-2011, 08:43 PM

I would watch other riders and see where they take off and how much speed they're using before taking off on a jump. This helps me gauge how much speed I will need and adjust accordingly. I hate to knuckle it but I really hate overshooting and landing flat bottom.

Also dont try to load up too much for ollies off the lip; it makes you go higher rather than longer. You'll need the length to clear the deck. So I usually just go for it and suck my knees up.

This works for me; adjust as needed. Good luck!

SAddiction · 01-27-2011, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dano

Looking good man

First ditch those speed checks. Start from a stop kind of close to the jump and go straight at it with slight toe edge pressure. This way, instead of concentrating on how "too fast" you're going, you can concentrate on staying balanced and centered over your board. Look at the lip, and then look past it. Coast off and land. As you become more comfortable with the landing start from higher above or further away from the jump, and again, no speed checks. Just hit it straight. This will give you more and more speed as you straight-line towards the jump. If you feel intimidated by the speed remember some will be lost when you hit the setup.

Next, bring your knees UP. This is different than bending at the waist and reaching DOWN. Once you're good with keeping balanced doing this you can start "popping" off the jump. Don't Ollie (not yet), just bend your knees as you hit the setup or ramp of the jump and extend your legs as you reach the lip. This will give you more air and youll have time to look around and register what's going on. Now you can see where you'll land and you can spot your landing.

Once you're comfortable with going straight at the jump, popping off the lip, bringing your knees up, and footing your landing, now you can play with different grabs. These steps will also help you step up to larger features

Solid advice Dano

+1

TintedOut · 01-27-2011, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SAddiction

Solid advice Dano

+1

Agreed with you.

Cobra · 01-27-2011, 11:45 PM

Something I'm looking into getting better at as well, but I don't really have any backgrounds of jumping on sticks lol. good advices, but I'm noticing that beginner ramps don't offer much of a landing zone if taken at a higher speed. A simple triangular hump doesn't seem like a great idea to jump fast off of. Perhaps running into some real, dual or extended top ramps would help me figure this stuff out.

01-27-2011, 04:13 PM	#1 (permalink)
pnthr30 Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: MKE Posts: 21	Jumping/Air advice I am looking for some of the more seasoned/experienced riders to lend their insights....... I am a realtively new rider who spends most of my time carving around with my 9 year old daughter (she skis), but I do enjoy hitting some of the smaller jumps.........I have wakeboard for many years, so when I began to go off jumps with my snowboard I had a tendency to turn my snowboard in the air a bit (i.e. coming across the wake) - clearly that doesn't work out so well for my landings....I also was reminded that the snow/ice is MUCH harder than the water. Anyways, I think I have "fixed" that problem and I believe my next problem has to do with "growing a pair" and gaining more speed before I hit the jumps.....what else should I think about/work on? Any other insights would be appreciated. I know this is just a quick video, but maybe someone with a keen eye will catch something that will help me out. Not sure if it matters, but I am a bigger rider (6'4" and about 190)...also, I'm probably older than most of you guys (35) and I don't bounce back as quickly as I used to. haha YouTube - Pat - Quick grab

01-27-2011, 05:05 PM	#2 (permalink)
Dano Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Edmonton AB Posts: 729	Looking good man First ditch those speed checks. Start from a stop kind of close to the jump and go straight at it with slight toe edge pressure. This way, instead of concentrating on how "too fast" you're going, you can concentrate on staying balanced and centered over your board. Look at the lip, and then look past it. Coast off and land. As you become more comfortable with the landing start from higher above or further away from the jump, and again, no speed checks. Just hit it straight. This will give you more and more speed as you straight-line towards the jump. If you feel intimidated by the speed remember some will be lost when you hit the setup. Next, bring your knees UP. This is different than bending at the waist and reaching DOWN. Once you're good with keeping balanced doing this you can start "popping" off the jump. Don't Ollie (not yet), just bend your knees as you hit the setup or ramp of the jump and extend your legs as you reach the lip. This will give you more air and youll have time to look around and register what's going on. Now you can see where you'll land and you can spot your landing. Once you're comfortable with going straight at the jump, popping off the lip, bringing your knees up, and footing your landing, now you can play with different grabs. These steps will also help you step up to larger features __________________ '12 Lib Tech T.rice / '12 Burton Cartels '10 CustomX / '10 Co2 EST Salomon F22 Last edited by Dano; 01-27-2011 at 05:47 PM.

01-27-2011, 08:34 PM	#6 (permalink)
slyder Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Milwaukee Suburbs Posts: 1,922	nothing worse then carrying too much speed and clearing the landing ramp and slamming hard. I would rather come up short. Always scout and watch the speed of others this is key. From the lift they look to be going slow, but if you pace yourself next to them they are sometimes going much faster than what you thought. __________________ Thanks -Slyder

01-27-2011, 11:45 PM	#10 (permalink)
Cobra Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Rockville, MD Posts: 89	Something I'm looking into getting better at as well, but I don't really have any backgrounds of jumping on sticks lol. good advices, but I'm noticing that beginner ramps don't offer much of a landing zone if taken at a higher speed. A simple triangular hump doesn't seem like a great idea to jump fast off of. Perhaps running into some real, dual or extended top ramps would help me figure this stuff out. __________________

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01-27-2011, 05:31 PM	#3 (permalink)
pnthr30 Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: MKE Posts: 21	Thanks, Dano... Starting closer to the jump and going directly at it is a great idea....don't know why I didn't think of that. It sounds lame, but I do spend a lot of my pre-jump concentration on trying to regulate speed instead of looking at the lip/takeoff....which causes problems with being balanced/centered at takeoff. I don't have a problem with/fear of speed, per-se, is just the thought of landing. With each landing, confidence is gained, right! haha Good point on bringing the knees up - I know how that should feel from wakeboarding. Likewise, I know how to pop (don't always do it well, but I am familiar with the concept) - just haven't starting doing this on the snow yet.

01-27-2011, 07:13 PM	#4 (permalink)
justdust Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Albany Posts: 494 Blog Entries: 1	If speed is an issue...maybe there is something to learn from my mistake. I was so focused on suppressing my fear to get the speed I needed for a longer jump that I forgot to focus on body position in the air. So, when I recover from my injuries I will go back to the smaller jumps I am used to and hit them at higher speeds until I am comfortable approaching the lip of a jump at a higher speed. I think this should work, since the extra speed should just carry me farther down the landing zone on the smaller jump (and I am only comparing 10 foot and 15 foot jumps). Once I am comfortable with the higher speed, I'll head back to the 15 footer. We'll see what happens...

01-27-2011, 07:38 PM	#5 (permalink)
pnthr30 Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: MKE Posts: 21	Point taken, justdust! Hope your injuries didn't entail more than a few sore spots and a bruised ego!

01-27-2011, 08:43 PM	#7 (permalink)
YoBrian Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 9	I would watch other riders and see where they take off and how much speed they're using before taking off on a jump. This helps me gauge how much speed I will need and adjust accordingly. I hate to knuckle it but I really hate overshooting and landing flat bottom. Also dont try to load up too much for ollies off the lip; it makes you go higher rather than longer. You'll need the length to clear the deck. So I usually just go for it and suck my knees up. This works for me; adjust as needed. Good luck!