Snowboard Lessons - Page 4 - Snowboarding Forum

HiImBrian · 11-05-2012, 11:36 AM

I spent last weekend teaching my gf how to board. She's got the leaf down on her heal side really well, and she can do it on her toe side but just gets tired faster. I've gone down the bunny hill holding her hands while she turns and she can totally do it, but as soon as I'm not there to hold her hands she panics and wont even try. She's afraid that she'll get seriously hurt if she falls. I'm not sure how to respond to this. We've kindly asked a few passing instructors for advice on how to get over this fear and they all basically end up on "just go for it". At this point I think we're going to sign her up for a lesson and pay somebody over a hundred bucks to tell her that :/

I never took lessons and I feel like I can move down a mountain pretty well. I'm not saying lessons wouldn't teach me anything, but I think I need an instructor to school me up good going down the mountain first.

dopamean · 11-05-2012, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HiImBrian

I spent last weekend teaching my gf how to board. She's got the leaf down on her heal side really well, and she can do it on her toe side but just gets tired faster. I've gone down the bunny hill holding her hands while she turns and she can totally do it, but as soon as I'm not there to hold her hands she panics and wont even try. She's afraid that she'll get seriously hurt if she falls. I'm not sure how to respond to this. We've kindly asked a few passing instructors for advice on how to get over this fear and they all basically end up on "just go for it". At this point I think we're going to sign her up for a lesson and pay somebody over a hundred bucks to tell her that :/

I never took lessons and I feel like I can move down a mountain pretty well. I'm not saying lessons wouldn't teach me anything, but I think I need an instructor to school me up good going down the mountain first.

Maybe you can help your lady get more comfortable with falling and learning how to fall? Unstrap and go jump into some snow with her for a while, teach her how to slap out and to keep her chin tucked so she doesn't knock her dome-piece. Perhaps after a while of experiencing that falling in snow really isn't so bad, she'll feel more comfortable and can begin to build her confidence from there?

Or better yet, take her skateboarding and have her slam on some concrete, then take her back to the snow and she'll be fearless!

Cycle4Fun · 11-05-2012, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HiImBrian

I spent last weekend teaching my gf how to board.

I never took lessons and I feel like I can move down a mountain pretty well. I'm not saying lessons wouldn't teach me anything, but I think I need an instructor to school me up good going down the mountain first.

Pro relationship tip: Don't teach your significant other to ride. You're likely to both get frustrated. It puts one of you in a very dominating and commanding role. For the continued relationship it would be best to put her in a lesson until she can link turns. Then you can step in and start having fun together. Even offer to pay 1/2 the cost. Many mountains offer group women's only lessons.

If you're willing to pay for a private lesson, I think they are worth the money for the individual attention. Ask a local for a good instructor. If you don't know someone, call a local shop and ask for a good name. Or take a group lesson in the middle of the day in the middle of the week. That's usually a private lesson at group price.

Also. You've never taken a lessons. You don't want to teach her any bad habits you've picked up. For instance, I had a habit I picked up which was stopping me from carving. On the way back up the mountain the instructor told me what I was doing, demonstrated what she wanted me to do. I started carving down the run thinking, SOB! At the end of the 1.5hr lesson I was doing dynamic skidded turns.

HiImBrian · 11-05-2012, 01:38 PM

Both very valid responses. Thanks!

Ridethesnow80 · 11-05-2012, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gjsnowboarder

Wow, just wow. I teach at a small resort in Colorado and that statement is pretty darn false. We have guests that actually come to us because the experience they had at large resorts was bad. Large class sizes, disenchanted instructors, busy hills, etc. The size of the resort DOESN'T dictate whether of not the lesson is basic. The type of instructor does. Typically, a certified instructor is the best way to go since they have put in the education time to get certified. However, I know instructors that whent to all the inhouse training that can teach as well if not better then some certified instructors. At our "small" mountain we teach everything from the basic Level "1-4" lesson using the SAME standards as larger resorts. We also teach "upper" level lessons that cover every type of riding and provided clinics to instructors that explore teaching advance students. In fact, knowing how some of the larger resorts training programs are provided and the "turn-out" that happens in them I would say it is rather easy for a smaller resort to compete in over-all instructor know-how. The only time I would suggest seeking out a big resort is for a specific type of terrain that they might offer that a smaller resort might not have, or a specific instructor one might have been referred to.

I agree I taught at a small resort out east and they always had us doing clinics weekly as well as pushing us to get certified. During the hiring process the supervisors were even telling us that are linking turns need to improve made me realize how much energy some if us where wasting are energy on not doing it right.

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11-05-2012, 11:36 AM	#31 (permalink)
HiImBrian Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 44	I spent last weekend teaching my gf how to board. She's got the leaf down on her heal side really well, and she can do it on her toe side but just gets tired faster. I've gone down the bunny hill holding her hands while she turns and she can totally do it, but as soon as I'm not there to hold her hands she panics and wont even try. She's afraid that she'll get seriously hurt if she falls. I'm not sure how to respond to this. We've kindly asked a few passing instructors for advice on how to get over this fear and they all basically end up on "just go for it". At this point I think we're going to sign her up for a lesson and pay somebody over a hundred bucks to tell her that :/ I never took lessons and I feel like I can move down a mountain pretty well. I'm not saying lessons wouldn't teach me anything, but I think I need an instructor to school me up good going down the mountain first.

11-05-2012, 01:38 PM	#34 (permalink)
HiImBrian Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Posts: 44	Both very valid responses. Thanks!