New from France
 

Hi everybody,

I'm 21 and I'm living in France (my born place, because I move a lot as I'm student :)
My usual spot is the Alps, for riding in France.

I'm here, among you, because I'm a (fast-learning) beginner in snowboarding. I've been skiing since I'm young. I tried snowboarding last year and I got crazy of this Xtrem sport, so good. Since this moment, I practice again and again to improve myself.

It sounds that North-American riders are large in this world and, as an English-learning student who loves riding, I had to register to this forum! French forums don't gather enough people.

I forget something... sorry for my bad English, so if you see a mistake, please let me know in your reply, or give me notice by mail :) It is the best way of improving my useless English.

Thks

hey, good to see french guys on this board :)

Welcome dude! Your English looks good so far, better grammar than me most of the time no doubt :laugh: Thx for checking in!

Thx for welcoming me!

My grammar is probably better than your when I write, because if I start to write without taking into account grammar rules, I'll get a wrong way of writing in English. It's already the case for my French... I decide to stop destroying this pretty language which is English.

Even if I have to spend 10 minutes on my reply to be sure that it's correct or it doesn't sound so bad :)

By the way, if some people want to ride the Alps, let me know :cool:

Hi there, nice to meet you! Where abouts in the Alps do you normally ride?

It depends. I'm living in Lyon. Perhaps you know this city.
In general, I go to the following stations : 2 Alpes, Grand Bornand, Alpe d'huez for week-end sessions.
During holidays, I go more in larger stations, like Val Thorens, Val d'Isère or Tignes.

I really would like to travel and ride other mountains but, for the moment, I'm a kind of poor (student life is hard :mad:, especially for your bank account). that's why, finally I exclusively rided in the Alps, because it's close to my location and I can ride a lot at a cheap price.

My dreams will be to ride in Canada, and one day, I'll realize this dream :)

Yeah, I noticed you were from Lyon so wondered if you were ever up in Tignes or Val d'Isere. I have some of the greatest weeks of my life up there! I would have loved to get across and shred this season, but like you, I too am a poor student!

One major benefit of riding in the Alps, and no disrespect to Americans here, is that there is a lack of Americans! I say this because in Europe, you only go skiing/boarding if you can. In America (especially on the west coast) people seem to think because they're rich and from LA they know how to ride. I have never seen so many crashes as in Tahoe and Sugar. So for those reasons, I like to stick to the Alps. I will be sure to let you know if I'm over next season!!

I would like to add however that many of the best boarders I have met are American, so I know you're out there! Just not hiding on the slopes amongst the crowds of LA folk.

Bonjour! Je m'appelle Zach. Tango el gato los pantalones.

Welcome! Man I was hiking in Chamonix Mont Blanc about 2 years ago (and did some parapont as well) in September. Went up to the Aiguille due Midi and that was enough to convince me I needed to come back with a board someday. Too bad the mountains were closed for riding/skiing at the time.

The true with Europe is that they is only one major place for riding/skiing : the Alps. We have other mountains in Europe, but the highest and the more snow-covered mountains are the Alps. The best evidence is the over-attendance of foreigners (we could almost say "hello" instead of "bonjour" because the probability that the guy be foreigner is high).

That's why, finally, I don't want to ride in another place in Europe :D especially if I'm living near the Alps. It's silly to get abroad and spend a lot for less interesting mountains in Europe.

Nevertheless, I only rided the French Alps, and I'd like to try in Switzerland, because some stations are really nice in this country.

I will be in a French station (Var - cheap station but really good, with one of the best park in the Alps) in January & February 2012 for my next season. If you want to come over this period, I may accomodate you. It's up to you.

You're right, and it's a silly situation, because winter sports are definitely a growth driver for our economy and a real passion for a lot of French. But, only skiing is recognized in our country. Riding is under-exploited because of the French Federation of Skiing and the ESF (for some of you who visited the French Alps, you certainly saw the red-dressed guys with the ESF logo :D).

They hold a monopoly in France and they are corporatist. Due to this fact, snowboarding can't be developed further. children are motivated to practice more skiing than snowboarding and professional riders can't access to good equipment. It's a pity and a shame.

That's why in Snowboarding competitions, the best riders are Americans.