jdang307

Have fun. That's all. Don't worry when you will get it. It may be the end of day 1. It may be day 2, or day 3. For me it was Day 2. End of day one I was going down the hill and pretending I was turning (I wasn't).

End of day 2 I accidentally did a toe side slide and it clicked. Ever since then I've been hooked.

Your gear choices look solid. Hell I'd like to try that board and binding and I'm going on year 4

OldDog

Like I said earlier "Challenge Accepted!"

We'll see how it goes. It's not like I'm gonna stop if I don't get it. I've got too much invested!

As for the Azzpadz, I think I'm going to go with the new Demon shorts with the D3O tail bone protector.

As for the gear, check out evo.com. Tons of cheap gear on sale for like 3 more days!

Thanks all!

-OD

timmytard

You'll be fine, if you think you'll be able to get on it right away & ride away, you probably will.
It's 100% in your head, it sounds like you understand what you need to do to be able to ride. Once you understand what is required, it's just a matter of how good your motor skills are @ making your body do what the mind tells it.

That's where all those other similar sports come into play. If you can/could ride a skateboard down a hill, it's pretty much the same thing.

I will say that even though I think you probably will be able to get on it & ride away, you will @ some point catch a toe side edge & eat shit.
It sucks, you won't be ready for it & it happens so fast you probably won't be able to get your hands out in front of you in time.
I think it's inevitable, everyone does it @ least once.

Here's are a few tips.
On powder days move your bindings back so your nose gets longer.

Do as many carves as you can, ten quick carves in rapid succession rather than 1 large turn.
It adds up, doing 1000 quick turns in a day will get you improving way faster than 100 longer carves. Repetition is the key, just like anything, the more you do it the better you'll become.
Think back when you used to tic-tac your skateboard for speed, you could probably do 2 a second, carve that much.

Go two days in a row, that is when you really notice how fast you are improving. You could go ten times on non consecutive days & you'll notice an improvement, but go 2 days in a row & it will blow your fuckin' mind how much you've improved since the day before.
Seriously, going 2 days in a row is what causes the addiction.

When you get off the chairlift & get ready to put your back foot in your binding, don't sit down & do it.
Use your front foot & manipulate the board to push some of the loose snow into a perpendicular little ledge in front of you. As long as your toe side edge is a little higher than your heel side, you won't slide down the mountain.
That little platform will stay there, you'll use it every time you get off the chairlift. You will never sit down in the snow ever again.
That was probably the best thing anyone ever showed me.

Bring an extra set of gloves with you & stuff one down each one of your sleeves, you won't even notice them there. Just keep switching them up & your hands will never cold & wet.

Stuff some napkins or a lens cleaner in one of the pockets you never go in, you'll forget about it until you need it, you'll be so happy you did.
Don't put your goggles on until the exact second you're about to use them & don't take them off until you're done.

If there is ever a big line up @ the chair, hit the singles line.

I guess we'll have to trade cookies.

TT

__________________
If whatever doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger.

Then I am so close to immortality

NickShake

Well you have 20 years on me lol but when I went the first time I was going down some of the easier black diamonds on the 3rd day. For me the problem was fear. I skateboarded in my earlier years and I play ice hockey along with many other sports but I picked up on it quick. I did fall ALOT though since I jumped into things really fast. Honestly though, if you are athletic enough and your muscles in your legs are good enough, in my opinion, your goals aren't going to be hard to achieve. It all depends on how calm you can keep yourself at the speeds you are going, or how calm you can keep yourself when it comes to looking at the intimidating hills lol. Just have fun out there!!

LuckyRVA

The outwear you bought is solid. Sizing can be personal preferance but I'm thinking you may have gone a bit too large. Sessions gear fits long and baggy as it is. At 5'9 170lbs I wore a medium Sessions jackets and felt that was too large.

sleev-les

Sounds like me.. I bought gear before I even tried boarding. All I knew was I loved being on the mountain and had skiied for years. I was decent by the end of the first day, but def sore... Good luck man...

OldDog

Yeah, definitely too big but per their size chart and in the "true" size style so it's not too ridiculous. I'll just look like a teenage parkrat (from a distance anyway).

LuckyRVA

As long as you're comfortable, warm and dry that's all that really matters.

OldDog

Thanks for the encouragement.

Think I'll just keep my cookie. It's prolly better than yours anyway...