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hey there!

2K views 25 replies 12 participants last post by  ADS0608 
#1 ·
Hey every one!!

Just thought id introduce myself, im adam and live in the uk i'm not actually a boarder yet but i'm doing a learn to board in a day course friday 31st for my 30th birthday!! I CANT WAIT I'M LIKE A KID AT CHRISTMAS!!!!

I'm not foolish enough to think i'm going to be a pro boarder after a day but i cant wait to start and thought this would be the best way! Once i've done the day i plan on going as often as i can to brush up befor hopefully a trip out to bansko with the guys next jan!!

Any hints and tips befor i go would be appreciated as it is totaly new to me (i could ride a skate board as a kid but thats about as close to anything like this ive done)

look forward to chatting with you all!!
 
#2 ·
Hey Adam, welcome to the forum.

Warning: Snowboarding can be addictive and harmful to your wallet (or chequebook, perhaps).

Now that you've been warned... :D

... make your learning less painful/discouraging, consider buying impact shorts (with tailbone protection, a must) and a decent helmet. Safety first, I sez :). Beyond that, I'll leave it to your fellow locals to clue you in.

You going to a Snozone/Xscape? Where?
 
#3 ·
Yeah i'm off to snozone in castleford which is only bout 30mins from where i live so i shoulod be able to go pretty often once i get started!

and as for the harmfull to health/wallet i've already been pre warned by my mate who boards (hes just buying his first board/boots/bindings) and i think the mrs is fed up of me talking about and looking at snowboard gear lol.

I'm seriousley thinking i will buy some impact shorts befor i go as well as i dont want to be put off by been hurt too much but tbh i dont think i will as i'm so desparate to get to a mountain after loads of my buddys posted there boarding pics from trips this year on facebook!!
 
#5 ·
Yeah i'm off to snozone in castleford which is only bout 30mins from where i live so i shoulod be able to go pretty often once i get started!

...
Castleford, huh? I may get a chance to hit that slope sometime later this year. Update us on how your first day goes. :thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
#7 ·
i learned with no lessons, and no protective gear... as a skateboarder of 16+ years, i felt pretty confident... but i see now that i should have taken advantage of both of those things.

i thought my tailbone was broken for like a week after the first couple days on the mountain, hahahahhahaha...
 
#8 ·
I concur, some impact shorts and wrist guards are a good invetsment. If you buy any of your own gear find a nice friend in the US who will bring it home for you or ship it.

Finally be patient, the learn in a day course is pretty intense and tiring, make sure you go back for me however much you aren't sure to begin with, its a steep learning curve but well worth it once you get the basics down!!
 
#9 ·
another +1 on the impact shorts & helmet.

as for the helmet you should know besides protecting your head thing, it will be warmer than any bean (just another plus to convince you). be smart don't be like most of us and learn to get a helmet through trial and error.

also a big thing for beginners is patients, generally your first couple days is your worst; you get sore, bruised, and you fall a ton. but once you get the basic concept and balance down you may/should get hooked like the rest of us.
 
#15 ·
Yeah it will be provided, its law for the indoor slopes I believe. I'd save your cash for now, ones there will do the trick. Just work out if you are regular or goofy, what angle you want your bindings at and off you go, it will be quality, great way to learn the basics quickly I found.
 
#11 ·
Whenever I whatch at 1st dayers on the bunny hill, I see the same pattern. I would like to scram at them "bend your knees!". They want to try a turn but have completely stretched stiff legs, lean back and try to run as slow as possible, fearfully waiting for the next fall. It's very hard to turn a board if you go walking pace! Unpossible with stiff legs and weight on back leg, so it's a must that the turn won't work.

So for the first day I'd say the most important things to remember are:
Try to be relaxed and to have slightly bent knees.
Don't lean back too much (you will, it's natural, but try to remember that you avoid this)
Don't go fast, but also not too slow (walking pace is too slow, jogging pace will make turns so much easier).
 
#12 · (Edited)
I don't know what you all are doing when you're falling so painfully. A helmet is a great idea, because nobody's neck is strong enough to support their head when landing. If you're fallin that hard on your tailbone (without jumping), you're definitely stiff-legged. Even as you start to fall, get low to the ground. When you're falling forward, do NOT, under any circumstances, try to break your fall with your palms. Make a fist, keep your wrist straight and "punch" the snow. Also, as you get back up do not splay your fingers... Push off on your knuckles. Few things hurts more than your palm breaking through the snow when your fingers don't.

Edit: I forgot to add, GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN!! Welcome to the forum!
 
#21 ·
:eusa_clap: We've got another addict :thumbsup:
 
#22 ·
Great work, thats a hell of an effort for a one day course, you will be flying down the mountains in no time, welcome to the addiction, just an insight of what you are in for:


Night after night, weekend after weekend, going to the snowdome burning serious cash hour after hour.

I then went on 5 school ski trips as a teacher which left meusing my only holidays with 28 hour coach journeys with coaches full of teenage kids under my responsibility 24 hours a day for a seven day week. Exhausted isn't the word.

Expensive personal boarding trips to Europe whenever you can get a holiday when there is snow

Leave the country, friends and family to be nearer mountains, move to NZ and go every weekend and holiday

Get some second hand gear that you love because it is yours and wreck it

Buy some quality gear instead of paying mortgage

Take sick days off work to snowboard

Join a forum so you can talk to people about snowboarding when you aren't doing it

Learn to surf because its kind of like snowboarding for the summer

Seriously consider using your savings to go on an off season holiday in US or Japan when the 2013 season ends instead of much needed home renovations.....

AHHHH, it will change your life...... so worth it
 
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