"WeatherCam" wrote in message
...
As Steve says, it very much depends on your physical condition....if you
are
carrying extra weight and really are not that flexible, then learning to
snowboard at age 42 can be quite painful and you will really feel the
aches
and pains - just getting your straps done up around your boots and then
getting back up on your feet can be quite energetic if you have a bit of a
middle aged stomach....so be honest to yourself, how fit do you think you
are, can you easily touch your toes, do you suffer from a stiff back quite
often do you pull muscles / strain easily....learning to ski is much less
physically demanding than learning to snowboard - I'm now 45 and have been
on the mountains for over thirty years - when we go away with people fresh
to the slopes, I advise them to ski / board based on what I perceive to be
their "Sports" / "balance" aptitude - if they just want to enjoy the
mountains, learn a new sport , but will not be busting a gut, then go with
the skis - if they are more adventurous, mountain bike, wake board play
soccer / run, and are generally all round "sportifs" then I'd reccomend
boarding - one other thing, is the actual conditions - if the snow is rock
hard / ice then go with skis!!!

Well, I wouldn't call myself a "sportif" by any stretch, but I can easily
touch my toes and I am not overweight. I can also still do something I
learned to do as a teenager, which is to squat all the way down, then
balance on one foot and stand up using only one leg. (Though it's a bit
harder than it used to be!)

Part of the reason for my taking up a snow sport in the first place is to
get more active, since my activity level has been waning in recent years. I
used to ride my bike a lot in the summer, but the last couple of years I
haven't. I used to play recreational tennis often, plus competitive
(tournament level) table tennis, but I've taken time off from these
activities as well. I still try to ice skate occasionally. Part of it is
just being busy with the demands of daily life, and part is that my main
hobby is music (I play in an amateur symphonic band and in a saxophone
ensemble), which takes up a lot of time. I have found that learning
something new, and trying to become good at it, motivates me to spend more
time doing it. Hence, new sport = more exercise as well as, hopefully, more
fun. I also want to get my son involved in something he may enjoy doing for
his entire life.

Thanks,

Joe Ramirez