On Feb 23, 9:10*pm, doetnietcomputeren
wrote:
I've been lurking here a little while and reading the archives waves to
familiar faces.

I'm off to Mammoth, CA on Thursday. Have a full day lesson booked on
Friday and some friends to provide encouragement/laughter on Saturday.

Can't wait to give it a whirl.

Any newbie tips received with thanks.

This reply is probably a bit late, since you've already had your
opening day by now, but I wish you good luck and much enjoyment. I
have vivid memories of my own beginnings in this sport, including a
classically bad first day (which you may read about at length if you
are interested:
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.s...48c64fb296a1a).
If you persevere and take the occasionally bitter with the frequently
sweet, you will probably grow to love snowboarding the way the rest of
us have.

Some simple recommendations, mostly echoing what others have said:
1. Wrist guards and a helmet should be considered mandatory -- they
will help prevent injury. Make sure your gloves are big enough to fit
over wrist guards easily.
2. Knee pads are great for reducing discomfort. (Wear them under your
pants but over long underwear, if used.) You'll spend more time on
your knees than you imagine. I don't use a butt pad, but there have
been a few times when I wished I did.
3. Buy your own boots/board/bindings as soon as you can. Your
equipment doesn't have to be expensive, but it must be well-selected.
Good fitting, good performing gear will enable you to learn much
faster, and give you more pleasure and pride in what you are doing.
4. Get real snowboarding pants, preferably with a lot of pockets. They
are warm, waterproof, comfortable, convenient, and they fit over your
boots. Don't use ski pants or (horrors) jeans or the like.
5. Private lessons can be great. Group lessons should be avoided.
6. Simple stretching and strengthening exercises for your legs and
abdomen will make life on the slopes a little easier.
7. Full goggles are the norm, but are essential only if you will often
go into deep powder, areas with a lot of blowing snow, or extremely
cold environments. Personally, I prefer slightly oversized, wraparound
sunglasses (mine are prescription as well) because they give me a
larger field of view. That was particularly helpful when I was a
newbie -- with goggles I couldn't see my feet or the board without
moving my entire head, but with sunglasses all I have to do is move my
eyes.

Joe Ramirez