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Newbie question - on the flat



 
 
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  #11  
Old March 3rd 07, 01:24 PM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
Jolly_O
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Posts: 16
Default Newbie question - on the flat


one thing that will help you greatly is to make sure your board is
well waxed. Speed = more edge = less riding flat and subject to
body slam when edge catches. I regularly pass skiiers on the
traverses now which I never could do my first year or two boarding.


Thanks, Mike. Yes, I do keep the board waxed. I'm a tech-head
intermediate to advanced skier, and do my own base repairs, edge
tuning, hot waxing... The board is pretty new, so I haven't touched
the edges, but I believe in keeping my stuff waxed.

Thanks also to the rest of you who responded to my plea for help. I
feel much better about where I am now, and look forward to my next
trip.

Jack
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  #12  
Old March 14th 07, 11:40 AM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
Jolly_O
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Posts: 16
Default Newbie question - on the flat

Thanks again for all of your helpful hints and encouragement. I spent
a day on the slopes yesterday, and it was a great day. Falls were
few, and less severe, and I never got slammed on the run-outs. I have
greater confidence throughout the runs, and I am learning the
difference between edging and skidding. Boarding is fun!

Thanks,
Jack

On Wed, 28 Feb 2007 18:56:52 -0500, Jolly_O
wrote:

I'm a beginning boarder, with four days under my belt. I can get down
the blue slopes (Eastern) with wide turns side-to-side, staying on
alternating edges most of the time, but I have a problem on the
flatter areas. If my board is flat to the snow, it will slowly drift
sideways, catch the edge, and I get body-slammed. Ouch!

My question - on the flat areas is it best to barely use your edges to
prevent getting slammed? Am I doing something wrong that causes my
board to drift sideways. Am I missing something else?

Thanks a bunch,
Jack

  #13  
Old March 17th 07, 06:43 PM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
z?
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Posts: 14
Default Newbie question - on the flat

I get body-slammed. Ouch!


Do you wear tailbone-protective shorts? They take away a lot of pain,
though I suppose for body slams less relevant. I have upper body
protection as well, as I did a rib once and prefer the confidence of
more protection ever since.


  #14  
Old March 18th 07, 02:27 AM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
Jolly_O
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Posts: 16
Default Newbie question - on the flat

Do you wear tailbone-protective shorts? They take away a lot of pain,
though I suppose for body slams less relevant. I have upper body
protection as well, as I did a rib once and prefer the confidence of
more protection ever since.

I got the bruised or cracked ribs the last time out. My elbow found
my ribs in a way that I didn't think possible. I wish that I had
known about the tailbone protector in my first few outings! Would
have saved me from a lot of pain.

I "think" that I have almost moved beyond the beginner - falling for
no apparent reason - stage. I boarded cautiously (ribs still hurting)
yet trying to find a rhythm last time out, and didn't fall at all for
my first two hours. The day was very warm, and as the snow got piled
up and my legs got rubbery, I started falling more, but that it not a
bad thing. I think that you need to fall a little to learn.

Thanks for your help and suggestions.

Jack
  #15  
Old March 18th 07, 10:15 PM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
z?
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Posts: 14
Default Newbie question - on the flat

On 18 Mar, 02:27, Jolly_O wrote:

I got the bruised or cracked ribs the last time out. My elbow found
my ribs in a way that I didn't think possible. I wish that I had
known about the tailbone protector in my first few outings! Would
have saved me from a lot of pain.


Same here; on my first holiday 7 years ago I did exactly that - slow,
learner's body slam several times, elbow digs into ribs - OUCH! End of
holiday. Rib pain for 4 months.

Conversely, I've had some mammoth high speed crashes in recent years
and got up dazed but otherwise unharmed! Had a HUGE off in Val D'Isere
recently, made me have a re-think, but no damage done..

  #16  
Old March 28th 07, 11:03 PM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
Octessence
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Posts: 7
Default Newbie question - on the flat

Jolly_O wrote:
I'm a beginning boarder, with four days under my belt. I can get down
the blue slopes (Eastern) with wide turns side-to-side, staying on
alternating edges most of the time, but I have a problem on the
flatter areas. If my board is flat to the snow, it will slowly drift
sideways, catch the edge, and I get body-slammed. Ouch!

My question - on the flat areas is it best to barely use your edges to
prevent getting slammed? Am I doing something wrong that causes my
board to drift sideways. Am I missing something else?

Thanks a bunch,
Jack


I remember those days. Don't worry too much it will sort itself out as
you get used to the feel of the board. My girlfriend (who I'm teaching)
was having similar problems too but she's almost past it. Her problem
happened to be that she was leaning to far back with a straight front
leg and a bent back leg. She managed to improve a lot when I told her to
bend her front leg more.

To improve stability you really want to be rocking from heel to toe so
that you are always in control. As you get more confident, your turns
will become less severe until you are rocking only very slightly and
virtually going in a straight line. When you get a feel for the board
the twitching won't bother you, because when the board starts drifting
you naturally lean into the drift to regain control. Until that time
rocking from edge to edge should keep you stable. So I would say, aim
for using your edges more to avoid slamming. It might slow you down
more than just keeping the board flat, but it saved on pain until you
get a better feel for things.

Octes
  #17  
Old March 29th 07, 02:22 AM posted to rec.skiing.snowboard
Jolly_O
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 16
Default Newbie question - on the flat

On Thu, 29 Mar 2007 01:03:09 +0200, Octessence
wrote:
So I would say, aim
for using your edges more to avoid slamming. It might slow you down
more than just keeping the board flat, but it saved on pain until you
get a better feel for things.


You are so right. On my last trip, I was careful to stay on one edge
or the other most of the time, and I had an entire day without a major
body slam. I'm sure that I have a few more random falls left in me,
but I'm getting the hang of it.

As you suggest, this will certainly become second nature and next year
I'll wonder why I had so much trouble. I watched my teenaged daughter
learn to board two years ago (she won't teach me because she thinks
dad's shouldn't snowboard), and I observed her struggling for seven or
eight days, and then things just "clicked". I feel like I'm ready to
break out too.

Thanks for your help,
Jack
 




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