If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Beginning tree riding?
hey now,
looking for pointers on beginning tree riding. Hard to believe I've only done it once out at Brighton, but I'm not sure that really qualified as tree riding.. they were so far apart! Certainly nothing like what we have here in VT. Part of the problem(?) is my local mountain is a pretty empty place when I'm out there and I'm hesitant to be going into glades on my own. But assuming I can hook up with somebody else, or at least get a day when there's some traffic, whats the technique? I've heard 'dont look at the trees' but beyond that I'm clueless. thanks |
Ads |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Well, understanding that I wouldn't consider myself an expert, I first
"got" tree riding in the middle of last season. I think the big part is being able to make slow skidded turns on slopes as steep as you need. Next is being able to control how much you side slip down the hill compared to how much you move forward in the direction the board is learning. If you can learn to control these seperately, then you can angle your board however you need to get through the gap, while still just sideslipping downward at an angle so you don't pick up warp speed. And yeah, because you tend to automaticly go wherenver you look, look at the gaps, not the trunks. Ohh, and the trees are NOT your friends. Keep your hands in fists, don't reach out to tap them or anything as you go flying by... I had to learn that the hard way... frozen trees are hard as rock. |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
On Wed, 26 Jan 2005 07:36:46 GMT, allegedly wrote:
Ohh, and the trees are NOT your friends. Keep your hands in fists, don't reach out to tap them or anything as you go flying by... I had to learn that the hard way... frozen trees are hard as rock. Those same trees are just as solid in summer too! :-) - Dave. -- The only powder to get high on, falls from the sky. http://www.vpas.org/ - Snowboarding the worlds pow pow - Securing your e-mail The Snowboard FAQ lives here - http://rssFAQ.org/ |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
|
#5
|
|||
|
|||
I didn't know trees were warm blooded... Are they mammals or birds?
8o)) "Champ" wrote in message ... On 25 Jan 2005 23:36:46 -0800, wrote: Ohh, and the trees are NOT your friends. Keep your hands in fists, don't reach out to tap them or anything as you go flying by... I had to learn that the hard way... frozen trees are hard as rock. The trees aren't frozen - they're alive. The big tree wells are caused by the warmth from the tree melting the snow. But yes, they are pretty solid. -- Champ |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
On Wed, 26 Jan 2005 04:20:28 -0000, "Mike M. Miskulin"
wrote: hey now, looking for pointers on beginning tree riding. Miss the trees. BF (Glad to be of assistance :-) |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
On Wed, 26 Jan 2005 04:20:28 GMT, "Mike M. Miskulin"
allegedly wrote: But assuming I can hook up with somebody else, or at least get a day when there's some traffic, whats the technique? I've heard 'dont look at the trees' but beyond that I'm clueless. I just started by taking it easy, looking for the gaps where I knew I could put the brakes on if necessary. Ultimately, the trick is to look ahead such that as you're entering one gap, you're looking for the next gap or two. The nature of trees means that you may not always be doing opposite turns each time, sometimes you end up going in the same direction for a while. However, it will take a while before you can link it all into a flowing run, and you'll spend time riding into a gap, braking, going for the next one, braking, next, brake, etc. After a while, you'll start doing 2, 3, then more in a row. As I'm sure you know, it's all down to practice. Mind the tree wells, the branches and the hidden cliffs. - Dave. -- The only powder to get high on, falls from the sky. http://www.vpas.org/ - Snowboarding the worlds pow pow - Securing your e-mail The Snowboard FAQ lives here - http://rssFAQ.org/ |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Have fun.
Watch out for the tree wells which are caused not because they are warm, but because the snow fall at the base of the tree is lighter since it is captured by the tree canopy. A girl died out at Bachelor a couple years ago because she ran into a tree, fell in the tree well head first, and the impact into the tree caused additional snow to fall on top of her (from the branches). The story is that they didn't find her until Spring. So, expect big holes of lightly packed snow around tree wells. Board with friends and always stay in sight of each other. Turn down your MP3 player so you can hear someone shout...or run into a tree. That said, have fun. Its not rocket science, go slow at first and get comfortable turning in the trees. As your confidence improves, so will your speed. Moguls are extremely good practice for trees as you get used to your turns being dictated by solid objects. Wear a helmet. No matter how good you are, your board will eventually hit something under the snow that will catapult you forward. You'll want a helmet in case you end up face-to-trunk. Goggles are a great idea as well. You'll find yourself ducking under low branches the closer you get or the tighter the trees. Nice to worry about your turns and not be concerned about your eyes. On a side note - I looked at my ski coat this year and noticed several horizontal lines on the back of it. Didn't think much of it until I looked at an old coat I was going to sell on ebay and noticed the same thing. Took me a bit to figure it out, but the lines are from tree branches scraping my back. (stiff branches or sap I suppose) Have fun in the trees. You'll find powder days after the storm while everybody else is boarding groomers and tracked out snow, -todd |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
todd wrote:
On a side note - I looked at my ski coat this year and noticed several horizontal lines on the back of it. Didn't think much of it until I looked at an old coat I was going to sell on ebay and noticed the same thing. Took me a bit to figure it out, but the lines are from tree branches scraping my back. (stiff branches or sap I suppose) Heh. A good pair of kevlar gloves is useful, too - I often find myself knocking branches out of the way, or in some cases grabbing onto them for a little assisted redirection/braking. Neil |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
"Mike M. Miskulin" wrote in message
. 3.44... hey now, looking for pointers on beginning tree riding. Hard to believe I've only done it once out at Brighton, but I'm not sure that really qualified as tree riding.. they were so far apart! Certainly nothing like what we have here in VT. Part of the problem(?) is my local mountain is a pretty empty place when I'm out there and I'm hesitant to be going into glades on my own. But assuming I can hook up with somebody else, or at least get a day when there's some traffic, whats the technique? I've heard 'dont look at the trees' but beyond that I'm clueless. thanks Be adventerous, but start by following someone who knows where they're going, or have a pretty good idea yourself before diving in. Just following other's tracks can get you in trouble. (On the other hand, if your line flattens out you can maintain more speed by riding in someone else's tracks.) Getting stuck in a gully or by too dense shrubbery etc. can be a real bummer - you can kill a lot of time and burn a lot of energy getting back into a line that works. This is pretty much unavoidable if you're adventurous, and it's a good way to learn your mountain, but you'll want to minimize these experiences. Resist the temptation to take those last few sweet turns when your line is coming to an end - traverse out early or risk some bushwhacking or a hike back up. Enjoy! There's nothing quite like ripping through the trees. Chris |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Looking for Free Riding Big Mountain videos | Goff | Snowboarding | 4 | December 3rd 04 01:10 AM |
Sonny Bono's tree, WAS Richard Clarke etc. | Pat Ford | Alpine Skiing | 2 | March 31st 04 10:37 PM |
Does 3cm In Board Length Affect Riding? | John Smith | Snowboarding | 7 | March 31st 04 09:20 PM |
Skiing Downhill Like Riding a Pony | Ed Vogel | Nordic Skiing | 0 | February 27th 04 07:04 PM |