Our snowboarding misadventure at Seven Springs

i agree.. Same thing, except you now only have 1 ski, and have to use
both legs to move it.. I've skiied for about 15 years or so.. (well, not
entirely true, I started when i was 4 (I'm now 22), but stopped quite a
few years ago).. I find them very similar..

Baka Dasai wrote:

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 16:55:00 GMT, Baretta said (and I quote):

PS, None of the skiing skills are transferable to snowboarding.


I totally disagree. I learnt snowboarding after about 20 years of
skiing (I was an expert skier), and from the first run was mentally
translating the technique in my head.

I knew I had to unweight the ski/board, tilt the ski/board to get it
on edge, pressure the front of the ski/board, and gently swing the
tail around. I could immediately do all these things on a snowboard,
but at first the timing and coordination was all wrong. But it only
took two runs to get it mostly worked out, and then I was off to
explore the whole mountain.

If you understand how to turn a ski, turning a snowboard is very, very
similar. I remember being shocked at just how similar the two sports
were.

"Joe Ramirez" wrote in message ...
It seems to me that hand holding is an obviously useful tool that could help
all beginners. At least some instructors apparently use it:
http://atearl.com/ski/snowboard_lesson4.html

Hey, I see you found Charles Roberts, he's very good and experienced
instructor. I know him personally.

Here's the thing you must understand about snowboard instructors
at various resorts. For many years resorts didn't have enough
instructors. The end result was it was very easy to sign up as one.
A lot of kids (15 - 18yo) signed up because of free lift tickets
and some other perks. And after a very basic training they were sent
to teach. Most of them were excellent riders, but had no
teaching skills, nor the technical knowledge behind the sport.

The situation has improved over the years, instructor training has
become much better. If you want to make sure you'll receive quality
instruction, have a private lesson and ask for (the magic words):
"PSIA certified instructor" (at least level I, but level III is the best).
Certified instructors have gone through various clinics and training
and are very well prepared to teach students of all levels.


But I suppose it [hand holding] might be hard to use in a group lesson.
Depends on how big of a group it is. The idea of hand holding
is not to make student dependent on it, but to get started with new maneuvers.
Once a student is "getting it", the instructor is there only to do
small corrections and prevent falling.

"Jürgen Schmadlak" wrote in message
...
Joe Ramirez wrote:

Seven Springs is a little far for a roundtrip on a weekday night, but
the
small Boyce Park ski area, which is much closer to home, is also open at
night, I believe. When I was learning to ice skate I would often go at
night
after work, so I could probably pull this off.

There are many ways to start snowboarding. For me wintersport must be
*relaxing*. Drive to the mountains after work and go back on the same
day is not my way of relaxing.

I agree with you. However, Boyce Park is closer than Seven Springs. It's not
really in the mountains -- it's just a big hill in the suburbs of
Pittsburgh.


What about a week/weekend in a nice Apartment near by the slope? If
you spend a week and *really* don't like boarding after one or two days
you can spend the rest of the time with walking/relaxing/sleigh-ride
or anything you like.

What can you loose? OK, the money for the rented equipment. But you win a
nice holiday with your wife and your son.

Actually, we are considering something like this. At first I thought about
going to Snowshoe, West Virginia, which is one of the largest and highest
(maybe *the* highest) ski resorts in the eastern United States, but then I
saw a brochure at a local ski & board shop for a great trip to Lake Louise &
Banff in early April. Low price and stays at the Chateau Lake Louise and the
Fairmont Banff Springs. We love that area and are seriously tempted.

Joe Ramirez

"Han Solo (D)" wrote in message
.8...
"Joe Ramirez" wrote:

Where do you teach?

Europe, South Germany, at my Home Town, and at University where I'm
studying at the moment (which is, on trips they organize).

Ah -- the Fatherland. You may not be able to tell from my last name, but I'm
German and Swiss-German on my mother's side. I've been to Germany a couple
of times on vacation -- what's the name of your town?

Joe Ramirez

"Sharkie" wrote in message
om...
"Joe Ramirez" wrote in message
...

I sent Seven Springs an e-mail with an abridged version of the report I
posted here. No response so far, and I'm really not expecting one.

Yes, but if you mention that you're a guy who starts huge threads on
the internet (making their resort very infamous for the internet
community), they will probably be more responsive...

Well ... in fact, I did mention in my e-mail to the resort that it was an
abridged version of a report I had posted on Usenet. And, contrary to my
expectations, Seven Springs *has* responded, very nicely. See new thread.

Joe Ramirez

"Joe Ramirez" wrote:

Where do you teach?

Europe, South Germany, at my Home Town, and at University where I'm
studying at the moment (which is, on trips they organize).

Ah -- the Fatherland. You may not be able to tell from my last name,
but I'm German and Swiss-German on my mother's side. I've been to
Germany a couple of times on vacation -- what's the name of your town?

*g*, no, your name points more into mexican origins...

well, I lived in a small town near Ulm, but now I study in middle Germany
near Erfurt, Thuringia.

Martin

Joe Ramirez wrote:

(maybe *the* highest) ski resorts in the eastern United States, but then I
saw a brochure at a local ski & board shop for a great trip to Lake Louise &
Banff in early April. Low price and stays at the Chateau Lake Louise and the
Fairmont Banff Springs. We love that area and are seriously tempted.

and, you meet a lot of nice people when you go boarding with a
group. I always enjoy this kind of trips.

--
Satisfy your thirst for life!
NP: Peter Gabriel - Shaking the Tree

"Han Solo (D)" wrote in message
.8...
"Joe Ramirez" wrote:

Where do you teach?

Europe, South Germany, at my Home Town, and at University where I'm
studying at the moment (which is, on trips they organize).

Ah -- the Fatherland. You may not be able to tell from my last name,
but I'm German and Swiss-German on my mother's side. I've been to
Germany a couple of times on vacation -- what's the name of your town?

*g*, no, your name points more into mexican origins...

Actually, Guatemalan on my father's side, but there are certainly plenty of
people named "Ramirez" in Mexico as well.

well, I lived in a small town near Ulm, but now I study in middle Germany
near Erfurt, Thuringia.

Martin

I don't think I've ever been to Erfurt, unless it was just passing through,
but I have visited Ulm. I climbed the magnificent cathedral there when I was
12. Going up was pretty easy, but coming down hurt a little. All those stone
steps are hard on the knees. Wasn't Ulm also Einstein's hometown?

Joe Ramirez

In article , Joe Ramirez wrote:
"ACey" wrote in message
.. .

This might have been a double-edged sword. Sure step-ins are convenient,
but they can also be a bit 'floppy' - I'm guessing that they are the
Rossi/Emory ones with a bar that sticks out either side of the boot?
These are very common on rental boards and really do suck, as they wear
very quickly and once worn are really imprecise.

Yes, that's the kind they were. However, I didn't have a problem with the
bindings. They were easy to use and seemed effective, as least for someone
at my non-level.

Are you certain about that? There are a couple of problems with these
step-ins. The binding should not just connect the boot to the board,
it should do it in a way that there is no wiggle room. Otherwise it is
very easy to catch an edge (and fall). Moreover, with a step-in, all
the force has to be transmitted from your foot to the boot, then to
your binding, then to the board. Hence you have to tie up the boot
very tightly, which often is painful. If you have a soft boot set up,
the straps (or strap for Flow) will take some of the force (which the
boot just spreads), so many people feel more comfortable.

From your experience's I guess you won't be too keen on spending more
money on the sport, but if you do decide to persevere (and you should -
it can only get better) really think about getting your own boots. They
needn't be expensive ones, just a pair of basic softboots.

I will definitely have to consider this. Rental stuff is always somewhere
between adequate and bad. It's never good.

Never say never. I spend my first week on a Palmer Clown with
step-ins. It was kind of ok, but not great. The next time, I got a old
Rossignol board, soft, 155 cm (I'm 6 ft, 220 lb on a good day), with
well-worn step-ins and half-broken boots. It was sheer hell - I could
not do anything with that board, and my feet went from hurting to
bleeding in one day. I was ready to give up on boarding, but I had
already arranged for yet another weekend.

That time I got a Blax Dimensional in the right size, with a Flow
binding and _comfortable_ Flow boots. It was amazing - I was in total
control, linking turns like never before, and really flying down the
slope.

After one more mixed experience with rentals (decent board, but very
soft boots) I broke down and got my own gear (a Rossignol Levitation,
with Flow binding and boots). Having adequate gear makes a real
difference, and in my opinion even (or particularly) for a beginner.

Couple of other things:
[...]

Let me add onw more thing: Rest and sleeping are really important for
learning, at least for me. I'm always much better the morning after a
lesson than directly after it. Your brain needs time to process the
information, and your muscles need time to relax and uncramp.

You might also try to go without your son, so you can concentrate on
your own performance more. He is likely to outpace you eventually
anyways (with 30 years and 30 pounds advantage ;-).

Good luck, and try to keep it up. There are few things as enjoyable as
riding down a mountain in glorious sunshine on a nice board.


Bye,

Stephan

--
-------------------------- It can be done! ---------------------------------
Please email me as (Stephan Schulz)
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In article
slrnc2728s.h0e.idontreadthis@yahoobb220004112021. bbtec.net, Baka
Dasai wrote:
On Wed, 4 Feb 2004 18:11:21 +0000 (UTC), Stephan Schulz said (and I quote):
There are a couple of problems with these
step-ins. The binding should not just connect the boot to the board,
it should do it in a way that there is no wiggle room. Otherwise it is
very easy to catch an edge (and fall). Moreover, with a step-in, all
the force has to be transmitted from your foot to the boot, then to
your binding, then to the board. Hence you have to tie up the boot
very tightly, which often is painful. If you have a soft boot set up,
the straps (or strap for Flow) will take some of the force (which the
boot just spreads), so many people feel more comfortable.

Isn't this a mute point as most step-in boots have a wide ankle strap
of a similar size and shape to the ankle strap on a regular strap
binding?

In my experience (limited, since I moved to a Flow setup after my
first season), those straps are mostly decorative (they may help if
you are lousy at lacing up). And at least for me, heel lift is much
more a problem for the hind foot. That foot is in the boot all the
time, but out of the binding a lot, so you can stand more pressure
from the binding straps than you could from a shoe strap.

And of course that extra strap is useless for the boot/binding
interface.

Bye,

Stephan

--
-------------------------- It can be done! ---------------------------------
Please email me as (Stephan Schulz)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------