What to learn

2024
- Lift
  - Strap in while standing
    - Dig a platform with your snowboard so that you can safely stand on just the front foot
      - Better: Push with your snowboard “heel” forward to create the platform
    - Now clean back foot, place in binding and strap in
  - Skating
    - Press back foot against binding from the inside
    - Make sure back foot is completely on the board
    - Put most weight on front foot
    - Put back foot toe off board into snow to break
  - Riding T-Lift
    - front foot strapped in, back foot loose
    - hold on the stick going into the rope (NOT T-part) with front hand (left hand) to keep your body aligned with direction of travel
    - t between legs
    - apply pressure to both toes to go into toe direction
    - apply pressure to both heels to go into heel direction
    - most of the time let your board guide you
  - Duck / Penguin walk for speed
- On a run
  - Knee steering
    - Squish the bug for a toe turn
    - Open the door for a heel turn
  - Speed control in curves
    - Engage edge
      - Go down in your knees to press the edge into the snow, this creates friction, which makes you slow down
    - Large turns up the run
      - Making larger turns that go across or even partly up the run can help slow down again
    - Speed checks
      - quick, short breaking in between == board 90deg towards direction of travel
    - Edge pressure for speed
      - Go down by bending your knees and extend them to push pressure into your edge to pick up some speed
  - Gripped turn
    - drill to learn it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-fePL_zvZo
  - Carving
    - Even weight 50 / 50 on the front and the back foot
    - Means having one edge in the snow and leaving a pencil thin line behind you, no breaking
    - the entire edge is pointing into the direction of travel
    - This is the opposite of skidded turns
    - Stay low with bend knees in the carves
  - Ride flat base
    - This means having the entire bottom of the snowboard touching
    - No edge engaged
    - Stand with your knees bent but your weight should still be centred both horizontally and vertically on the board
      - put one are straight above the tip of the board as it may help with right body position
      - if you catch an edge, this means the body position is not perfect
    - You need knee steering to make turns == 60% of your weight on the front foot
    - You go very fast with this
  - Rotate / Spin 180
    - On a gentle slope, slide a backside 180, than a switch toe side 180
      - You will have to transition between toe and heel side edges
    - If the edge catches in the snow, you normally need to get to the edge a little sooner
    - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eWY6-O4O7w
  - Switch
  - Moguls
    - Go in your knees and leave them loose, now just ride over the moguls and let your knees absorb the bumps. Extend legs between hills to keep contact with the snow.
    - Ride over mogul and control speed when coming down from the mogul
    - Weight on front foot when starting turn, change to weight on back foot when ending turn
    - Spray snow down hill at the end of turn to control speed
  - Powder
    - Know how to carve (skidding lets you stop, sink or fall in powder), you need to ride the length of the board to stay on top of powder
    - Good posture
    - A bit more weight on the back foot to keep the nose out of the snow
    - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDSeCk04kvc
    - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjgZxfClHoE
  - Ollie / Jumping on normal ground

Using closed turns to control speed

Closed turns are a fundamental technique for controlling speed on steep slopes in snowboarding. When performing a closed turn, you bring your board fully across the slope and complete the turn until you’re almost pointing slightly uphill[1][3]. This converts your downward momentum into across-hill movement, effectively reducing your speed.

Key Elements

Turn your board completely across the slope rather than leaving turns open to the fall line
Use the tail of your board to steer at the end of the turn for better speed control
Keep your knees bent and maintain a proper riding stance throughout the turn

Speed Management

The steeper the slope, the more you should focus on finishing your turns. By completing turns more fully, you prevent unwanted acceleration that occurs when the board points downhill too early. This technique is particularly effective because you cannot pick up speed while traveling across the slope.

Remember to initiate the next turn only when you’ve achieved a comfortable, controlled speed. Rushing into the next turn before properly controlling your speed can lead to unwanted acceleration and loss of control.

Bindings

Straps

Tighten front strap on the front seam of the shoe Adjust straps so that they are centered on / over your boots. Place the non-dominant foot (right / front foot) on the board to make sure the board does not slide around.