Winter is just around the corner and therefore the perfect time to learn how to snowboard . Regardless of whether you have never been on a board before or have already done your first descents, here you will find inspiring tips to maximize your fun on the board!
Goofy or regular?
Before you venture onto the slopes for the first time, it's important to find out which foot you have on the front of the snowboard: left ( regular ) or right ( goofy ). There are a few ways to find out. This works easiest if you already practice another board sport, such as surfing or skating, because there is a high probability that you prefer the same foot position when snowboarding. If you don't have any knowledge of the board yet, there is the option of asking a friend to unknowingly push you from behind and the foot with which you take a step forward first is most likely the one in front.
Falling down and getting up
One of your first experiences on a snowboard will be falling. The good news is that you can avoid painful injuries by falling correctly. You can practice the different falling techniques both with and without a board.
If you fall on the front side (i.e. forward), do not support yourself with your hands, but rather clench them into fists and try to break the fall with your forearms if possible. In the backside (you fall backwards) you should make sure to pull your chin to your chest, make yourself as small as possible and roll over your back.
In the beginning, it will be easiest for you to stand up on the front side, i.e. the edge of your toes. It is important to note that your center of gravity must be centered over the board in order to be able to push yourself off the ground with your arms as best as possible.
Skating
So that you can move around on the snowboard on the flat ground (e.g. when lining up for the lift), you should practice sliding over the snow with only your front foot in the binding, using your back leg to dive in and then use it as soon as you gain speed You set it up in the middle of the board. Once you have mastered this technique on the flat, you can also try it out on a very slight slope to get an initial feel for your board.
Frontside and Backside Turns
In order to be able to make turns on a snowboard, it is important to get a feel for the edges . To do this, in initially flatter terrain, you can try to slowly slide down the slope with the board positioned sideways on one of the two edges. Once you feel comfortable sliding off both edges, you can try the first few turns. Basically, there are two different directions of rotation in snowboarding: frontside turns and backside turns . When doing the backside turn, you stand on the edge of your heel facing the valley and try to switch to the edge of your toes. When doing the frontside turn, you stand on the edge of your toes with your back to the valley and try to switch to the edge of your heel.
At first you may have difficulty initiating turns, but with a little practice you will quickly become able to do so.