Snowboarding Course - Linking Turns

Is this the same as carving? Can you guys put together an article on how to do "dynamic carving" ? Awesome site!

im having still having troubles linking turns, whenever i turn on my toeside i fall. any other hints or tips?

This is realy great website, it helped me a lot.
Thanks!!!!

jenna...i had the same problem when i started riding. Try standing a little more straight up. Your legs will straighten and keep your bodies equilibrium more balanced and will help you not fall over. I also put my back hand out to balance myself. Also, dont push too hard on your toe edge, it will force your body to lean too far over.

Hope it helps.

Thanks for the tip, BMac. It's been 2 years since I went riding and I've been having issues trying to do turns without falling. I read your advice and realized I was freaked out about going too fast and you're right, that's what was making me lose control. When I relaxed and just let myself go a little faster knowing I could control it later, I had no problems making the turns! Thanks!

ok so i read this about 5 days before i actually went snowboardinq and it helped alot i was way better then my gf whose been snowboarding like 6 times and i made a 20$ bet with her brother and her that i would kick there ass at snowboarding and yea im 40$ richer lol thanks for the helpp

Good points, BMac. Also, I would recommend using your lead foot to initiate the turn and get your board sliding before engaging the back foot to carve. I had the same problem with my toeside - too much speed - until I stopped leaning my shoulders out past my board and instead use my hips to control my direction. This makes turns much tighter and smoother.

i have been snowboarding for nearly a month now and i can already link turns. i think it''s pretty easy, thanks for the tips, Jack.

I think you have to be careful who teaches you. I went boarding with my bf and he didnt tell me how to get off the skil lift properly and i fell and hurt my hip really badly. I have trouble turning toeside when hes around he shouts "always keep an edge turn with your backfoot more backfoot!" but i think hes telling me wrong because i end up switching from regular to goofy or stopping toeside. Is this from too much pressure on the backfoot? though its necesary to keep an edge u do need to have the board surface flat on the snow sometimes right? I find i enjoy myself and get down the slope much better when hes not around..

My problem is transitioning from toeside to heelside. My heelside turns are stronger but when going from toeside to heelside i catch the edge and eat it. Any suggestions?

Erin, that''s exactly what happens to me

Thanks to the guys that have put together this wonderful page!

Several additional points for making turns easier:

-1) Use helmet, but-protector, snowboard gloves with plastic enforcement. One of the things You''ll need to learn is how to fall, no matter how good You are in sports.

0) Doing curves is when You change the pressure from toes-to-heel or vice-versa. NEVER change the pressure toes-to-heel or heels-to-toes with the two legs simultaneously - You''d fall immediately.

1) When sliding on toes, start the curve with your leading leg - change the pressure from toes to heel. Like BMac advised earlier slide for a moment parallel to the fall line. Then engage the back leg pushing on the heel. During the curve the board is twisted. Bend your knees. Keep your chest in the middle of the board, as straight and relaxed as possible. Do not rotate your arms and shoulders much.

2) When sliding on heels, start the transition from heels to toes, on your front leg, twist the board and when it is parallel to the fall line, engage the back leg on toes. It is essential for beginners to rise their chest and push their hips forward, when finishing the curve (banana shape). When sliding on toes try to look higher on the slope instead into your legs.

3) Keep the weight during turns primarily on your leading leg. This will make maneuvering with your back leg easier and You''ll gain some stability

4) When starting with snowboard try with a bit smaller-than-needed one. Usually the board needs to reach your chin, but taking curves with a board like that is not an easy thing to learn.

5) Start with a as softest as possible board. The better You get, the stiffer the board will need to be, but twisting a stiff board as a beginner will make You hate the sport.

6) When tightening your bindings, always start with the one, that covers your heel. It will bring your foot as back as possible. Then do the toe binding.

7) Selecting the leading leg starts to be significant when You start with the curves. Practical way of knowing which is your leading leg is if somebody pushes You from the back - the leg that You step forward to keep balance is your leading leg. Most of the people are using the left leg. When using the left leg, the injuries You get on your right shoulder are milder, so if You write with your right hand, this may be good for You.

8) After several days of successful curves - try a change of the feet position - Goofy, Duck, Regular. You may have selected the style that is wrong for You.

Hope this helps. If You have questions, suggestions or objections - please contact me vie Skype: strannotia

John: beginner should use short, flexible board.

Longer and stiffer boards are faster and require more effort from the legs to turn (which makes it especially hard if you don''t have good technique). Long boards also have less control but more stability compared with shorter boards.

I''m in my second season of snowboarding and this site helped a lot last year. I want to add a really important point: get to know your gear. For the longest time I was having a lot of trouble finding my toe edge after transitioning from a heel turn. I felt like I had to stand up on my toes and lean forward like Pee Wee Herman doing that big shoe dance.
I started really looking at my boots and realized I could tighten them way more than I had been.
I then realized I could tighten both straps on my bindings much tighter (though it was hard work)
Then I dug out the instructions that had come with my bindings and realized there were lots of ways to make them easier to tighten
There I also saw that there was an adjuster on the heel plate to increase the "lean-forward". All the tweaks I''d made had helped a lot but I remembered to change this on the slope one day and next thing I know I was carving that mountain up.
The other huge help was my (very good snowboader) girlfriend started watching me and saying "quit looking at your board". I didn''t realize I was - and actually argued with her. Then I finally caught myself. The next time I forced myself to look up ahead of me, down the mountain, and do a toe turn. It worked like a charm.
Last thing I''ll add. It''s so much easier to learn this stuff when the snow is soft. Hard falls make you scared to commit to turns etc. Take it easy if you''re starting out and riding on crusty snow. But when some fresh/soft stuff comes, you better skip lunch and put in a full, long day!

Well this is pretty helpful. I''m 19 and I went snowboarding for the first time yesturday, so I went on the small rope pull hill. I felt like a giant monster terrorizing all these little kids with my inability to control my direction/speed. Thankfully my ass didn''t hit anyone but the snow.

I am going snowboarding for the first time tomorrow. I used to ski but haven''t done so in about 5 years. I have found this site and its step by step procedures and animations to be very informative. However I wish to gain as much knowledge as I can before trying. Is there anymore advice to be given to a noob.

thax for great tips

Such great advice. I went for my first trip 2 years ago and read this site before then. I did better than most in ski school, and about half way through my second day I finally had a little confidence(only did a 1/2 day of school the first day). My 3rd day I was doing back to back 3-4 mile runs with only an occasional fall.
I''m leaving in a few days for my second trip and needed a refresher. PERFECT!
The biggest piece of advice like others mentioned is starting the turn with your forward foot, then once you are straight down bring in the back foot pressure. Otherwise prepare to eat snow!

Hi, Ive been boarding for about 2 months now. First of all it''s nice to hear my concerns are shared by so many. Although I''m no expert, one piece of advise I would give to anyone is to be confident. I''ve had 2 full day lessons now and everything was going well until I got off the nursery slope and up to the top of the main slope!! I found myself leaning back on my board for fear of going too fast (which made me go faster). And could no longer turn heel to toe without falling or catching my back edge and going down hill upside down and on my back......
Confidence is everything, I was and am still concious of other people being better than me and laughing at my attempts, but it''s all in my head!!!
If your not confident, your anxious which stiffens your body up and you revert to panic mode and let your body do what it shouldn''t (like leaning back on your board and picking up too much speed). So just chill!

One more thing that I haven''t seen anyone mention yet (sorry if u have), is to lean into your front foot. I ride goofy so that''s my right foot. Leaning into your front foot allows you to have more control as your front foot basically steers the board. You WONT go faster by doing so although by leaning down slope you would assume you would. And if your not feeling confident then you''ll find it difficult to pluck the courage up to lean as much as you can into your front foot.......

Hope some of that helps

Lisa: First time I took lessons, I was taught the J-turn to illustrate that you don''t steer with your legs but with your body...specifically your shoulders and to some extent your head. The idea is to have your whole body rotating in one direction instead of counter-rotating your shoulders and hips. You see a lot of counter-rotation and it''s really great at slow speeds but not so much when you are going faster. The technique also illustrates the need to look in the direction you want to turn as well as keeping your weight over your front foot to create a pivot point. When you turn your head to look in a direction your shoulders tend to naturally turn in that direction as well. The rotation continues down your core and thru your hips. If your weight is forward the torque (twisting force) will continue down thru your binding into the snowoboard causing it to turn. I always tell newbies consciously steer with their shoulders and to point your front shoulder in the direction you want to go in.

I''ve planned to try snowboarding ever since someone told me 10 years ago that it was easier on knees and easier to progress than with skiing. I''ve skied since I was 23, but have never really improved much. So I''m here trying to learn. This is an incredible site. The detailed posts are as much benefit as the great animations and instructions! Pray for me, I''m 60.

I believe you have your turns labeled wrong. A heelside turn engages the heelside edge of the board and for a regular rider, that is a turn to the left that ends looking directly downhill. Likewise, a toeside turn engages the toe edge and ends looking uphill.

Just wanted to thank whoever put this entire tutorial together. The videos and instruction is awesome.

Thank you for the useful information, 2010-11 is my first season, I got all the useful information from this site and practiced for 3 months. Now I did complete the linking turn. I love it...

Great site, great info..thanks a lot

great site, been boarding for first time a few weeks back and going again (scotland) next week.
Just reading up on what i struggled with and the answers above are really helpful, can''t wait to put back into practice.
For anyone wanting good padding gear - i''d recommend Mcdavid Hexpad snow/ski pants,(link - http://www.mcdavid.be/products/?h=3&c=29&p=242} i wore them for 4 days, very comfy, not too sweaty and great protection around the butt,tailbone and knees - would have been black and blue but for them!

Great website. I had never been boarding before but thanks to this site I was doing everything by the ned of the first day. Hit the bunny slope twice and then straight to the top of the mountain. Everyone was shocked at well I did on my first day and I believe it is because of this site and my knowing what I was trying to accomplish with each move. The key is to relax when linking turns. Start your turn, head straight down the mountain a little and then finish your turn. Don''t try to to do it all in one quick move. I kept trying to complete the turns too fast, causing me to fall and then I just got it and relaxed. That worked for me.

There are safety equipments needed while you are playing any sport like Snowboard, bike riding, skating, etc. There are many types of safety equipments available. I think Elbow pads are protective gear which reduces sweat and moisture. These provide maximum protection to your elbows and should fit snug on your elbow.

Regards,

snowboard pads