Snowboarding Gear

[Sufficient]

Drop is just a brand, they're high quality and keep your hands really warm You can get them anywhere around here, so I'd assume they're just as easy to find in the US.

Just some advice, never take the advice of any store staff, most work on commission. Also, unless they work in a strictly board/ski shop they probly don't know much anyways.
Thanks to sport-check, I learned to board Regular instead of Goofy when I was 10 years old. I only learned I was boarding the wrong way when I started skateboarding. :P

Oh yeah ... bout regular and goofy. Is that purely preference? For some reason I see lots more goofy nowadays than regular ... and just observing some of the better snowboarders around me ... a LOT of them were goofy.

[Volcs]

If you were to run and slide on a slick floor, which foot would you put forward.
Get someone to push you from behind, which foot do you put forward to brace yourself?

Whichever put you put forward is the one you would put in front, determining your stance.

You don't pick whether you're regular or goofy, it's like being right or left handed. If you learn on the wrong one, it'll be harder to learn and take longer.

Regular - left foot forward
Goofy - right foot forward

I don't think many people know that your stance isn't just a preference, so they choose goofy because it sounds cooler :P

[Cuji]

Wtf, hell no! You don't need to buy stuff that hot! ^-^

I bought k2 Illusion board and k2 v6 bindings for ~350€ and Freeway Northwave shoes for ~200€.

Meh i got Airwalk A1 board, Burton Custom bindings and few pairs of airwalk shoes with inner shoes :P

[Volcs]

I have burton customs on two of my boards, one of my bindings fucking snapped at the top of a huuuge run on my first of 3 days at Tremblant. I went down the entire thing on my fucking edge, wouldn't have been a problem if it were the lower binding but NOoooooooOoOOoOO... THEN neither of the repair shops had the right part to fix it. Fuckers. I ended up having to buy another set of bindings. Now, I always bring two boards when I go for more than a day trip.

I just got a new pair of DC boots, GODLY! Air bladder with pumps, pockets in the sole for heating pads, boa lacing system and lacing in the liner... best boots I've ever used.

[bloodzombie]

Volcs said some smart things, but it might look scary to someone that's not experienced.. basically, just use common sense.. Before you sit, think about if it's dangerous or not, and when you're moving, know that the people behind you are responsible for not hitting you, and you're responsible for not hitting the people in front of you.. don't keep looking back, and usually it's best not to try to swerve out of the way... often you'll swerve the same way they were planning on going around you..

A lot of people prefer mittens, I've never used them, it just seems like it'd be harder to do your bindings up.

The goofy/regular thing is exactly as volcs said.. tell someone to push you from behind. I'm goofy, and almost everyone I know is goofy. Eventually you'll want to learn both ways anyway, but it's easier to learn the more comfortable way first.

Volcs, go to whistler... more moisture in the snow, but not nearly as god-forsakenly freezing cold.

[Volcs]

Thx BZ, but I was thinking Banff might not be as busy during March break..?
I can't do my bindings up with gloves or mittens, so for me I go for warmth

Like BZ said, eventually you WILL learn both ways, but it just makes things alot harder... especially when it comes to landing jumps and stuff. I've been boarding regular for 7 years, so I can't really change to goofy now. I have a harder time with new things just because it's not my dominant foot forward. Landing jumps fakey is alot easier for me than the next person, but I have alot of trouble landing regular. I also get off rails fakey automatically. I've tried to switch but riding regular is kind of just a second nature.. not worth learning 7 years worth of stuff all over again

Always remember, when you first start boarding, the way you look is where you'll end up going. NEVER look behind you, or your body will turn and you'll catch an edge and get snow in your face :P

And lastly - don't be a dick to skiers, it isn't cool. Yeah, alot of them are gonna be assholes to you just because you're a snowboarder, but do your best to give them a good impression. I hate being judged as some punk-ass kid just because I have a snowboard.
And skiers on hills are completely unpredictable. They snowplow from side to side taking up the entire run, and passing them actually becomes a skill... Remember, you are COMPLETELY responsible for those infront of you. If you hit someone and they break a leg or get brain damage, you can be sued. My philosophy teacher was hit by a boarder and ended up with a severe concussion and has chronic migraines now, he could have sued the snowboarder and in my opinion he should have.

[Sufficient]

Could you tell me bout soft and stiff and narrow and wide ... and how they affect the type of board?

[bloodzombie]

As far as width, I think you want your boot to hang over a little bit on each side, but not so much that you'd drag it in the snow on a sharp turn. a half inch is probably best. If the board you really want is more narrow than that, you can get risers so that you sit a little higher up off the board for more clearance, but to me that's not as good, because you lose some of the feeling of the snow (like snowboarding with a condom on).

An inexperienced salesman will sell you a board based on length. The length is important, and it's enough information when you're renting, but also pay attention to the weight specifications. They always give you a weight range, you want to be near the middle of that. If you're at the bottom end, consider stepping down to a little shorter board, if you're at the top, go a little longer.

I would suggest doing a lot of shopping around. You'll run into both good salesmen and bad ones. You'll know a good one right away because they love snowboarding and they'll tell you more about the board than you ever thought there was to know, and you can just tell they're into it. Bad ones give you short answers that they might've just learned yesterday.

You'll know what I'm talking about if you go to a couple different places, one time you'll just run into a salesman that's really easy to talk to and is eager to tell you everything he knows about snowboards. Buy from that guy. I think the snowboard shops are generally more knowledgeable, but they also seem a little pricier. I got mine at REI and the sales guy was great, but when I went back to get bindings, my guy wasn't there, and the other guy was a moron so I left and found a new guy at Olympic sports. Now I go there for most stuff.

[Jeansi]

Even though someone here said "don't rent" I say the opposite: How can you know what kind of a board suits you? Try out a few different ones so you see the differences between boards, shoes and binding settings.

My stuff:

Nitro board, Short (145 cm, I'm 186 long) and Extra-wide though so that it would carry me better off-pist (because it's short).

Ultra-soft board so I can do front/back wheelies without losing the touch to the snow.

Feet quite close together, I don't jump that much so I don't need the wider stance that gives better rotation speed and more comfortable landings on hard surfaces. Burton step ins (don't buy step ins if you want to ride lots of pipes and hard-landing jumps though!!)

Front binding in a 90 degree angle to the board (raised 0,5 cm), back binding at 80% (raised 1,0 cm).

[Volcs]

Most hills only offer one type of board, but in different sizes.. so by renting he could find a size he's comfortable with, but only in one brand.

It's hit or miss, but I think when it's the first board you adjust to the board. You learn to ride the way your board wants you to :P

Jeansi just brought in a whole different factor though, with the angle. You have to choose whether you want to do tricks, halfpipe or all of the above before you can really pick an angle. I started off with a 30 degree angle out on my lead foot because I only cared about alpine, but as I started taking hits and rails and such, I changed to no angle.. now I rest with a 15% angle on my lead foot for comfort in alpine and no major discomfort anywhere else.
Angles are easy to mess around with though, so there's no real commitment :P

[Jeansi]

Yeah true, buying a really expensive board is a waste though.

Maybe you should first buy a board the salesman recommends, a cheapish one. Then you'd learn to ride it and once your good enough to figure something in it doesn't work as you want you can buy a more expensive board?

[Sufficient]

When I rented ... the whole angle of my feet actually bothered me quite a bit. Both feet were almost all the way perpendicular to the board. So I really had to keep my body facing towards the side or else I'd twist and not go straight ahead. I think it would have been better if I could have somehow adjusted it to be at least a lil bit more angled with the lead foot.

Can I ask them to adjust the bindings for me if I rent from them? The only rentals I saw were the snap-ins.

Oh ... and I'm planning on staying away from the half-pipe and jumps ... at least until I feel really comfortable and controlled going down a steep slope. Considering that I'm only going to go down the hills ... how does that change what board I should use? (soft, hard, narrow, wide?)

I'm plannin on continue renting until I get to the pt where I feel like this is a sport I wanna dedicate more time and money into.

[bloodzombie]

If you rent from the mountain, that's true, they usually only have one type of board, but a lot of snowboard shops will rent you demo boards which is a great way to figure out what you like.


Those step-ins are super easy to adjust the angle, if you really look at it, you can probably figure it out, if not, yes, go into the shop and ask them to move it for you. It only takes them a second and can improve your whole day.

[Subjugation]

I agree with Jeansi about renting. I rented my first season, and I think it was a good idea for me. I experimented with various shapes, stiffnesses, and lengths. These are all important in developing my personal riding preferences.

I agree with BZ about investing in good boots first. Some people's ski and snowboarding experience is totally ruined when their toes are freezing. This is the same reason you should get a good pair of gloves too. I prefer gloves over mittens, because you have better dexterity with gloves. Bindings are also important, but I'd get a middle of the line set of bindings than a top of the line set, if you decide to buy. There are some features on high-end bindings that you may not appreciate until you become a more advanced rider.

Longer boards are going to be more stable and faster, softer and stiffer boards are really a matter of preference. Softer boards are going to be able to be turned more easily, but you get some of that from the center cut (shape) also. As a newb, you may find a softer board easier to maneuver.

When you feel more comfortable riding (ie: turning at sharper angles, very small jumps, going at speed), you should invest in a beginner board. Finding a good deal is all about the timing. The best times to get a new board are either a bit before the season starts, and after the season ends. I'd recommend buying a used board from a Ski and Snowboard Expo. Most larger cities will have some at the beginning of each snow season. They are usually sponsored by the equipment manufacturers, local shops, and nearby resorts. They offer discounts for some of the older models that they are trying to get rid of, and sometimes a venue for people to sell their used equipment. Also, at the end of the season local shops are trying to clear out some of their older models. This isn't as easy as an Exposition, because you have to go shop-by-shop and scour the paper and internet. At a Snowboard Expo, everything is all under one roof.

After you get your first board, focus on the basics: turning, riding at speed, riding in powder, riding switch, and hitting larger kickers. When you get comfortable at those things, you should start to think about upgrading to an upper end model. Basically, you have to develop a riding style before you know what kind of board you want to spend a lot of money on. Do you like freeriding (hiking, trees, powder), jibbing (hitting kickers and rails), or racing (bombing hills, slalom). Then you can buy a board according to your preferences.

Good luck, and most importantly have fun. That's the only reason why you'd want to spend a zillion dollars riding down a big fricken rock while strapped to a stick.

[Sufficient]

Thanks JT ... good info there. I'm trying to get a feel for how costly snowboarding is gonna be in terms of renting this yr. I paid $65 to go with a whole lotta ppl for just that 1 day ... and that included everything including the bus trip to the ski place. So I'm not sure what the breakdown was for each thing like lift tix and renting the equipment.

Could you give me a general breakdown of what renting costs buy itself? And how much is the lift tix by itself?

Also, are there places I can go ... on the East Coast (near NJ) or near Chicago that I can go during the SUMMER? Do ppl even ski/snowboard in the summer? If yes, is it more expensive? Also, from when to when is snowboarding/skiing season?

Thanks for all the info guys.