http://articles.skateandsnowshop.com/rss.xml A blog about skateandsnowshop.com daily 365 1901-01-01T00:00+00:00 http://articles.skateandsnowshop.com/?a=35614 <p>by Gregg Hall</p><p>Having a snowboard doesn't have much point if you are unsure of how to use it. The hardest part is getting started, but once you learn how to started, all it takes is practice. To learn how to get started so that you have something to practice, read on.<br /><br />First and foremost, find a snowboard that is the right size for you. Snowboards differ in width and length and greatly affect how you perform. Getting a board which is the wrong size for you can make snowboarding much more difficult. Consult a store clerk or do some online research to ensure a fitting board.<br /><br />Skiing is quite similar to snowboarding. In snowboarding, the movements involved, the way you move/position your body are very similar to skiing. Once positioned, take a few deep breaths and relax your muscles, stressed or not. It is important to stay relaxed, because tensing up increases your chances of obtaining an injury.<br /><br />Staying relaxed includes not locking your knees. Think of your knees as if they are shock absorbers, going over bumps and divots is going to hurt them, so be sure to keep them slightly bent and relaxed.<br /><br />Now that you are on a fitting board, positioned and relaxed, ride the board with your front foot strapped in and try to go across the hill before attempting to go down it. Once you are comfortable, strap in the other foot.<br /><br />Use your front,(not back) foot to steer as you start going down the hill. While pressing your heel down, lift up your toe. Move your hips backward, and you are snowboarding! To stop, simply turn yourself so that you are facing up the hill. This will slow you down and you will skid to a halt.<br /><br />The knowledge of how to snowboard isn't very useful if you don't have a snowboard. Use the following advice and choose your board accordingly.<br /><br />Freestyle boards are most popular amongst beginners, as learning to turn with the board is fairly easy. The nose and tail of this board are identical, which is an uncommon feature. It is moderately short, wide, and flexible. Buy a soft and short boot for this board.<br /><br />Freeride boards are boards used for a variety of snow types and terrains. Industrial in its design, you can go off the trails or on the trails or wherever you find snow. Its design is long and thin. There are both freeride and freecave boards, although they vary slightly in their performance. Buy soft and tall boots along with soft bindings.<br /><br />Alpine or Race boards are often used in competitions. The board is thinner than other boards, making it more stable, and enables it to reach high velocities and take quick turns. The tip is less curved and the tail is almost flat, allowing for the greatest edge contact between the board and the snow. There are both the giant slalom and the slalom boards. Buy a boot similar to a ski boot, as it will provide the maximum support and control.<br /><br />Now that you know the steps to start snowboarding, get out there. Just remember,if you still feel uncomfortable, you can always take lessons.</p><h3 class="popup">About the Author </h3><p>Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as Snowboards and Skateboards at <a href="http://www.skateandsnowshop.com/">http://www.skateandsnowshop.com</a></p> 2006-09-01T00:30-04:00 http://articles.skateandsnowshop.com/?a=35613 <p>by Gregg Hall</p><p>Many people take up skateboarding as a simple means of transportation. It is portable, fairly inexpensive, and faster than walking. Skateboarding goes beyond rolling on the ground, though, as many people have witnessed. Driving down the street, it is not unlikely you will see skateboarders defying basic physics, as they slide down handrails, stairs, benches and other various locations commonly found around town. Who do these stunts generally appeal to? Adrenaline junkies. Why? Just for the thrill of it!<br /><br />Addicted to the excitement, the inevitable danger, and being invariably involved, adrenaline junkies are eager to learn tricks that push boundaries. Pushing boundaries gives them the feeling of being invincible. <br /><br />Because certain skateboards are better designed for certain stunts, and certain stunts are more stimulating than others to different people, it is important to experiment with different skateboard designs. This can include using a skateboard with a different number of wheels, unique type of wheel, or boards of different dynamics. Doing so is what makes the simple skater evolve into a thrill-seeker. With each unique design comes new possibilities. Injury risk is more of an encourager than a deterrent, as it fuels desire to push boundaries.<br /><br />Chances are that you have noticed &quot;no skating&quot; signs around town, because it is often illegal to skate in and around the city. With all the skateboard parks scattered around America, it seems that skateboarders are often seeking new places to seek new thrills. The thrill of a skateboard park soon diminishes once they have mastered what it has to offer, and once that trill is diminished, they seek new thrills. Going to new areas gives them time to try out new tricks, having their imagination as their only limit.<br /><br />Upgrading their skateboard is another way skateboards expend their thrill. From wood skate wheels, to the motorized skateboard, skateboarders can use various designs to reach a variety of heights, speeds, and techniques.<br /><br />Skateboarders enjoy the challenge of learning new tricks to beat the champions while at the same time enjoy watching the champions perform tricks they have not yet learned themselves.<br /><br />Ironically enough, risk of injury is one thing skateboarders thrive off of. Whether or not they ignore, or whether or not they want to defy the possibility of injury, fact remains that it is usually an appealing element to skateboarders. The fact is that the more likely they are to receive an injury, the harder they try, and more determined they are to perfect the trick.<br /><br />Unique designs, different environments/possibilities, breaking the law, mastering new tricks, and risk of injury are all pieces which create a whole. The whole is what many people call &quot;adrenaline junkies&quot;, or thrill seekers.</p><h3 class="popup">About the Author </h3><p>Gregg Hall is an author living in Navarre Florida. Find more about this as well as Skateboards and Snowboards at <a href="http://www.skateandsnowshop.com/">http://www.skateandsnowshop.com</a></p> 2006-09-01T00:27-04:00 http://articles.skateandsnowshop.com/?a=35238 <p>by Gregg Hall</p><p>In all sports you will be able to obtain optimal performance levels by including cross-training in your regimen. Snowboarding is no exception to this and we would like to give you some suggestions that will help you to cross-train and become a better snowboarder.<br /><br />The first cross-training sport for a snowboarder is skateboarding. It is the easiest and most obvious transition for a snowboarder to make. Snowboarding actually kind of owes its very existence to the sport of skateboarding and they offer many similarities and movements. The great thing about skateboarding is that you don't need snow or mountains to be able to train. <br /><br />Skateboards come in all kinds of shapes and sizes. The ones I recommend are those ridden by surfers who cross-train with skateboards. <br /><br />They are the &quot;longboard&quot; or &quot;carveboard&quot; style of skateboard and come with oversize wheels as well. You can even get an off-road version that will allow you to carve down large hills giving you a very similar experience to snowboarding.<br /><br />The next options are wakeboarding and surfing. Both of these sports will keep you in great shape for snowboarding but for most snowboarders wakeboarding will probably be the easier of the two to realize just because of geographical issues. In most cases snowboarders will have much easier access to a lake or large pond on which to do wakeboarding than they will to surfing, unless they live on the west coast and have the beaches within a couple of hours drive. <br />Wakeboarding has some similar movements to snowboarding but it also brings the upper body into the equation as well, something many snowboarders are sorely lacking. The major issue you will have to deal with is having access to a boat.<br /><br />The next sport we want to look at is surfing. Surfing is a great sport with many similar muscles being used as used is snowboarding. Like wakeboarding though, surfing also requires the development of upper body strength due to the paddling involved in getting out to the waves. <br /><br />If you really get into the sport and get into the big wave riding that has been popularized of late by guys like Laird Hamilton you will definitely get the same adrenaline rush that you get snowboarding down a mountain. Actually, it is more like snowboarding with an avalanche behind you!<br /><br />Another sport you can get into that is fairly easy for snowboarders due to their location is mountain biking. It doesn't offer the similarities in movement but it will keep you in shape physically and aerobically for the snowboarding season.</p><h3 class="popup">About the Author </h3><p>Gregg Hall is a business consultant and author for many online and offline businesses and lives with his 16 year old surfer/skater son in Navarre Florida.<br />Check out <a href="http://www.skateandsnowshop.com/">http://www.skateandsnowshop.com</a> for you skate and snowboard gear.</p> 2006-07-29T19:45-04:00