Pow

I turn and face the snow, like im in the middle of a double armed heelside carve, and push up with both hands.

#2 has my vote... woof!

well said Jack:cool:

On my Winds i used to get "hey... why are you riding ski boots on a snowboard?" all the time. they have "Burton" written across the boots in big eye-catching letters. My Deeluxe boots havnt been called ski boots yet. all they ever get is "hey... those snowboard boots are different arent they?" Im perplexed as to why the Burton boots would be more confusing than a more obscure compay's hardboots.

"is it hard?" and "nice woody" always have me checking my snowpants.

I could have sworn I saw a guy riding black UPZ boots on skiboards at the local hill sunday... I might need to get myself a pair for the bare twigs and pebbles days so i dont ruin my boards.

How far up NY do you go? are you ever around Bellayre? all are good choices, id say youre after something in the mid 60s to low 70s... you could go for an all-out alpine board if you know you'll only use it in trenchable conditions. the way i see it is you have a board (limited 162) you can ride in poor carving conditions (fresh powder and bumps), and a board you can use as a rock board (the rossi) so if you continue to use the setups you have you may not need a "one board carves all" type of board. but if you plan on riding plates in everything, which dramatically improves the responsiveness of your gear and, to me at least, the quality of your ride then the Axxess is a great choice. also a good choice for somebody who wants to ease into alpine instead of diving head first into the sport. ohh, and welcome to BOL:cool:

correct me if im wrong, but can't you get a Prior metal from BOL's shop now? seems like an easy way to skip all the customs and shipping.

I wont ride without a helmet anymore... at Bromley last weekend I would have at least been concussed if it weren't for my helmet. And to think i was peeved to have some old fart on straight skiis hit my board with his pole today (deliberately, but doing no damage to board rider or riding)! youve got some serious self control, Gecko.

thats the best carving ive ever seen by a car:biggthump

32 inches outside my house:biggthump it'll be great to ride, but only if i recover from all the shoveling!

thats the best kind:cool:

going once...

The transformation is complete... you are a trench digger:cool:

bump...

I was riding a tiny little molehill near Schenectady in upstate New York called Maple Ridge for the first time tonight, and was really loving it. The runs were short, but really wide with some very nice pitches, perfect for carving. Which left me wondering if any other carvers ride there. It turns out 3 other hardbooters have been known to frequent that mountain, according to two lifties i talked to. One of them even works there as a patroller or an instructor, i cant remember which. So are any of you 3 Maple Ridge carvers BOL members? If so, I'll probably be there every wednesday from around 4 to 7 and would love some company (and maybe a bit of advice to help me improve). Bottom line, if you ride Maple Ridge, please post here:biggthump

Something as simple as looking where youre going might be a good solution. Try to pick the spot where you'll be changing edges next. Youve probably heard that before, but it helps to avoid counter-rotation. on heelside, make sure you're pushing with your rear heel rather than pulling with your rear toes. sounds like there would be no difference, but there is. If you feel like your front foot is the only one thats trying to carve, that may be the problem. pushing=carve, pulling=twisting the board and washing out. Don't know the difference? sit in a wheelie office chair with your rear (right) foot down on the ground and your front (left) foot in the air. lift your right foot's toes in the air, as far back as they will go. did you move? probably not. now push yourself backwards using your right heel. thats what you should be doing on your board. It also sounds like you may need to set your bindings back a few cm if you can. there are a few suggestions from a carver still expirimenting with different styles.

I noticed that not everybody's form was perfect, but they were all smiling pretty big so i'd say they were representing very well:cool: edit: have the american "laid back non-conformist, non-competitive" alpine snowboarders become... elitists?

I can't snowboard without goggles. The wind bothers my eyes so much that they almost close completely. Not very good for extreme sports.

Are you making sure the board is good and high (angle wise)? Im a crappy inexperienced carver, and i can't apply nearly as much as i know, but from what ive heard and the little i have done cranking the board high on its edge is the way to control the steeps. There is one thing i think i can relate to you on: im the same weight as you. I'm on a 162 and for me it turns pretty wide unless i crank it high and downweight with everything ive got. I had Pogo give me a slightly softer board than their usual Overdose, fearing that I wouldnt be able to turn a stiffer board at all, and im glad i did. but I think i still underestimated my need for softness. Id say try softer boards. Many guys on here are closer to the 200+ weight range, they can bend their boards like a wet noodle. For stability at high speeds, length sidecut and stiffness all play a part. Its too complicated for me, I tried to figure it out and I just gave up:smashfrea And the conditions you described are probably the most difficult carving conditions. the only way they could be made worse is if a few new stumps and rocks decided to shoot up, somebody sprayed everything with a hose and froze the entire run, and an entire busload of senior citizens skidding down on straight skiis decided to use that run at the same time. (but you know that already)

just tightened everything... I had been riding with a completely loose and freely moving heel block sunday and didnt even realize it! (not as outrageous as you might think... they are set all the way to the outer edges of the inserts so that the heel of the boot pushes the block out and keeps it on) I think i have a curse, for as long as i have been snowboarding my screws seem to always come loose more often than anyone else's on the slopes:(

I think his new avatar better suits him:biggthump but its a hard decision... sweet cheecks was the hottest avatar on BOL, but that dirty old man does rock

I dont think there are mountains big enough for that kind of turning:nono:

Doneks do... bout time if you ask me:biggthump

Pogo boasts that their patented twin insert system eliminates binding suck along with making it nearly impossible to yank the inserts out of the board. so far so good, but ive only been riding pogo snowboards for 2 seasons so i can't confirm it just yet.