mackDan

Your best chance of finding one of these will be in Europe. So start checking the German and French e-bay web sites under snowboards.

The huckleberry lodge? Pancakes !! Order 1!

No bet he's goofy, those guys are all turning left and leading with the right foot.

Hot Logical asyms were built between 91 and 97. www.hotsnowboards.com

These things are great for matching up to your specific leg/knees with minimal loading of your joints. But the adjustability is as hard to get right. As noted tighten the center bolt first. With the board on the floor (carpet) and a chair next to it, put your boots one and get a friend to help you. Then dial the 4 corner screws close so you have about maybe .1 or .2" of gap on each one. Then get in the bindings, CAREFULLY, since they will spin and flop all over the place. Rock your boots to locate the binding uppers to match to the lower (match binding angle). Then rock back and forth and find a comfortable position. Squat down trying to keep the bindings in the right place and note any pressure/PAIN on your feet/boots/knees/hips. Have your friend roughly note the spacing between one or two of the corner screws (or note if one is touching). Step out of the bindings. Screw the screws down a few turns, specifically the ones your friend noted the gap on, to get close to where you think you like the bindings. Repeat the above step a few times and get the front/back and Left/Right canting to where you think you want it. If you need to adjust the binding angle a bit too (if you find that one foot doesn't want to stay at the binding angle you have set the lower part too). The squating part gets more useful as you get close to having all the screws tight. Then go ride a day or two and try and think about how your boots/feet/knees/hips feel through out your turns and then redo the above steps (you don't need a friend helping, since you only loosen them a tiny bit). They you should LOCKTIGHT each screw or carry an allen wrench and check the tightness periodically. Loose bindings will spin and you'll get injured.

Try doing this (short and fast turns) on the end of the day chop piles (moguls) that always get created on the popular beginner/intermediate runs. its good practice. The piles/ridges typically form in longer ridges running down the hill (fall line), because the beginner skiiers get panicy and just push between them. The pile of snow will help you power up and then you can transition in the air, down the other side and into an immediate turn back up the other side of the snow ridge/pile/mogul. Yes, you have to sit back just a bit on take off, but you have to be transitioning to forward for the landing. You also have to be ahead of the turn slightly with your upper body (e.g. shoulders always ahead of the hips/board).

Looks like a freeride board (nose) with a alpine tail. Doesn't make it any good. Someone will have to buy or rent one and give it a test drive.

The slalom turn (short radius, quick) is just that ,short duration and quick on the new edge, quick on to the next edge. The unload/load push/float cycle is quicker and maybe easier to deal with as long as its within your range of riding comfort. When it gets to quick you get behind in the cycle and end up sitting back or your body enters the turn after your board and you crash out. So this is maybe easier for a new rider to deal with since their body is already moving a lot just trying to keep the board on its carving edge. If the speed is just right it matches the riders ability/desire to stay in control. When you get going beyond your ability you crash because you can't keep up. So now think about the big turn long carve. Keep that board stable and on edge for a prolonged period of time. Much harder for the newer rider. Much more loaded time, a lot less unloaded transition time (percentage time) and a lot less push/float cycle (all push). This requires a stable upper body and a rider who is in tune with the riding style which is little adjustments to be stable. Harder to do for a new rider who, again, is fighting constantly to stay on edge. So in this case your crashing out early in the long turn, because you can't be stable (the reverse of the SL turn), and the better you get the longer bigger turn you can hold. So yeah, learn the SL turn-fast pump. then gradually lengthen the stability and the turns.

Your board choice should probably adjusted by the area in which you plan to ride. Tightly packed aspens or wide open powder fields? The tighter the terrain the shorter the board (relative). If you only plan to ride big open areas, get a big long board with super float. But don't get taken in by the bigger is better mantra, its just the big pickup truck syndrome (big truck, little .....). For all around riding I actually like my 162 Hot shine SL board and similar softer SL boards. They are a bit more forgiving on off piste chop and end of day chop, ride great in spring slush, and do pretty good in a few inches of new stuff (powder). They will definitely become submarines in more than a few inches of fluff, but then I switch to something wider. I'm 5'8" 175# and my deep powder board is a 164 Oxygen SuperX (boarder cross board, BX). Works just fine in all kinds of light fluffy stuff. And it carves pretty good on the chopped up groomers. Maybe rent or borrow a BX board to check it out with plates, or if you know someone with a Burton Supermodel or something along those lines.

Salt Lake City. The beer is awesome!! (you just have to know where to go), Hotels are cheap, and there are ~9 resorts within about an hour of drive time.

Well maybe it was where he was trying to carve? Lots of sticks in the way!!! http://www.mustag.ru/gall/details.php?image_id=3579

Check www.mcmastercarr.com, or check www.olander.com, or as a last resort, call Mr Metric (www.mrmetric.com). You can search and order on line from McMasterCarr, you can search online at Olander Company but will have to call them to order, and you'll have to call Mr Metric for info and ordering. Olander and is about the cheapest, and they and Mr Metric are local to me, and I've had reasonably good results with all three for unique metric bolts and screws.

I have one, a 164 (orange black) that I use as my deep powder board. I'm 5'8", 175# and it gives me great float in the really good dry deep powder that we rarely see in the Sierra Nevada. I really like it for that, and don't ride it to much otherwise. For small snow dumps I ride a 162 Hot Shine which has pretty good float and is a great all around carving board that is pretty forgiving. The Oxy Apex, on the groomers seems to carves pretty good, but I've noticed that you have to really focus on driving it all the time in the carve (really stand on it). I think the stiffness and the carve radius don't match up very well, and that results in a board that wants to turn before its really on the full edge of a good carve. I'm riding mine with my bindings set at about 45-50 Front and about 2 degress less on the rear. The lower binding angles may have something to do with the way it rides, although I it gets harder to initiate turns (get the board up on edge) with steeper binding angles that most of us are used to on our "real" carve boards (55-60 degrees).

A similar accident three weeks ago and my neck is still hurting. Was near the lifts and heading across a run, looking all around, when a snowboarder flying down the hill with his back to me, clips me and I go flying. Never stopped to see if I was OK, and I was laying on the snow for a few minutes at least. Pull a groin muscle somewhat, definite whiplash, brushed my esphogous, and I'm still working out the kinks in my neck with a Chiropractor. The helmet definitely paid for itself that day.

FYI, there is a 154 Oxygen Apex on the boston CL too. Great starter board for someone not to tall. http://boston.craigslist.org/sob/spo/276912298.html

I just heard a rumor via friend in South lake Tahoe, that Heavenly resort may have to close after presidents weekend, if they don't get some/any/a lot, of snow. Seems they have used their snowmaking water supply/alotment for the year. I'm sure all the Northern California resorts are in a similar position. So PRAY to the snow gods for some precip!!!

OK so you paid the doctors you went to see, you paid for the drugs, and you paid for the nice Pilates ball. When you going to pay the rest of us for our sage advice????? I'm thinking you owe all the good advice givers (of which I count myself) at least one beer??

Wavechaser, You might check the European E-bay, specifically the german site. The words are pretty close to english, so its easy to find the snowboards. I have a couple Hot (brand) SL boards which I really like, but they might be a bit soft for racing in ruts. I ride them all over the mtn and like the fast turning abilities. You might try one of those. Also the Oxygen Proton SL boards are great.

Go Faster!

Suggestions from my experiences teaching young/old new snowboarders: You can test anyone for their lead foot. Learned this when I took my first snowboard lesson a long time ago. Have the person stand normal, both feet normal side by side. walk behind them and push them hard forward. They will step out with one foot to catch them selves naturally. THATS their lead foot. Teach them how to skate on the flats. Thats's number #1. #2 move up the hill slightly and teach them to glide downhill with one foot in. This is training for getting off the lift. Teach them to reach for the GARBAGE CAN! (there is always a garbage can infront of you when you get off the lifts!) this keeps them from sitting back and crashing out. #3 Same area, you can teach them to lean just slightly to turn the board, also useful for getting off the lift. Practice turning a bit left and right. #4 Take the board off, and teach them to stand on their toes looking up hill. Then teach them to stand on their heels looking down hill. Do that a few times. THESE are the FINISHING positions, reinforce that concept, finishing! #5 ride the lift, reach for the garbage can, go straight. #6 DO not teach the falling leaf. It just teaches bad habits. #7 Teach them to turn and FINISH standing. This is the tough part, big fear, hard falls. The finish is what they practiced without the board, toes up look downhill, heels up look uphill. So how: well, get them to glide across the hill, sit down roll over glide back. A few times. Then on the flats practice with the board on, heels up look uphill, , toes up look downhill. Pick a traget uphill and a target to focus on downhill. Then back up the lift and then they will have to glide, turn and finish. big step. The key is looking up or down hill in the finish position, the board will follow. Demonstrate how the finish position is stable and safe, they will work toward that too. #8 If they can do #7 and do back to back turns (left to right and right to left ) they have learned how to snowboard. #9 that should take about 2-4 hours.

A semi survey. Did you break your trailing or leading hand??

find a 178 or longer Proton GS. Very stiff, long, thin. great ride.

Well there is the real problem and the near term problem. The near term problem is your in a lot of pain and it hurts to: twist or bend over or etc....... So the solution to that has already been covered. Drugs, heat/cold, and stretching. But the real problem is your weak. Well your muscles in your body are weak. And its not just your back. Its your stomach muscles and your side muscles and a whole bunch of little ones that are spread all around your central core/trunk. So you need to do exercises to strengthen all those muscles. This does not mean just doing some sit ups and back extensions. That just works a few major muscles and there are another 50 or so that need some exercise. Look into doing some Core training, or ProBodX, or Pilates. Your going to have to work at it hard to overcome the problems, afterwhich your body will start healing the pain generators, and that might take some serious time.

As an extensive off piste rider (almost all my riding with a bunch of off piste softbooters), I obviously have an opinion on this. So hang on. You want to try and be smooth in all your riding techniques, either carving hard on the perfect piste, or swooping through pow in the open glades, or jamming through the tight trees in deep champagne. So you have to work toward that, even when you are driving the board hard (pushing hard). NO LIFTING OF FOOT TO INITIATE! (more down below) 1. The narrower and stiffer the board the harder it is to ride in the powder. Wider and a bit softer is better. Sitting back is not the answer. A normal softboot width stance is good, a narrow race board stance is harder to use in deeper powder (deeper + narrower = harder) 2. To initiate a turn you have to transfer weight to the downhill side of the board (we all know that!). The more rushed you are in trying to do this in powder, eg turn, the more likely you will bury the nose of the board. This is what DAVE mentions about looking ahead. Find your next turn just after you enter the turn you are in. You can use the trees as pylons and visualize a path. More planning is a smoother ride = less crash. This also gets into #5 below, which is pushing out of one turn to initiate the next. Push, pop, turn. 3. To initiate a turn after a restart (crash, dig out, stand up, catch breath), you'll need to over emphasize the turn initiation (turn and shoulder lead), but pull back a bit just as the turn is starting or you'll drive the front inside corner back into the snow you just dug out of and have to pick yourself up once again. Re read this part. You have to do this because there is no hard pack piste to catch your fall. The soft powder is going to soak up your hard intiation and the board and you will sink in several inches (or feet) before you build up enough pressure to support your leaned over weight/force. 4. The steeper the off piste, the easier it is to recover from a nose dive. TUCK your head and roll, and finish with a hallelujah! (lift your hands to the sky). You'll have just completed a front loop and still be snowboarding down the hill. Just try and not hit anything between recovery and when you can actually see. So don't try to do this in tight trees, you'll just kiss one and knock your self out. Try this on a steep open slope. 5. Its all about rhythm. Push, pop, turn, push pop turn. Its essentially the same thing we do when we carve, but its obivously different because the snow is more yielding on the push so that's not as clear cut or responsive, and there is more extranious snow to affect the board when its not loaded heavily. To get into the next turn you have to push down (body center line) to move your body up, which will unload the board. When the board starts to unload, you transition your upper body downhill (lead shoulder fall, fall over the front), and then settle into the turn (catch). Now in some powder, you'll push and not get enough force under you to initiate a turn, well go straight for another few feet and push again and transition. This happens when you weren't thinking far enough ahead. In the wide open glades with slow huge turns, the push is very subtle, its really happening through out the whole turn, peaking right at the end, just like a normal on-piste carve. 6. Rear foot lift (in the pop) can speed up the transition from edge to edge, but its not how you initiate. This really happens after the initiation of the turn (the push) and is in the unloaded/unweighted transition. Rear foot lift (tucking rear heel to your butt) can speed up the squence and allow you to get through the aspens (really tight trees), or through big moguled sections You can practice rear heel lifting at the end of the day, on those snow piles that build up on the runs. Drop across a pile, push and lean into a turn, but before you get back to the top, initiate the next turn (fall downhill), and lift the rear of your board across the top of the pile and then catch yourself on the other side. Repeat faster by driving (pushing harder) harder with your feet and shoulders. You should be able to go back and forth across of long pile of snow, only going about 2-4 feet on either side of the fall line. This works for moguls also. Good luck, and wear a helmet and good shatter resistant sunglasses or googles, those trees and branches are hard!!