Arnaudb

If you don't mind I'd like to pick your brains a little bit more since I may be going back up next week end. My F2 speedster is 173 and it feels right for now. i have good control of my speed and am able to do some good turns and to connect between my turns as well. couple questions and observations (being perfectly aware of and agreeing with the fact that it's the rider not the equipment that matters!) - how does length affect the carve ability of the board? at 185 riding a 190 is that easier to carve? i was reading about favoring heel side turns after a while and noticed that: observations: -on the shorter more flexible board that was true. Heel side turns were easier to commit to than toe side -when I switched to my longer stiffer board and shifted the bindings to:40 in the front and 55 in the back, toe side turns were easier, and on the heel side my edge would slip out a lot. Questions: -would dull edges cause that slippage ? - would putting more weight on my back foot for the heel side turns cause slippage? I practiced bending my hips into the hill on the turns after reading about hip placement on this website. observations: - it was a little difficult to put all my weight on my front foot while focusing on bending my hips -on the toe side turns putting my weight on my back foot made it easier to turn. I any case, I'm completely stoked on trying a new style of riding and love the feeling of those carves. Any feed back from all you trench diggers is much appreciated. Did not see much of you this week end at mammoth (2/15-2/18). Can't blame you though. The place was super crowded and a complete hazard. Hopefully after this coming storm there will be more of you out there next week end! Cheers

Thanks to BlueB and oldvolvosrule for responding to my last post and giving me a few tips. Since then I've gone back on my F2 speedster and fell in love with it again. It's definitely stiffer than the other board I tried but I found that was an asset when working on my turns. Carved a few days this holiday week end at mammoth but man was it crowded! Wll go back up for one more day and carve some more in the morning after changing my bindings and fixing them. Cheers

Thanks for the feed back. I will work on perfecting my technique starting tomorrow morning. On my way to mammoth as we speak. Will be there through the week end. Where do you ride?

Thanks for the feed back. Ill check the articles out. Last time I read some instructions on carving I thought it was too technical and put too much information out. Kindda encouraging to know that size does not matter much and that the F2 might work out. I'm looking forward to trying it out again with the tips I got from that one racer. Kindda discouraging g to know that at 200lb I should be able to flex/load any board. At 44 there's. bit of a learning curve and I'm using muscles I did not know existed. That being said I'm motivated to get those carves down! Will update u later with my progress

Hey carvers, I've been toying with carving for the last year and am trying to get a sense of the kinds of boards I need to look for. Heres a bit of my story and observations. Some feed back would be great. I bought a 173 F2 Speedster from a friend last year. I find that board is very stiff and fast. It does not seem very appropriate for the deep carves I want to make with body laying on the snow. I borrowed a 168 identity snowboards inc from the same friend and rode that for the first time a few weeks ago in mammoth. That board had a little more flex but it felt too small ( Im 6.2 and 200lb) Also the board was chattering a lot and the tail would spin out on the turns. I spread the bindings as far as they would go and that seemed to help. I hooked up with and ex racer during that trip and he gave me a few pointers: -load the board: stay low with center of gravity in the middle of the bindings but weight on front foot. - turn with the knees - keep you butt tucked in and your hands on either side of the front boot. - on the turns slightly straighten out to release the board and let it do the rest. I did all this and had the biggest baddest thigh burn that lasted for days. I was able to make some good turns heel side and locked in an edge a couple times. I felt the board dig into the snow and get a little more speed ( when I locked an edge with the F2 it felt like the board would go in hyper drive and speed up ). The heel side turns were easier to make when I crouched down kept my weight on the front foot and kept facing forward. I had the hardest time making the connection to the toe side though, and after a couple hours started using my hips to turn. questions: what is the ideal board to do the euro carves? How does length flex and width contribute to carvabilty? What length is ideal for me? is the F2 more of a racing board? On the turns, what are some tips to practice on my upcoming trip? how do I make the switch after a long heel side turn? I know I don't sound very technical and am very aware that the rider makes the turn, not the board. I'd really like to get a set of good tips on what to work on during my next trip. you guys are great and have shared some great advice to us newbies. Your responses are appreciated. Thanks

Hey there. New to forum. Ill be in mmth on mlk week end as well and would love to meet some carvers. I will be arriving Saturday morning (leaving SB at 3 am so should be riding by 10) and will be parking at the mill. Planning on starting as soon as chair 2 opens on Sunday and Monday. Will keep an eye out and hopefully will get to meet some of you! there may be some crowds but the mountain is big enough. Ever carved the backside? Cheers