Are Ice-coasters Better riders ?

[www.oldsnowboards.com]

Ok, I'm going to get lots of Hate-mail for this question, but I'm curious of eastcoast riders are better than those from the west because of what we learn to ride in..... which is basicly the worst possible **** that we dare blast down without any concern.

Lastyear I was freeriding while not in lesson and chatted with some people from the midwest, and all they did was bitch about the conditions, and yet it actualy was one of the nicest days of conditions from lastyear.

Does this give us eastcoasters an advantage and make us better riders ?

Dave needs more butter

[Frank Morales]

Yeh lets meet at the boiler plate best man wins a tuning kit loser has to be out of town by sunset. West is the Best

[willywhit]

On thing ive noticed about this board.....

how quickly they go off topic!!

Does this give us eastcoasters an advantage and make us better riders ?

nobody said anything about more FUN !!!

No fun my babe no fun

No fun to hang around

Feeling that same old way

No fun to hang around

Freaked out for another day

No fun my babe no fun

Iggy Pop | No Fun

[willywhit]

c2c, you know I'm kidding.

of course, it's waaay better out west terrain wise and snow wise.

It's a question of: does the harsh conditions of the east breed "better" athletes than the ones that were "lucky" enough to grow up with better conditions to train on ?

Kinda like: did catholic school breed better students than the ones that weren't mentally tortured by parochial educators ?

Even Iggy will tell ya: Learning isn't fun

As one of my wisest college professors said when students were grumbling about having to learn formal definitions for a mathematics class, “I don’t know where people get the idea that learning is supposed to be fun. Learning can be fun, but it can also be really tough—even downright miserable. Knowing is fun."

[dano]

IGGY!!! Everybody needa a HOME!

Yeah that dark grey boiler plate is the best. Impossible to catch an edge on!

In my day, We drove up to Cannon after a nice 3 inch freezing rainstorm and we LIKED IT! What fog???!! Sleet is just as good as snow...!!

Leave it to us Pilgrims to find yet another way to brag about something that blows. ( GO SOX! )

All 25 or so of my career "LEGIT east coast powder days" could not match up to the any one of the freaking amazing snow daze I enjoyed while in Utah.

If I did jumps off crazy stuff out of bounds like that back home, I'd be DEAD. I also liked the way the groom is not all gobbled up before noon.

I think we east coasters have lower expectations for conditions so we're easier to please, we'll suck up whatever we can get and SAVOR it.

[willywhit]

and we think nothing of wearing a trashbag if the "snow" is coming down but isn't quite in frozen form yet.

runs are runs and "frozen granular" sounds better than ICE

[Frank Morales]

ya see now we're having fun.

[Justin A.]

runs are runs and "frozen granular" sounds better than ICE

Did you ever see that warren miller montage about "Hardpack Granular"? I just looked on youtube, but couldn't turn up anything. Its basically Warren ragging on snow reports, quality, classic WM. It shows alot of people clanking around in ski boots and falling while trying to climb a small rise that's covered in "hardpack granular", with a Warren Miller monolouge in the background.

[Chris]

hardpack granular........

or this?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-928879558236330974&q=snowboard+racing

[willywhit]

carnage: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5675783275122491754&q=snowboard+racing

really lucky:http://www.lat34.com/cr_johnson_profile

[www.oldsnowboards.com]

Glenn Plake to the rescue! Classic good guy indeed.

[gdboytyler]

Ok, I'm going to get lots of Hate-mail for this question, but I'm curious of eastcoast riders are better than those from the west because of what we learn to ride in..... which is basicly the worst possible **** that we dare blast down without any concern.

Considering the top alpine riders in the world come from Switzerland, which is known for nice fluffly powder, I call BS on the theory that ice coast conditions make better riders.

And in the West vs East department (for the US), the best freestyler is Shaun White who is from Cali. In alpine, there are 7 US Snowboard team members nominated from the west, and 5 from the East. 06/07 Team

Still no East Coast superiority.

And finally, West Coasters have more fun

[Slim]

It has been my observation that riders typically get good at riding the available conditions and terrain. For so-called 'ice coasters' this may result in well-developed hardpack and ice skills, but perhaps less developed skills in loose, choppy, and unpacked snow.

Does this make them better riders? Maybe on ice, when compared to riders w/o the requisite hard snow experience. But maybe not in pow, glop, slab, or chop.

I guess it comes down to what do you mean by better rider.

What do you mean?

[BobD]

It could be that although some riders develope great technique to deal with icey hard pack, others may be restricted in thier developement by often having to ride in poor conditions. It takes some determination to go out and push to your limits when it's bad, knowing you're going to get bruised up. Much easier to ride conservitively and not progress.

I've also heard that the argument that that so many great ski racers come from the east and midwest can be explained by the pitch of most hills and not thier ice technique. If you practice on less than perfect pitch for racing, that is, not steep enough. You must work harder to go fast.

BobD

[D-Sub]

is it really that bad, that often, back east?

sucks, because Ive considered heading out there to stay, maybe even NH to join the free state movement. They'd probably turn me away though.

[Gleb]

Considering the top alpine riders in the world come from Switzerland, which is known for nice fluffly powder, I call BS on the theory that ice coast conditions make better riders.

And in the West vs East department (for the US), the best freestyler is Shaun White who is from Cali. In alpine, there are 7 US Snowboard team members nominated from the west, and 5 from the East. 06/07 Team

Still no East Coast superiority.

And finally, West Coasters have more fun

then you have to compare how many people ski/ride on the east coast to how many on the west and so on :rolleyes:

[Guest kennyusmc]

No matter what I would prefer to ride in awesome tahoe weather with a good vertical climb newer high speed chairs. Comparing to members mountains one one the east and one on the west.

easy coast

Elevation

Top: 2380 ft

Bottom: 1230 ft

Vertical Drop: 1150 ft

Longest Run: 2 mi

vs west coast

Elevation

Top: 8610 ft

Bottom: 6330 ft

Vertical Drop: 2280 ft

Longest Run: 2.9 mi

Snow Making: 17 acres

[paappraiser]

IceCoast...

Im in the land called " Iceland"

The ice we get here is from the whole mountain going into the mid 40's during the day. Then refreezing... Then they blow 2 inches of crap snow on top at night ... dust on ICE... basically...you fall, your sore.

Its actually BLUE/green sometimes when you move the dust off it.

We go out west because a crappy west coast day is a PERFECT lower east coast day...

Are east coast riders better? Naw.. mabey just mabey a little better at ice and poor conditions and a little more happy to sharpen our edges.

[willywhit]

Team - A

Name Hometown Date of Birth Height Weight Olympics

Michelle Gorgone Sudbury, MA October 18, 1983 5-2 150 2006

Team - B

Name Hometown Date of Birth Height Weight Olympics

Tyler Jewell Sudbury, MA February 21, 1977 5-9 185 2006

Chris Klug Aspen, CO November 18, 1972 6-3 220 1998, 2002

Eric Warren Bennington, VT April 11, 1982 5-10 175

Team - C

Name Hometown Date of Birth Height Weight Olympics

Stacia Hookom Edwards, CO July 22, 1975 5-3 145

Zachary Kay Mount Shasta, CA August 18, 1981 6-0 185

Linsday Lloyd Centerville, UT February 18, 1981 5-6 'ye

Ryan McDonald Entiat, WA January 02, 1980 6-4 228

Erica Mueller Steamboat Springs, CO June 25, 1981 5-4 140

Justin Reiter Steamboat Springs, CO February 02, 1981 5-11 155

Adam Smith Bend, OR September 07, 1980 6-2 225

Josh Wylie Londonderry, VT July 07, 1981 6-0 190

the a and b team hail from the east coast, the "better" riders that is

Gretchen Bleiler Aspen, CO April 10, 1981 5-4 120 2006

Michelle Gorgone Sudbury, MA October 18, 1983 5-2 150 2006

Jayson Hale Sierraville, CA June 26, 1985 5-9 155 2006

Nate Holland Squaw Valley, CA November 08, 1978 5-10 185 2006

Lindsey Jacobellis Stratton Mountain, VT August 19, 1985 5-5 120 2006

Lindsey Jacobellis Stratton Mountain, VT August 19, 1985 5-5 120 2006

Tyler Jewell Sudbury, MA February 21, 1977 5-9 185 2006

Jason Smith Basalt, CO January 11, 1982 6-1 180 2006

Hannah Teter Belmont, VT January 27, 1987 5-6 140 2006

Graham Watanabe Sun Valley, ID March 19, 1982 5-6 150 2006

Seth Wescott Carrabassett Valley, ME June 28, 1976 6-1 195 2006

olympic team is split 50/50 -well, not if ya count lindsey twice

[Jack M]

Considering the top alpine riders in the world come from Switzerland, which is known for nice fluffly powder, I call BS on the theory that ice coast conditions make better riders.

Apples and oranges. Skiing in Switzerland is like baseball here. There are chairlifts in every town. That region is a factory for skiing talent. No comparison.

And in the West vs East department (for the US), the best freestyler is Shaun White who is from Cali.

No surprise there. Western riders can huck their carcasses at will, knowing they will probably not get hurt. The idea of even attempting a 900+ rotor or anything inverted here is simply unfathomable to most eastern riders.

In alpine, there are 7 US Snowboard team members nominated from the west, and 5 from the East. 06/07 Team

Interesting. Is the ratio of east/west snowboarder populations 5/7? Doubt it.

Give it up. When an east coast rider goes west, it's like Superman leaving planet Krypton.

[Tommy D]

is it really that bad, that often, back east?

sucks, because Ive considered heading out there to stay, maybe even NH to join the free state movement. They'd probably turn me away though.

Not anymore... Usually. At least at Stratton, the grooming is so good, that the snow is fantastic, for at least an hour. :lol: Then it gets a bit choppy, but still managable.

Last "winter" was particularly bad ... melting temps during the day, then rain/snow at night almost every week made for some rather miserable riding. But for that first hour or so, the rest of the riding was painful.

When an east coast rider goes west, it's like Superman leaving planet Krypton.

Yes.

[Guest waterstreet]

This isn't for sure but I've heard many people from the East can handle the ice like cake, but the constant need of sharp edges cuts down on the life of their boards. So I guess in saying this I have a question myself.

Do riders from the East always need to have sharp edges to have a good day out on the ice?

[Kirk]

Apples and oranges. Skiing in Switzerland is like baseball here. There are chairlifts in every town.

Considering the fact that we're talking about the prevailing conditions of a particular region and the type of athletes that are "brought up" riding/skiing those conditons, I'd say it's an interesting observation.

"That region is a factory for skiing talent."

Interesting. From reading the posts above, some people here seem to be making the same claim about the east coast. Seems we have some from both sides of the Mississippi,- makes sense to me. Serious talent from one coast to the next, and some in between.

This is an absolutely POINTLESS argument. Riding is riding! You get used to the conditions you ride in regularly. You go somewhere else, you adjust your technique to those conditions. I would have to agree, keeping the edges sharp and appropriately beveled is going to be extra important for riding the hard stuff. Oh, and falling on that hard stuff is gonna hurt more :(

"Give it up. When an east coast rider goes west, it's like Superman leaving planet Krypton."

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Cool! The blue tights/red butt-huggers combo would make a very unique speed suit. Does the cape really give you any speed advantages? I'll want an autograph to be sure!

[Mike T]

This is an absolutely POINTLESS argument.

Not to mention divisive. We've been here before... do we need to feed the fire?

[Jack M]

Considering the fact that we're talking about the prevailing conditions of a particular region and the type of athletes that are "brought up" riding/skiing those conditons, I'd say it's an interesting observation.

"That region is a factory for skiing talent."

Interesting. From reading the posts above, some people here seem to be making the same claim about the east coast.

No, it's a matter of population. In Switzerland, the percentage of kids who are brought up skiing is probably similar to the percentage of American kids brought up playing baseball. The best talent rises to the top. That's why the best baseball players in the world come from regions where lots of people play baseball (America, Japan, Dominican Republic...) There might be dozens of Bode Millers walking around New Hampshire who have simply never skied.

In America, most kids who ski do so just for the fun of it, and if their parents can afford it, not because there is a "Little League" they can join. Then within the relatively tiny American skiing minority, it is a minority of kids who realize "hey, I'm pretty good at this" and whose parents want to make the lifestyle commitment of joining/paying for a racing program. By that time, those kid's Swiss counterparts probably already have a 5-10 year head start in the gates.