Wun Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 so, i'm having my real first days on an alpine stick. had to go to my bootfitter, and i ended up overpayin' for my eliminator tongue shims, but it does fill in the gap i didn't realize was in my boot, and hopefully it will take care of the nasty shin bang. i'll be havin' day two of my 09/10 season tomorra, and i can have a feeler on that. hopefully that takes care of big problem number one. next... i dig the bomber style. i want to square forward. i like speed. abel is my $@#%ing hero (i somewhat attribute his technique to bomber style, be it completely accurate or not). when watching bryan's video, however, i think about it, and abel must be a big dude, thus having big feet (and we all know what they say about people with big feet :rolleyes:) while riding an 18.2 width board. on the other hand, my only board's width is 20, and i have mondo 24 sized boots. my optimal angles (that is, shallowest with no overhang) are about 55-55. i anatomically have a pretty hard time trying to square forward, and it's hard to get a symmetrical vibe going on with my carves. i've been playing with my HSP forward lean/flex and TD2 disks for a while. i've just set my angles to 62.5-62.5 with some underhang and will test that out tomorra. is that common for people with my situation? does that ever happen at all with anyone else? do you guys just bite the bullet and go shallowest angles w/o overhang? am i just not tinkering enough with my gear? as for having fellow carvers watch and critique me, that won't happen until february, unfortunately afaik. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueB Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Just learn to ride with what you've got with close to optimal stance, first. Worry about styles later. Then learn to ride all the styles. Then learn to ride all board widths with all the different stances. Have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charliekarr Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Hey Wun, I believe I met you in the parking lot a while back. I have the b/w Coiler and my gf had a blue Burton FP. Anyway, we'll be there 12/23-12/26 and probably 1/1-1/3. Let me know if you want to meet up and geek out about gear/technique/etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Abel's style is very well suited to what he is: an exceptionally big, strong, athletic, aggressive rider who also has very precise technique. Most of us will never be able to do what he does. I recommend finding a comfortable stance first and worrying about style later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 aahh! you're alive! mom wants me home for christmas, so i'll probably be leaving to return home the night of the 24th at the latest (currently in tahoe). if you're around right when the blackout ends, that could be reason enough for me to come right back. definitely up for meeting on 23rd and/or 24th. * as for technique, i was hoping to knock a bit more out of the way, as i've already begun trying to do the exercises in some of the tech articles. i was hoping to be able to square forward right away along some of the other things i've been trying to do after all, i am invincible! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 and sadly, i had realized that abel's build and skill probably puts him in a league of his own. oh well. can't stop me from trying to emulate him eventually anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Don't worry too much about facing totally forward - I give that advice to total newbies just to keep them from facing the toeside edge. As long as you're facing at least your binding angles, that's all that matters. 55/55 isn't too low. I'm mostly just facing my binding angles here: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 noted; thanks. time to hit the slopes! smell ya later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 well, as advised, i never went with the underhang. took one run with what i previously had, and after the very first minor tweak today, everything miraculously changed for the better. i can actually comfortably overrotate a little if i wanted, and my carves feel a lot more sound. my shin bruises didn't really come out any worse than they were before i boarded today, so i guess the eliminators are working. i don't feel any problems anymore, for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoiler Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Why worry about facing forward? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEJ Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 Wun, I'll be at Tahoe 1-16 till 1-22. Staying at South Shore. Let's Ride! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Why worry about facing forward? Forgive my presumption if you're not new to alpine. Common technique within a certain style of carving. As I understand, primarily it helps to avoid counter-rotation (particularly on heelsides), which many consider to be bad. Seems some people may like it also for the symmetrical vibes with a sturdy, efficient stance without too much "wasted" movement. If you're new here, check out the links in Jack Michaud's signature. Edit: Paragraphs 4-7 from one of Jack's links has an explanation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Wun, I'll be at Tahoe 1-16 till 1-22. Staying at South Shore. Let's Ride! Are you coming to Heavenly? I have a pass there and owe my mom lots o' dough, so I'm not so much in a position to go anywhere else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban Carving Gooding Posted December 23, 2009 Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Wun I will see you at Heavenly February 5-27 riding every day. For two weeks of that time we should have 3 - 5 hard booters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wun Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 looking forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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