I want to switch to Alpine!

[v94]

Hey everyone!

I just finished snowboarding this season.

Unfortunately for me I live quite far from the slopes, and being so expensive (alps, dolomites. I live in italy, amazing mountains!) I can only go 1 or 2 weeks a year, but I always try to make the best of it (this year I have done a lot over 200km in a week, and one day I was too sick to board!)

Having that said, I love snowboarding. I am 18 and I only started going on the mountains 4 years ago. I went with the snowboard straight away because of my instincts: going sideways with both feet on a board just felt more "right".

I did not regret this decision, it's the most fun I ever had.

After 4 years of soft snowboarding though, I feel like I can't get much more out of it and that I need "the next step".

I can go down the slopes very fast, on black tracks i make quite smooth carves and even overtake many skiers, i can ride switch, do some jumps, boxes.

Thing is, I mostly ride on tracks. Yes, I do the occasional powder ride or park session, but I figured I spend 90% of the time on the tracks.

At one point I got quite frustrated because I could not keep up in terms of speed with my skiing friends, and because I feel my snowboard fun has been saturated.

But then just this week I saw an older looking folk, probably in his early 60's, carving like a crazy mother****er on his alpine board. I just looked at him in awe. Amazing carves, he was splitting the slope in half and hugging the mountain. I decided that's what I want to do. I'm tired of not being able to push myself further down the tracks.

Now, I have a few questions:

1. Given the fact that I am pretty good on a soft board, does that mean it will help riding an alpine? I spend very little time every year on the slopes so I wouldn't want to spend the next 3 years trying to learn how to get down a red slope.

2. Is it worth getting a private instructor for alpine?

3. Where can I find used gear in Europe, better yet Italy? I only found a couple boards for sale on italian Ebay which aren't even the right size for me.

:D:D:D

Edited February 16, 2013 by v94

[dingbat]

1. Given the fact that I am pretty good on a soft board, does that mean it will help riding an alpine? I spend very little time every year on the slopes so I wouldn't want to spend the next 3 years trying to learn how to get down a red slope.

Depends. Are you carving or skidding your turns on the soft boot board? Getting down might not take 3 years, but getting down well might. Still worth making the switch in my opinion.

2. Is it worth getting a private instructor for alpine?

Yes. The answer to this question is always yes.

3. Where can I find used gear in Europe, better yet Italy? I only found a couple boards for sale on italian Ebay which aren't even the right size for me.

:D:D:D

Check around all the forums. http://www.extremecarving.com/forum/index.php, http://www.frozen-backside.de/, etc.

Glad you found your way here... Good luck!

[v94]

On the soft boot board I am both carving and skidding, depending from the situation and from what I want to achieve, but I definitely can carve; maybe not fantastically but I can carve.

I will surely be getting an instructor from the first day next year then :) Hopefully the stars will align for me and I will be able to go for a few more days next month.

Thanks a lot. I will be looking for some used gear.

I am looking at the FAQ threads. I am unsure whether I want an allmountain or racing board. I want to ride on the tracks the whole time pretty much.

Also, does it work well with bumps? My friends with skis complain all the time after 1pm when the tracks aren't flat anymore, is that a problem with a hard board?

[dingbat]

It's like anything else. There are ultra stiff racing set-ups that would be a nightmare in the bumps and woods, but cut epic turns on the groom, and there are softer, wider, set-ups that would take more skill to hold a clean edge with but handle bumps with ease. I would recommend looking for and all purpose boards along the lines of a Donek Axxess or a Pure Boarding Two (Joerg just redesigned the Two so there may be some new old stock to be had at a deal) and a soft boot and binding combo like one of the softer Deeluxe/Raichle or UPZ models. Stay away from step-in bindings for bumps as well.

[v94]

right. thank you very much :)

[b0ardski]

The marginal difference in stiffness from step-ins does not prevent riding bumps, I've been ripping bumps in them for a long time, too stiff of boots will make bumps and off piste more difficult.

[tufty]

Thanks a lot. I will be looking for some used gear.

German or swiss ebay are a good starting point, although italian ebay seems to have a certain number of boards at the moment. I don't know if italy has second-hand ski sales, like the french "bourse aux skis", but they are worth checking out as well if you can.

I'd go for something relatively wide to start with, ~20cm waist (which will allow you to start with angles that aren't insane), and with a reasonable turn radius - starting off with a 17cm wide, 180cm long board with an 18m radius is liable to end badly. I'd probably look for a boardercross board rather than a pure alpine rig.

Also, does it work well with bumps? My friends with skis complain all the time after 1pm when the tracks aren't flat anymore, is that a problem with a hard board?

You can do bumps / moguls on hardboots, although it's an "acquired taste". For chopped up crud at the end of the day, most hard setups will slice through it like a hot knife through butter.

[purpletiesto]

Oxess sell second hand BX boards with 23cm waists for around 590-790CHF. Can't imagine shipping being much over the border...