A sport for loners

[1xsculler]

I'm finding hardboard carving a sport for loners at my, and probably most, local resorts.

And damn I struggle with controlling my speed without skidding out to scrub it off...and my quads give out after only two hours...very frustrating!

[TVR]

too bad you are not in New England. If you were you could suffer the ice with us and as we look at each other and wonder why we do it, it could then get into the teens to wake us to frostbite...

 

Keep it going man... a labor of love...

[BlueB]

1 hour ago, 1xsculler said:

I'm finding hardboard carving a sport for loners at my, and probably most, local resorts.

Why? What stops you from being buddies with skiers & softbooters? 

[jim_s]

Yeah, its lonely in terms of other hard-booters, but I've got some strong skiers that I ride with, so it stays fun and social. Granted, I have to wait for them at the bottom of the hill, but that's Ok... ;-> (And on solo days, there are always the endless lift questions about the weird thing hanging from my feet...). I've also got a few soft-booting friends who have kinda caught the carving bug at little bit, and ride their soft-boot boards with a little more panache than they used to! :-) As BlueB says, its just a matter of hanging with the skiing folks, and the occasional like-minded soft-booter. Not everyone is enlightened, but it doesn't make them any less (ok, at least not much less...) human!

 

[Carvin' Marvin]

Smile more and complete turns across the fall line? Not everyone needs to be on the same equipment to have a good time together. Besides our weekly carving get-together I usually ride with park rats, solo, or wth my skiing wife. You might have to expand your horizons if you want to ride in a group because not everyone wants to lap groomers all day. 

[Neil Gendzwill]

1 hour ago, 1xsculler said:

And damn I struggle with controlling my speed without skidding out to scrub it off...

Practice continuing your turn until you are going uphill.  Alternately get comfy with speed.

[Corey]

Oh man, yes.  I ride by myself almost exclusively when at home.  Sometimes I'll do some laps with someone I bump into, but if they're 'good' they usually just bomb runs and can't understand why it takes me so long to get down while I go 'so fast'.  

Commit to doing a few J-turns to help your brain realize that you slow down real fast if you finish going across the run or even pointing uphill slightly.  Yes, you're going to fall over, and that's ok.  See the Intermediate clinic video that Mr. SunSurfer made a few years ago for some examples.  I find that you need to do it a few times before things click and it becomes a viable option in your head.  A skid is ok too when conditions warrant it.  Don't carve into a tree because some idiot online said you should do J-turns.  ;)  

Quad pain gets better with practice.  Early on, you're probably super-tense and trying to do all the things that you've read about.  (See me trying to ski - ugly and I'm exhausted quickly)  After a bit of practice, you start to flow a bit better with your subconscious controlling the subtle movements.

I think this is the Intermediate Clinic video, can't access YouTube right now: http://www.youtube.com/embed/U8WCcie09Q0

[1xsculler]

Thanks for the replies and the suggestions.

It seems to me hardbooting is hardbooting and while it is just another way to get down the mountain I don't see any way a hardbooter, a softbooter and a skiier can very well ride and enjoy the same runs together and meet at the bottom of the lift.  Skiers and softbooters, yes, as both enjoy the steep and the deep but hardbooting seems to be totally terrain and condition specific.  I would never expect my ski buddies, with whom I have decades of skiing with, to have any interest in the slopes I am trying to become a decent carver on and I won't improve my carving if I try to do the steep and the deep with them.  I am friendly with everyone on the hill and they are friendly with me...no problem but I've now been up to Crystal Mt. WA, about forty times, combining last year and nine trips this year and I've only encountered one other hardboot carver.  I'd love to find just one guy on one day to try to follow down the Mt.  I know I would learn a lot and I may even have a break through day.

I do work on J-turns and I watch the utube vids.  They are very helpful and I do become more competent with each run I make.

[Carvin' Marvin]

1 hour ago, 1xsculler said:

It seems to me hardbooting is hardbooting and while it is just another way to get down the mountain I don't see any way a hardbooter, a softbooter and a skiier can very well ride and enjoy the same runs together and meet at the bottom of the lift.  Skiers and softbooters, yes, as both enjoy the steep and the deep but hardbooting seems to be totally terrain and condition specific.  I would never expect my ski buddies, with whom I have decades of skiing with, to have any interest in the slopes I am trying to become a decent carver on and I won't improve my carving if I try to do the steep and the deep with them.  

Here's your problem. A hard boot setup is by no means limited by terrain or conditions. However it sounds like you are still at the point where you are most comfortable on easy groomers. I would start posting on the PNW ride board to find someone to take a few laps with.  

Your view of hard booting as a "loner" and "narcissistic" sport is a little closed minded.  At the end of the day it is a stiff snowboard that excels at carving. If I showed up to the hill and told my crew we were riding groomers all day I would get laughed at and left. I don't mean to offend, but work on your craft and realize the potential before forming these prejudices.

[BlueB]

^ I agree. Ride everything. You'll probably need more then 1 board, though. 

[billyt.]

Now you will have more time at the bar!

6 hours ago, 1xsculler said:

I'm finding hardboard carving a sport for loners at my, and probably most, local resorts.

And damn I struggle with controlling my speed without skidding out to scrub it off...and my quads give out after only two hours...very frustrating!

 

[jng]

2 hours ago, 1xsculler said:

I've now been up to Crystal Mt. WA, about forty times, combining last year and nine trips this year and I've only encountered one other hardboot carver.  I'd love to find just one guy on one day to try to follow down the Mt.  I know I would learn a lot and I may even have a break through day.

 

Due to the parking/shuttle situation at Crystal, I ride one board for the entire day. Some folks on the forum will ride anything in hardboots, so good on them. I have hardbooted at Crystal before, but I personally find softboots more versatile for their terrain on most days.

PM me if you want meet at Crystal some day. Don't mind an excuse to hardboot there again.

[Neil Gendzwill]

I have two boards, one that is better for groomed and one that is better for the rest. But neither of them are that specalized. I won't be too happy with my Nirvana 180 in tight trees, big bumps or steep/deep but it will be fine short of that. The AMT 167 is a little squirrely at speed but still carves fine. 

I'm a big believer in hard boots for general-purpose riding. 

[snowwjob1]

2 hours ago, Carvin' Marvin said:

 I don't see any way a hardbooter, a softbooter and a skiier can very well ride and enjoy the same runs together and meet at the bottom of the lift. 

One it sounds like the start of a bad joke. My entire group is a mix of hardbooters skiers and soft booters and we can all tear it up the skiers enjoy trying to match my lines and the softbooters just try to keep up.

[barryj]

I feel your struggle Sculler.. I agree it would be great to ride with somebody to get some feedback and socialize,  but it's a rare day I see another hardbooter out here also.   I can count them on one hand for all of last season......but the need for speed keeps me going back solo to refine my skills.

As for your quads giving out in two hours...........I would attribute some of that to early season leg muscles adapting to new loads and stresses.......but a big factor in that could also be your board.

I rode multiple Virus boards for a number of seasons and loved them all but found them too stiff for my 61 year old quads as my Quads would only last 2-3 hours of hard charging.  Switching to a Swoard Dual really increased my fun factor and daily riding time easily tripled before i was shot.      

Also finding Moss boards which I use for fun and work has really opened my eyes as how relaxed riding can be with their surfy shapes.....check them out at:   mosssnowstick.com     Evo online is carrying a few Moss models but Tahoe Sports Hub here In Truckee has their  full lineup to buy or demo!

[nextcarve]

If you want a versatile hard boot snowboard, head over to Pure Boarding.

They are made for groomers, bumps and pow.

Pure Boarding also offers courses at Aspen Snowmass to improve your skills.

[Jack M]

13 hours ago, 1xsculler said:

Thanks for the replies and the suggestions.

It seems to me hardbooting is hardbooting and while it is just another way to get down the mountain I don't see any way a hardbooter, a softbooter and a skiier can very well ride and enjoy the same runs together and meet at the bottom of the lift.

I do it all the time. The only way it works though is if everyone agrees on one thing. You either go ahead of me, or behind me, but you do not try to pass me and I won’t pass you. 

[michael.a]

Here in Europe with countries far smaller and ski resorts more concentrated than in the US it’s been very easy to meet up with other carvers, with tons of carving sessions, hardboot camps, and get togethers. A quarter of my FB friends are hardbooters Ive met :) Many people get together for weekend trips, or even week-long vacations. Not a loner sport at all!

Edited December 16, 2017 by michael.a

[FrankNBeans]

sorry, I had to:

 

 

[softbootsurfer]

Carving turns with others is a serious distraction, no matter what they are on...really it is very much like eating, if you don't pay attention, everything can end up in your lap...leave the top and meet at the bottom...Stay way from as many people as you can and focus on your line...Carving demands our full and undivided attention at all times...everyone going down Copper at the same time, people get hurt, right Fin ?

[Technick]

I had the same problems a couple years back... My board was to stiff, with a too short sidecut radius (160cm SL board with a 10m scr), I was not preparing myself with leg exercises before the season and was riding alone, most of the time with a bad technique. I couldn't control my speed on steeps so I had to slide brake often. One day I decided to update my equipment (after 15 years riding the same setup) and the guy that gave me advice at the store told me to come to this site for tips and to meet other carvers from my region, It changed my life! Before that I was about to abandon hardboot and go back to softboots or skis! So with my new F2 Silberpfeil 172 (12m sidecut radius) and new Deeluxe Free69 boots I went to the slopes and met one of the local rider. We became good friends and rode often together, he helped me correct my bad form and initiated me to "Extreme Carving"...  So yes, finishing your turns by turning until you go a litle bit uphill will help alot with your speed control. If you have problems "finishing your turns" it might be because of your hips, it was mine... I was not rotating my hips and shoulders enough in the direction I was turning (my board was turning faster than my body) so I could not finish my turns completely, especialy heel side. A good way to get advice would be to get someone to film you riding and post it here, you should get tons of good tips! :) 

[Jack M]

11 hours ago, nextcarve said:

If you want a versatile hard boot snowboard, head over to Pure Boarding.

They are made for groomers, bumps and pow.

Pure Boarding also offers courses at Aspen Snowmass to improve your skills.

No need. He has Coilers. 

[t-nut]

As something of a loner myself, the individualistic aspect of alpine snowboarding is something that attracted me to the sport. During dry periods, I know certain people who begin to gripe and complain that there's no powder... no matter to me. Carving is a great way to escape their negativity! I like not having to compromise with others on which run we're going to ride, and simply being able to focus on doing my thing.

 

[b0ardski]

there's something to be said going your own pace

 

[st_lupo]

A loner sport with fiddly hardware and a steep (pun intended?) learning curve?  Suites me fine!  Is there anything better than taking smug glances at the rental equipment on the feet of the other people sharing the chairlift while sitting with arms folded and leaning as far away from them as possible?  Even better are the nights where you suddenly wake, bolt upright,  with your heart pounding in sweat soaked sheets with the taste of pine bark in my mouth and the dim recollection of shooting off into the woods at 60 mph after catching an off-side edge on chopped up ice.

Or... Maybe its Europe, but I've probably met more people and wound up riding with more random strangers because of the weird looking board dangling from my foot.  For me one of the best social aspects of hardbooting is that it almost brings back the vibe of snowboarding in the early(ish) days, where most boarders were weirdos and just doing their own thing, and when you met another like-minded snowboarder it was always a party.