nitro Posted February 1, 2020 Report Share Posted February 1, 2020 (edited) what happened to alpine snow board racing ? it seems to be more about a repetitive precision , along with the best line of plate tech on every course to win .what happened to racing just the board ? Is there some lack in fitness that requires added tech to compensate? Edited February 1, 2020 by nitro added subject Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.E Posted February 1, 2020 Report Share Posted February 1, 2020 Naw- tech evolved, but they are as skilled and fit as ever. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueB Posted February 1, 2020 Report Share Posted February 1, 2020 6 hours ago, nitro said: what happened to alpine snow board racing ? it seems to be more about a repetitive precision , along with the best line of plate tech on every course to win .what happened to racing just the board ? Is there some lack in fitness that requires added tech to compensate? You touched on 2 topics... Repetitive, yes, that's how the courses are set. Nothing new to that. Plates are just a development of the technology. Skiers had them for few decades already. As everyone gets better gear (after an original breakthrough), the fittest man with the best technigue still wins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.E Posted February 1, 2020 Report Share Posted February 1, 2020 (edited) Just look around some of the top riders IG accounts and look at their off season training. The level of fitness and athleticism is as high as it's ever been. Course layout has changed, so the approach to getting down the hill fastest has compensated, but check out some free riding footage. Alpine snowboarding keeps getting more rad. Edited February 4, 2020 by Mr.E 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pow4ever Posted February 1, 2020 Report Share Posted February 1, 2020 kobayashi The hot dog eating guy is a good example. before kobayashi the ceiling is ~20 dogs/bunS and everyone eat the traditional way. he completely change the game by break from the norm. Now everyone compete the same way by dunking bun in water. same as racing; micro optimization are evolved/incremental; hence everyone ride the similar equipments, similar style because it worked. until a better mouse trap is invented aka “kobayashi-ed”/some thing revolution that change the land scape; once that happen everyone will be copying that setup/technique 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freezer Posted February 2, 2020 Report Share Posted February 2, 2020 I gotta say- that's a pretty revolting analogy... 1 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitro Posted February 3, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2020 (edited) On 2/1/2020 at 11:01 AM, pow4ever said: kobayashi The hot dog eating guy is a good example. before kobayashi the ceiling is ~20 dogs/bunS and everyone eat the traditional way. he completely change the game by break from the norm. Now everyone compete the same way by dunking bun in water. same as racing; micro optimization are evolved/incremental; hence everyone ride the similar equipments, similar style because it worked. until a better mouse trap is invented aka “kobayashi-ed”/some thing revolution that change the land scape; once that happen everyone will be copying that setup/technique when do they swap out the hot dogs for some cream cheese? Edited February 3, 2020 by nitro . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TVR Posted February 3, 2020 Report Share Posted February 3, 2020 I also fear a bit of lemmings mentality in the racing circuit.... all riding the same gear and all.... Having seen the huge difference in the height, weight, styles and all from all the different riders, I suspect it is the mentality of taking the safe route over the chance of equipment slowing you down.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pow4ever Posted February 3, 2020 Report Share Posted February 3, 2020 is our mind where the limitation lie or physical? IMHO body/mind are intertwine. back in the day snowboard freestyle that 360/720/1080 trick will get you a gold medal? now a day a 1080 is "boring"... Anyway to each, his or her own... Just merely answering the Q on why I think top competitor in sports train/gear in similar fashion. But I am an idiot so what do I know lol... "Best practices/Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" apply to business(how company are run); engineering, policy and etc etc. Here is hope that we look beyond the surface: there are lessons to be learn everywhere. http://freakonomics.com/podcast/a-better-way-to-eat-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast/ excerpt: "Takeru Kobayashi, who revolutionized the sport of competitive eating" "isn’t really about competitive eating. It’s about seeing what the rest of us can learn from the breakthroughs that Kobi accomplished in his training and his thinking" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigelc Posted February 3, 2020 Report Share Posted February 3, 2020 (edited) If a competitor thinks he/she is a better athlete or technician than the others then all they need is the same gear as everyone else to give them a decent chance to win. If they assess their ability as at best equal then they may spend time & money searching for an equipment edge. It then has to be a reasonable advantage as there is an "opportunity cost" to finding/inventing and developing new gear and the technique that comes with it. This is what happened with metal - the schoch brothers dominating on their Kessler's and isolation plates with Benny Karl dominating. What happened in the Vancouver PGS is why we see little innovation. After being almost unbeatable, Karl was ministered by an almost superhuman Jasey Jay Anderson on a catch-up copycat plate. Karl's advantage disappeared at the critical moment and he was edged by a better athlete on the day. Edited February 3, 2020 by nigelc ****ing spellcheck 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nitro Posted February 4, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2020 thread solved, thanks nigelc! & others who chimed in to my 5 beer rant 9 hours ago, nigelc said: If a competitor thinks he/she is a better athlete or technician than the others then all they need is the same gear as everyone else to give them a decent chance to win. If they assess their ability as at best equal then they may spend time & money searching for an equipment edge. It then has to be a reasonable advantage as there is an "opportunity cost" to finding/inventing and developing new gear and the technique that comes with it. This is what happened with metal - the schoch brothers dominating on their Kessler's and isolation plates with Benny Karl dominating. What happened in the Vancouver PGS is why we see little innovation. After being almost unbeatable, Karl was ministered by an almost superhuman Jasey Jay Anderson on a catch-up copycat plate. Karl's advantage disappeared at the critical moment and he was edged by a better athlete on the day. Ive ridden a few different style plates, they are nice at isolating rough terrain, enhancing my turns and doubling my riding hours with less fatigue . the newest style plates are way out of my league price wise so I wont comment on them, I only watch the pros battle with them. still curious if there ever will be restrictions to the plates use/design . seems the alpine snowboarder is restricted to a very few disciplines as it is. will focus on new plate tech advantages spoil the race by blowing up the competition with an I phone app for the alpine riderbot ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigelc Posted February 4, 2020 Report Share Posted February 4, 2020 Oh there will be somebody somewhere in a garage who just can't help themselves..... And eventually whatever it is will break out onto a racecourse somehow and the cycle will start again. Same as it ever was. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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