Alex Walters Posted March 27, 2005 Report Share Posted March 27, 2005 I've been snowboarding for a few years (about 5 or so). I'm fairly good but most of the time I just rent whatever crap the local shops have for me. I'm going on a trip tomorrow and decided it would be better to get a piece of crap board than will last me a little while rather than rent. So I have the board now. On the trip I'm going to try to learn to carve and such. Tonight I set the bindings to a steep angle (45*/30*). I'm not worried about the angle but I was just wondering if you guys had any tips that might help me. Or anything else I can do to make my softboot setup closer to what I would find in a hardboot setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueB Posted March 27, 2005 Report Share Posted March 27, 2005 Good thinking getting your own board. Rental stuff takes lots of beating and often does not have any camber left in it. I also started carving on soft gear - not an expert, but here's few tips from my experience. Try your new angles, but it could prove to be too much for softies. If your bindings didn't have 3rd strap, you would probably find that the hightback is not doing its job properly at 45 angle. You also do not want to move your feet too far from the edge - loss of leverage. Whatever gives you 0 overhang is about right. 35/25 worked for me. Increase lean angle on the highbacks, especially on the rear one. Crank the straps until your feet are starting to go num while riding, and release/relax while on lift. Use stiffest "soft" boots you can find. Pulling the laces really tight also helps. Some manufacturers have the soft plastic inserts that can be added in the cuff (front is more important). Step 2 would be to rent the alpine gear for a try. Alternatively, buy some cheap used plate bindings and hardboots and put them on your board. I personally use the ski boots, as I like jumping from skis to board and back and do not mind extra stiffness. Enjoy carving and give us the story of how it went. Boris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Walters Posted March 27, 2005 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2005 The bindings are at angles where there is 0 overhang. I'll try increasing the lean angle. The bindings don't have a 3rd strap but I'll be sure to crank them. I have them pretty tight most of the time anyway. If I like carving I'm definatly going to look into getting some used gear and trying to rent some of the stuff if I can find it. I'm leaving on the trip today. I hope I have some fun carving. Sadly it would appear the highback adjustments are somewhat broken. I guess that's what you get for buying used gear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted March 27, 2005 Report Share Posted March 27, 2005 Definitely have the board tuned up - sharp edges make a big difference. Then see if you can do The Norm. Also check out our Welcome Center for new carvers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Sub Posted March 27, 2005 Report Share Posted March 27, 2005 If you read this before you start ridin, perhaps try not having such a big difference between binding angles. I find it more comfortable to have a max of say 5-7* difference. just athought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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