Tips and Tricks: Learning How to Snowboard

It is Friday evening. The work week is over and you are sitting at home watching the evening news and a call comes in. Your best friend is asking if you want to come up and snowboard with him/her tomorrow. Awesome that your best friend is making the offer! However, you don’t know how to snowboard. How easy is it to learn how to snowboard? It all depends on your previous experience and how much self-confidence and willpower you have.

Snowboarding can be an intimidating sport to take on. However, from my experience of learning how to snowboard and with a couple of the Emerald Pacific Outfitters snowboarders putting in their thoughts and tips, this blog post will hopefully give you a little insight about the world of snowboarding to make your learning experience easier.

Tip #1: Wear multiple layers and bring spare clothing.

On the first day of learning how to snowboard, you will go down and go down a lot. The best thing you can do is wear multiple layers and bring spare clothing to stay warm, stay dry and keep yourself from freezing while up on the mountain. If you have Underarmour or any kind of equivalent base layer that is made for keeping in your body heat, wear it. It is very important to maintain normal body temperature so you don’t freeze or overheat while up on the slopes.

Tip #2: Watch YouTube videos leading up to your first day.

This is personally what I did and it is this tip that has helped me to learn how to snowboard. Watch various clips about the basics of snowboarding and what to expect when you go up. The worst thing you can possibly do is go into a new environment without doing your research beforehand. Some of the basic things you need to know will include knowing how to turn using your heel and toe, how to avoid other snowboarders and skiers, how to board and exit a chairlift, how your board works and how to strap it on, and etc. Some of the best instructional videos on YouTube that I have used have been ExpertVillage. I highly recommend watching their snowboard tutorials before embarking. They are a bit on the corny side, but the videos are definitely helpful when learning the basics.

Tip #3: Rent equipment that is comfortable.

I cannot stress enough how important this tip is. There is a terrible stereotype in the snowboarding community that snowboarders wear baggy and sagging clothing up to snowboard. This is NOT what you want to do. In fact, try to rent equipment that is something that is natural to your body type. Do not get something that is too tight or too baggy, it should be comfortable depending on your definition of comfortable. The same principle applies to renting boots. You do not want boots that are too tight or too loose. Remember that you will be wearing these boots all day long. If they are too tight, you will have a jammed toe at the end of the day. If they are too loose, your feet will be wiggling around while you are boarding down the mountain, you won’t be able to turn properly and end up going down more often. Ultimately, you want a boot that is snug. Not too loose but not too tight. When fitting your boots, walk around with both of them on for a good ten to twenty minutes so you know that you are getting a boot that will be perfect when first learning.

Tip #4: If you have the option of bringing up a friend that is highly experienced in snowboarding, bring your experienced friend.

Snowboarding by yourself has the potential to really suck. Plain and simple. The most fun you can have snowboarding for your first time is when you are learning with an experienced friend by your side. Luckily, I have been able to bring up a couple EP snowboarders to teach me the proper way to snowboard. When bringing up an experienced friend, make sure they are the type of friend that will be by your side to help you learn. More often than not, I see friends of mine that have gone to learn and end up getting ditched for being the newbie. Do not bring that type of friend. If you can bring an experienced friend that is by your side to help you learn, you will surely have a better experience learning than having to experience the sport by yourself.

Tip #5: Rent equipment from a local board shop.

I am one of those types that believe in stimulating the local economy and small businesses. Being a small business myself, I appreciate when people choose my business over a big business. When renting equipment, I would highly recommend renting through your local board shop. Most of the time, the local board shop will be the most knowledgeable and nicest people to work with when it comes to renting and learning for your first time. The local board shop may also give you a great deal to make the experience easier on your wallet. A local board shop I would personally recommend would be the Rainier Boardshop in our very own Bonney Lake, Washington.

Keep these tips in mind when you are about to go up to learn how to snowboard! Taking these tips in mind will ensure that your snowboard experience is easier and better than if you came in blind. If you have any additional tips you would like to add, post up a comment and let people know about what you would recommend! For more information about the resorts closest to us, make sure to visit the database that we created in the Emerald Pacific Lodge which will include all the local resorts and weather/booking information. If you have any questions for me concerning learning how to snowboard or inquiries about future posts, make sure to shoot over an email to me at BrittonLorentzen@gmail.com and I will answer your email as soon as possible.