SNOWBOARDING

GENERAL BENEFITS

• Improves strength, cardiovascular fitness, agility, balance, and athleticism.
• Develops a positive attitude and persistence

KIDS WHO TEND TO EXCEL

• Snowboarding requires muscle strength, stamina, and aerobic fitness.

• It relies on hip and knee movements to steer and complete turns, so leg muscles need to be strong

• Balance is important.

BEST AGE TO START

• While your child may be able to start skiing as young as 3, snowboarding should be started several years later because it requires more muscle strength and coordination. Unlike skiing, your child cannot simply slide straight on a snowboard, but instead, must have strong enough muscles to turn the board. In addition, learning to snowboard demands a great deal of focus and attention from your child.

• Most programs begin offering snowboarding lessons for children as young as age 5, but most children lack the control and coordination needed until ages 7 to 10. The advantage of starting snowboarding when your child is young is that he doesn’t have too far to fall, has little or no concept of fear, and has relatively few inhibitions.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN GETTING STARTED

• Many ski resorts provide all-day or half-day lessons for all levels and abilities. Private lessons and specialty workshops are also available if your child wants individual attention or to specialize in one area of the sport.

• The caliber of a snowboard school is a function of the quality of the staff. Ask if the staff is experienced working with children, and has certified by either AASI or PSIA. Both organizations offer an ACE (Advanced Children’s Educator) certification. Look for an instructor who works specifically with your child’s age group.

• Lessons should include basic skills such as edging, how to apply appropriate pressure to the board, and steering. If your child does not know how the edges of a snowboard work, he can take some pretty hard falls from catching the downhill edge and eventually become very frustrated. In the beginning, your child will need to determine his stance on the board. Most riders board with their left foot forward. However, some snowboarders go “goofy,” leading with their right foot. The instructor can help your child find his best lead foot to gain maximum control and comfort. Lessons speed your child’s progress and ensure his skills are solid.

• Your child has to persevere through the intense initial stages of learning. Snowboarding is not as easy as it looks, and your child will need determination to succeed. Usually, it will take a child one to three days to get the basics down.

COMPETITIVE SNOWBOARDING

• Most children who decide to compete move into competitive programs between 10 and 16 years old. Snowboarding has two basic disciplines: racing and freestyle.

• Snowboard racing is similar to skiing, and racers compete in the slalom and giant slalom events. Giant slalom parallels its skiing counterpart. In parallel slalom and parallel giant slalom, two snowboarders race down parallel racecourses of identical design. The fastest total time over one run on each course advances to the next round, and eventually determines the winner. In “snowboard cross,” each heat consists of 4-6 snowboarders racing pack-style down the same course, with the first two finishers advancing to the next round. The event is fast, with lots of action and contact.

• Freestyle is divided into two disciplines: slope-style and half-pipe. In slope-style, the snowboarder rides down the slope, performing as many tricks as possible over natural and man-made obstacles such as rails, bumps, and other barriers. Half-pipe is an acrobatic, ballet-like event, conducted in a u-shaped tube, which is about several hundred feet long, and bounded by two steep parallels walls of ice. Judges rate the snowboarder’s performances, similar to skiing freestyle competitions.

SAFETY & INJURY CONCERNS

• Snowboarding has a slightly higher risk of injury than skiing. While skiers tend to have more knee and leg injuries, snowboarders typically suffer from arm, wrists, and shoulder trauma.

• The risk of injury is higher for beginner snowboarders, who are more vulnerable to falling over. Risks can be reduced by having your child wear wrist guards and kneepads.

• Your child should always wear a helmet to prevent head injuries from falls or collisions. Using a helmet can prevent or reduce the severity of more than half of the head injuries to children younger than 15 years old.

• Goggles will also help protect your child’s eyes from flying debris and enable him to see the terrain better.

COST CONSIDERATIONS

• In terms of cost, snowboarding and skiing are on a par. Snowboarding is not a cheap sport after adding up the cost of the clothing, equipment, and lift tickets.

• Most resorts have beginner packages that include rental equipment, lessons, and lift tickets. These can range in price from $20 to $100 for anywhere from an hour to a full day of snowboard lessons.

• A lesson price can vary greatly, but expect to pay between $100 and $150 for a full-day lesson, which includes a lift ticket and equipment.

THE BOARD

• Snowboards are made of a wooden core wrapped in fiberglass and coated in a fiberglass or plastic cap with metal edges, and vary in size and shape. The performance of a snowboard is influenced by a combination of factors including stiffness, length, weight, and shape.

• Your child’s board length will depend on his weight, riding style and the type of conditions he will ride in most often. In terms of height, your child’s board should reach between his armpits and chin. The waist width of the board will depend on the size of his feet.

• Renting is a great option while your child is still deciding whether snowboarding will be a passing phase or a winter obsession. Some resorts will even offer bundle rental packages with a lift ticket and beginner lesson. You can rent equipment for your child by the day or week, which is highly recommended for novices. In addition, some ski shops will apply the price of rentals toward purchasing new equipment. Some ski shops offer the option of leasing equipment for an entire season, which is beneficial to children who quickly outgrow gear.

• If your child wants to stick with it, avoid the temptation to buy everything slightly larger so he can grow into it, as this will make snowboarding much harder to learn correctly. When purchasing a snowboard for a child, consider the following:

• A shorter board is easier to handle. The longer the board, the faster your child will be able to go.

• Your child’s toes and heels should reach the edges of the board, which makes it easier for him to turn the board on the snow.

• Your child’s snowboard should be flexible to help make turning easier on snow.

• A racing board has a flat tail and rounded tip, as only forward momentum comes into play. Freestyle boards have both ends rounded to accommodate forward and backward riding used in half-pipes as well as around obstacles.

• Spending $500 to $1,000 for a new snowboard is average.

• When you finally decide to purchase equipment for your child, you can go to a local ski shop or snowboard swap and buy used equipment to cut back on costs. However, stay away from garage sales and be careful at ski swaps, because you may wind up with gear that is outdated and inappropriate.

• There are four basic types of snowboards once your child gets more advanced.

• A free-ride board is easy to learn on and can be used anywhere on the mountain. If your child wants to ride many different types of terrain in various snow conditions and spends most of his time on the ground, then free-ride is the board of choice. Often called an all-mountain board, these versatile boards have directional shapes and a varying flex.

• If your child wants to go anywhere and do anything, then a freestyle board could be the best choice for him. A freestyle board allows a snowboarder to go forward or backward, in powder or hardpack, and in the air or on the snow. Th freestyle board has a directional shape with a longer tip that helps with flotation in choppy snow, along with a stiffer tail for more power. Freestyle races are judged based on a point system, similar to freestyle skiing competitions.

• For a child who loves “getting air,” performing jumps, and mastering complicated spins and tricks, then a technical freestyle board may be right for him. This type of board has twin tips, which means that it has an identical blunt tip and tail shape for riding forward or backward.

• A free-carving board, or alpine board, tends to be the stiffest, narrowest type of board. The front of the board curves while the tail lies flat. Although stable at high speeds, the free-carving board is not used for performing tricks or all-around riding. This board will allow the rider to go really fast and lay down inch-deep tracks on hard-pack or groomed snow.

BOOTS

• Riders wear boots specifically designed for snowboarding, and their feet are attached to the board with bindings that typically strap across each boot. Boots cost between $170 and $220.

• Your child will struggle with turns if the boots do not fit correctly. Boots should fit snugly enough that your child cannot slide his foot around or lift his heels, but not too tight that the boots compress your child’s toes. Make sure your child walks around in the boots after trying them on in the store. If he walks stiffly, the boots are probably reaching too high up the calf. Kids should be able to walk in snowboard boots and be comfortable.

• Look for a simple boot for your child such as one with a single lace or velcro. Small hands wrapped in mittens often have trouble with complicated laces out on the mountain. Your child should be able to put on his boots and strap them into their bindings by himself.

• Most children between the ages of 5 and 7 haven’t developed enough coordination to use both edges of the snowboard and need a pair of hard boots to help protect the ankles and enable use the toe side edge of his board. Another advantage of hard boots is your child will be able to get in and out of his snowboard by himself, which at this level really helps to promote independence.

• Unlike ski bindings, snowboard bindings do not release when your child falls. Always make sure that your child’s boots are compatible with his board and bindings, and the style of riding he will be doing. Freestyle, freeride, and technical freestyle snowboarding require soft boots. The support from soft boots comes from the rigid structure of the high-back or low-back bindings into which your child will strap his boots. Soft boots give a snowboarder greater flexibility. Freecarve and alpine snowboarders wear hard boots with a more rigid, plastic shell that lock into plate bindings. These hard boots keep a snowboarder steadier and increase control on high speed turns.

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