# Why do blue runs have all these snow mounds?



## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

We really need to have a post of the day feature on this site. I nominate this one.


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## fayewolf (Jan 3, 2011)

linvillegorge said:


> We really need to have a post of the day feature on this site. I nominate this one.



oh no... what did i do?


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## Robocop (Jan 3, 2011)

linvillegorge said:


> We really need to have a post of the day feature on this site. I nominate this one.


You could have at least helped him out with an answer, or just ignored the thread.......


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## fayewolf (Jan 3, 2011)

Snowolf said:


> First of all, congrats on your progression; it is great to hear that you are making headway and having fun....:thumbsup:
> 
> As to your question, these things are mogul or "bumps". They are created by the turns that skiers make going down the steeper blue runs. Over time, small trenches get worn and mounds build up from the snow spray that gets kicked to the side. The don`t happen on green runs because the terrain is mellow enough that there is not reason for skiers to make these quick turns on.
> 
> ...


Thank you Snowolf! I really couldn't do it without your help. Your explanations were very very clear!!! Yeah, those mogul were throwing me off quite a bit! I need to find a resort that has really long mellow greens, I'll be really happy if i can find one!
Do they groom blue runs too usually? (sorry, this is my first season ever up in the mountain so I don't know these things, i didn't even know what groomed means at first!) 

How often do I have to wax my board by the way? The board I have is sintered base. I watched a video of how to wax the board, and the though of putting an iron over my board is freakn me out.


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## PanHandler (Dec 23, 2010)

Blue runs are almost always groomed, but it does depend on the resort you go to. If your resort has a website, you can go there and usually they will have an interactive trail map that tells you which runs are groomed.

As for waxing your board, dont be scared of the iron! its just like ironing clothes. Keep that thing moving and you wont burn anything!

The type of snow you ride on will determine how often you need to wax. Usually if i ride on snow from the blowers (man made) ill wax every time i go. If its more freshies or natural groomers then i might only need to wax every 5 times i go.

Here is a really fantastic waxing guide created by Mr. Amazing himself (Snowolf)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3


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## Nefarious (Dec 26, 2010)

fayewolf said:


> How often do I have to wax my board by the way? The board I have is sintered base. I watched a video of how to wax the board, and the though of putting an iron over my board is freakn me out.


The regularity of your waxing is dependent on the snow and the wax you use. I, personally, use One Ball Jay Graphite wax. There are pro's and con's to waxing with graphite. The real pro is speed. I can out pace 90% of boarders at my hill after a fresh wax. I don't get hung up on stretched out green sections before a descent. The con is that graphite wax burns through rather quickly. Especially on midwest icepack. I wax before every outing.

As for other wax options, check the stickies at the top of the board section. There's a sticky on Waxing that has a ton of useful information. I, to this point, haven't tried a flouro yet, but from what I understand they last much longer (5-6 times out depending on conditions).

You can't go wrong either way. Also, sintered bases need to be waxed more often than extruded. They don't hold the wax as well. I'd recommend finding an all temperature Flouro and plan on every 3-4 times (if you're mainly on groomers).

The final thing to waxing is the temperature of wax pertaining to your conditions. My graphite wax is all temperature. It wears off fast but snow conditions don't matter as much. Some colder waxes won't be as quick on warmer days and vice versa.

I just got done waxing both my boards last night. I love it!


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

fayewolf said:


> The blue run area, steep, and also kinda uneven with snow mounds everywhere. Why is that? I don't see this on green runs, always on blues!?


As I keep explaining, moguls are the buried bodies of 40-somethings who have taken up snowboarding. :laugh: That's why you hear the occasional "oof" when you go over one of them. It isn't you making that sound...


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## firstx1017 (Jan 10, 2011)

Donutz said:


> As I keep explaining, moguls are the buried bodies of 40-somethings who have taken up snowboarding. :laugh: That's why you hear the occasional "oof" when you go over one of them. It isn't you making that sound...


Hey, I resemble this remark - or am I given a pass since I'm 50! lol


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## Deviant (Dec 22, 2009)

Robocop said:


> You could have at least helped him out with an answer, or just ignored the thread.......


You just did the exact same thing. 

To the OP: 
Don't get upset with yourself for not being as confident on a blue run, that will come in time. Tell yourself that you'll be in more control when you get off the flat base and onto your toes and in a short while it will seem like nothing. As to your waxing question, as said above never leave the iron sitting in one spot on the board, that is your main concern with waxing. You can find really cheap irons at thrift stores if need be, wax scrapers don't cost too much and if you are going to stick with snowboarding I suggest buying wax in bulk or finding the largest bar for your needs. Since you're not racing or anything now, just grab some all-temp wax and that will suit you fine.



> I found a scratch on top of my board today (really pissed, but it's quite minor, do i need to fix this? I dont' even know when this happened!)


Don't even sweat it, boards can and will get beat up, the only time a scratch needs fixed is on the edges or a more prominent scratch/cut on the base.

Edit: You're bound to get minor scratches on the base, don't freak out if you do, but waxing can help keep things looking good on the base.


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## Smokehaus (Nov 2, 2010)

Yeah don't worry about that scratch at all. I know snowbaords look nice and pretty but if you actually ride the board you are gonna get some minor damage, it is a piece of equipment and scratches give it character IMO.


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## Lifprasir (Jan 11, 2011)

Smokehaus said:


> Yeah don't worry about that scratch at all. I know snowbaords look nice and pretty but if you actually ride the board you are gonna get some minor damage, it is a piece of equipment and scratches give it character IMO.


Emphasis on the last part.


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## Smokehaus (Nov 2, 2010)

Yeah I used to be so careful but one day I just realized that it does not matter that much and it is going to happen anyways so what am I scared of? 
Now each first trip on a new board I can't wait to scratch it so I can get over it being in "Perfect" condition.


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## fayewolf (Jan 3, 2011)

YES!! I will consider it character, I think it happened when a kid skier fell backwards near me, but nothing i can do.. I'm sure I ran into a fair amount of people my first few times too. I think I have made some progress even though it still take me alot of guts to make that toe turn on blue, at least I'm not really that afraid of that kind of steepness (blue that is). And knowing that leaning down hill is actually staying vertical, and this is the only way for me to initiate that toe turn, if i get scared and lean on my rear legs, no matter how hard i turn my front knees/toes, shoulder, my board just won't turn!! 

And something really funny, I never understood what "board is traveling straight from nose to tip". In my mind, the board is a hard piece of wood, how in the hell would it not be straight and be bent??? Isn't nose to tip always straight?? I neglected that it was TRAVELLING!! 
My question would be, I could be carving my traverse across the slope where no side slipping is going on, does this mean that as long as there is no side slipping, I can flatten my board (still using the front foot steering technique snowolf taught me) and change edge even though my board is not pointing straight down the fall line (parallel)? I always carve the traverse and skid into the turn and I make sure that my board is pointing straight down the slope and flat before I initiate the turn to the other edge. So what happen is my traverse is very fast, then as I skid into my turn it slows way down, then i point my board, flatten it, and carve my traverse on my other edge, (when it's toe side, there is less carving and much more skidding because of fear...


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## Bones (Feb 24, 2008)

Nefarious said:


> I, personally, use One Ball Jay Graphite wax. There are pro's and con's to waxing with graphite.
> 
> The con is that graphite wax burns through rather quickly. Especially on midwest icepack. I wax before every outing.


Maybe you should try another brand of graphite. I've found that One Ball Jay regular doesn't last very long so I've never bothered trying their graphite.

I'm using KUU cold graphite on East Coast ice and have found it outlasts any other regular wax I've tried.


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## paras (Jan 27, 2011)

Bones speaks of the truth. I'm all about KUU Cold Graphite. Especially on a race day, I like to drip some in my cereal for good measure.


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## InfiniteEclipse (Jan 2, 2009)

paras said:


> Bones speaks of the truth. I'm all about KUU Cold Graphite. Especially on a race day, I like to drip some in my cereal for good measure.


Bahahahha :thumbsup:


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## Toecutter (Oct 11, 2009)

Okay, I'll admit that I laughed out loud at the mysterious snow mounds question. Not really _at you_ but it is funny seeing things from the perspective of a beginner again. Even for a lot of experienced riders moguls can be challenging and not much fun (although some people love them). I'm not a big fan. Just avoid them for now.

Don't worry about minor damage to the board. It will happen. Kind of like scratches and dents in your car, the first one hurts the most. Core shots (where a rock takes such a big gouge out of the base that you can see the wood core) are something you should get repaired, but small scrapes aren't a big deal. No sense getting worked up about wear and tear (of course to be a _real_ snowboarder you might want to be aggro and go totally apeshit when someone accidentally bumps into you in the lift line - kidding!).


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