# Help with toeside turns (UK)



## Martyc (Sep 8, 2013)

Get in touch with James Streater from Maverix he may be able to help you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## jae (Nov 27, 2015)

try riding horizontal to the slope instead of trying to go down the slope. Basically ride to each boundary to boundary like a big |Z|. This is to avoid speed and having to constantly use your heels to brake because you're scared.

get more comfortable with your toe sides, you can do this by getting up from your knees(which saves a lot of energy) riding down the bunny hill in a crouched position grabbing the front side of your board and holding that position just to get a feel of toe pressure.

also try practicing at home, you can do this with or without a board. bend your knees and stand on your toes with your heels arched. lean forward a little and try holding that position. 

with a board, get close to a wall with the toes facing the wall. strap in, bend knees and lean forward. while you're leaning examine the edges and how the board is tilted. most pressure should be on the toes and ankle strap. If you feel off balance use the wall for support and examine how the board is tilted. do not practice heel to toe like this as you'll probably fall on your ass. 

those are my tips for getting used to toes, but creepy old dude in tights explains how to ride.


----------



## robotfood99 (Mar 19, 2016)

You may have turned him off snowboarding permanently with that creepy old dude vid lol. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## mangoldn (May 1, 2016)

jae said:


> try riding horizontal to the slope instead of trying to go down the slope. Basically ride to each boundary to boundary like a big |Z|. This is to avoid speed and having to constantly use your heels to brake because you're scared.
> 
> get more comfortable with your toe sides, you can do this by getting up from your knees(which saves a lot of energy) riding down the bunny hill in a crouched position grabbing the front side of your board and holding that position just to get a feel of toe pressure.
> 
> ...


Thanks for this! Creepy old man was funny haha!  i've been rewatching a fee video my partner took of me and can see myself leaning back as i make the turn so will be something ai need to work on for next time!


----------



## mangoldn (May 1, 2016)

Martyc said:


> Get in touch with James Streater from Maverix he may be able to help you.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Just seen he holds lessons at tsc in hemel, thanks for the shout!


----------



## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

mangoldn said:


> ....i've been rewatching a fee video my partner took of me and can see myself leaning back as i make the turn so will be something ai need to work on for next time!


If you're going all "back seat" when trying to initiate your turns because you're afraid of the speed you're gaining, you can't effectively steer the board. If this is the case, then you really did have a shitty instructor for not picking up on that. This is a fairly common problem with _everyone_ in the beginning. 

You _need_ to have weight on the nose of the board in order to engage the contact points and edge in order to initiate, control the turn. If you try to go toeside (...or heelside for that matter) while leaning back on the board? Any turning you actually do is likely to have more to do with your upper body position, rotation and alignment than anything you're doing with your toes or edges!

...and while in that instance, the board may be doing some turning? You definitely won't be in control of it! 

Most if us develop a "go to" side in the beginning! One edge or turn that we are more comfortable with. Since you said you are doing alright with your heelside transitions. You should also double check those vid clips to see it you can spot any differences in your stance, weight distribution, upper body position or alignment between your heelside & toeside turns. This could also help you figure out exactly what you need to work on correcting as well!


Btw,... "Creepy Ol Dude's" video advice? Is spot on! It's well worth paying attention & adhering to!


----------



## Martyc (Sep 8, 2013)

mangoldn said:


> Just seen he holds lessons at tsc in hemel, thanks for the shout!




I've done a lot of coaching with James, and ride better for it, he's a top bloke


----------



## Cinic (Mar 14, 2016)

chomps1211 said:


> If you're going all "back seat" when trying to initiate your turns because you're afraid of the speed you're gaining, you can't effectively steer the board. If this is the case, then you really did have a shitty instructor for not picking up on that. This is a fairly common problem with _everyone_ in the beginning.
> 
> You _need_ to have weight on the nose of the board in order to engage the contact points and edge in order to initiate, control the turn. If you try to go toeside (...or heelside for that matter) while leaning back on the board? Any turning you actually do is likely to have more to do with your upper body position, rotation and alignment than anything you're doing with your toes or edges!


I know I had/have issues with the back-seating. I can also tell when I'm doing it b/c only my back leg will be getting tired & feeling the burn.


----------



## deagol (Mar 26, 2014)

this may not be for everyone, but you don't necessarily need an instructor to learn to snowboard. There was a time when there were none. Trial and error and tenacity were the tools back then... and a little blood (not kidding).


----------



## mangoldn (May 1, 2016)

chomps1211 said:


> If you're going all "back seat" when trying to initiate your turns because you're afraid of the speed you're gaining, you can't effectively steer the board. If this is the case, then you really did have a shitty instructor for not picking up on that. This is a fairly common problem with _everyone_ in the beginning.
> 
> You _need_ to have weight on the nose of the board in order to engage the contact points and edge in order to initiate, control the turn. If you try to go toeside (...or heelside for that matter) while leaning back on the board? Any turning you actually do is likely to have more to do with your upper body position, rotation and alignment than anything you're doing with your toes or edges!
> 
> ...


Yeh I've been watching videos over and over. Yes instructor was shite, stayed at the top most of the time. A slope patrol guy saw me getting frustrated and broke it down. But by the time I felt like I was powering through the lesson ended. Meh! Training slope was busy at the time with little kids and I think I was more concerned about going into the them as oppose to being aware of my stance.
Thanks for all the tips, I may try to set myself up at home just so I can be more aware of my body movements.


----------



## mangoldn (May 1, 2016)

deagol said:


> this may not be for everyone, but you don't necessarily need an instructor to learn to snowboard. There was a time when there were none. Trial and error and tenacity were the tools back then... and a little blood (not kidding).


I know what you mean.. if I lived by a mountain I'm sure I would be up there frequently practising but I live in London and hardly any access except for an indoor place. To which training slopes are always tiny and filled with kids and they don't let you have access unless it's for a lesson which is understandable.

If I do have blood drawn at any point I'll be sure to update you - ha!


----------



## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

mangoldn said:


> If I do have blood drawn at any point I'll be sure to update you - ha!


ahumm...with pics of da bloody bits...

ol dude from the creepy basement


----------



## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

wrathfuldeity said:


> ahumm...with pics of da bloody bits...
> 
> ol dude from the creepy basement


I immediately started LOLing when I read the creepy old dude in this thread... :laughat2::laughat2:

The only thing that initially got me to look in here is the thought that toeside turns might be different in the UK somehow.


----------



## pennyjoann (Feb 21, 2016)

Keep at it  I'm 2 months into the learning process, I've been going to my local snow centre at least once a week and have had about 6 different instructors. Some are a lot better than others, I know what you mean about the no motivation/personality. I've found that the more enthusiastic and encouraging the instructor the more I progress. Some weeks I feel like I'm not getting anywhere and other weeks I feel amazing and I'm totally impressed with myself! You'll get it down. Also maybe when booking check who the instructor is gunna be? 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## jae (Nov 27, 2015)

I know it's going to sound cheesy, but mental image training helps a lot if you can't see the snow frequently.


----------

