# Who Started Riding @ 50+ and Why?



## Oldman (Mar 7, 2012)

Ok, let's find out about those of us who saw the light at 50 or over. To get the ball rolling, I'll start.

Like most, did some skiing. Never got comfortable on the double planks. Always feared them crossing up and we all know what comes next.

One year, on the cusp on my 50th I go with my wife and her school Extended French class to St. Donat (north of Montreal ) for a cultural experience. Skiing / Riding is part of the deal.

I am skiing on this trip, but as I am riding the lift, I am watching the kids riding boards and I say to a fellow supervisor, "Those kids body language is telling me that they are not working nearly as hard as I am skiing. They look so relaxed".

At that moment I made the decision that when I came back the next year, I was going to learn to ride.

The following year I did just that. Went back to St. Donat on the school trip, rented a board, signed up for lessons, went straight to the bunny hill with the kids. For those of us at this point in life, it is the only way to learn to ride.

Three years later I am riding 25+ days a season and wondering what the hell took me so long to see the light. 

I love the fact that it is so much easier on your body to ride vs. skiing. My feet are always warm, they never hurt me and my knees are so much happier. I only have one edge to worry about, the two never cross and if you ride any degree of rocker on your deck, hooking an edge is a rare event.

What's your story?


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## ScottVD (Jan 19, 2011)

Cool story bro!  I'm not 50, but I did start two years ago when I was 30- and I totally feel like I missed my prime opportunity - nevertheless I'm enjoying myself. Like you getting in 30+ day seasons even with that crummy winter we just had. I want my little guy to have an early start (if he enjoys it?) so got him mostly geared up - he's 2.5 and excited.
Anyhow, very cool you're getting into the sport!


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## KIRKRIDER (Mar 18, 2008)

47 Tuesday!

Skied a lot as a kid. In Italy and in Austria. Beautiful. Then I lost interest. Tried a board in 99 for the first time, was a lot of fun. Another long pause. We moved to California,, the kids...but 8 years ago we started taking the kids on the slopes, instead of renting skis I rented a board and started to learn on my own.

5th year season pass to Kirkwood...best season was 40 days. Worst was last one..just 11.

can't wait to rip my new Hovercraft.




Oldman said:


> Ok, let's find out about those of us who saw the light at 50 or over. To get the ball rolling, I'll start.
> 
> Like most, did some skiing. Never got comfortable on the double planks. Always feared them crossing up and we all know what comes next.
> 
> ...


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Started snowboarding just shy of my 52nd. I was a volunteer parent with my daughter's school ski trip. Standing around kicking the rugrats back into play, and I had plenty of time to watch the snowboarders ripping by. Snowboarding didn't exist when I used to ski so it was my first look at the sport, and it looked like a lot more fun than skiing. It helped too that when I used to ski it was on Grouse which is all groomers, and there was no park or any concept of side hits.

Anyway, I rented the equipment the next week and went the self-taught route. And deserved what I got. :laugh: Going into my 4th full season now (as soon as we get some goddam snow).


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Saw the light at 44, kids (then 15 and 7) talked me into it; had never been on skis, skateboard...nothin due to growing up on the flatland. Going into my 10th winter and this year bought the whole hog to venture into bc splitty world.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

Went skiing for the first time in 1978 with my high school's ski club! I sucked sooo bad I got kicked off the hill! Never tried it again.

The Marines put me on cross country ski's once while @ Bridgeport, CA. for moutain warfare, cold weather training! (...I was a Navy Medic, '79 to '83!) I couldn't stay "upright" long enough to even get a picture of me standing in them. That was the last time I strapped into ski's! 

Feb 2011, two months after my 50th. Discover Mich. & a bunch of the local hills had their late season Special Intro Offer. A Lift ticket, board rental, and lesson for $40! I always wanted to try snowboarding. It looked cool, It also looked to me like a more "natural" stance for sliding down a mountain!!

I figured, for $40? What the hell!! I'll risk a hip!  I took to it right away! (_wasn't great right off or anything, but I didn't *TOTALLY* suck!!!_) :thumbsup: I bought a board and boots after my second day out & I got 20+ days between that Feb and april!! Including 3-4 trips to Boyne and 1 to Cab!!!! 

Last year, 2011/12. I lost count after about 28-30 days It was my first _full_ (crappy) season! (...don't think I broke 40! I hope too this year!) When I can manage it financially,.. I will probably relocate back to the West Coast! Or maybe somewhere in the Rockies, who knows! 

I've posted this before, but snowboarding??? 
_...IS THE MOST FUN I'VE EVER HAD WITH MY CLOTHES ON!!!!_


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## slyder (Jan 18, 2010)

I started at 41 but I had skiied in a past life but it had been a decade + since I was on a slope other then sledding with the kids.

You go man, it has become my Zen place to unwind from life and regroup.


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## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

slyder said:


> ...it has become my Zen place to unwind from life and regroup.


^^^^^^^ :thumbsup: AhhhhYeeuup!!! U-Betcha dehr, Eh? :thumbsup:


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## dreampow (Sep 26, 2011)

*Cool story bro!  I'm not 50, but I did start two years ago when I was 30- and I totally feel like I missed my prime opportunity *

You didn't miss shit, you've got the best of both worlds in front of you now, a body that still functions well and a brain thats beginning to function.

I say that because in ones teens or twenties its not the brain, but the testicles that do the thinking. In ones thirties its at least a mixture of both.

I started boarding at 31 now 5 years on and absolutely loving it. I taught several friends how to board, two are over 50 and one is now an addict and a very solid boarder. His lady friend learned at 61:thumbsup:. She just links turns but hopefully this year she will take it up a level.

I am blessed to live near some of the best powder available anywhere and if this year is a normal year I should be in the white room for many many days.










Yeah thats me in there.


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## Derp (Feb 3, 2012)

Started last year for my 40th bday. Absolutely love it. Actually pissed I didn't start earlier!

Even though I go to a gym I find snowboarding a great way of helping me stay in shape during the long winter.

Not to mention getting fresh air all night is great for falling asleep.


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## RockyMTNsteeze (Oct 21, 2012)

Years ago on a Breckenridge Chair I met a snowboarder who was nearly 80. I was shocked and never met anyone older on a snowboard. He maybe the oldest snowboarder.

He said he was a skier but his knees where going bad. His doctor told him no more skiing. He switched to snowboarding because it was better for his knees. He told me he has been snowboarding for 15 years, much longer than myself. Since that was years ago he may be almost at 20 years on a board.

He had one of the best attitudes. I hope he is still shredding. There are lots of seniors on the mountains, but very few on snowboards. Most of the volunteers at Vail owned mountains are elderly skiers who have retired to the mountains.


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## tigre (Mar 5, 2012)

When I was first starting to ride last year (at 32), I met a local guy who started riding at 62, and is now 68 and teaches lessons! Another guy we met at Thompson Pass was 65 and ripping it up - riding an old step-in binding system just for fun. He's been riding and collecting gear for close to twenty years.


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## extra0 (Jan 16, 2010)

Since 10 yo, I skateboarded and surfed (chronic ankle injuries stopped me skateboarding in my mid 20s, but I still surf about 25 days a year). I always wanted to try snowboarding, but, as far as I knew, resorts didn't even allow them then.

I tried skiing (basically, riding them like I was on a snowboard...spraying on my edges, sideways, most of the time), but I couldn't seem keep from getting tangled up in all the equipment when I ventured into powder. I lost interest. 

years later, at 39, friends invited me to go to Tahoe (stateline). It was Jan 1st and we arrived right after a huge storm (around 1-2 ft fresh). This was just supposed to be a party trip, but I rented a snowboard and a lift ticket to Heavenly and they never saw me again until we left days later. Totally stoked, completely hooked.

I've now been a passholder for 8 seasons at our closest resort (2+ hrs away). It's small, but it gets all the deep powder the sierra nevada mtns are famous for. 

At first, even at my age, I was just as interested in learning the basic tricks (fs/bs airs, 180, 360, alley oop, etc), so I bought some pads and drove up every chance I got. I completed those goals and admit, that initial enthusiasm for the sport has waned, but I still love the deep snow aspect of snowboarding. Now, I usually only go up on powder days.


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## DirtyD27 (Dec 31, 2011)

chomps1211 said:


> (...I was a Navy Medic, '79 to '83!) [/U][/I]


Cool man. I was a Corpsman too. I did 14 years in the Navy. 1997-2011, and I'm originally from Michigan. Was Born and raised in Detroit suburbs until 5th grade then parents moved to small po'dunk farming town town in the middle of the state called Gladwin. From there I joined the Navy, did my thing for 14 years and landed here in "The Great Pacific Northwest" I loved it from the day I got here, just wish we'd get snow flying a little earlier but can't beat it when it does start. Any way started boarding at 30 as my kids got me into it, now in my 4th year. Attempted some "homemade" boarding as a teen but that didn't go so well. I didn't have a clue what i was doing. None the less managed to teach my self once I got the right equipment. Took me three days on the slopes before I was entirely comfortable hitting blue runs. This year's goal is to concur some more difficult / steeper terrain.


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## extra0 (Jan 16, 2010)

no lessons here, either. That first day, I was in good shape; having just returned from a surf trip. Someone on the lift suggested I use my edges and that pivotal advice took me from greens to blues the first day (transitioning from edge to edge was fairly instinctual). I still busted my ass.


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## qwezxc12 (Oct 24, 2010)

I'm 41; no previous skiing other than way back in HS trying X-Country... in fact I hated our NE winters because I had nothing to do.

I first tried snowboarding when I was 35 - I had a co-worker take me out on a rental deck, up the lift, showed me how to falling leaf on the back edge, then said "see ya at the bottom, bro...". I spent most of that night on my ass skidding on hard New York "packed powder", i.e. ice, but knew I wanted to ride. I wound up taking some lessons the next year and it made a world of difference.

I always get a season pass at my local hill and make frequent day trips to Gore Mtn in the ADKs and weekends to southern / mid Vt. I travel for work and have been lucky to ride all over Summit County CO while working in Denver, and also got to hit up Mt. Baker and Stevens Pass several times while in Seattle.

I love riding all mountain and finding cool terrain and pow stashes - no park for me. Some friends and I just booked our 2nd annual guys trip to B.C. the end of January. Another 8 days at Revelstoke and Kicking Horse. Can't wait to get back to this: tons of pow and no crowds!


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## extra0 (Jan 16, 2010)

^yep.

This is what my local mtn frequently looks like on a powder day (it is bluebird after every dump), especially on a weekday. No crowds because the roads are gnarly/hairpin...and seems most people around here either don't have the equipment for 2-3 ft deep snow and/or they can't manage riding in it anyhow. Yeah, I'm old, but I can't rationalize saying I'm _too_ old with this available....even if it does kick my ass every time.


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## Clayton Bigsby (Oct 23, 2012)

Thats how the snowboarding industry changed the ski industry forever. One of my local mtns is Mt BAKER, where back in the day was only open Friday thru Sunday, it would dump all week and come Friday morning we'd have 3 feet plus fresh. Us boarders for several reason would ride nothing but powder, 1st being, steel edges weren't thought of, 2nd it didnt hurt as much falling and 3rd the ski's back then were only about 2" wide, so most skiers stayed out of the powder (except the AirBears) leaving more for us.


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## cootcraig (Feb 5, 2013)

Oldman said:


> Ok, let's find out about those of us who saw the light at 50 or over. To get the ball rolling, I'll start.
> ...
> What's your story?


A year ago at age 59, my poor unexpecting wife goaded me into skiing with our son and his wife. Growing up in Minnesota, I was skiing alpine and cross country, playing hockey and ice skating. Wife and I moved to Denver, CO, had 3 kids and did some skiing on the I70 resorts. The time, expense, and congested traffic caused me to stop for 20+ years.

What my wife did not foresee is that getting on the mountain with our grown children, I would catch alpine fever. I came back and told her, Honey, I had a great time: I'm going to start snowboarding. I went 2 times last season, 4 times this season so far. As an empty nester with a job where I can declare myself a ski day, I am looking for fresh snow days to head up and ride.

At this point I call myself an aggressive beginner, I am progressing faster than I expected. I am heavily armored and that helps.

In my defense, When I was young I was a cautious skier, but always had the vision that I would be sliding down mountains in my old age. God willing, I can't think of a better way to live a little foretaste of heaven on earth.


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## DiRt DeViL (Jan 30, 2013)

I'm 47 and just started, feel sore from all the falls but happy to be able to ride with my kid.


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## Olex (Feb 20, 2013)

dreampow said:


> You didn't miss shit, you've got the best of both worlds in front of you now, a body that still functions well and a brain that's beginning to function.


LOL. That's funny and true.

To those who are just starting out like me, I have noticed that first few days seem like one has to be a superman to snowboard. As a scared beginner, a common reaction is to tense up all the muscles and joints, so one would get tired very quickly. Once one progresses the efficiency improves rapidly and snowboarding suddenly becomes much easier.

(Imho.)


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## destroy (Dec 16, 2012)

Always stoked to see old folks who are into it! I always make sure to say "I wish my parents were that cool!" when I see a cool looking mom or dad with their kid out having a good time... especially if she looks nice 

Now, I'm 26... but I look a lot older, and I just got into it at the start to the season this year. Last weekend I was taking the chair with a kid who was maybe a few years younger than me who said "it's never too late to start!" when I told him this is my first year... reminded me of the scene in Point Break with the kid at the surf shop...

"Hey man, it's cool... a lotta guys your age are takin' it up..."

"_I'm *25...*_

"That's what I mean man..."


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## Grandpa (Jan 20, 2013)

I met a couple guys at roller skating that taught at Trollhaugen in WI and decided to give it a try as I wasn't getting any younger at 62. Took a couple lessons at the tail end of last year and one this year at our local ice hill in MN.

Not progressing real good but loving every bit of it except the bruised behind. It takes me a week to recover but I still get back out there. I'm determined to figure this out. 

Also can't wait to get my 38 year old kid some lessons and get out with him and a couple grandkids.


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## extra0 (Jan 16, 2010)

^hope you're wearing pads. You can put a lot of pads under snow outerwear and no one will notice, but at least get some butt pads....you'd be surprised how many boarders of all ages are secretly wearing them (even pros)


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## Grandpa (Jan 20, 2013)

Yes, thank you. I got some toward the end of this season before a trip to Colorado. I would recommend them to everyone now. Even makes it warmer sitting on the snow. At the urging of my wife & kids I even got a helmet but hardly ever fall on my head.


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## Earthdog (Apr 21, 2013)

Oldman said:


> Ok, let's find out about those of us who saw the light at 50 or over. To get the ball rolling, I'll start.
> 
> What's your story?


Grew up skateboarding in SoCal in the 60s. 

In the 80s my college roommate hated to drive and loved to ski. Asked me to drive him out west for an interview. I'd never been on anything snow related before. Asshat left me on a black diamond at Alta. I was wearing jeans, a cotton flannel shirt, and a snow parka. You can guess the rest. I could not keep 2 sticks pointed in the same direction to save my life and swore to never touch the ski slope again in my life.

Fast forward 20 years; sitting in my house in Utah watching the snow fall, thinking "another winter sitting inside?" "Naw". At the same time there was a Toyota truck commercial on TV that showed some boarder blasting through deep pow and it looled like a blast. 

So I asked the pierced and tatted up surf punk at work if he'd teach me to ride. He laughed but agreed to do it. We spent 2 nights at a local park on the hill learning toeside, then heelside, then linking turns. 

After that it was up Big Cottonwood Canyon every weekend and Brighton on Wednesday nights. Then, work took me out to the midwest and I went once to Trollhaugen in Wisconsin. It was just too depressing after spending days in waist deep Utah powder. It was just packed ice as far as I could tell.

Hung up the deck until this year. A new job in Colorado has brought me back to the mountains. Now I just have to wait for winter...


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