# Should I return to snowboarding after dislocation



## cmiddlebrook

I took up snowboarding very tentatively aged 37. After a lot of hit and miss and LOTS of falls, I finally passed my lessons and was able to go on the main slopes at the indoor centres. After that I spent 3 days in Scotland where I got a little better and then last year I went to Austria for a week.

In Austria the difficulty was too high for me and unfortunately I dislocated my shoulder. This was in march '13 so over a year ago now. I'd say my shoulder is at about 95%, physios said I may never get the full movement back.

The injury was the worst I'd ever had (I've also injured my neck & sprained my wrist boarding and had a few karate injuries) and it put me off. I swore I'd never do it again...

But I miss it. I really suck at it and being on the slopes that were too steep for me was not fun but I enjoyed scotland, the beginner slopes. I want to try again but I'm really scared and I'm doubly scared that my fear itself may actually cause me to be too stiff (which was always a bit of a problem of mine anyway) and just fall more and cause further injury.

I'm thinking of starting over, taking lessons again from level 1 so I could just ease into it without pressure. 

I've read lots of posts on these forums from other people who have dislocated shoulders and they seem almost minor? Like it just pops out every time they go boarding as if it's nothing! I was in agony, it took months to heal and I would never want to injure myself like that again!

But my doctor did say that my age (42 now) could actually be an advantage as when you get older you are less elastic and a dislocation is less likely. But he also said that once you've done it once you're more likely to do it again.

Another thing that scares me is that I did not do it on a steep section of the mountain. I had actually cleared the run and then just as I was heading towards the lift, I think I just caught an edge on the flat part of the slope and went over. If I can dislocate my shoulder on the flat bit of slope, then there's always that risk isn't there?

I'm not sure what to do. I don't want to just live in fear my whole life and there really was nothing quite like the feeling of actually boarding in those moments when I did it semi-well 

Any advice much appreciated!


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## speedjason

it depends on how much you want it.
also learning how to fall helps too.


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## f00bar

You should avoid stairs as well as you may trip, tumble down them, and dislocate a shoulder.

Joking aside, of course you should continue if you miss it. In the scheme of things a dislocated shoulder is far from the end of the world in the vast majority of cases. I'm 43 and just started last year.

I'm assuming you wear a helmet. Your head isn't the only place you can protect. They sell all sorts of armor to help cushion the blow, most seem to be inspired by motorcross. It really doesn't take a whole lot to greatly reduce the impact. I wouldn't let not having it stop you, but it'll boost your confidence and get you back out and give you some peace of mind.


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## cmiddlebrook

Yes I wear a helmet. I also experimented with wrist guards but had trouble with those as they dug into my hands and I found it hard to undo bindings etc so may have to look into some alternatives if I start again.

I just wish I could let go of the fear - I think that's my biggest problem. But I don't have any fear of a level 1 lesson which is why I would start there. 

Of course I know that I can never really prevent injury, it's always going to be a risk but as you say, people do injure themselves on stairs and other stupid things! And I don't want to be like that any more. I quit karate too and I miss that too. Just feeling a bit old and boring now and just want to get back into the things I enjoy without being such a wuss lol!


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## f00bar

cmiddlebrook said:


> Yes I wear a helmet. I also experimented with wrist guards but had trouble with those as they dug into my hands and I found it hard to undo bindings etc so may have to look into some alternatives if I start again.
> 
> I just wish I could let go of the fear - I think that's my biggest problem. But I don't have any fear of a level 1 lesson which is why I would start there.
> 
> Of course I know that I can never really prevent injury, it's always going to be a risk but as you say, people do injure themselves on stairs and other stupid things! And I don't want to be like that any more. I quit karate too and I miss that too. Just feeling a bit old and boring now and just want to get back into the things I enjoy without being such a wuss lol!


I see you are a new poster, not sure if you have lurked much, I'll assume not. Around here at least for the guys our age and above we are affectionately known as "gummers". Spend a little time here and you'll soon see you are nowhere near getting too old. I came here as a skier looking for advice for my son who had just started and assumed I was too old to make the transition. It took about a week of reading from the older crowd on here before I decided screw that, I'm going to try. Now I'm counting the days until December to go again.


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## ekb18c

For me using a reverse camber board helped me on balancing the board at first. Perhaps you may want to try this as it will be much harder to catch an edge. As you progress you will find that you want more camber though, well for me at least. 

Don't let fear get in the way. Sometimes you have just have to say "Fuck it" and just go. I started out at 35 and have been riding for 2 season now.


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## 24WERD

what kind of board were you riding?

The type of board helps in the riding.


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## td.1000

there's a few boards out there that make it very hard to catch an edge. I'm thinking anything Bataleon/Lobster TBT or Rome Nohang-Ups but I'm sure there are others. you might want to give those a try.

also, you were probably trying the wrong wristguards or the wrong size.

and yeah, everybody falls on a snowboard, even people who are really good at it. riding just to NOT fall is a bad idea and doesn't sound like a lot of fun. just learn how to fall properly and get proper protection. and everytime you fall make a snow angel or something to get some smiles out of it


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## ridinbend

Keep taking lessons. You will eventually get more confident. When you go to other mountains take lessons too. You gave get advanced lessons once you feel more confident. Assuming you can afford it.


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## cmiddlebrook

24WERD said:


> what kind of board were you riding?
> 
> The type of board helps in the riding.


I've only ever used the standard hire equipment which is at the right size for my height but other than that I don't think there's any variation. I never got around to buying my own gear as I never did it very seriously.

I'm not bothered about general falls. A snowboard session without a few bruises would just seem a bit wrong lol. It's not falling itself that worries me - just actual serious injuries. I've managed to have some pretty spectacular falls that were hilarious and not at all painful but this shoulder one really put me off!

I don't recall being taught to fall but if I take lessons again I'll ask. Though very often I find that certain falls (like the last one) happen so fast that I don't even know they're happening and I'm not sure I'd have the reactions to fall in the correct way.

Good to know there are other older folks doing it and no I hadn't seen the term 'gummers' heh


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## chomps1211

Fear can be a real problem. It really will depend on how much you miss it! 

As one of the resident "Gummers" here,.. I got accidentally airborne off a park roller my first full season. It was spring, the snow was really soft, and although I made a HUGE chomps sized crater at the bottom. I wasn't hurt at all!

But,.. It created a humungous mental block of fear for my trying to get airborne on purpose. One I haven't been able to get past in the following two seasons. Since that fail, I have been hurt far worse just riding and catching edges, washing out turns,... OH! And getting on n off the lifts!!! Damn near killed myself on those friggin lifts!! (...I started boarding at 50 btw. With also having arthritis no less! ) :thumbsup: you're definitely NOT too old!!! 

By way of comparison,.. My first two times boarding I slammed HARD! Gave myself a serious Hip Pointer injury to the same hip and again a week later. I was so jacked up, ski patrol kept trying to talk me into letting them stretcher me off! I Bruised my hip so deep and so badly my whole foot turned purple 2 days later and I had to loosen my belt 2-3 inches to accomodate all the swelling at my hip. :dizzy: but I went back a week later to do the very same thing all over. 

But *none* of those injuries and slams kept me from coming back and riding. It's just too much fun! (...crashing my motorcycle didn't keep me off them for the same reasons either!) 

But one single (...early) instance where I wasn't even physically hurt has plagued every attempt I've made to hit even small jumps ever since!!!
You really will have to decide for yourself if you loved snowboarding enough to keep coming back! 

Hope you do! It's AWESOME fun!!! 


-edit-
...I haven't been successful in getting much air yet, but I haven't given up either! (...I just keep wussing out so far!) lol!


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## f00bar

There was a thread not so long ago that talked about options for learning how to fall. Most instructors from my experience won't really show you how to fall, just tell you what you should try to avoid. In summary of that thread a few options came out. One was judo or taekwando lessons. Though you talk about karate, maybe the others focus more on tumbling as opposed to breaking other peoples noses.

The other option is actual tumbling classes. In the US at least (from your post I'm assuming you not US) these are usually offered at the gymnastics schools. They have big mats, trampolines, foam pits, etc. They usually have classes for smaller kids, but often have open gym nights and if you explain what you are looking and want to toss them a few bucks probably have someone that can help teach you to become more cat like in a fall.


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## cmiddlebrook

@chomps1212 lol the lifts! Oh my gosh they were the bane of my existence when I first started boarding! Those poma lifts were worse than the slope itself! Thankfully I seem to have mastered the damn things now and haven't fallen off one in a long time 

I hope you get back to your air! That's not something I ever want to do. Really I just like riding along on nice easy slopes and enjoying the scenery when I stop. I'm not trying to do anything crazy - I just want to be able to ride gently and enjoy it without injury. I should be able to do that I think!

I think the reason I stopped was that I sprained my wrist, broke my finger and then dislocated my shoulder all in the space of a few weeks and I just felt like I was falling apart!

But I'm stronger now, and don't feel like that any more and I just want to get over myself and start living again because I've felt like a hermit for the last year.

@f00bar I'm in the UK. I'd never thought about falling classes in falling. I briefly did Judo as a teenager and yeah lots of falling but it's very rarely covered in karate, or only in certain styles and not usually in the style I did (Shotokan). I could look into that, it would probably help with the confidence thing.


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## NWBoarder

No one can really tell you if you should return or not. That's completely on you. If you liked doing it though, then an injury is a bad reason to not keep doing it. Everybody gets hurt. It's how you recover from getting hurt that counts. It sounds to me like the desire to return is there, so you might as well give it a go. Worst case, you find out that your fear of re-injury wins and you go home and wrap yourself in bubble wrap so you can't get ever get hurt again. Personally, I'd go make the mountain my bitch for a while and tell my brain to shut the hell up and have some fun.


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## cmiddlebrook

NWBoarder said:


> Personally, I'd go make the mountain my bitch for a while and tell my brain to shut the hell up and have some fun.


Haha I like that! :-D


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## f00bar

Really it kinda sounds like you made a trip to Austria before you were quite ready. I know there is a huge difference between my regular stomping ground that is a 1000' and heading up north to the biggies as far as trail ratings.

Also there is the equipment factor. I'm not saying spend money, but it has it's advantages. You can get a lot of info on some good choices and at least then you know what you have as opposed to get what you are given. Of course the disadvantage is that you are spending money 

But then you can join the thread on summer storage and try to decide if you need to treat it like a van gogh painting or sleep next to it in the down season.


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## neni

cmiddlebrook said:


> I also experimented with wrist guards but had trouble with those as they dug into my hands and I found it hard to undo bindings etc so may have to look into some alternatives if I start again.


I can't wear thos wrist guards one wears seperately from the gloves, they all dig into the section between thumb and forefinger. But I had many years wristguards that are in the glove. As you're from Europe, you may find them: Snowlife. I also recommend a backprotector; I wear a Dainese active shield. Interestingly they're not widely used over the pond but where I ride, it's standard equipment.

And +1 on the recommendations to get a board that won't catch edges easily. Right now you need to build up confidence. You still can change back to boards with camber _when_ you're confident again. At some point it'll click and catching edges is no longer a topic cos your feet know how to avoid that automatically without you consciously thinking of it. It's classic that you caught it not on the steep but on the flat.... the flatter/slower, the more likely. Had my worst slams catching edges on flat/slow tracks... Never ever ride stiff legged on flats 


Hope you overcome your fear. I've never hurt myself badly when snowboarding but had a bad neck injury from horseriding (ruptured discs, lame arm, pain over 4 years) and was very afraid to fall (board n horse) for some time, so I feel you there. Whatever you do, take it easy n step by step and _bend your knees_. You may never ride as carefree again, but as your skills will improve you're going to enjoy more than frear bit by bit.


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## d2cycles

chomps1211 said:


> ...I haven't been successful in getting much air yet, but I haven't given up either! (...I just keep wussing out so far!) lol!


I started racing motocross at 37 years old. I had been road racing motorcycles for 10 years at that point and I wanted something to help with my training. I bought a 250 4-stroke and started the learning curve. I was completely afraid of hitting doubles. I just couldn't do it. Finally, I found a friend to pace me (follow them at the exact same speed) so I knew the speed was correct. After him pacing me around the track over every double, I was able to jump the entire track on my own without paralyzing fear. 

I can honestly say that the only trick to hitting a jump is picking your starting point to make sure the speed is correct and then straight line it. Don't turn, don't hesitate just go and quit thinking about it. Do it over and over again until the fear subsides some...then pick a different jump and start again. It takes time but it is 100% possible.

To the OP - get back out there. You will always regret not going more than you regret the injury. I have tried the rental boards at the indoor ski hills in the UK and they are very poorly maintained. See if you can borrow a board from a friend or demo a board from a shop...you will enjoy it much more.


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## 24WERD

its the equipment.

go buy some good equipment for cheap in the off season.

you will enjoy boarding more.

With all the tech now if you just want to get from point A to point B it should be very easy and injury free.

Find out what type of board you were riding before.

It matters.

I myself hate camber and total reverse camber boards. the former more.


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## cmiddlebrook

@f00bar yeah a friend booked the trip to Austria. I said I needed somewhere with green runs but she said that over there the blues were equivalent to greens! Not true! the beginner slope had a drop into it steeper than anything I'd seen before so I had huge problems from the very outset!

@neni yeah protective equipment helps. I hurt my knees a few times and then bought some awesome knee pads and now no pain if I hit them! Though I'm not sure there is any kind of gear that can prevent a shoulder dislocation?

And yeah it is about the confidence. As somebody earlier said, taking lessons helps. I definitely feel much safer on a lesson. It's when I'm own my own that the fear really hits. 

@24werd - I've seen camber mentioned several times in this thread. I'm really a newbie - what does camber mean?


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## ekb18c

http://www.snowboardingforum.com/boards/37496-rocker-camber-everything-between.html

That should help you understand the different profiles. 

camber vs reverse camber vs camrock vs CRC vs flat


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## F1EA

Get a full rocker board and only ride when there's fresh snow. 

Doesn't have to be a snow dump... anything from 3cm+ makes a world of difference. Just avoid the icy bunny hills. It's a trap!

You would fare a lot better had you done other board sports... ussually there's a lot that tranfers to the snow (specially falling!). So as you get older, you have a lot of muscle memory to catch up with.


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## cmiddlebrook

ekb18c said:


> http://www.snowboardingforum.com/boards/37496-rocker-camber-everything-between.html
> 
> That should help you understand the different profiles.
> 
> camber vs reverse camber vs camrock vs CRC vs flat


Ahh thanks! I'm pretty sure the board they hire out at the indoor slope here in the UK was just a flat one though in Austria where I had the injury I'm not sure. We got it from a hire shop which seemed much better than the ones here but I don't know what type it was.


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## Deacon

Learning on camber isn't that bad, as long as you're aware of your edges. And neni's right, flat land, going slow, that's when you're gonna catch a nasty edge. As far as falling goes, get low, keep your arms in, and take the impact with your body instead of an extremity.


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## f00bar

ekb18c said:


> http://www.snowboardingforum.com/boards/37496-rocker-camber-everything-between.html
> 
> That should help you understand the different profiles.
> 
> camber vs reverse camber vs camrock vs CRC vs flat


And yes, you will probably still be confused after reading this. Don't worry! It's all very confusing. The good news is any decent beginner board is designed with that brands trademarked "less edge catch system" which is really just their spin on the above combinations with the beginner in mind.

As with everything there is an ease of use vs peformance factor. Everyone was a beginner at some point, much less make it to expert, so guess which boards they make more of. Buy more board than you are ready for and you're gonna have a bad day.


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## cmiddlebrook

The Deacon said:


> And neni's right, flat land, going slow, that's when you're gonna catch a nasty edge. As far as falling goes, get low, keep your arms in, and take the impact with your body instead of an extremity.


I did not know that flatter slopes were more likely to cause you to catch an edge! And of course if its too flat it's tricky to get any speed and you can get stuck too. That's good to know.


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## Kevin137

ALL my really bad injuries have been when not paying attention, like just riding to the lift, slowing down to wait for mates etc...

Lack of concentration hurts a lot more than falling when trying to do something new... Hehe

Where in the UK are you based just out of interest, and don't think about AGE, it is just a number, and there are loads of us oldies on here...! I started learning at 38, and moved to Norway at 41 and board so much now... I'm still no good, but love being on the snow...


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## neni

cmiddlebrook said:


> I did not know that flatter slopes were more likely to cause you to catch an edge! And of course if its too flat it's tricky to get any speed and you can get stuck too. That's good to know.


Catching edges comes when you don't "control" your edges. You are in danger to catch an edge when both edges are close to the surface, you have one edge in contact and suddenly and unintended the other edge gets contact and bites - WAM. Plus, the slower you go the more difficult it is to initiate a proper transition. 
On steeper runs you're far more unlikely to have both edges close to the surface as you will have the board angled (I assume you're not stright lining flat in the fall line yet ), and when you do a turn you'll have more speed from the slope, thus the initiation is automatically "rounder", less catchy.


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## f00bar

As a beginner I'll also add it seems to happen to me when I get lazy with how I'm either leaning or not aligning my shoulders and the tail of the board decides it wants to take the lead. Almost always ending in a Christmas Story slomo 'oh fuuuuudgge', only I don't say fudge and would rather taste some soap than take the bone jarring hit. Totally an issue of just making it down the real slope and brain farting the easy part.


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## cmiddlebrook

@kevin137 I'm in Essex so not much choice around here. I go to the MK Snozone. And yeah it's encouraging seeing so many older people doing it. On the actual slopes it looks like everyone is 19 and it can be offputting!

@neni wow that explanation makes total sense! 

Looking back now, I think I had lost my concentration. The run I was on was way above my difficulty and quite terrifying. I had managed to get down it and I relaxed thinking "phew I made it" and then I was on the floor in agony.

So now I know to *always* concentrate, especially on the flats and not to let the concentration lapse towards the end of the run like that.


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## f00bar

cmiddlebrook said:


> @kevin137 I'm in Essex so not much choice around here. I go to the MK Snozone. And yeah it's encouraging seeing so many older people doing it. On the actual slopes it looks like everyone is 19 and it can be offputting!
> 
> @neni wow that explanation makes total sense!
> 
> Looking back now, I think I had lost my concentration. The run I was on was way above my difficulty and quite terrifying. I had managed to get down it and I relaxed thinking "phew I made it" and then I was on the floor in agony.
> 
> So now I know to *always* concentrate, especially on the flats and not to let the concentration lapse towards the end of the run like that.


Just until the muscle memory really kicks in. Right now your body is very linked and one thing leads to another from your head down to your toes. With time your feet will be able to make adjustments without you even knowing it and it'll all be gravy. So I hear, I'm not there yet. I made the mistake on my 3rd time of trying to take video of my son as we were going down. Something I did without even thinking about it when I was on skis. Let's just say it was a bad idea trying to point the camera in totally different way than I wanted to ride. Though the snow was soft and the video of the fall is quite humorous and I had to turn the sound off to show my son.


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## 24WERD

first thing is get your own equipment.

i'll help take out the research out of it.

Get a Gnu B-nice, or roxy board w/mtx or libtech skate banana. 

It should be under 300$

Grab some bindings for $100 like union rosa or milian, or flux.

and figure out which boot fits.

For the steep runs, don't lean back have you shoulders at the same angle as the slope so when you turn and or stop you and direct pressure perpendicular to the snow. It like if you are in the flats you would not lean back but stay centered over the board. This is generally speaking, on powder day its a diff story.


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## f00bar

24WERD said:


> first thing is get your own equipment.
> 
> i'll help take out the research out of it.
> 
> Get a Gnu B-nice, or roxy board w/mtx or libtech skate banana.
> 
> It should be under 300$
> 
> Grab some bindings for $100 like union rosa or milian, or flux.
> 
> and figure out which boot fits.


she's in the UK, not sure what that means for availability of the Gnu, etc. That said there are tons available that would be great for her. Every brand has a board where she is the target market.


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## Kevin137

Have you tried Hemel Hemstead...?

It's a little closer at least... Maybe...


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## cmiddlebrook

Kevin137 said:


> Have you tried Hemel Hemstead...?
> 
> It's a little closer at least... Maybe...


No I haven't tried Hemel. Even though MK is further a way, my best friend lives in Dunstable which is 30 mins away from there so I usually go and stay with her and just book a session while I'm at hers so it's only a 30 minute journey.


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## 16gkid

Get a RCR profile board and kiss edge catching goodbye!


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## Argo

Keep going, don't give up. It def gets easier but those blocks can suck. Took my wife about 60 riding days to get over breaking some ribs in les 3 valles in December. Of course the pain didn't help getting over it. She has her stoke/mojo back now though. It takes mistakes and pain to learn sometimes. Broke my leg 3 seasons ago and I made myself ride 10 days before season ended that Year so I could get over it....


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## Argo

As far as boards, if you want to learn to ride proper technique, suffer on a camber board now.... You will end up a way better rider. 

I see rocker as ok For the first day or so to learn how to slide on snow, edge control is huge though and you don't get good at that on rockered boards.....


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## cmiddlebrook

I'm not really in a position to be buying my own board right now. At this stage I just want to do a level 1 lesson to see how I feel and to see if I can enjoy it without being gripped by fear. 

If successful then I would go through the rest of the lessons and only after I had gained a lot more confidence (and had a bit more cash to spare) would I really be thinking of buying my own board.


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## ekb18c

These may help you as well.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=snowprofessor


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## francium

I ride at hemel once in a while i'd say if you've got the basics down just book yourself onto their improver lessons the instructors are nice people and will help you improve, the better your technique the easier you'll find steeper pistes. 
Then once your happy head upto scotland again as there is plenty of easy runs to get your confidence back and a few steeper ones. Have a look on a couple of the uk forums there is always people willing to meet up in the winter for a shred.


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## chomps1211

F1EA said:


> Get a full rocker board and only ride when there's fresh snow.
> 
> Doesn't have to be a snow dump... anything from 3cm+ makes a world of difference. *Just avoid the icy bunny hills. It's a trap!*


^+1^

I forgot to mention that my first two hard slams were on icy snowcrete, on rental equipment. The edge catches on the flats, tend to hurt more because of the slower speed and shallow angle of the fall line. When moving faster on steeper terrain, you tend to skip & skid out a fall a little more. (...bouncing down hill!) 

On the flat,.. It's usually one quick, fast, *BAM!* And you are on the ground without so much as a bounce. _All_ of the energy transferred right to your body in one hard shot! :dizzy:




Argo said:


> As far as boards, if you want to learn to ride proper technique, suffer on a camber board now.... You will end up a way better rider.
> 
> I see rocker as ok For the first day or so to learn how to slide on snow, edge control is huge though and you don't get good at that on rockered boards.....


I agree with this 100%!

After my second trip, (..and injury!) I ran out and bought my own board. It was a full camber, all mnt. Board. I learned how to get fairly decent at snowboarding and rode my first two seasons on it. I'm not saying its for everyone, but if you learn and discipline your edge control on a cambered board? You will find it does make you a better rider, and other profile boards will seem "easy" afterward. 

Full rocker doesn't guarantee no caught edges, but you can ride a little sloppier without it happening all the time. I found the lack off edge hold to be a problem when I demo'd a few in 2012. (...I can ride them a little more controlled now!)


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## cmiddlebrook

Camber board, RCR, Rocker board... this is all sounding very confusing :/


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## td.1000

chomps1211 said:


> Full rocker doesn't guarantee no caught edges, but you can ride a little sloppier without it happening all the time.


don't know about rockers, but on a TBT it's pretty much impossible to catch an edge. the first time I tried it I was going down at 90 with the slope completely flat based and nothing happened. in any case I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to beginners, but if catching edges is the #1 concern it might be worth a look.


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## Argo

cmiddlebrook said:


> Camber board, RCR, Rocker board... this is all sounding very confusing :/


Not confusing....


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## Manicmouse

Just keep at it! You'll constantly make progress and eventually surprise yourself.

The best way to learn is with a friend who can tell you what you're doing wrong. Lessons are usually too short and almost worthless if in a group. Hopefully you know some snowboarders? If not, ask around in the forums for someone to go on a trip with you!


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## Argo

You can also record yourself and post it up for some feedback here. Seems to help some other members.


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## cmiddlebrook

Manicmouse said:


> Just keep at it! You'll constantly make progress and eventually surprise yourself.
> 
> The best way to learn is with a friend who can tell you what you're doing wrong. Lessons are usually too short and almost worthless if in a group. Hopefully you know some snowboarders? If not, ask around in the forums for someone to go on a trip with you!


Yeah my other half is now pretty good and may be able to help with that.


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## Kevin137

For what it costs to go to Scotland, you could do a weekend in Norway, and is probably no longer to get too... And in the capital Oslo...!!!


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## FalseFlag

i took 2 years off after i fell and dislocated my wrist and tore the tendons to all my fingers, This happened 10 years ago. It took almost 8 months till i was back to 90%. I did all kinds of exercises and strengthening and its at around 98% now. I was a little skidish at 1st to fall. I always tried falling and keeping my arms tucked in to prevent this type of injury again. I would rather bruise my tailbone then injure my arms.


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## francium

Kevin137 said:


> For what it costs to go to Scotland, you could do a weekend in Norway, and is probably no longer to get too... And in the capital Oslo...!!!



Norway for the price of a tank of gas or 2, 35 quid a day for a lift pass, and a hotel, where do I sign up?


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## Manicmouse

francium said:


> Norway for the price of a tank of gas or 2, 35 quid a day for a lift pass, and a hotel, where do I sign up?


Lol this ^^

People mentioned wrist guards before, when I bothered wearing them I found the Dakine ones pretty good


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## Deacon

Manicmouse said:


> Lol this ^^
> 
> People mentioned wrist guards before, when I bothered wearing them I found the Dakine ones pretty good


I firmly believe these are a great way to hurt yourself.


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## Manicmouse

The Deacon said:


> I firmly believe these are a great way to hurt yourself.


Break your wrist or collarbone is the usual choice 

I think they're good for the little falls beginners do where they keep planting their hands. Not enough pressure to break anything but can result in a sprained wrist.


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## 24WERD

you guys are confusing her with too much crap.

I think all she wants is to enjoy the snow and get from point A to point B.

The crap equipment at the resort is terrible , buy a rocker board with strong edge control.

If you want to get your confidence back get a rocker board. Its like learning how to use a computer using C-prompt command line vs. Graphics User Interface or Driving a car manual vs automatic.


practice visualization.

The most dangerous thing for beginners is being with other beginners on the green slopes.


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## f00bar

24WERD said:


> you guys are confusing her with too much crap.
> 
> I think all she wants is to enjoy the snow and get from point A to point B.
> .


I have go agree here. Hopefully she is at least taking out of all this that there is no reason for her to stop, especially age or her shoulder. What seems to get lost sometimes here is that everyone doesn't want or simply can't shred 100 days a year. And sometimes people are more than happy getting by than learning a new skill or trick every day. Of course everyone means well, but it can be a bit over whelming. I mean we've been planning out $500+ equipment purchases for her 

I think all she really wants is a bit of encouragement and I think she has gotten it. It seems to me just getting down the slope each time puts a smile on her face when she doesn't crash too hard. And that should be the focus point in my opinion.

And that first time she gets 2" of air and doesn't crash, well we all know what kind of monster that can create.


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## ItchEtrigR

To the OP sucks you got hurt, keep at it, like others have mentioned it gets easier. It usually takes a big slam to make you pay attention. I say lesson learned, time to get on to the next bit.

Like Argo mentioned camber is the way to go when learning, it'll teach you your edges, the slams will bring you down to earth back to speeds, terrain or features your capable of. Just take it slow, repetition is key, a lesson helps get your head wrapped around it all, attitude is more important because the slams will come, hopefully you won't be as unlucky as you have been in the past. 

Good luck.


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## cmiddlebrook

@24WERD yeah you got it spot on there. I've only ever been a very recreational boarder - going to an indoor slope every month or so and then hoping for a little boarding holiday in the winter. That's about it. I'm just happy doing nice easy runs. I only want to get good enough that falls become more of a rare thing than an everyday thing.

Right now as I said before I'm not in a position to get a board - I need to get my confidence back first and just re-learn the basics. Once I get to that point I'll come back here and ask for board advice when I'm really ready to take it in!

@Manicmouse they are actually the wrist guards I bought and I couldn't get on with them at all. I have pretty small hands and they dug into my hands quite painfully and restricted my movement so much that I had a real hard time with the bindings which just added to the frustration. 

And yes thanks everyone for the encouragement. I have decided to start again and shall be booking my next lesson. My other half boards as well (and is way better than me) so that's nice.


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## 24WERD

I got my equipment (skate banana) before I even knew how to board.

I just want to say It is the right board ( I helped over 24 + people get new board in 3 years all going from camber to reverse camber or hybrid) which makes all the difference. For some reason its always a crappy burton that they got from a friend that bought a new board. After getting on the new board they can't believe how easy it is. Its actually fun.

If you watch the youtube videos and do some visualization on what happens when you go down the slopes you can get better faster. Like I said earlier , save your money on a good board and learn on line.


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## ETM

Risk vs reward
Only you can decide if its worth it or not.


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## Kevin137

francium said:


> Norway for the price of a tank of gas or 2, 35 quid a day for a lift pass, and a hotel, where do I sign up?


Return flight from Gatwick with Ski bag is about £120 so depending on what you drive, is the cost of a couple of tanks of fuel, lift pass in Oslo Winter park is less than £35 on a weekday, in fact it is £30.50p

And a couple of nights in a hotel.. Haha


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## Mika

I just joined and saw this post, so i thought i'd give a bit of advice seeing I've had similar issues.

I took up boarding in 2010 at age 29 and dislocated my shoulder learning to waterski in summer 2011, so i was pretty tentative about getting back on the board, especially with the packed snow we always have in Australia. First trip out on the board I had my shoulder strapped up with sports tape and after that, I picked up a motocross shoulder brace which was good for the confidence, knowing it could take a hit and not hurt. That same season I managed to fracture my tail bone on an icy patch of snow, and my winter was ruined so when the next northern hemisphere winter rolled around i took myself to Canada to board for a month. 

I have not had an issue with my shoulder while snowboarding even with a few yard sales and panicky branch grabs when doing tree runs.

Best thing for you would be to get a brace to put your mind at ease and try not to panic when you feel like you're going to fall. Also try to teach yourself to tuck your arms when you fall. If your arms are flailing you're more likely to pop your shoulder again. 

Get back out there and enjoy it! I did and haven't looked back.


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## Mizu Kuma

I'll also have a little input here as well!!!!!

I popped my shoulder in 2011 on a shitty little kicker in spring slush conditions!!!!! I was 43 years old, and it hasn't stopped me riding one bit!!!!! 

Trailing arm????? Always the trailing arm!!!!! 

Best thing to do is not to baby it, as the only way you'll strengthen the muscles that hold the joint in place, is to use it!!!!! 

Try and exercise it in its full rotation so it builds the muscle strength to the equivalent of the other shoulder, that you most likely don't even give a second thought too!!!!! 

Get out there and enjoy boarding, as you will only regret it if you don't!!!!!


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