# Learning to ride switch, any tips?



## fredericp64 (Jan 4, 2010)

Use the search tool to bring up the relevant threads, it should answer many of your questions. 

This one is pretty good, http://www.snowboardingforum.com/tips-tricks-instructors/20255-riding-fakie.html

Cheers.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

I'm not an expert by any stretch, but I figured out early on that being able to ride switch is important. Unfortunately I'm one of those people who is STRONGLY regular (no bathroom jokes, please). The first couple times riding goofy, when I tried to turn I just basically fell over.

I've taken to hitting the bunny slope for a half hour or so at the beginning of every day on the mountain, either practicing riding switch, or doing ollies, or 180s, or something. For riding switch, I just started with garlands, worked my way to wide S's, and now I'm trying to tighten them up. I still have to consciously lean forward and turn my upper body to make a turn. But it'll come with practice.


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## DC5R (Feb 21, 2008)

The only advice I have about riding switch is to not give up. Learning to ride switch is like learning to ride a snowboard all over again. Spend a bit of time on the bunny slope and get it down. You won't regret it going forward.


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## Guest (Aug 11, 2010)

first thing you have to do is make sure that you are riding correctly to begin with. if not you are just going to build on bad habits. the best way to move forward is by a slow progression. start of with wide and slow skided turns, then slowly speed them up and make them shorter. then work on proper body alinment and then move into steeper slopes. keep up the progression and then move on to carving and bumps


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## bigwhiffa (Aug 2, 2010)

When I first started to learn to ride switch I found that turning on my heel edge was so much easier than my toe edge. 
After awhile I realized that I had a tendency to rely too much on my heel edge and it affected my riding.
I wasn't as confident going into hits riding switch or landing them either...
So I decided to work on building up my confidence in my toe edge by doing a lot of J-turns on my weak edge. Just point and turn.
Just throw a few turns in at the top of each run every now and then.
Keep at it and you'll get it!

Cheers


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## PaulyMolitor (Oct 29, 2009)

riding duck helped me


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## Tarzanman (Dec 20, 2008)

The only way to get good at it is to practice. Dedicate an hour or two everyday to ONLY riding switch down greens or blues and make sure you pull lots of 180's during your normal runs to switch it up.

I spent half a day at keystone teaching myself to ride switch. I did it so much that my front foot cramped up because it wasn't used to all that work.

Duck stance will help... but if you're like me and rode a skateboard for YEARS without doing much switch riding, then you will notice that your body/muscles don't stretch to that side as easily as they do to your 'normal' side.

Practice practice practice


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