# Been snowboarding inconsistently for ~10 years. Critique this video of me riding



## njfastlfie (Dec 24, 2013)

east coaster. until recently the most i ever really went was 2-3x/year. 

now i am upping that to at least 5+ (hopefully 10+). 

anyway, come take a look at my video. i know it isn't the best angle but please give me some advice/insight. 

i know what i am doing wrong. i am leaning too far back and ruddering the tail of my board to speed check and what not. i also think i am too concerned with going fast (mainly b/c that's what most of my friends do, bomb hills). 

right now my concentration is on glade riding and fixing my basics (carving, etc.). 

do i have what it takes?


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## SkullAndXbones (Feb 24, 2014)

if you know what you're doing wrong then you know how to fix it, no? sounds more like a mental road block than anything else.


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## taco tuesday (Jul 26, 2014)

Sounds like you at least have an idea of what you are doing wrong and what you need to fix. That's a start.

I am no expert or instructor but I would focus on keeping your weight at least centered if not a bit forward(downhill) and use your downhill leg/knee to initiate carves rather than swinging your back leg around. It doesn't need to be a drastic movement, when you are turning heelside twist your knee out slightly and focus on engaging the heelside edge. When turning toeside do the same in the other direction twisting your knee in. Leading into a carve with the front(downhill) section of the edge and pushing/weighing the edge through and out of the carve is so much more effective and satisfying than ruddering turns. There are plenty of videos on youtube that could be helpful in exhibiting the technique better than I can explain it.

Good luck.


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## Simon Birch (Mar 11, 2014)

Keep your shoulders centered over your board. Watch your video again and you will see your torso doesn't move with your board, just your legs.


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## f00bar (Mar 6, 2014)

I can't help but wonder if bad posture if sometimes made a lot worse by handling the selfcentered stick.


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## speedjason (May 2, 2013)

The only way is to put more pressure on the front foot and get comfortable with speed.
Also learn to compress to weight off edges during transition.
What kind of board are you riding?
Being comfortable with speed has a lot to do with being comfortable with edge control. If you know your edge is gonna lock you will be comfortable with speed.
2-3 times a year so 10 years you are looking at 40 days. That's what I normally do in 2 years and I am gonna push myself to do 40 days this year.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

incorrect of use of go pro

cited: lack of boobies

also not enough drunk fights


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## raffertyk2 (Dec 16, 2014)

snowklinger said:


> incorrect of use of go pro
> 
> cited: lack of boobies
> 
> also not enough drunk fights


Not sure what mountains you are riding but I need to plan a trip!! Lol


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## Justin (Jun 2, 2010)

Some pretty good advice with regards to body position. You are not really carving, you skid your turns mostly which is generally good for tight trees. If you keep your shoulders open/closed (depending on the direction you are turning) you should be able to hold your edge longer and actually turn your body and board towards one of sides of the run.

The other thing would be to increase your flex and extension, so basically bending your knees more and and springing through your carve, weather its at the apex of the turn or as you are changing edges. Hope it helps.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Idk…perhaps it’s the gpro stick…but you are not aggressive enough on the front, i.e., your are riding centered or on the tail, the leading knee is not being used, too straight and your leading shoulder is generally too tall…you are not dipping or rising your leading shoulder (dip to go toe and rise to go heel) and driving your leading knee. And you are too static…get more dynamic and moving up and down...and trust your board...you are too tentative with the board.

Think of your leading knee as your steering wheel and then add in your leading hip and shoulder in to the rotation. See the vid…a drill is to use your index finger of your leading hand and “point the turn…point the turn by reaching down…keeps the weight on the nose, your leading knee bent and driving and gets your hips and shoulders all going in the same direction.

Also get your trailing arm down….when folks flay the trailing arm…it actually slows down your response and agility….because the trailing arm acts as a counter weight. So the idea is to compact…keep your elbows glued to your ribs and your shoulders aligned to which way you are turning. It is like becoming a boxer with your shoulders and arms…and doing the duck and weave thing…so if you want to aggressively turn in the trees you are punching your turns. Going toeside..punch with your leading shoulder fist…and heelside...open your leading shoulder (pre-rotate toward heel) and follow through with punching with your trailing arm/fist (it’s a bob and weave…don’t throw your fist waaay out). By learning to throw your shoulders and punch your turns while keeping compact, you will be amazed at how quick, powerful and agile your turns become….its all because all of your movements are coordinated and going in the same direction.

Fwiw…just my self taught opinion….and not an instructor. Your want to move in/out of the netural position...but for now focus on driving the leading knee and shoulder and get the trailing arm down...hold on to your pant leg with your trailing hand to keep your shoulders aligned.

edit: watch your vid again...you are bending in the waist too much and not bending in the knees enough...squat instead of bend over....lol. But your are doing fine for your level...we've all been there...just ride more.


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## Nocturnal7x (Mar 6, 2015)

Im a noob so take this for what its worth, maybe someone will tell me this is shitty advice. Ive heard pointing your back hand at your tail, thus keeping your back hand over your tail is a good way to stay squared to the board. This makes your upper body more in sync with your lower body, less disjointed. Holding the rear pant leg suggestion above is maybe even better. 

Also, maybe more knee bend, looks like you are a little uneasy over the chop, more knee bend will help with that. Adjusting highbacks forward some can help with this I have found. Originally my highbacks were almost 90 degrees to my board, which was preventing me from bending my knees.


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## Justin (Jun 2, 2010)

Nocturnal7x said:


> Im a noob so take this for what its worth, maybe someone will tell me this is shitty advice. Ive heard pointing your back hand at your tail, thus keeping your back hand over your tail is a good way to stay squared to the board. This makes your upper body more in sync with your lower body, less disjointed. Holding the rear pant leg suggestion above is maybe even better.
> 
> Also, maybe more knee bend, looks like you are a little uneasy over the chop, more knee bend will help with that. Adjusting highbacks forward some can help with this I have found. Originally my highbacks were almost 90 degrees to my board, which was preventing me from bending my knees.


Not bad advice at all, although i would say when you give advice on the back hand over the tail to modify it to both hands over the tips, you can keep your back hand over your tail and still open your body.


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## stillz (Jan 5, 2010)

YES, you DO have what it takes. There are a lot of technical suggestions in this thread, but I think those are less important than a rethinking of your riding in general. I saw nothing in your video that will help you in the trees. If you want to ride glades and trees (and you should!), then you need to slow it waaay down for a while. Finish every single turn by bringing your board across the fall line. You should be able to easily stop in between each turn. Go slow enough that you can control every parameter of your turn. You should be able to visualize a turn and then make that EXACT turn. Skidding EXACTLY where, when, and how much you want to skid, all while staying relaxed and balanced. Once you have precise control over your turn shape, work toward making those turns smaller. There are lots of different ways to do this, and they've been addressed in great detail in other threads, but here's the Cliff's Notes version of things to play around with:

1. Twist the board more aggressively at turn initiation than you normally do. Often, just this is enough to make your turns a lot smaller.

2. Open up a bigger range of motion in your knees and ankles. How low can you ride and still make good turns? How high can you ride? Can you move from low to high or vice versa as you move through a turn? You'll need this mobility to absorb the variable terrain and snow conditions you'll find in glades.

3. Fore and aft positioning and movements. Fore = quick turn initiation, but sluggish and clumsy finish, aft = slow initiation, but a more aggressive finish. Find the right timing to get the best of both worlds.

4. If you like all that, try out some pivot slips (see link). I practice these a lot at the start of every season because it's the opposite of my default style (aggressive carving and high edge angles), and helps me round out my skill set. Pivot Slips demonstration: 




Practice first on groomed terrain, then in bumps, and preferably in the order I listed. The first item will likely make the most immediate and obvious difference, where the later items will take some time to dial in and will make more subtle (but still important!) improvements in your riding.

So yeah, stand up straight, bend your knees, practice drills, :blahblah:, all that good stuff, but the most important thing is the mental shift of priority from speed to precision. You can ride glades as fast or slow as you want, but if you're not precise, you won't last very long. Good luck and enjoy the trees responsibly.


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## stickz (Feb 6, 2013)

Justin said:


> The other thing would be to increase your flex and extension, so basically bending your knees more and and springing through your carve, weather its at the apex of the turn or as you are changing edges. Hope it helps.


This will help you ride more dynamically. Which is lacking from that video. Your knee level in that video rarely if at all changed, which means you had no flexion or extension. This will help you hold your edge and stop skidding your turns. Once you feel it for the first time you'll get it very quickly.


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## stickz (Feb 6, 2013)

stillz said:


> YES, you DO have what it takes. There are a lot of technical suggestions in this thread, but I think those are less important than a rethinking of your riding in general. I saw nothing in your video that will help you in the trees. If you want to ride glades and trees (and you should!), then you need to slow it waaay down for a while. Finish every single turn by bringing your board across the fall line. You should be able to easily stop in between each turn. Go slow enough that you can control every parameter of your turn. You should be able to visualize a turn and then make that EXACT turn. Skidding EXACTLY where, when, and how much you want to skid, all while staying relaxed and balanced. Once you have precise control over your turn shape, work toward making those turns smaller. There are lots of different ways to do this, and they've been addressed in great detail in other threads, but here's the Cliff's Notes version of things to play around with:
> 
> 1. Twist the board more aggressively at turn initiation than you normally do. Often, just this is enough to make your turns a lot smaller.
> 
> ...


 All of this


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

raffertyk2 said:


> Not sure what mountains you are riding but I need to plan a trip!! Lol


He is mainly at Keystone, that place is amazing.


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## jtg (Dec 11, 2012)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Idk…perhaps it’s the gpro stick…but you are not aggressive enough on the front, i.e., your are riding centered or on the tail, the leading knee is not being used, too straight and your leading shoulder is generally too tall…you are not dipping or rising your leading shoulder (dip to go toe and rise to go heel) and driving your leading knee. And you are too static…get more dynamic and moving up and down...and trust your board...you are too tentative with the board.
> 
> Think of your leading knee as your steering wheel and then add in your leading hip and shoulder in to the rotation. See the vid…a drill is to use your index finger of your leading hand and “point the turn…point the turn by reaching down…keeps the weight on the nose, your leading knee bent and driving and gets your hips and shoulders all going in the same direction.
> 
> ...


This is good advice and a good video, but I think wearing the legendary pink pants would really drive the point home. :grin:


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## KrzysiekDab (Jun 18, 2013)

Hi,

your upper body is not "on top of" your lower body. Try to capture a similar video and keep the pole parallel to your board. Now you see the pole is always in the same place in vid frame and what you want is to see also your board in one place. Just an exercise.

If your body is stacked well, what you would see in such video is only the background moving.

grtz,
Krzysiek
www.7hillz.pl/en


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## shitty shredder (Feb 6, 2016)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Idk…perhaps it’s the gpro stick…but you are not aggressive enough on the front, i.e., your are riding centered or on the tail, the leading knee is not being used, too straight and your leading shoulder is generally too tall…you are not dipping or rising your leading shoulder (dip to go toe and rise to go heel) and driving your leading knee. And you are too static…get more dynamic and moving up and down...and trust your board...you are too tentative with the board.
> 
> Think of your leading knee as your steering wheel and then add in your leading hip and shoulder in to the rotation. See the vid…a drill is to use your index finger of your leading hand and “point the turn…point the turn by reaching down…keeps the weight on the nose, your leading knee bent and driving and gets your hips and shoulders all going in the same direction.
> 
> ...


Could you make a vid like this for deep powder riding? :grin:

I think I ride ok on groomers or a bit of fresh, but every time I get real deep powder, which is not often, none of what I know applies. I can hardly turn at all.

I mean, if there is a nice open patch, its easy enough to point down and lean back a little and just try to hang on, and sometimes I can gently lean one way to make a big sweeping turn, but seeing everybody else doing steep narrow dynamic turns in trees and stuff has me scratching my head. If I tried that, they'd have to peel me off of the first tree.


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## kobemtl (Jan 19, 2010)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Idk…perhaps it’s the gpro stick…but you are not aggressive enough on the front, i.e., your are riding centered or on the tail, the leading knee is not being used, too straight and your leading shoulder is generally too tall…you are not dipping or rising your leading shoulder (dip to go toe and rise to go heel) and driving your leading knee. And you are too static…get more dynamic and moving up and down...and trust your board...you are too tentative with the board.
> 
> Think of your leading knee as your steering wheel and then add in your leading hip and shoulder in to the rotation. See the vid…a drill is to use your index finger of your leading hand and “point the turn…point the turn by reaching down…keeps the weight on the nose, your leading knee bent and driving and gets your hips and shoulders all going in the same direction.
> 
> ...


very good vid. easy to understand and straight forward. thanks buddy.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk


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