# Turning with your legs



## OU812 (Feb 2, 2013)

Just went through my bookmarks and found this video I saved from a few years ago. Really like the explanation about imagining your knees have fog lights and pointing them to where you wanna go. Easy and simple to understand.


----------



## speedjason (May 2, 2013)

Very good video. Perfectly shows how to use front let to initiate the turns.


----------



## tokyo_dom (Jan 7, 2013)

Interestingly, when i first started snowboarding, before youtube was available, and before i even had any other snowboarders to watch and mimick, i managed to learn how to turn exactly how he described. I was working on the principal of torsionally twisting my board to give a sharper angle on one side than the other by directing my knees one way or another.

Its not the way most people learn, and it might explain my weird (to me) boarding style where i feel i am too quiet in the upper body


----------



## speedjason (May 2, 2013)

tokyo_dom said:


> Interestingly, when i first started snowboarding, before youtube was available, and before i even had any other snowboarders to watch and mimick, i managed to learn how to turn exactly how he described. I was working on the principal of torsionally twisting my board to give a sharper angle on one side than the other by directing my knees one way or another.
> 
> Its not the way most people learn, and it might explain my weird (to me) boarding style where i feel i am too quiet in the upper body


The reason your upper body is quiet is because cross under turns you are doing. The board is switching edges under your body.


----------



## chomps1211 (Mar 30, 2011)

I learned something similar my first "full" season,.. (Technically my second season.)  When I took a lesson for riding switch.

I kept on crashing every time I tried to transition heelside to toeside whenever I went switch. EVERY time! It was ugly! I was on a directional, setback deck so when switch, the sidecut characteristics were completely different! 

Instructor got me to use my knees to engage the sidecut better & more predictably than when I was trying to skid those switch turns. 

However, his technique differed slightly in one aspect,..! He had me bringing my knees "Together" for Toeside, and spreading them apart for Heelside. Kinda like dancing an Old Fashion "Lindy!" (…and NO! I'm not actually _that_ old!!)  :laugh: Just as in this vid clip, when I was standing still and going thru this motion on the board? I could see the torsional flex created and how it brought the contact points into action sooner & without as much need to lean over with my upper body!

It actually took another season & a half before it dawned on me to try and put that technique to use when riding "Regular!!" :facepalm3: :lol: _Clueless NooB, dontcha know!_ ;D 

I also found that using this technique is very effective in that late season, afternoon, bumped to all hell, chop & corned up spring mogul piles left behind by the skiers!! >


----------



## tokyo_dom (Jan 7, 2013)

speedjason said:


> The reason your upper body is quiet is because cross under turns you are doing. The board is switching edges under your body.


Yeah thats exactly it. Though that comes up as an "advanced snowboarding technique" when i wouldnt put myself as advanced. I learnt in the wrong order i guess because i have to concentrate to keep my shoulders in line with my board for cross-over turning.

Its great for super quick turns, and for transitioning from being stopped on my heel edge, to going onto my toe edge (and vice versa) on very steep runs


----------

