# Problems with linking turns



## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Obviously you are just starting...not bad...but it looks like you are hanging on to yer invisible guide dog for the blind. Btw you are using the torso twist method of steering. Find the creepy basement vid...weight your nose by shifting your hips toward the nose and use your leading knee to steer. Happy riding.


----------



## speedjason (May 2, 2013)

I think your weight is probably a bit on the back leg that's why your board wants to spin around.
Also, you need to start looking where you wanna go. A little upper body rotation to initiate turning is not a problem.
You look like you almost freeze on the board not moving at all.


----------



## Scalpelman (Dec 5, 2017)

You just need more time on the mountain. Good progress between vids.


----------



## Andrewhl (Feb 28, 2019)

Thanks guys
I will try a few more runs next Monday. See if I can really engage my hips and put more weight on front leg.
I wonder how can I be more relax on the board? 
I tend to focus on my lower body and controlling of edges then I totally forget about my upper body.

btw, should I start to ride on blue trails regularly? I usually practice on green trails but last week my instructor took me to blue trails and I managed to make several turns on the trail and get down (fall once or twice on the steep part or narrow part)


----------



## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Andrewhl said:


> Thanks guys
> I will try a few more runs next Monday. See if I can really engage my hips and put more weight on front leg.
> I wonder how can I be more relax on the board?
> I tend to focus on my lower body and controlling of edges then I totally forget about my upper body.
> ...


Did you find the creepy basement vid? Bend de kneez, get low/squat and go up n down.

For relaxation...get jiggly...when strapped in and standing...just jiggle and bounce...and breathe...calm yer mind


----------



## SnowDragon (Apr 23, 2012)

Ah, I recognize the glorious vistas of Mount St. Louis Moonstone in your vids!

Per wrathfuldeity, lose the guide dog tethered to your front arm.
Initiate turns with your hips and knees, have your upper body rotate in line with those.

Finally, if you indeed live in Toronto, join my ski club (www.ntsc.ca) where you will receive a free 2 hour lesson from CASI-certified instructors on every day trip to either MSLM or Blue Mountain. Unbelievable deal for the C$155.00 membership.
PM me for details if you wish.

BTW, you are doing fine - just need some tweaking and more practice.


----------



## Rip154 (Sep 23, 2017)

Have you done any boardsports before? Learning how to lean into turns while keeping pressure on the right edge so you don't catch an edge is most important, you get that automatically with practice, but won't fully understand it till you get some speed. If you feel comfortable turning to one side, try to straightline a little so you build speed to do a proper turn. Putting a hand down in the middle of the turn can help you make sure you stay on the right edge. If you aren't used to it, squatting while riding can be exhausting, but those are the muscles you depend on, so just start working on it. Do some carpettraining to find the most natural stance while squatting. Once you get the basics in you can experiment a bit more. In the first video there you looked dangerously close to catching an edge, and is the main reason many break their wrists. Stiff body, stiff hands, lots of leverage and hit the ground hard.


----------



## mikeyb79 (Mar 12, 2012)

There's a lot of things going on all at once, it's easy to lose track of everything. The fact that it can take several outings to get the turns to link smoothly is lost on a lot of folks, honestly those videos are looking alright in terms of overall technique for a beginner. I try and break it down to a couple things, engage the edges to initiate the turn, when the edge bites turn with your front knee, and like most sports, let your body follow through (don't swivel your body to make the board turn, your body movement is gentle and just helping to round it out). Hands out over the tip and tail of the board is good for determining how much rounding out you'll do. Knees bent.

Don't try to keep your body pointing forward towards the tip otherwise you'll be fighting yourself the whole way down - it hard to get used to having your back turned downhill when riding toe edge but it's important to keep your eyes on where your board is going, not where you'll end up at the bottom of the run. 

Aside from that, it's just about practicing until you've got the control and reaction time to tighten up the turns and put the board where you want it and use the turning to control your descent speed.


----------



## freshy (Nov 18, 2009)

I distinctly remember getting stuck on my heelside edge in my early learning days. By having my arms straight out in front on me while heelside it would give me enough leverage to make the transition back to toeside.

Might work for you as it did me for a crutch till you get the proper technique.


----------



## t21 (Dec 29, 2010)

If you like to listen to music to relax,do so but have one earbud off your ear so you can still hear around you.i noticed that when you are on your heelside prior to turning is where you scrub speed then slowly turn very cautiously although you do not do that turning heelside. Why don't you point your board more across toward the side of the hill instead of downhill so you would not have to scrub speed and have your turns more fluid from heel to toe.


----------



## bznchris (Dec 31, 2018)

You’ve received some excellent tips so far. But at this stage of the game, the simpler the better, because you’re only able to focus on one or two things. Get forward. Get lower. Make this a mantra and say it to yourself constantly. Say it on the chair lift, and yell it at yourself while riding.

I tell people you can’t pussy foot around learning this sport. Go at it head first (metaphorically...kind of) and embrace the yard sales that are coming. Carry more speed so your board can start working, get forward, get lower, and it WILL just click.


----------



## Andrewhl (Feb 28, 2019)

Thanks for the excellent tips guys!
My son was sick last week so I couldn't go to the ski resort to try them out.
The season is ending here in Toronto. I will see if I can make a trip to Mont Tremblant in April to practice those tips.


----------



## Andrewhl (Feb 28, 2019)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Did you find the creepy basement vid? Bend de kneez, get low/squat and go up n down.
> 
> For relaxation...get jiggly...when strapped in and standing...just jiggle and bounce...and breathe...calm yer mind


Yes! Now I understand why it's creepy:laugh2:


----------



## buller_scott (Jun 10, 2018)

Hey Andrew your second vid is actually looking not bad!

bznchris put it pretty well - snowboarding is the kind of sport where yes, you have to just dive in head first, and know that the spills are going to be part of the process.

When looking at your vids, if you want to link turns in a more committed fashion, I would say:
*Really focus on placing more weight over your front foot, I'd even go so far as to say that if you're exaggerating front foot weighting such that your front leg is more bent than your back leg, that's good, this early on
*Combined with having your front hand out before you, acting as a headlight, guiding the direction your board is going. If your weight is on your front foot, and you guide your hand to go from heel to toe side, the rest of your body WILL follow. 

Practice practice, more days on the hill, and SnowDragon's club membership thing sounds like a frigging steal - don't know what the other benefits of membership are, but 5 day trips up = 10 hours worth of lessons, you'll be smashing blue runs like a champ.


----------

