# What's Up?



## sabatoa (Jan 18, 2011)

I think your expectations are a little lofty for day one but maybe you can nail it, you wouldn't be the first guy to progress that far so soon. Just don't beat yourself up if you don't meet your expectations.

It took me the third trip before riding decently.


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## backstop13 (Jun 27, 2012)

yeah that sounds a bit ambitious...

i started out last year as well, and just like you I had skateboarded before I played baseball through college and am pretty athletic, and it took me 2 or 3 days to get turns down. I rode about 12-15 days last year and can link turns on blue/green runs easily now, but still eat shit every now and then.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

*Thanks...*

Thanks for the feedback, but what about the gear? Any thoughts? I know it's not Arc'teryx and the jacket and pants fit like fucking burlap sacks, but if I had dropped another $500 just on jacket and pants I think my wife would have killed me... :dunno:


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

For myself, whose favorite sports are the tri (surf skate snow), I learned all 3 as a teenager (sk8 a little earlier), snowboarding had the shortest and steepest learning curve. Learning to surf takes learning to paddle, which can take a really long time, not to mention just building the muscles required to paddle for 4 hours. Riding a skateboard basically is pretty easy, but the motor skills required for techinical skateboarding are unmatched in the other 2 sports. On the other hand, the outdoor prowess of watermen like Laird Hamilton and mountainmen like Jeremy Jones - nothing like this is found in skateboarding.

Being comfortable in the stance is definitely going to put you a step ahead. Snowboarding is truly easy to learn, but it's also very foreign at first, and it won't seem like its as easy as you thought it was going to be. Be prepared to fall HARD, as catching edges tend to whip you face and ass first like a wet towel.

At your age, take a lesson or 2 and it will be ALOT less painful (I'm also turning 37 during the season. Year of the Dragon wup wup!).


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## 2hipp4u (Dec 24, 2010)

I think you picked a good board and binding to start learning with, don't expect it all to come too fast.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Started at 44; take some lessons, have your friends show you how to roll over, get up/stand up, and fall. As soon as the snow falls at your house, go out and just try skating around on the flats, find a little slope, tie a rope to the bumper of the truck and get towed...just to get familiar with the little parts before you even get to the big hill. If you figure out how to skate 1 footy and can turn 1 footy you will be way ahead in just having your body aligned and the mechanics of how to turn.


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## KIRKRIDER (Mar 18, 2008)

Go for it OldDog! Just start later in the day when the snow is softer, and buy an ass pad. Pain is not cool.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

*Totally...*

Forget waiting for snow bro, I'm already carpet boarding. :cheeky4:

I'll have a sick carpet ollie and nose block down by the time the flakes fly. Maybe even butters!... 

But yeah, I pretty much plan to have skating to J-turns down before opening day. Maybe even side slipping if I can find a decent spot. Then it's straight to the rope lift and garlands down the bunny hill. Once I have heel and toe side garlands down (I figure 2 - 3 runs each) I'll try linking turns on the same bunny slope. Probably not til after lunch. 

Then in the afternoon it's a more serious slope and away we go. 

I think buying my own gear to start gives me a huge advantage in being able to be familiar with the board, skating, etc. before I ever get to the resort. That, and the board I chose is rockered in the tips and is easy to initiate turns on according to the Transworld Good Wood review notes. Can you tell I'm pumped! 

In the words of Barney Stinson "Challenge Accepted!". "It's going to be LEGEN-wait for it-DARY!

I'll be sure to come back and post on how I do. Opening day (snow permitting) is Dec. 8th.

But seriously any more comments on the setup? Thanks again for the replies!

-OD



wrathfuldeity said:


> Started at 44; take some lessons, have your friends show you how to roll over, get up/stand up, and fall. As soon as the snow falls at your house, go out and just try skating around on the flats, find a little slope, tie a rope to the bumper of the truck and get towed...just to get familiar with the little parts before you even get to the big hill. If you figure out how to skate 1 footy and can turn 1 footy you will be way ahead in just having your body aligned and the mechanics of how to turn.


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## RedRomo (Aug 17, 2010)

Started 3 years ago at age 37 (turning 40 on the 28th) and I've always been atheletic. Raced BMX in the 80's, played football, ran track, skate boarded etc...

I picked up boarding quickly but the first day was pain incarnate. Every inch of my body hurt except for my toes. Wear your helmet cause catching an edge sucks and it will happen.

Your gear looks great. I started with a 159 and I'm 5'8 190.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

Sweet! Thanks for the reply.

Don't get me wrong, I fully expect to damage myself in the process. At 34 I was sparring 3 days a week with 20 year old kids who were trying to take my head off my shoulders. I loved fighting and I've separated my floating ribs, ripped off my big toe nail, broke my foot, sprained my wrist, and dislocated my shoulder (not to mention the countless mat burns, bloodied lips and noses, and various bruises and contusions).

2 months ago I endo'd downhill on my mtn bike and nearly impaled myself on a tree. In my mind, a little pain is the price of admission if you want to get that rush! 

OK, so I might be a little "unbalanced"... :dunno:



RedRomo said:


> Started 3 years ago at age 37 (turning 40 on the 28th) and I've always been atheletic. Raced BMX in the 80's, played football, ran track, skate boarded etc...
> 
> I picked up boarding quickly but the first day was pain incarnate. Every inch of my body hurt except for my toes. Wear your helmet cause catching an edge sucks and it will happen.
> 
> Your gear looks great. I started with a 159 and I'm 5'8 190.


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## Donutz (May 12, 2010)

Unbalanced is good. 

I'm the same height and weight and boot size as you, and my board is a 159 NS Heritage. You'll be fine with yours. I'm going into my 4th season, and my experience is that the biggest stopper is timidity. Don't take that to mean you should throw yourself off the first cliff you see, though. Always limit yourself to what is logically the next technique or skill to learn, given where you are. But given that, being a wuss just slows you down.

Good waterproofing on the clothes, and I hope they're roomy -- too tight is bad.

Now where's my damned cookie?


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## slyder (Jan 18, 2010)

Old dog this is a familiar story. I was sparring with a high school girl that caught me off balance with a round house to the head. Needless to say I was on the floor seeing stars. I loved fighting guys 1/2 my age, but it does take it's toll on your body.
I started riding 3 yrs ago at 42.

You sound solid but don't over look the Azzpadz recommendation. A little pain is fine but when/if it ends your day when it could have been prevented and you'd still be riding. Why not use them and enjoy your new sport a little more.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

Thanks for the reply Donutz...

I went with the sizing chart @ the-house.com and figured an XL in the jacket would be good considering layering and all. I probably could have gone with a large. I feel like I'm swimming in the damn thing. Between the pants and the jacket I look like a hoodlum that needs to pull his pants up... Damn kids!... 

Anyway, I wanted GTX but couldn't justify spending the extra dough for my first season. Maybe next year I'll upgrade my jacket. In any event, I went for 20k/15k as a minimum based on feedback from the girl I work with who was an instructor.

Yeah, I feel ya on not hucking myself off the back country cliff on my first day or looking for that 6' kicker my first time off the lift. I've watched lots of vids of people doing it wrong and people doing it right. The basics just don't look that hard to me. And as you may have surmised, timid I ain't...

Anyway, we shall see how it goes. Did I mentioned I'm totally pumped and the next 2 months are going to drag like a mutha?

PS: Meet me at Shames opening day and I'll bring you a damned cookie! 



Donutz said:


> Unbalanced is good.
> 
> I'm the same height and weight and boot size as you, and my board is a 159 NS Heritage. You'll be fine with yours. I'm going into my 4th season, and my experience is that the biggest stopper is timidity. Don't take that to mean you should throw yourself off the first cliff you see, though. Always limit yourself to what is logically the next technique or skill to learn, given where you are. But given that, being a wuss just slows you down.
> 
> ...


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

You got KO'd by a girl?... Dude, that is awesome! 

Don't feel bad, I had a girl tap me when I first started rolling. Kind of sucks don't it? 

Anyway, yeah I've thought about the Azzpadz. Just don't know if I want to look like I'm wearing depends! I'll definitely check it out though. Thanks for the reply.



slyder said:


> Old dog this is a familiar story. I was sparring with a high school girl that caught me off balance with a round house to the head. Needless to say I was on the floor seeing stars. I loved fighting guys 1/2 my age, but it does take it's toll on your body.
> I started riding 3 yrs ago at 42.
> 
> You sound solid but don't over look the Azzpadz recommendation. A little pain is fine but when/if it ends your day when it could have been prevented and you'd still be riding. Why not use them and enjoy your new sport a little more.


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## slyder (Jan 18, 2010)

Ya was a rude awakening. She was a black belt at the time and I was lower belt, but it was still a hellava hard well placed kick.

Onto the Azzpadz, I could almost bet you can't even tell when I have mine on. For me they are totally worth it. On days or at any point I can take a short walk to the car and take them off. Again for me it was so worth it. Just trying to give you a good experience.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

What about some of the shorts like Pro-tec or something? the azzpadz look pretty clunky and I've read some reviews where they say the straps are uncomfortable. I might rather wear compression shorts with padding? I always wore shock doctors when fighting and I wear a chamois when biking so it wouldn't seem too strange.

What's the consensus, should I go all out with full body armor? Or, just protect the tailbone and wrists? I don't think full body armor is necessary is it? Maybe ass, knees, wrists, and elbows? I of course already have a great helmet. I can see most of it for park rather than free ride. Shames doesn't have much of a park from what I hear and I'm not really interested in anything other than jumps or maybe a box. No rails for this kid... 



slyder said:


> Ya was a rude awakening. She was a black belt at the time and I was lower belt, but it was still a hellava hard well placed kick.
> 
> Onto the Azzpadz, I could almost bet you can't even tell when I have mine on. For me they are totally worth it. On days or at any point I can take a short walk to the car and take them off. Again for me it was so worth it. Just trying to give you a good experience.


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## slyder (Jan 18, 2010)

I also have a set of Skeletools which is more like you mentioned. Spandex shorts with pads. They are good. It really depends on what tricks I'm working on which pair I wear. Skeletools I mainly wear if I'm gonna work on spins, which wasn't much. I usually wear the Azzpadz all day but I bring both in my gear tote. The skeletools are harder to get on in the parking lot with out making a scene. The Azzpadz just 3 clips and they are on/off

The Azzpadz weren't uncomfortable for me at all. I have never had issue with the straps. The only time I notice them is when I'm on a quad or six man lift that is full as the chair doesn't let you spread out much.

I don't wear armor other than bum pads. I always wear wrist guards but many don't . 
I will be buying a spine protector only. This is because I want to learn rails this season and trying to be smart and safe. I figure a small cash outlay to be safe and be able to continue my day should I take a hard hit, hopefully. 

I researched other pairs like Pro-tec and for me I just thought these were the best buy for my money.


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## henry06x (Feb 16, 2011)

Try not to make your expectations so high. You may very well pick it up the first day or you may not just as well. Your main goal when learning is simply to have fun, laugh, and enjoy yourself. I am not an instructor but I have taught a few friends and that's always the first thing I tell them. I had one friend who was very athletic put a lot of expectation on himself and got so irritated after 4 hours he quit left and never came back. He wouldn't laugh or let him self have fun and just got frustrated from falling. Everyone is going to fall day one a lot remember that. I think it's better if you have a friend that you can learn with and laugh at or a friend helping that screws around a lot and falls while your learning to keep your mood light hearted. 
I also had a friend learn (I didn't teach) who use to skateboard lots when he was younger. He was an avid skateboarder and could Ollie and ride fine. It took him about two days to learn to make it down the hill and actually knocked himself out day one. He learned with a friend tho and they had a good time laughed went in and got beer and stuck with it. He was a little younger at 23ish tho. 
Long story short have fun, laugh, and don't get top upset if your still falling and not where you expect to be half way through day one. 

Sounds like you have a solid setup!


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

You guys shoulda seen my buddy who knows how to snowboard and skate, when I took him surfing. He had told me for years how it was going to be easy for him. We went out in 1foot surf, and he spent the whole afternoon paddling in circles about 50-100 yards from the break (there was a slight wind lol).

I'm sure this won't happen to you.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

Have fun. That's all. Don't worry when you will get it. It may be the end of day 1. It may be day 2, or day 3. For me it was Day 2. End of day one I was going down the hill and pretending I was turning (I wasn't).

End of day 2 I accidentally did a toe side slide and it clicked. Ever since then I've been hooked.

Your gear choices look solid. Hell I'd like to try that board and binding and I'm going on year 4


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

*Thanks everyone...*

Like I said earlier "Challenge Accepted!" 

We'll see how it goes. It's not like I'm gonna stop if I don't get it. I've got too much invested! :cheeky4:

As for the Azzpadz, I think I'm going to go with the new Demon shorts with the D3O tail bone protector.

As for the gear, check out evo.com. Tons of cheap gear on sale for like 3 more days!

Thanks all!

-OD


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## timmytard (Mar 19, 2009)

You'll be fine, if you think you'll be able to get on it right away & ride away, you probably will. 
It's 100% in your head, it sounds like you understand what you need to do to be able to ride. Once you understand what is required, it's just a matter of how good your motor skills are @ making your body do what the mind tells it. 

That's where all those other similar sports come into play. If you can/could ride a skateboard down a hill, it's pretty much the same thing. 

I will say that even though I think you probably will be able to get on it & ride away, you will @ some point catch a toe side edge & eat shit.
It sucks, you won't be ready for it & it happens so fast you probably won't be able to get your hands out in front of you in time.
I think it's inevitable, everyone does it @ least once.

Here's are a few tips.
On powder days move your bindings back so your nose gets longer.

Do as many carves as you can, ten quick carves in rapid succession rather than 1 large turn.
It adds up, doing 1000 quick turns in a day will get you improving way faster than 100 longer carves. Repetition is the key, just like anything, the more you do it the better you'll become. 
Think back when you used to tic-tac your skateboard for speed, you could probably do 2 a second, carve that much.

Go two days in a row, that is when you really notice how fast you are improving. You could go ten times on non consecutive days & you'll notice an improvement, but go 2 days in a row & it will blow your fuckin' mind how much you've improved since the day before. 
Seriously, going 2 days in a row is what causes the addiction.

When you get off the chairlift & get ready to put your back foot in your binding, don't sit down & do it. 
Use your front foot & manipulate the board to push some of the loose snow into a perpendicular little ledge in front of you. As long as your toe side edge is a little higher than your heel side, you won't slide down the mountain.
That little platform will stay there, you'll use it every time you get off the chairlift. You will never sit down in the snow ever again.
That was probably the best thing anyone ever showed me.

Bring an extra set of gloves with you & stuff one down each one of your sleeves, you won't even notice them there. Just keep switching them up & your hands will never cold & wet.

Stuff some napkins or a lens cleaner in one of the pockets you never go in, you'll forget about it until you need it, you'll be so happy you did. 
Don't put your goggles on until the exact second you're about to use them & don't take them off until you're done.

If there is ever a big line up @ the chair, hit the singles line.

I guess we'll have to trade cookies.

TT


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## NickShake (Nov 18, 2011)

Well you have 20 years on me lol but when I went the first time I was going down some of the easier black diamonds on the 3rd day. For me the problem was fear. I skateboarded in my earlier years and I play ice hockey along with many other sports but I picked up on it quick. I did fall ALOT though since I jumped into things really fast. Honestly though, if you are athletic enough and your muscles in your legs are good enough, in my opinion, your goals aren't going to be hard to achieve. It all depends on how calm you can keep yourself at the speeds you are going, or how calm you can keep yourself when it comes to looking at the intimidating hills lol. Just have fun out there!!


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## LuckyRVA (Jan 18, 2011)

OldDog said:


> Thanks for the reply Donutz...
> 
> I went with the sizing chart @ the-house.com and figured an XL in the jacket would be good considering layering and all. I probably could have gone with a large. I feel like I'm swimming in the damn thing. Between the pants and the jacket I look like a hoodlum that needs to pull his pants up... Damn kids!...



The outwear you bought is solid. Sizing can be personal preferance but I'm thinking you may have gone a bit too large. Sessions gear fits long and baggy as it is. At 5'9 170lbs I wore a medium Sessions jackets and felt that was too large.


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## sleev-les (Feb 26, 2010)

Sounds like me.. I bought gear before I even tried boarding. All I knew was I loved being on the mountain and had skiied for years. I was decent by the end of the first day, but def sore... Good luck man...


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

Yeah, definitely too big but per their size chart and in the "true" size style so it's not too ridiculous. I'll just look like a teenage parkrat (from a distance anyway). 



LuckyRVA said:


> The outwear you bought is solid. Sizing can be personal preferance but I'm thinking you may have gone a bit too large. Sessions gear fits long and baggy as it is. At 5'9 170lbs I wore a medium Sessions jackets and felt that was too large.


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## LuckyRVA (Jan 18, 2011)

As long as you're comfortable, warm and dry that's all that really matters.


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## OldDog (Oct 7, 2012)

Thanks for the encouragement.

Think I'll just keep my cookie. It's prolly better than yours anyway... 



timmytard said:


> You'll be fine, if you think you'll be able to get on it right away & ride away, you probably will.
> It's 100% in your head, it sounds like you understand what you need to do to be able to ride. Once you understand what is required, it's just a matter of how good your motor skills are @ making your body do what the mind tells it.
> 
> That's where all those other similar sports come into play. If you can/could ride a skateboard down a hill, it's pretty much the same thing.
> ...


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