Snowboarding E-Book

Dan Wakeham

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 158

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

Crowood Sports Guides provide sound, practical advice that will make you into a better sportsperson, whether you are learning the basic skills, discovering more advanced techniques or reviewing the fundamentals of your sport. Snowboarding is the latest addition to this popular sports guides series and gives in-depth background to snowboarding's progression from enfant terrible of the slopes to mainstream winter sport. Contents include: How to set up a snowboard; Choosing the right equipment; Detailed explanation of the correct techniques for boardercross, halfpipe, slopestyle, big air and rails, featuring sequenced photography and diagrams; Getting the most from Snowboard Parks; Step-by-step guide to maintaining your board; Preparing for competition: nutrition and fitness. An instructional and practical guide aimed at beginners and improving snowboarders, Snowboarding gives an in-depth background to the sport, including how to set up your snowboard, advice on correct techniques and preparing for competition. Superbly illustrated with 150 colour sequenced photographs and diagrams. Dan Wakeham has worked within the snowboard industry for the past twenty years and Sophie Everard is a passionate snowboarder.

Leseprobe

This e-book first published in 2013

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

© The Crowood Press 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 637 6

All photographs are by Penny Cross, except where indicated otherwise.

CONTENTS

Preface

Part 1: An Introduction to Snowboarding

1Snowboarding Through the Years

2The Snowboard Disciplines

3Construction of a Snowboard

4Choosing Your Snowboard and Basic Equipment

5Other Equipment Needed

6Setting up Your Snowboard

7Looking After and Servicing Your Snowboard

Part 2: Snowboarding Techniques

8Approaching the Snowboard Park and Snowpark Guidelines

9Park Obstacles and Tricks

10Disciplines in Depth: Biomechanics and the Halfpipe

11Snowboard Cross (SBX)

12Rail Riding and Boxes

13Big Air and Jumps

14Slopestyle and Freeride

Part 3: Competition and Coaching

15Preparation

16Competition Training

17Making a Plan and Setting Goals

18Sponsorship, National Teams and Career Management

19Fitness and Injury

20Cross-Over Sports

21Qualification for Coaching

End Note

Useful Resources

Index

PREFACE

Snowboarding is an exciting sport that charges its participants with adrenalin. Not only does it keep you extremely fit and active through the winter months, it takes you into the world of a competitive sport that is very lifestyle driven and exhilarating. Compared to skiing, snowboarding is still considered to be a relatively new sport, having been included in just four Winter Olympic Games. However, in that short space of time the practice, popularity and coverage of snowboarding has soared, and the slopes of the world have seen a major change from being nearly 100 per cent dominated by skiers, to the split being practically 50:50 between snowboarders and skiers.

In the early days of snowboarding, mainstream media was quick to paint a caricature of the snowboarder as a wayward and dangerous adolescent who was a menace to the mountain slopes. But snowboarding has now enjoyed a complete image turnaround and has developed into an extremely popular and profitable industry. Global snowboard competitions, such as the halfpipe in the Winter Olympics, are given nearly full television coverage and receive terrific viewing figures, if not nearly the lion’s share, as in the case of the recent Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. The professional snowboarder now enjoys a lucrative and rewarding career, bolstered by brand sponsorship and celebrity exposure, their earnings pushing them to the upper echelons of athlete income.

Shaun White at the Burton European Open 2009, Laax, Swizterland. (© Nick Atkins)

This book offers an in-depth understanding of the sport, charting its history from its infancy to the current day, with a detailed account of its rapid development, and its acceptance into the world of competitive sport. An insight into the equipment needed, exactly how to set up a snowboard, and a run-down of the various disciplines, from the Olympic (including the halfpipe, snowboard cross and the parallel slalom) to the non-Olympic (slopestyle, big air and freeride), are covered in extensive detail.

The first experience of the snow park may be somewhat daunting and intimidating for any snowboarder, but the park will be fully described, as will its accepted ‘rules’, which are in place to avoid accidents and crashes. How to tackle jumps – or ‘kickers’, as they are commonly referred to – for the first time, and of course how to land from them, will be covered, as will the rather bewildering terminology commonly used in snowboarding, which to an outsider would seem like a foreign language.

Each section is carefully illustrated, and embellished with tips and techniques, sequence photography and diagrams. The correct techniques across each discipline, both Olympic and non-Olympic, are carefully described in order to give a concise understanding of these very different styles of snowboarding. Finally, tips for competition preparation, both for yourself and for your equipment, are addressed, and advice given on how you would make a career out of this dynamic sport.

This book is intended to be as accessible to newcomers to the sport as to more experienced snowboarders.

CHAPTER 1

SNOWBOARDING THROUGH THE YEARS

Skateboarding and surfing are closely linked to snowboarding, and the very roots of snowboarding can in fact be traced to these sports. Boardsports have long co-existed and their origins are firmly linked: the simple fact is that during the 1950s, American skateboarding and surfing enthusiasts desired to transfer these sports on to the snow, and the early pioneers of snowboarding used self-made boards to achieve this.

This revolutionary approach to ‘mountain surfing’ evolved quickly, and the early prototypes of what would now be recognized as a modern snowboard were built and patented during the 1960s by Michigan engineer Sherman Poppen, who christened his invention a ‘snurfer’, or ‘ski board’. Poppen’s creation was essentially a pair of skis strapped together, with a rope attached to the nose of the board to be held for extra control. These somewhat rickety contraptions were used by a minority, and snowboarding was not permitted in all mainstream ski resorts. Nevertheless, despite a less-than-positive reception to these innovative ‘ski boards’, snowboarding was quick to develop an underground following, with participants avoiding the busy slopes dominated by skiers (where they were not accepted in any case), seeking the back country tracks of the mountain to experiment.

Jake Burton with one of his own snowboards. (Courtesy The Burton Corporation)

By the mid-1970s the snurfer was evolving and maturing: a new breed of board called the ‘winterstick’ was developed by college graduate Dimitrije Milovich, whose subsequent creation of the snowboard was more heavily influenced by surfboards. By this time Jake Burton, one of the most infamous names in the history of snowboarding, and an individual who still dominates the snowboard industry to this day with his innovative company ‘Burton Snowboards’, was developing his own version of the snurfer, which had fascinated him as a youth.

Vermont-based Burton’s one major addition to the classic snowboard shape was the addition of snowboard ‘bindings’, the fastenings attached to the board which hold the rider in, now an essential part of a snowboard. Burton entered the first ever World Snurfing Championship with his own version of a snowboard in 1979, and it is at this moment that snowboarding was established as a legitimate competitive sport.

Jake Burton in the early years. (Courtesy The Burton Corporation)

Not dissimilar to Burton’s efforts were those of Tom Sims. The history of snowboarding cannot be covered without mentioning Sims, for it was Sims who really brought snowboarding to the forefront of winter sports, signing ground-breaking deals with mainstream companies and bringing heavier skateboard influences to his designs. Sims was also a pioneer in competitive snowboarding: in 1983 he helped to organize the world’s first halfpipe snowboard competition in California.

Different styles of snowboarding were also quick to become established. Some snowboarders hiked into the backcountry to pick challenging mountain descents, and this became known as ‘freeriding’. For others it was a race from top to bottom, and alpine or snowboard cross was born. Riders more heavily influenced by skateboarding would try to emulate skateboard tricks, and ‘get air’ (use boost-off jumps and enjoy a few seconds free-fall before coming to land), the prelude to freestyle snowboarding. With freestyle rapidly developing during the 1980s, greatly assisted by both Sim’s and Burton’s new snowboard models, largely evolving from the early snurfer, snowboard tricks were christened with the very names of the skateboard tricks that inspired them. A ‘chicken salad’ or ‘stale fish grab’ are just two of the unique names used for some of the most famous skateboard and snowboard tricks.

Terje Haakonsen is often credited as being the ‘godfather’ of modern freestyle snowboarding, and the Norwegian pioneer played a huge role in shaping freestyle snowboarding into the sport that we recognize today. Terje’s groundbreaking contributions to freestyle snowboarding include the legendary ‘Haakon flip’, and his extraordinary style and amplitude (height achieved whilst boosting on a snowboard) are widely credited as playing a major role in the progression of snowboarding.

In more recent times, Shaun White, perhaps the most prominent and indeed at least the most commercially successful of all snowboaders, was credited with boosting the progression of freestyle snowboarding to even higher and more extraordinary levels. In particular was his astonishing halfpipe trick the ‘Tomahawk’, a ‘double mctwist 1260’ (in simpler terms, this is three full rotations and two full flips, whilst boosting out the pipe), which was publicly revealed to great accolade during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. Considering that snowboarding only first appeared during the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, this is a staggering progression, and indeed, snowboarding is characterized by the fast pace of its development.

Historically, snowboarding has of course drawn inspiration from surfing and skateboarding, although in recent years it would appear that skateboarders, surfers and even skiers are looking towards snowboarding for ideas. Skiers have turned to freestyle and draw their inspiration from snowboard tricks and style, and freestyle skiing now draws as big a crowd as classic ski events such as the giant slalom. Surfers are now experimenting with the inverts most commonly attributed to freestyle snowboarding, and are adopting the names from snowboarding.

Terje Haakonsen in Mammoth doing a backside air on a hip. (Courtesy Adam Moran, The Burton Corporation)

Snowboarding has seen a rapid development. It has matured from a furtive fad which alarmed skiers and gave the snowboarder a less-than-attractive image as a dangerous, out-of-control mountain menace, to a multi-million-pound industry represented by clean-cut, committed athletes who enjoy an affluent profession and all the benefits that can be reaped from a successful sporting career.

Snowboarding and snowboarders across the world share different backgrounds and experiences of snowboarding – for example in the UK, many people’s experience of snowboarding is gained via trips to the dry ski slope or indoor snow dome, which of course differs greatly to a snowboarder hailing from a mountain resort. Nevertheless, the dry ski slopes and indoor snow domes of the UK are responsible for producing a large amount of our country’s best talent, athletes who enjoy as much success as those snowboarders who had the advantage of an upbringing where mountain riding was easily accessible.

CHAPTER 2

THE SNOWBOARD DISCIPLINES

Once snowboarding was admitted to the Nagano Winter Olympics in 1998 and accepted as a legitimate sport, it was decided that two snowboard disciplines would be used: the halfpipe (freestyle snowboarding) and the giant slalom (traditional ski snowboarding).

The introduction of snowboarding to the Olympics caused a controversial split amongst snowboarders. Some felt that it was the natural progression of the sport, others felt that by allowing a ski federation (the FIS, or Fédération Internationale du Ski) to take charge of the sport’s direction, snowboarding would lose its identity and uniqueness. As we move forward to the present and consider the last Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, Canada, snowboarding was one of the most highly viewed televized events. Some attribute this to the ‘wow’ factor of two-time Olympic gold medallist Shaun White’s trick roster, including the already mentioned ‘Tomahawk’ that was exhibited by White to ecstatic crowds.

A competition-built halfpipe.

Ben Kilner at the Burton European Open 2012 in Laax, Switzerland, doing a frontside air. (© Nick Atkins)

According to NBC, snowboarder Shaun White has ‘single-handedly transformed snowboarding into a mainstream event’. Shaun, also known for his flame-coloured red hair and aptly nicknamed the ‘Flying Tomato’ by his legions of fans, is representative of the young and impressive generation that brand managers cherish. As a highly marketable athlete, Shaun White boasts a cabinet of impressive gold medals from both the Olympic Games and the ‘X Games’, the most celebrated annual competition for extreme sports, and he is the highest paid non-salaried athlete in the Winter Games.

The Olympic Disciplines

The Halfpipe

A halfpipe can be described as a pipe or tube cut in half and laid on the floor, and then its replica built out of icy snow. The walls of the pipe stand at a staggering 22ft high, and snowboarders ride in and out of it, boosting out of the lip of the pipe into the sky while performing tricks, spins, flips and grabs. They are judged on their amplitude (height out of the pipe), the technical difficulty of their performance, and the overall impression. The idea is to make it look as easy and relaxed as possible, which is awarded greater points.

Kevin Pearce performs a frontside air at the Burton European Open 2009, at Laax. (© Nick Atkins)

Snowboard Cross

Largely considered to be one of the best Olympic spectator sports in snowboarding, snowboard cross is a high speed and often high drama discipline. Four riders at a time compete to negotiate a thrilling course of icy corners, sudden bumps and jumps, in a fast-paced race to the finish line. Accidents in snowboard cross are common, owing to the speed and the number of riders.

Slopestyle

Slopestyle is fast developing into one of the most popular and well reported competitive events in snowboarding. This is reflected in the recent decision taken by the International Olympic Committee (the IOC) to include men and women’s slopestyle snowboarding in the upcoming Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia. A slopestyle course includes a mixture of different freestyle disciplines where the challenge is to find the best overall or most consistent rider. It includes a mixture of jumps, rails and challenging features. The idea is to include various freestyle disciplines where snowboarders have to prove their overall skill on a run that resembles a snow park. Slopestyle as a discipline has more competitors than you would find at any other event.

Zoe Gillings at the British snowboarding championships 2010 pumping for speed and at the start gate. (Courtesy @zoegillings)

Parallel Slalom

Slalom racers are much like the ski racers of snowboarding. They wear lycra outfits and ride boards that are long, thin and stiff. Their boots are much like ski boots and their bindings point forwards with steep angles. Slalom snowboarding seems to be a dying breed, and snowboard racing equipment is not easy to come by; the boards often have to be made to order.

Terje Haakonsen at Pemberton, British Columbia. (Courtesy Adam Moran, The Burton Corporation)

Non-Olympic Disciplines

Big Air

Snowboarders boost off a large, straight-faced wedge of snow, and are thrown into the air towards a steep landing. The art is to judge the correct speed so as not to miss the perfect or ‘sweet spot’ landing zone. The snowboarders perform tricks much as they would in the half pipe, and once again they are judged on their style and control, and the technical difficulty of their routine.

Freeriding

Riding inaccessible mountains and terrain is an intrinsic part of freeriding. Many snowboarders use helicopters to reach these remote areas. Competitions are held where the contestants are dropped off on top of the mountain. They are then judged on their descent. Points are added for the snowboarder who chooses the most creative ‘line’ – the carefully considered descent and path down the mountain.

CHAPTER 3

CONSTRUCTION OF A SNOWBOARD

As you read through this book you will start to recognize recurring terminology that is specific to snowboarding. Some words will be familiar if you have an understanding of skiing, surfing or skateboarding. Board and ski sports are considered to be cross-over sports, so many of the techniques, movements and balance skills are similar and relevant. For example, if you ski, you will already have an understanding of ‘edge control’ – although it is important not to assume that because you are already proficient at one of these cross-over sports, you will naturally be good at the other.

Snowboards are composed of a number of different materials, although designs from different manufacturers do vary. Nevertheless most snowboards on the market use the same construction and materials, so the following breakdown of a snowboard is relevant to most designs.

Screw-holes protrude through the fibreglass on top of a snowboard so that the bindings fasten securely.

Top sheet of a Head snowboard.

The Core

The centre or core of the snowboard is generally made of wood. This is rather like the backbone of the board. The wood is a mix of laminated wood strips, mostly placed vertically. The choice of wood construction governs how the snowboard will essentially ‘work’, how it moves, flexes and rides. The wood is laminated in different directions to offer different flex patterns, stiffness or aggressiveness. Some brands offer ‘honeycomb’ (an extremely light platform) or aluminium for their top end boards; this dramatically reduces the weight of the snowboard but can compromise the strength.

Fibreglass

The next layer of the board is usually made of fibreglass and is bonded to the core. Again, the directions of the fibres are positioned to add extra structure, strength and performance. Steel inserts are fastened into the core of the snowboard, and screw-holes protrude through the fibreglass so that the bindings fasten securely.

Top Sheet

Materials that make up the top sheet of the snowboard include nylon, polyester or plastic. The top sheet protects the snowboard from scratches and also displays the graphics.

Base

The material used for the base is a low-friction plastic called ‘polyethylene’, often referred to as ‘p-tex’. There are two variations of base: one is sintered, made from p-tex powder, which is pressurized and then cut into shape. Sintered bases absorb wax more efficiently, but are more expensive and harder to repair. Extruded bases are harder wearing and are often used on less expensive boards. The p-tex is heated and forced through a mould to create the appropriate shape. Extruded bases need little wax and are low maintenance, so are a good choice for the beginner snowboarder. Graphite bases are used on high-end race boards: these are sintered bases that contain a percentage of graphite to reduce friction.

Some brands leave the finished snowboard with a base structure. Like treads on a tyre, snowboard bases need structure to reduce drag. The board needs to ride on a film of water produced from the friction of its base cutting through the snow. Some board factories finish their bases with a golf-ball effect, which is useful on wet snow. Pockets of air between the base and the snow mean that water is repelled or displaced from the base, reducing the braking effect (like a glass sliding on a table). On cold, dry snow, the base should be as smooth as possible so the points of friction are minimized.

Edges