Skiing/Snowboarding

[Stinky Dog]

Are there any skiers or snowboarders on ISH?

My girlfriend is an avid lifelong skier so being located in Northern California (3 hours east of Lake Tahoe) I've naturally really taken to it. I skied a little bit growing up on the east coast but never really got into during my teenage years or young 20s even though almost all of my friends were really into snowboarding.

Anyway I got my first taste a few months ago and I'm officially hooked. Tahoe is probably my favorite place on earth (to vacation). I hear they have world class mountain biking during the summer which I'm really excited to mess with.

I bought my first skis this past weekend. I demoed a pair of Rossi's that retailed for 1,100 last year but I got them for 150 including a two day rental. Pretty sick deals to be had at the end of the season. Also going to buy a season pass next year but still deciding on what mountain.

Do you ski/snowboard? Where do you go? What type of equipment do you use? Where's the greatest place you've ever ridden? Any tips?

My buddy who is a super nasty skier just got back from Jackson Hole Wyoming and had a great time.

[Lebowsky]

I've been skiing since I was eight or nine. My parents used to be crazy about it, so they taught me how to ski when I was little so that I could enjoy it with them. Nowadays they don't ski at all, but I've never stopped myself. It's a pretty expensive sport to practise, but it's incredibly fun, especially in trips with friends.I only ski, I don't like snowboarding at all and I hate snowboarders.

I go mostly to local resorts, since I live two hours away from 4-5 ski resorts in the Pyrenees. However, in my teenage years my parents took me all around Europe in ski trips, so I've skiied pretty much everywhere in the Alps and Pyrenees, and in a couple spots in Finland as well (those have all the snow in the world but that country is flatter than Keira Knightley so they're not as nice as one would think). My favorite resorts are: 1. Verbier, Switzerland; 2. Val Thorens, France; 3. Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria.

My main skis are two-yr.-old Salomons with Salomon bindings, and I've also got a pair of Volkl carving skis I bought last year and haven't used much. I use Lange RS 110 boots I bought this year and they're the best I've ever owned. As for tips, just use common sense and don't act stupid. It's pretty damn easy to injure yourself skiing, and I've seen many nasty injuries in all these years that didn't look like much when they happened. Don't go and jump into slopes that exceed your ability just for the hell of it. Ski is a fast-learning sport and it won't be long until you're ready to go.

[thebirdman]

lebowsky i googled the lange boots you mentioned bought. the blurb says they are extra wide and have all sorts of other features to relieve pressure on the foot.

my feet are very wide at the front and i have a very high arch. boots kill me every time i ski. my right foot is still not fully recovered weeks after my last holiday (no mobility problems, just still feels slightly numb on the worst part.)

did you buy the boots because they were "extra wide"? have you had much trouble with boots? might these be what i'm looking for? any boot advice much appreciated.

edit: just realised i kinda hijacked the thread. to answer stinky's questions.

my favourite place is the 3 valleys in france, val thorens is a part of that resort. tons of places to go, something for everyone and you won't get bored.

i don't technically ski, i think. i use snow blades. they are about half the length of ski's. they have their good and bad points. first of all very cheap, very light and easier to carry around than ski's, plus you don't use poles. very maneuverable, on flats and on slight slopes you can use them like ice skates to gather speed, very fun! i also, for the first time, hit the snow parks this year and had a blast going over the jumps, going faster for more air time as i gained confidence, then going balls to the wall on my final jump run of the week as i figured if i was going to break something, that would be the time to do it (i didn't, yay.)

but... ski's are much faster. someone correct me if i'm wrong but i guess it's because your weight is spread over a much smaller surface area. you won't be able to keep up with skiers unless you really push it. which leads me to the next problem, grip. again because they are much shorter you will not grip the snow as well as ski's. it's harder to turn at speed and to slow yourself down. i find they are a lot of extra effort on steep runs as you need to put more strength into your turns. also, ice. you're going to struggle, just hope there's plenty of fresh snow!

[Lebowsky]

lebowsky i googled the lange boots you mentioned bought. the blurb says they are extra wide and have all sorts of other features to relieve pressure on the foot.

my feet are very wide at the front and i have a very high arch. boots kill me every time i ski. my right foot is still not fully recovered weeks after my last holiday (no mobility problems, just still feels slightly numb on the worst part.)

did you buy the boots because they were "extra wide"? have you had much trouble with boots? might these be what i'm looking for? any boot advice much appreciated.



My previous boots had been Nordica, and while I liked them a lot in general, I sometimes felt there were a bit "unresponsive" when doing very hard turns or in mogul slopes. At first I though it was an issue with the bindings, but it turned out it was the boots. I asked many different people, from friends to professionals and I found out about Lange, which I didn't know much about apart from it being a top brand. These ones in particular are very technical, feel like a glove on your feet, but they're still very, very comfortable. I believe they're available in different widths, so they aren't all extra wide, but there are extra wide available if you need them (which can't be said for most brands). These boots might indeed be what you're looking for, but I'd ask a feet doctor first about that numbness. Maybe your problem could be solved with insoles and you wouldn't need to drop $450+ on a new pair of boots.

Edit: If you're European, I got them for €400 (I got a 10% off deal)

[enayes]

Went snowboarding at Whiteface a couple days ago. I LOVE snowboarding.

[hoopaddict08]

I use to ski when I was around 11/12 and was decent.

I then picked up snowboarding when I was 19 and never really got the hang of it. I have gone probably a total of 4 or 5 times over the course of three years and that really didn't help me get any better. I wish I could have gone more but I don't have the equipment and the cost of renting it is ridiculous. If I had the extra cash and time I would go more but right now I have other priorities. Plus I never really liked freezing my butt off on a mountain.

[Balla_Status]

I just started snowboarding. Been a couple times already and I've picked it up quite well. I live 1.5 hrs away from one ski resort (purgatory) and 2.5 hours away from another (wolf creek). Wolf Creek gets the most snow in colorado so it's always lush.

I love snowboarding. Got my seasonal rental and bought some cheap gear down here in Texas with my fam. Gonna shred some gnarly gnar this winter.

[chains5000]

I've been skiing since I was eight or nine. My parents used to be crazy about it, so they taught me how to ski when I was little so that I could enjoy it with them. Nowadays they don't ski at all, but I've never stopped myself. It's a pretty expensive sport to practise, but it's incredibly fun, especially in trips with friends.I only ski, I don't like snowboarding at all and I hate snowboarders.
:oldlol:
I can imagine why though.
I used to ski, now it's all about snowboarding. Going to Andorra next week.

[SuperPippen]

I've never done either, although I'd like to try skiing some day. I've heard that it can be very exhilarating.


Outdoor winter sports have never really been my cup of tea. When I was younger I did my best to learn how to ice skate, but I never got the hang of it at all.

[Kungfro]

Gonna do some snowboarding at Fernie on New years.

[1manfastbreak]

http://images.everytrail.com/pics/fullsize/923253-P1000719.JPG

nothing beats northstar @ Lake Tahoe

[gigantes]

http://img.izismile.com/img/img8/20150121/1000/daily_gifdump_762_14.gif

[CavaliersFTW]

Yep, I ski, gonna try snowboarding soon

[KyleKong]

Yep, I ski, gonna try snowboarding soon

Come to Aspen

[CavaliersFTW]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5thIuCSTkk

PIZZZZZZZAAAAA DO A PIZZZZZZZZZZZAAAAAAAAAA!

[~primetime~]

I ski...Been to Tahoe like 4 times, Colorado a couple times, New Mexico a couple times. I want to go skiing in Wyoming.

Skiing is my shit...love it.

Skiing >>>> snowboarding too

[knickballer]

Never snowboarded in my life until two years ago and it was one of the most difficult things I've done. Kept busting on my ass and I was snowboarding in sweatpants while my brother was in jeans :oldlol:

[Thorpesaurous]

I'm a New Englander, so by birthright I skied. I was actually a little early for the snowboard revolution. But I got into it late in the game and was actually pretty good, I quickly felt I was better on that than on skis. But I had a history of Skateboarding, and a bit of surfing.

Then the knee pain started, and the surgery, and I haven't been in many many years, and frankly haven't had any desire too considering how much my knees hurt just from an hour of light basketball practice.