snowboarding

im sure someone has already asked this question but is snowboarding similar enough to wakeboarding. Im goin crazy, i hate this cold northern weather I just need something to do that will keep me from getting too rusty when the beginning of wakeboarding season starts up here

Snowboarding is great, and if you live in an area where it is immediately available then the real question is why are you not riding?

All board sports are similar in some degree, there are differences, and a great wakeboarder doesn't automatically make a great snowboarder, and vice-versa, but each activity will help and improve your riding.

I love doing both, and have been snowboarding a lot longer than wakeboarding, but I wouldn't give either up. I know that doing both has always helped my riding improve overall.

Dan, snowboarding is a good cross over sport, give it a try, I would recommend taking a 1/2 day lession first so you can figure out the edging and how to stop. The learning curve is a little faster on the snowboard and you should be getting down the hill and having some fun on your 2nd or 3rd day. Good luck.

Does any body think snow boarding feels a lot like slalom skiing. When I go snow boarding It feels just like it. I love to carve and it's not a down hill or mountain board. But if you are an OK wakeboarder and try snow boarding for the first time, it should come to you very quick and you should be able to avoid most of the hard falls that a lot of people experience. Wear some good padding, like shorts, and even knee pads and be careful with your wrists.

definitely go if you can.

i have been snowboarding twice this year (for the first time) and it is just as addictive as wakeboarding. i had to drive 3.5 hours each time.

you do not have the extra tension point (the rope) to hold onto, so it definitely requires a little more balance. i took a 1 hr beginner lesson the first day. i was having fun and making it down the slope (with some falls of course) by the end of the first day.

i found it easier to control my speed and edge and learn my j turns on toeside going down backwards instead of forwards. is that normal? has anybody else done that?

I found that snowboarding came easy, I had always been told that your first day would be on your butt. I took a few stupid falls on my first trip down the beginer hill. after that I was ripping down some blue runs, for me more speed meant more edge control.

snowboarding is awsome for buttering and carving around......its like your riding on glass all the time.
rails are also alot of fun because you can press

Snowboarding is so fun.
I was reluctant to even try snowboarding, i usually wakeboard in winter anyway, but this year i went for the first time, then basically spent every weekend down there. You don't need to throw down, just enjoy the powder with friends.

Wakeboarding still rules over it though!

Agreed that wakeboarding still rules. I tried snowboarding for the first time a few weeks ago. Main difference is you need to use your edges to stay upright, as obviously you have no rope to lean back on. Took some getting used to putting more weight on the front foot. On the other hand, switch riding was pretty good cuz i'm so used to having weight on that foot. Riding the Roam kinda gives you a ballpark of what snowboarding feels like IMO

Seeing I live 15 minutes from a decent hill I tried it this year for the first time. No lessons. I did a lot of reading on what to do and what not to do which helped a lot. The first couple hours were a little rough. I had no problem riding on my ts edge and then turning to my hs edge. But to go from hs to ts was what did me in a few times before I figured out what I was doing wrong. I did a few good flips down the hill landing on my shoulders which didn't feel too good. Once I got the hang of it and figured out that I needed to make sure and point the board strait down the hill before transitioning my weight to my ts edge, I stopped catching the front edge and was able to make those turns easier. It's fun, and I can say it'll probably at least help keep my legs in shape for wakeboarding.

Ben- You should have even weight distributed on both feet for both sports.

I found last time I went snowboarding that I was leaning on my back foot too much as well. Once I got past that it was pretty sweet.

I'd been once a few years before but the whole mountain was blown out and I'd dislocated my shoulder a few days before so I just took it easy on the bottom slope.

By the end of the day if I bailed I was rolling back up without having to stop, sort of like a tumble turn (which I can't do on a wakeboard yet)

I found edging to be basically the same though, which is fair enough I guess. I'm keen to hit the indoor slope here in Auckland to practice a bit before next winter.

Would be awesome to get like a Friday morning set in on winter glass then head down to the mountain for a weekend.

I love being on the water, once again, you can't beat bikini girls and beer, but snow bunnies and schnapps are a close second. something fun about hopping up on a board, being able to fall, get right back up and keep cruising. I taught myself how to snowboard before I could wakeboard, took me a day before I was running blues, and I can cruise a black now, I'm just not a fan of moguls!! Definitely easier learning, and alot of fun!!

(unfortunately) i can attest to shane k's skillz. i talked him out of buying the snowboard pants he wanted so that he wouldn't look like a poser falling on his butt all day his first time on the snow, only to find that in the time it took me to walk to the lodge and back, he could already spin his board 360 (surface). then i had the misery of watching him do an ollie 180 on like his second run down the mountain, ride switch awhile, then ollie back. meanwhile, i did an awesome unplanned somersault.