Snowboarding – My New Lover?!

Leaving surf behind is what I concluded I had to do after repeatedly carving on the snowboard and landing on my face or worse at Moonstone....

Luckily that was not the case once I got the hang of it. Helene made sure I could take advantage of my surf moves while learning to snowboard. She would initially show me and explain what I had to do and when. Once we started sliding down the hill she would hang out right behind me and let me know what I should improve for better results. Why I was falling every time I tried to make a turn and how to move my body. 

The learning process was hard, as I had to change my surf style for a new-found snowboard style. It felt strange the way I stood strapped on to the board. Unable to move my feet – it felt almost like my foot and legs were one and could not move independently. Once I got over this initial shock and got the feeling for the board, turns and speed the fun really started. Helene was so patient and really hyped all the time that I felt always super excited and ready to go again - even after some hard falls.

We started on the bunny hill and stayed there for a while until I was able to make my turns almost as soon as I wanted. Unlike surfing, I am still slow to make turns and sometimes I continue going straight even though I want to turn…(it must look funny if we had gotten these moves on camera…maybe next time). My confidence continued to grow every time we finished a ride. At times I felt frustrated because I thought I had the moves and “plop” I would fall or lose control. This didn’t discourage me from keep going. Especially not after seeing Helene flying down the hill next to me and making some crazy tricks and turns. She was going at 100 km/h and I was barely crawling downhill. Quit being a baby and stop getting frustrated because you have a long way to go to be anywhere close to that level – I kept telling myself. Funny thing is, Helene kept saying she wasn’t going too fast or doing anything crazy…. I don’t know if to be excited or terrified at this comment…!

At some point midway our snowboard day I saw a small wall on the side of track. It clearly resembled a frozen wave … Yes a frozen wave up in the mountain. Take a few seconds and think about what possibly could have gone through my mind…. 

Yes – I aimed straight for my frozen wave and half way up the wall I turned and kicked the tail of the board. I could see all the snowflakes splashing around. It was a perfect cutback with the tail of the board on the outside of the wave. In any surf competition I would receive the highest score possible for a turn like this. Unfortunately for me, I wasn’t surfing. Ha! I tail slided for a split of a second and the board’s edge got caught up. This was the worse wipeout of the day - that’s for sure. I was lying on the floor without intention of getting up when I heard Helene calling my name and saying something. I stood up and looked behind me only to see her speeding down the hill and breaking hard right before. All the snow under her board splashed me in the face and back…so lovely. She had told me already not to try those tail kicks on the board as I might get really hurt…I just couldn’t help it. It was the frozen wave’s fault!!

We went in for a couple of breaks. We had some snacks and a few beers. Is it true that when you drink you tend to snowboard better? 

We hit 2 more tracks that day. Nice and steep for me. I panicked on the third hill as it looked really steep and my legs were already giving in. Having my legs tired made it hard for me to break or make turns, we were getting close to the end of our snowboarding session. We ended up going back to the previous less steep tracks and ended the day with a nice and easy ride down the hill. 

My snowboard session was really amazing and all thanks to Helenita! She was such a good and fun instructor all day long. We both enjoyed the day to the fullest and are already planning on going snowboarding again this upcoming weekend. As for surfing, there is no way I have found a new love in snowboard. I like it very much but surfing is still my one and only favorite! So choosing between surf or snowboard on the same day I will choose surf, unless it is cold like this past week that we have reached almost -30C.

If you are hitting the mountains any time soon, give us a shout maybe we can meet up and have a good time together and a good laugh at my wipe-outs while I become the next Kelly Slater of Snowboarding!

Watch the video Helene F. put together from our Snow adventure that day! Leave some comments below! To watch it on YouTube or share the video click here or copy http://youtu.be/61O6rXxewa4