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Vallerina

I live in the Midwest, and I don't participate in winter sports!

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Other than snowball fighting, sledding, and snowman building (all which I gave up years ago), I have never participated in winter sports. I've passed up many ski trips, nodded and smiled when my cousins talk about their snowmobile, and I generally try to avoid being cold and wet.

However, with my recent realization that I may live in a bubble, I'm going to put myself through much humiliation and possibly get sick so I can try out this snow skiing (I love water skiing!) or snowboarding thing this weekend...or at least some time before winter is over.

Which is "more fun"? (Yay! Ignorance!) Snowboarders look more like bad asses, so I should probably try to avoid that (I am not a bad ass.) I like water skiing, and snow is water, so maybe I'll throw some skis on!
There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

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You do get the benefit of being about 25-30 times cooler than skiing though. B|


Like that's some kind of benefit I need.....

If I try out snowboarding, I don't have to get anything pierced, do I? Aren't they all pierced or soemthing? :P:D
There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

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If I try out snowboarding, I don't have to get anything pierced, do I?





It does help....maybe a tattoo also. :D I snowboarded regularly for 3 years and haven't had a piercing since my ear in High School. Only got a tattoo 6 months ago. So....I think you CAN do without it.

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Val.. want my board this weekend? I'll snag my roommates skis. Rachel and I can meet you Saturday afternoon.

And don't worry, its only kinky the first time you try it ;) Just keep repeating that as I drag you down the hill.

Do I have any piercings? Do I have any tattoos? Nope and I still board. :P
Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

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Other than snowball fighting, sledding, and snowman building (all which I gave up years ago), I have never participated in winter sports. I've passed up many ski trips, nodded and smiled when my cousins talk about their snowmobile, and I generally try to avoid being cold and wet.

However, with my recent realization that I may live in a bubble, I'm going to put myself through much humiliation and possibly get sick so I can try out this snow skiing (I love water skiing!) or snowboarding thing this weekend...or at least some time before winter is over.

Which is "more fun"? (Yay! Ignorance!) Snowboarders look more like bad asses, so I should probably try to avoid that (I am not a bad ass.) I like water skiing, and snow is water, so maybe I'll throw some skis on!



they are both rather easy once you relax and accept that your simply falling in a controlled manner.. (you know how to do that right??)

i just started skiing again on a whim and i'd have to say i'm having WAAAAAY more fun (some of it is conditions here to...icy slopes are easier on skiers...) than i have had snowboarding the last two seasons..i think its just the change, but go with whatever the people your with are doing...then mix it up next time...

ps... on the sick, cold & wet part? there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing....there is really no excuse for being wet and cold on a single day outing..if your spending a few days or weeks on the snow misery will creep in, but simply playing on the slopes all you should get is sweaty....

get good gear and you'll see why some people LOVE the snow...they were properly prepared...
____________________________________
Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

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Val.. want my board this weekend?



:D

Val, don't let Erk teach you to snowboard...take a lesson while he and Rachel ski, you'll all be a lot happier. My calves gave out five minutes after putting on the board and Eric kept casting longing glances at the lift and trying to to get me to stand up while I whined and laid in the snow.

That said, it was really a lot of fun. I felt like a badass even lying in the snow.
Skydiving is for cool people only

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(you know how to do that right??)


Some may argue, but I'll go with that!

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there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing....


Yeah, I can see that (which is why it's funny to see southerners live in the Midwest for their first winter! :ph34r:) I won't look like the kid from A Christmas Story, will I?

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Val, don't let Erk teach you to snowboard...take a lesson while he and Rachel ski


Best advice ever. Actually, I don't know if we'll make it out this weekend, but I plan on going sometime in February at least.

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That said, it was really a lot of fun. I felt like a badass even lying in the snow.


HAHA!
There's a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning

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Just get out there and do something, Val! IMHO, it's a little easier to pick up skiing than boarding, but if you're going to take a lesson right off, you'll be fine either way.

Really, it's all just an excuse to drink yummy spiked hot cocoa drinks at the lodge apres ski/board anyway. You'll have a blast! Good luck:)


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Snowboarders look more like bad asses,



Hey now, I snowboard, and I don't think I look like a bad ass:(

Renee is coming out in a few weeks, she and I are going to hit the slopes. She'll let you know if I look bad ass, or stupid ass.
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

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Renee is coming out in a few weeks, she and I are going to hit the slopes. She'll let you know if I look bad ass, or stupid ass.



Nah, we will both be wearing shirts that say "I'm with Stupid Ass"...with the arrow pointing to the right/left ;)

Am i there yet? no....damn.....sigh
She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway."
eeneR
TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto

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Since I'm one of those boarders that loves to ride in the trees, I wear a helmet and goggles.

What's your experience level? If you're going to be falling alot, I suggest wearing the goggles. I was on ski patrol for a few years back in my college days, and I had to deal with the arm of a pair of sunglasses in a guys eye. Not pretty.
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

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Since I'm one of those boarders that loves to ride in the trees, I wear a helmet and goggles.

What's your experience level? If you're going to be falling alot, I suggest wearing the goggles. I was on ski patrol for a few years back in my college days, and I had to deal with the arm of a pair of sunglasses in a guys eye. Not pretty.



Goggles it is. This will be a beerable offense when i go to copper mountain in march.:D

Never look down on someone, unless they are going down on you.

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Goggles it is. This will be a beerable offense when i go to copper mountain in march.



Copper Mountain! You better to remember to drop me a PM and I'll join you.
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey

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Snowboarding is hard! And snow is hard! But I think you look a lot less dorky face-down in the snow with a snowboard strapped to your feet, as opposed to skis. :D

Kelly



Snowboarding is absolutely NOT hard if you have ever ridden any other type of board in your life. It's VERY similar to wakeboarding in that if you catch a toe or heel edge you will pile in, but it's also very similar to skateboarding and surfing. I do them all and have done so since I was a child, so the transition back and forth from one sport to the next is seamless. So there. If you can ride a slalon ski or a trick ski or a wakeboard, then you will find it easier to ride a snowboard. If you have only ever ridden planks (two water skis), then you will probably want to start on standard skis. As you are just starting out, ask for some of the newer deep-sidecut skis. They make for much more waterski-like carving and much less sliding around.

Chuck

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I stray away from the winter sports too. I just get so damn cold I'd rather be indoors. I do snowboard occasionally but don't fiend for it.

I'm just a wuss when it comes to cold.

:)
Tunnel Pink Mafia Delegate
www.TunnelPinkMafia.com

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Goggles it is. This will be a beerable offense when i go to copper mountain in march.



Copper Mountain! You better to remember to drop me a PM and I'll join you.



March 3-8. staying at the copper village. Derek told me that is where i should go so that is where i booked.B|

Never look down on someone, unless they are going down on you.

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Val,
Get out there and try it!!! You never know you may like it. I do have to say though, happiness in skiing or snowboarding is all about clothes. If you are not properly dressed, you will be miserable. Get or borrow some snow pants, that means, nothing less than insulated and waterproof. Get or borrow warm waterproof mittens. Mittens are much warmer than gloves, and just fine for skiing and snowboarding. I have these old blue (men's) ski pants from Dick's Sporting Goods I got on sale, and because they are waterproof I am always comfortable in them. I bought mittens last year and love them. I get cold hands easily and actually have what's called Raynaud's phenomenon where my fingers lose circulation completely and it can get very very painful if I don't do something about it. I was able to manage it with insulated mittens and handwarmer packs. Although when I switched from skiing to snowboarding, I didn't need the warmers anymore because i was working so much harder to snowboard i kept very warm. Do not try anything in jeans, you will be miserable. layer up on top, and get lots of hot chocolate.

Also, for your first time out, everyone is right, skiing is easier than snowboarding. they are both hard and awkward at first, but skiing is definately more enjoyable the first few days. If you have a few days to really pick it up, snowboarding is a blast. I will never go back to skiis, however, getting through the first few painful days of snowboarding is rough. If you try snowboarding, you NEED to wear kneepads and wristguards under your outside layer. When you fall skiing, it's usually to the side and you can slide. When you fall snowboarding, it's very abrupt and very hard, and either on your face or your ass. If you fall face-first, your knees take a lot of the impact. When you fall on your ass, if you put your arms back, you are very likely to hurt your wrist or worse without wrist-guards. and if you don't put your arms back, you take it all on your tailbone. Ed and I taught ourselves to snowboard last winter... well, kindof. Ed bruised his tailbone so badly he had to sit out a couple weeks then went back to skiis for a while. then when he tried snowboarding again, he fell and hyperextended his elbow badly and was done. He still can't straighten his arm all the way. I fortunately with the help of old rollerblading kneepads and wristguards made it through the rough part and was fine. (except the one time i almost knocked myself unconscious I fell backwards so fast i couldn't even get my arms back and my head was the first to hit a patch of ice... i layed there a while disoriented until i figured out what had happened... boy i had a headache)

anyway, stay warm, take it easy. and GO! I'm jonesin to go snowboarding again but we're beyond broke with losing everythin in the fire so i won't get to this year.

Take a lesson, whichever you choose, it's worth the money.

If I had the opportunity, I'd teach you myself. Good luck with Erk.

peace
lew
http://www.exitshot.com

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Snowboarding is hard! And snow is hard! But I think you look a lot less dorky face-down in the snow with a snowboard strapped to your feet, as opposed to skis. :D

Kelly



Awww, that's not true. I'd never been on a skateboard or surfboard or skis in my life. I found out I was goofy footed because that's the way my rental board was set and I said, "screw it. I'll take it."

Third time down the bunny slope, I didn't fall. I was handling intermediate slopes quite well by the end of the day.

Snowboards only have one edge to worry about, not two. They're also, I learned, more comfortable than skis.

Finally, there are so many levels of skiing. With snowboarding, you either are or you are not.

Go for the snowboard. Just keep your weight forward and your knees bent, and you'll do fine by the second hour.


My wife is hotter than your wife.

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