Whether you love riding rails, hard-charging verticals or you're just starting out, snowboarding is a great activity for anyone who loves being outdoors in the winter. Follow these tips to help you find a snowboard that matches your skill level and riding style.
1.Type of snowboarding: Snowboards are designed for the type of terrain you want to ride.
Freeride: All-mountain snowboards, or freeride boards, are excellent for both beginners and versatile snowboarders. They’re usually wider and more flexible to take on all kinds of terrain and can often be ridden backwards and forwards.
Alpine: Also called carving or racing boards, Alpine snowboards are built for one thing: speed. They’re usually one-directional and look like enlarged skis, which make the board faster but difficult to use in powder and backcountry conditions. Racers love alpine boards for their speed and stiffness, but they can be difficult for beginners.
Freestyle: If you want to spend most of your time in the snow park taking on rails and jumps, look for freestyle or jib snowboards. Built to be light and stable, freestyle boards are soft, forgiving and very responsive. All freestyle boards can be ridden backwards and forwards with ease.
Splitboards: For the hard core backcountry snowboarder, splitboards can break in two so they’re easy to carry while hiking. Once you’re at the top, you can reconnect the pieces and ride.
2.Camber: The arch in the middle of your board is called the camber. A slight camber is needed to keep an edge through your turns, but reverse camber or “rocker” boards are becoming more popular for people who ride powder.
3.Sidecut: Sidecut refers to the difference in width from the tip of your board to the waist. Freestyle and freeride boards have a more pronounced sidecut to make sharper turns. Alpine boards use a gradual sidecut for making large sweeping turns.
4.Height and weight: Taller people ride longer boards, but your board’s length also depends on its type. Alpine boards, for example, need to be much longer than freestyle boards. Your weight determines how long and how stiff your board should be. Heavier people need longer and stiffer boards for better weight distribution.
5.Gender and age: Although many women prefer to ride men's snowboards, women’s snowboards are specifically designed for female riders and tend to be shorter, narrower and less flexible. Kid's snowboards are smaller and more flexible so they can safely learn the ropes before getting on a more serious snowboard.
Beginners will probably want to start out on an all-mountain board, but experienced boarders will want a snowboard to match their style. Think about where you’re riding and your skill level before settling on a purchase.
Snowboards can range from a couple hundred dollars to over $1,000, so always set a budget before beginning your search. A more expensive board won’t necessarily meet your specific needs, so find one that fits your style.
