5 things need to know before buying snowboard bindings

Feeling at-one with your snowboard means being comfortable with the bindings you choose. With so many options, it can be hard to know what's right for you. Follow these simple tips to find out how to choose snowboard bindings that suit the way you ride.

There are four main types of bindings, determined by use:

• Freestyle: Softer highbacks, which are good for tricks, jumps and the half-pipe
• Freeride: Stiffer, good for back-country wilderness, where control is key
• Powder: Stiffer, where keeping control while skimming deep powder is needed
• All-mountain: Good for nearly any situation on the hill, tailored to individual needs

The flex on your binding’s highback plate will determine whether you get a softer, more forgiving binding, or a stiffer binding that offers more control.

• Newer riders or riders that focus on tricks and airs should opt for softer highbacks to allow better control on landings.
• More advanced riders, freeriders or people with the need for speed should choose stiffer highbacks to help them maintain control on the slopes.

Securing your bindings is critical to ensuring you’re transferring energy through your board properly. There are two main types:

• Speed-entry bindings: Bindings with highbacks that recline allowing for easier in-out access. These are preferred by many new or casual snowboarders. While simpler to use, they are heavier than strap bindings, and offer a little less control.

• Strap bindings: The most common bindings, with a strap that gets tightened down across the boot to hold the foot in place. While commonly used, dealing with straps can be a pain, especially in colder weather.

If you’ve never been on a snowboard before, you might not even know which foot you should have forward. To be sure you're comfortable, try this:

• Stand on the board a few times. If you feel more comfortable with your left foot forward (most do), this is considered Regular Stance.
• If you feel more comfortable with your right foot forward, this is called Goofy Stance, or Goofy Foot.
• There’s nothing wrong with having your right foot forward (the name comes from surfing), just go with whatever you are comfortable with.

Likewise, determining the angle that each foot feels best, and the distance between your feet, is one of personal opinion.

• Work with an employee at the local snowboard shop to figure out what makes sense for your size and the kind of riding you’ll be doing.
• The shop can then attach your bindings for you.

You can’t know which bindings will work best for you unless you understand the kind of snowboarding you’ll be doing, and what feels most comfortable to you.

If you follow the above tips, and work with your local snowboard shop, you’ll have enough info to know how to choose snowboard bindings that will keep you carving down the slopes for years to come.