Posts Tagged ‘Snowboard Stance’

One of the questions a lot of beginner snowboarders ask is, what is the correct way to stand on a snowboard?

There are two possible answers to this question, one refers to how your body should be positioned when snowboarding, and the other refers to how your snowboard bindings should be set up on your snowboard.

How should I stand when I’m snowboarding?

When snowboarding, your back should be upright with your knees bent, you should try to make sure that your arms are almost always parallel to your snowboard, (One of the worst things you can do as a beginner is twist the top half of your body, this will only make things more difficult). You should also ensure that your head is up and you are looking where you are going at all times. Your arms should be down by your sides and you should have an even pressure on both of your feet so that you are standing centrally over your snowboard. We call this your basic snowboard stance and you can find out more about this by reading our article about how to stand on a snowboard.

How should my bindings be set up on my snowboard?

All i can do is explain to you why I set my bindings up in the snowboard stance that I use and you can make your own decisions from this…

• I ride a twin-tip snowboard so my snowboard can be ridden either way around. It is for this reason that I set up my snowboard stance so that both of my bindings are equal distances from each end of my snowboard. I also put my bindings as far apart from each other as I can (using the threads in the snowboard that are closest to the nose and tail). I do this because I find that a wider snowboard stance can help you to bend your knees, and a lower centre of gravity will mean better balance. Obviously you do not want your snowboard bindings so wide that you are nearly doing the splits, I would suggest them being just over shoulder width apart. There is no wrong or right way to set up your snowboard bindings for a perfect snowboard stance, it all comes down to personal preference. Every snowboarder will tell you to set your bindings up in a certain

• Each snowboard binding can be positioned at a variety of angles. There is no perfect angle to set your bindings at to achieve the perfect snowboard stance however, from my experience, having both bindings slightly duck footed seems to be the most preferred position. By pointing both snowboard bindings outwards, you will be forced to keep your knees apart from each other which will in turn help you to bend your knees and improve that centre of gravity. This snowboard stance will also be of an advantage to you when you become more experienced and start to learn to snowboard in switch.