Which Style Of Snowboard Should You Choose?
Image courtesy of nicola buosi
The Ultimate Guide To Buying A Snowboard has been created to help Snowboarders choose the right Snowboard.
This follows on from When To Buy Your Own snowboard.
Snowboard “Style” means: the type of Snowboarding that the board is suitable for.
Some people like to ride powder, some people like to hit jumps and rails, some like to do both. Each style of Snowboarding has a style of board to suit it.
Choosing between Freestyle, Freeride, All-mountain, Powder, and Race Carving boards can be confusing.
Which one is best for you?
How do you “ride” your Snowboard?
If you’re a beginner, you probably haven’t developed your own style of riding yet. You are still learning to turn properly. “Style” is the last thing on your mind, your just thinking of “survival”.
If you’ve been Snowboarding a few times and can link turns comfortably, you probably already know what your style is, or you may have found certain things that you like to do.
Here are some examples:
- Riding fast
- Riding slow
- Making lots of short turns
- Riding steep terrain
- Carving (turning just on the edge, no skidding)
- Going off-piste (unmarked/un-groomed terrain)
- Hitting jumps or boxes
Depending on which of the above things you mainly like to do, there will be a board that’s best suited for it.
Freestyle
- Jumping
- Rails
- Boxes
- Spinning
- Tricks
- Riding both ways (with right foot and left foot in front)
If you think that the above describes your style, or the style you want, check out Freestyle boards (not an affiliate link).
Freestyle boards
- Shorter
- More flexible (softer)
- Less directional (similar length nose and tail)
- More camber (check out the link if you don’t know what this is)
- Bevelled edges (the edge isn’t as likely to catch on boxes/rails)
Freeride/All-mountain style
Both of these styles are the same thing.
- Riding fast
- Carving (turning just using the edges, no skidding)
- Riding off-piste (unmarked terrain)
- Riding mainly one way (one lead foot is dominant)
- Riding powder
- Riding the whole mountain
If you think that the above describes your style, or the style you want, check out Freeride/All-mountain boards (not an affiliate link).
Freeride/All-mountain boards
- Longer
- Less flexible (stiffer)
- More directional (longer nose than tail)
- Less camber (check out the link if you don’t know what this is)
Powder style
This is a very specialist style. Unless you have been Snowboarding for a while, don’t buy a powder board.
- Riding off-piste
- Riding in deep snow
- Hiking to find stuff to ride
If you think that the above describes your style, or the style you want, check out specific Powder boards (not an affiliate link).
Powder Boards
- Longer
- Less Flexible (stiffer)
- Weird shapes
- Very directional (long nose, short tail)
Race carving style
This is a very specialist style. Unless you race, just want to do “extreme” carving (just using the edge, no skidding), or your French (and wear a one piece), don’t buy one of these boards.
- Extreme carving
- Racing
- Riding really fast
- Wear hard boots
- Look not very cool
Race carving boards
Man, I know nothing about race carving boards, never ridden one, although it might be fun to try, maybe.
- Longer
- Super stiff
- Look like a big ski
If you think that above describes your style, then I’m not going to be able to give you much advice. I know nothing about racing boards. I’m a definite Freestyle Snowboarder.
No correct way
Hopefully you should have a better idea of what “style” of Snowboarder you are, or aspire to be.
Note: Just because you buy a board for one particular “style”, doesn’t mean that you can’t dip into other types of riding. There is no fixed way to ride each type of board.
Blue-tomato.com (not an affiliate link) is a great site for researching the different styles listed above. They give great customer service and have a really user friendly website.
Best all-round board
I am a Freestyle Snowboarder. I hit jumps, spin, flip and do tricks all over the mountain. I ride a Freestyle specific Snowboard (Rome “Machine” 154).
Just because I ride a Freestyle board, doesn’t mean that I can’t ride everything. I can:
- Carve
- Ride fast (although it’s a little unstable)
- Ride powder (although it’s hard work)
- Ride steeps, bumps
A useful tip
The Snowboard is nowhere near as important as the person riding it.
Focus more on developing your technique, and you will develop your own style.
Next Instalment
Now you know your style (or style to aim for), the next part of The Ultimate Guide To Buying A Snowboard will cover how to choose the right length. A couple of cm difference in board length can make a massive difference to how the board feels. I will help you choose the right length to suit your chosen style.
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About the author: David Raybould is a Snowboard Instructor and Writer. You can connect with him on Twitter or Facebook.
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