How to carve on a snowboard

From ArticleWorld

Carve is a term in snowboarding for a sort of turn. You have to be able to make manoeuvres like this before you can start on the more technical tricks. Everyone needs to be able to move along the slopes, and a good part of that is being able to turn.

hints

Choose a big hill, with plenty of slope, and away from the more flashy snowboarders.

Start to slide down the hill, Push down with either your heels or your toes, but be careful not to lean. Instead, try and control the board from the hips down, and let the upper body be your balance.

Only turn as much as you are able. The point of a turn is to move smoothly, and remain upright.

Practice turning with your front foot, first. When you can turn easily, start with both feet. To turn with both, your lead foot should go first, and you should then follow with the back foot (Both feel pressing down with either heels or toes). Keep your knees bent – do a toe turn by pressing down from the knees, and a heel turn by pressing down from the calves.

To follow with another turn, straighten out with the lead foot, and keep the other on its side. This will put you back on a straight line. Once you are mostly levelled out again, begin the next turn.

hints

Keep your upper body parallel with the board. You shouldn’t move your upper body at all while turning, this will over-balance you. Be careful not to bend at the waist, or crouch. This will cause you to lose your balance.

Keep the greater part of your weight over the board. Too much weight in your turn can cause you to slide. That said, it is ok to put a little more pressure on your front foot, since this can help you to steer.

Do not try to push the board along with your back foot. The board is able to slide in any direction, so pushing it will spoil your turn.

When you are good at turns, try moving straight from one to another. Do this by taking the lead foot into the second turn before your back foot is finished in the first.

Don’t fight the board. Let it slide a little, and stay with it. The more you try and resist, the more trouble you will get yourself into. A wider stance will help bring more power to the board.

When carving, be sure to lean into the side of the snowboard that is facing uphill. If you are pressing on the side facing downhill, you will slide downhill, and the board will dig into the snow, making you fall. Lean on the uphill side, and the snow will slide under the board.