Snowboards, Boots, and Accessories

Dutonesnowboards.com is an informational site designed to present fun facts, tips and knowledge about the thrilling sport of snowboards. Boots, bindings and equipment are just the beginning of the knowledge base that can be found in the Learning Center here. There are also resources that include shopping tips and suggestions.

Buying snowboards is a pretty objective process – the potential snowboarder needs to be matched to the right length and width of board. Board height is important because the rider needs to be able to lift the entire board as well as making precision lifts and adjustments on the fly. Width makes a difference when it comes to the type of snow a rider will most often ride.

There are four main snowboarding styles:
• Freestyle
• Freeride
• Alpine
• Race

Freestyle or freeride styles are considered to be the most suitable for beginners.

“Try before you buy” is the single best rule when shopping for snowboards. Ride rented, borrowed or demo boards as a beginner to best learn the style and board that fits you. Many elements go into fitting a board to a rider:

• Shoe size
• Width
• Length
• Weight
• Shape

These are just the basics, but it’s important to know the lingo before you shop or buy. A good shop will have helpful and knowledgeable sales people, but don’t count on it. Besides, the Internet makes it possible for anyone to learn how to know what they are talking about.

Width – Don’t buy a board so skinny that your toes hang over the edge – if toes hang over, you will slide when carving. On the other hand, the wider the board the less responsive the turning becomes. Test board width by putting on board boots and standing on inserts and bindings.

Length – The beginning rule of thumb here is that if you stand the board on end it should reach your chin or maybe a little higher. A longer board is more stable at high speeds, floats on powder the best and holds a better edge on ice. A shorter board is easier on all accounts: turning, edging and tricking and is usually preferred by freestyle riders. Aggressive riders will prefer a longer board. Slow and steady riders will ride easier on shorter boards.

Weight – The more you weigh, the more pressure is exerted on the board. The lighter you are the more work you will have to put in to controlling a long board and vice versa.

Snowboard goggles, Jacket, pants, helmets and gloves are all important accessories and will help a rider have a smoother, less dangerous ride.

Snowboarding is a sport that has seen a tremendous jump in popularity in the last several years. In the span of less than a couple of decades it has gone from a mostly unknown sport to an Olympic sport. Some resorts are even offering special vacation snowboard packages to attract snowboarders to their resorts. One of the main reasons for this is because there are a lot of people that consider riding down the mountain on snowboards to be more of a challenge than riding down on skis.

Some of this snowboard equipment includes:

• Snowboard boots – Snowboard boots are sometimes hard and sometimes soft. The kind of boot depends on if the snowboarder wants a boot that is rigid to keep ankles in line, or a boot that is soft and allows for the freedom to trick.

• Snowboard bindings – The bindings on snowboards are definitely different from skis. Because snowboarders stand to the side so bindings are placed in a different direction. For skiers, learning to go down a hill while standing sideways is often the one thing that they find hardest to adjust to.

• Snowboard jacket – A snowboard jacket blocks the wind should be waterproof – the more performance your apparel the longer you’ll be able to ride.

• Snowboard pants – The same is true here.
For more detailed information, visit the Learning Center and check back often for updates and additions.

•Avalanche beacon - Radio frequency transmiter that emits a pulse to other transceivers, in case of an avalanch.

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