Riding the White Wave

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Snowboarding is a RECREATIONAL and COMPETITIVE activity that involves riding down a snow-covered slope while standing on a board that is attached to your feet. Riders will hike or use chairlifts to travel up the mountain before strapping on the board to ride down. Snowboarding is an activity that is done by many different types of people with varying ABILITIES all over the world. While most people choose to ride on snow, some people ride on sand, through grass, or if they’re going really fast, they try to ride across water! Snowboarding has become such a popular sport people have been able to ride on every CONTINENT on Earth.

Spell: INVOLVE ACTIVITY POPULAR
What is the snowboard attached to? FEET
Snowboarders ride down a snow-covered _____. SLOPE
Snowboarding is an activity that is done by many different people with varying _______. ABILITIES
People have snowboarded on every ___________ on earth. CONTINENT
Name one way that snowboarders travel up a mountain. CHAIRLIFT/HIKE
Most people choose to ride on snow. What else could you snowboard on? SAND/GRASS
What does recreational mean? FOR FUN/LEISURE
Snowboarding can be a competitive sport. Name another example of a competitive sport. SKIING/SURFING/FOOTBALL/TRACK/SOCCER
How many continents are on Earth? 7

The first SNOWBOARD was invented in 1965 when a surfer named SHERMAN POPPEN tied two skis together to make a toy for his children. When the toy started becoming popular, he named the board the SNURFER (combining surfing and snow) and started selling the boards to the public. In the late 1970s, JAKE BURTON modified the Snurfer, adding foot straps and fins to the board to increase its STABILITY. While skiing was a popular sport during this time, snowboarding was not yet allowed at the popular ski resorts. Because of this, snowboarders were forced to sneak into the resorts at night, hiking up the mountain to ride down. It wasn’t until the 1984-1985 season that resorts started to allow snowboarding on the mountain.

Spell: INVENTED MODIFY SNOWBOARD
Who invented the first snowboard? SHERMAN POPPEN
What was the first snowboard called? SNURFER
Who modified the snurfer, adding foot straps and fins? JAKE BURTON
When foot straps and fins were added to the snowboard, it increased the what? STABILITY
When were snowboarders forced to sneak onto the ski resorts? AT NIGHT
Where do you go surfing? OCEAN/WATER
Name an animal that has fins. FISH/SHARK/WHALE
How is skiing different from snowboarding? TWO BOARDS/SKIS, FACE FORWARD, USE POLES
What year was the first snowboard invented? 1965
During what year(s) did the first ski resorts begin to allow snowboarding? 1984-1984
Why do you think snowboarding wasn’t allowed at ski resorts?
Stand up and spread your feet shoulder-width apart, lift your arms up, and pretend you are surfing a giant wave. Draw a mountain on a piece of paper, and using your finger, trace the line up the mountain as if you are hiking up and then go down the mountain as if you are riding down. Do this 5x while taking a deep breath in as you go up the mountain and breathe out as you go down the mountain.

To learn to snowboard, first, you need to master the proper STANCE. To do this, your feet should be shoulder-width apart, keeping your knees, hips, and shoulder facing forward. Your arms should be RELAXED and down by your side. Once you’ve mastered the proper stance off the board, you will strap your front foot into the binding and place your back foot on the heel side of your board, slightly behind the other foot. Use your back foot to take small steps, shifting your weight and sliding with your front foot to stay BALANCED. But watch out. If your back foot slides too far, you will end up doing a split! Once you’re COMFORTABLE taking steps, you are ready to GLIDE. Gliding is when you push with your back foot and then lift it onto the middle of the board as the snowboard begins moving.

Spell: SHOULDER RELAXED COMFORTABLE
What is the first step in snowboarding that you need to master? STANCE
The proper stance involves keeping your feet _____ width apart. SHOULDER
Which foot do you strap into the binding first? FRONT
If you push too far with your back foot, you might end up doing a _____. SPLIT
When you push with your back foot, lift it to the middle of the board, and start moving, you are doing what? GLIDE/GLIDING
When you push with your back foot, your snowboard should move in which direction? FORWARD
Where do you place your back foot when taking small steps? HEEL SIDE, BEHIND THE OTHER FOOT
How should you keep your posture when snowboarding? RELAXED, BALANCED
Name another sport or activity that involves the same stance as snowboarding, where you need to keep your feet shoulder-width apart. SKIING, SURFING, WEIGHTLIFTING/SQUATS, BASKETBALL/SHOOTING FREE THROWS
To help relax your body for the perfect stance, it’s important to stretch. Stand up and place your feet together, stretching your arms up towards the ceiling and back down towards your feet, stretching as far as you can go (touch your toes if you can!), and hold for 10s, counting out loud. Repeat this 5x. Next, spread your legs a little more than shoulder-width apart, reaching down towards one foot with both hands as far as you can go, and hold this position for 10s, counting out loud. Stand up and reach for your other foot, again as far as you can go, and hold for 10s.

Once you’ve mastered the step and glide, you are ready to start making turns. The first turn you want to master is the J-TURN. The J-turn is when you glide
STRAIGHT down and turn SLIGHTLY uphill, making the letter J. There are two ways to make a J-turn, a toe J-turn, and a heel J-turn. To make the toe J-turn, you will point your board straight down a GENTLE slope and glide forward. Shift your WEIGHT to the front foot, leaning forward so you’re bent slightly over your toes. Move your hips over the toe-side edge, FLEXING your ankles and knees. As you get your weight over that toe-side edge, your board will start to turn across the hill. To do the heel J-turn, point your board straight down the slope, shifting your weight to the front foot and pressing your weight into your heels. You should feel your calf hitting the back of your boot, pressing into the binding. As you shift your weight, you will feel your board turning uphill into the heel-side edge. A snowboarder demonstrates the position you need to be in to take steps and glide.

Spell: STRAIGHT LEANING FLEXING
What is the first turn you want to master? J-TURN
When making a J-Turn, you point your board in which direction? DOWN
When making a J-Turn, you should point your board down a _______ slope. GENTLE
When making a toe-side J-Turn, you want to move your hips over your what? TOES
When making a heel side J-Turn, you want to press your weight into your what? HEELS
If you’re doing a heel-side J-Turn correctly, you should feel your calves hit the _____ of your boot. BACK
Name one of the ways you can make a J-Turn. HEEL/TOE
What is the opposite of a “gentle” slope? STEEP/SHARP/DRAMATIC
If you first attempt a J-Turn on a steep slope, what might happen? GO TOO FAST/FALL DOWN/GET HURT

Before you can start SHREDDING down the mountain, you will need to learn how to TRAVERSE or travel across the slope. To do this, you will start with your board HORIZONTAL across the slope, leaning on the uphill edge so you don’t slide down the slope when you stand up. Flex your knees and keep your weight evenly DISTRIBUTED over the toe-side edge while you find your balance. Shift your weight towards your front foot and slightly flatten the foot as you begin to move forward. To slow down, gently shift towards your back foot, centering your weight between both feet. To traverse into a turn, let the board flatten so you are riding downhill, shifting your weight into a heel or a toe-side J-turn. Make sure you’re still in a balanced, relaxed stance! It’s important to remember to keep your knees in line with your toes, keeping your arms and upper body calm. If you lean too far over your toes or over your heels, you will catch an edge and fall over!

Spell: SHRED TRAVERSE DISTRIBUTE
Traverse means to travel ______. ACROSS
When learning to traverse, it’s important to keep your board horizontal, so you don’t what? SLIDE DOWN THE SLOPE
To slow down, you shift your weight towards which foot? BACK
Keeping your knees in line with your toes, your arms, and your upper body should be _____. CALM
When traversing into a turn, you can shift into a ______. HEELSIDE TURN/TOE SIDE TURN
Horizontal means to move from ______ to _______. LEFT/RIGHT
What is the opposite of horizontal? VERTICAL
What angle makes a horizontal or a vertical line? 90
Learning how to snowboard can be really challenging. Is there a sport or activity that you’ve tried that has been challenging to learn, but once you mastered the skill, you found it enjoyable?

As snowboarding has EVOLVED over the years, many different styles of riding have DEVELOPED. The most common styles are Freeride, Freestyle, and Alpine. Freeriding occurs on ungroomed TERRAIN and is without rules. This means you can ride however you want, and you’re able to make it your own. Freestyle riding is when you perform tricks using natural and manmade features such as rails, jumps, boxes, and half-pipes. Alpine is when you ride on hard-packed or groomed snow and try to race to the bottom as quickly as you can. Alpine racing is a DISCIPLINE within the sport and has been an OLYMPIC event since 1998. While these styles are the most common, there are many other unique styles that often incorporate similar elements. But there is one thing all of the different styles have in common. You’re out there to have fun!

Spell: DIFFERENT FREESTYLE UNIQUE
Freeriding occurs on ungroomed ______. TERRAIN
Freeriding is without ______. RULES
Freestyle is when you perform _______. TRICKS
When Alpine Racing, you ride on what type of snow? HARD-PACKED/GROOMED
In Alpine, you try to race to the ________ of the mountain. BOTTOM
The one thing all the different types of riding have in common is that you’re out there to have _____. FUN
Name one of the features you could perform tricks on. RAILS/BOXES/JUMPS/HALF-PIPE
What is another name for evolved? CHANGED/GROWN
What year did Alpine racing become an Olympic sport? 1998
People snowboard to have fun. Is there a sport or activity that brings you joy?

CREATIVE WRITING
The world of snowboarding has grown dramatically since it first came to life in 1965 when one man decided to create a new toy for his children. Have you ever wished there was something, a toy, a tool, or some kind of gadget you could use to make your life easier or more enjoyable? Tell me about your wonderful invention!

Sources:
History of Snowboarding – The Story with Great Photos – Free The Powder Gloves
How to Snowboard | REI Co-op
Snowboarding – Wikipedia