Snowboarding Has Now Been Recognized as a Legitimate and Competitive Sport
The popularity of Snowboarding has increased dramatically over the past decade and continues to grow steadily. More and more people are taking to the slopes with their snowboard and having the time of their life with fun and good exercise. The sport has achieved legitimacy because of the entrance to the Olympics in 1998. It also has taken on an active role in the X-Games. With millions of television views watching real professionals in action it is little wonder why the art of using a snowboard has gained prominence across the world. Today you will find as many snowboarders on the slopes as you find skiers. The world loves the art and the sport of using a snowboard for the challenge.
The estimated totals for snowboarders in 2004 was placed at over six million. That is a lot of riders. Many of those riders are in the 10-16 age bracket. However many adults and older teens also take to the slopes with their snowboards. There are various styles of Snowboarding that are used to classify this activity. Many of them overlap with each other in skills and movements. The most popular styles of today include: free-ride, freestyle, and free-carve/race. These categories are what you will find on the slopes of today and what snowboarders are doing.
The free-ride is the most common type of snowboarding you will find. It is simply defined as riding down any terrain anyway you can. There may be obstacles placed on the course or it may be free from any barriers. Free-riding also means you ride without doing any specific maneuvers but you can also do tricks if that is your preference. It is primarily aimed at fun and enjoying the ride down doing anything that you want on your snowboard. Because you can encounter all kinds of conditions and snow usually with free-riding you use a stiff soft shell boot with a directional twin snowboard to make your riding flexible.
With freestyle ride you are on a man made course that has been set up with rails, jumps, boxes, and other barriers so that the rider can do tricks and jibs. It is primarily used for competitions and is a real test of an individual’s skills on the snowboard. To achieve better balance and to be able to perform the board is usually a twin tipped board and soft boots are used.
Free-carve Snowboarding is defined as racing on a set up course downhill with plenty of curves. It is not as popular as the other two types. It is a real test of skills and the ability to make turns with a snowboard down a laid out course. This is a sport that continues to grow and has made an impact on the sports world.