The ultimate place to express your inner rider

The purest form and canvass to use for your freedom of expression on every run! Heli-boarding in the back country. Going off the beaten path to find line no other human being has touched or carved out for you. Allowing you to flow down a trail and have it never be the same as the one before. Always finding different lines, little bumps, and parts to fly through. All in the cleanest form of creative expression allowed by the sport, because no one else is going to have the same run as you. Its just You, The Mountain, and Your Board. Nothing else matters but having a good time and embracing your inner boarder.

My dream place to go snowboarding would be on a mountain where people have not snowboarded before. Where there are no clear cut trails and clean line. But a place where I have to create all that for myself, truly being able to express myself in my fullest potential. The picture I posted above is of a snowboarder jumping out of a helicopter on his way down the mountain where no one else has been. Heli-boarding, like I have posted before, is on my bucket list, going to that place no one else has been to. Allowing full creative talent and skill to be released in the cleanest, purest way. All out of love for the sport and how its truly your interoperation of the mountain, snow and you can do what ever you chose to while your out there.

Snow, the ultimate canvass

Constantly checking the snow conditions to make sure you will have that perfect snow? You are on the pursuit every rider is searching to find the answer for!
To add in that search make sure you always check the weather and snow condition a head of time and stay up to date with them. Make sure you pick the right mountain too, because location matters. Most important thing is to make sure that you still have a good day no matter what!

I have not traveled all over to find that perfect snow, yet. But I have been to my fair share of mountains in New England. A couple of my favorite are Loon, Sunday River, and Wachusett(which really isn't a mountain if you ask me). But my favorite is Killington, it is a great sized mountain with a Burton stash park, which is a all natural terrain park. Also it has a gondola which is key at good sized mountains, allowing you to escape the elements for a couple minutes. Giving your hands a chance to warm up before you kill the run all over again

Most of those mountains have to blow a good majority of snow, because of their location. Its just always icy in New England, which does not help with snow conditions. Blown snow is not the best but its not the worse either, once groomed and skied on for a little it can actually soften up. The key with a lot of blown snow trails is to ride the side because thats where all the skied off snow builds up and that equals soft riding. If they are blowing it during the day then its freezing, annoying and painful, so defiantly stay to the side of the trail and avoid the spray. Overall the snow is still good and even better if they get a dusting of powder on top.

But what I truly love to ride is all powder, to just lean back and cruise on top, its like a dream. I have heard Japan is suppose to have the best powder, as well as all those mountains that are not designed for snowboarding and skiing. Which are both on my bucket-list, to taste Japan's powder and to go heli-boarding on trails of powder created by me. The purest for of that sport and the creativity involved. Other destination that I hope to visit and recommend would be places in: Colorado, Utah, Oregon, and British Colombia in Canada. I cannot wait to get out there and try all the different mountains, each with their own snow and conditions. Do not expect a mountain to have the same conditions as another or even the same as another day you where there, because every day you ride its different and thats the fun of snowboarding. It never gets old.

Now you are probably  wondering how that relates to my concept of "Find your inner Rider". Well the answer is that different mountain all offer new runs, snow condition and way to flow down the mountain. Which all have impact on your riding style and ultimately how you express yourself on any give day in any give condition. One day it could be ice the next powdery, each offering new and different way to use them mountain as your canvass for expression. A part of your journey to find your inner rider, you will discover: what mountains you favor and which snow condition you love to ride in and how they all give you different way to express yourself.

Finding your Set Up

My Snowboard set-up 

Ever person has a different feel for riding and what type of set-up they prefer and your only going to figure out what you like through trial and error. This is one why you can express yourself before you even set foot on the mountain. You can set yourself apart from other riders, by wearing flashy gear. Besides being flash different gear has different feel which is just another aspect of finding your inner rider.  

A side note, to help you discover your inner rider and which gear is good for you is. If you can find mountains sponsoring test riding take advantage of that. It is a good way to get to try different types of boards and binding to see how they feel and what you think about them before you go and spend all that money. 

After a couple different boards and bindings, all with different feels and from different companies I found what works well for my style of riding and expression. My board is a 2009 Burton Clash which is an all-mountain board; a directional twain. Which means that the bindings are centered on the board but the tail is a little wider for cruising, a good mix of everything. In comparison to a twin which is equal all around designed for tricks so no matter which way you land your centered. Then there is a straight directional which sets the bindings back more and has that wider tail, meant for cruising down the mountain and deep powdery snow. Each person has a different style of riding which is why their styles of expression and its important to find the board that will allow you to do so successfully. 

Now on to bindings, the glue connecting you and your board. I have 2010 Burton Mission bindings, they are also designed for all-mountain riding. When it comes to bindings they are rated on two things how soft or hard they are and their hold. The all-mountain bindings are going to be in the middle of that scale being a little harder than a freestyle binding with medium hold. All-mountain bindings are designed for exactly that, ride anywhere and everywhere on the mountain. Freestyle bindings are going to be the softest with the most hold allowing for easy spins and tricks. On the other end of that scale are backcountry bindings which are hard with strong hold designed to maximize your carving. Just as a board affects the riders ability to express their ride style so do bindings.

The final piece to any set-up is your boots, which my seem unimportant. False, its important to find the right boot. When it comes to picking out boots theres are many factors to think about: fit, feel, are they warm, how heavy are they, will they fit your bindings(not all boots will fit every binding), and flexibility. My boots are 2010 Burton Mottos which I personally like because they are comfortable and fit my feet well, while still being light, warm and flexible. I did not have to worry about them fitting my bindings because companies specifically design their boots to fit their bindings, but if they are different companies always check or ask if they will fit. 

While I may have all Burton, I am not saying thats the only company out there I also like Ride, Thirty-Six, forum, and more. So you do not have to just stick to one company, mix and match and see what works best for your style and allows you to take your expression to it full potential. If you still do not know your style you will, just enjoy the ride, because that is the only way to find your inner rider. 

Just always remember, when you find that perfect set-up treat it as your baby, Just as I do!

The Art of Flight

CLICK TO SEE VIDEO - The Art of Flight
I wanted this to be my first post for several reason. Starting with the fact that the movie has one of the most talented riders, Travis Rice staring. More importantly though, the video show people  how much more there is to snowboarding. Behind the scenes, setting up for trips and tricks, and all the planning that is required off and on the mountain, and truly how liberating but deadly it can be. It also shows, that snowboarding can be a form of express even if your not boarding. It allows people to find their inner board in many different ways.

Another part of that video that I love is just the fact they are riding on lines that no other person had made. Heli-boarding into dangerous terrain for the pure passion and thrill of hitting a line that no one else has ever touched. That is crazy and such a dream of mine, because its one thing to go to a ski resort. But its a whole different planet when you are going off the beaten path to find runs, where you have to be creative and express yourself on runs not made by another man. To make a trail out of nothing, its the purest form of creative expression, freedom, and just absolute love for the sport. I encourage any person who feel they have may have reached their full expression on a normal mountain to pursue that from of snowboarding.