dawnblue 0 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 what dangers are there of a beginner twisting and damaging his (front) knee when only his front leg is bound to the board? especially when coming off the lift at the top? my friend is deciding on getting an extreme-sport brace for his front knee. i remember falling about 6 times when i got off the lift when i started boarding. i had a knee brace on my front knee. i am sure i would have twisted my front knee many times if not for the brace. i have a brace because i have had ACL reconstruction. that tear was from skiing. Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I found no problems at all getting off the lift as a beginner boarder. the most problems i had was banging the knees when falling over, though i did learn at thredbo where the snow tends to be a bit hard. i also expereinced tenderness in my knees for quite sometime after my holiday had finished, which I suspected was from twisting the knees trying to turn. next time, I did more lateral strengthening of the muscles on the inside and outside of the knee and didnt experience any soreness at all the next time Link to post Share on other sites
foreversnow 5 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I thought most injuries to beginner snowboarders was to the shoulders and wrists. I will let you know after my attempt at snowboarding this trip !! Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 i do a lot of martial arts, so i learn to fall correctly, but a set of wrist guards are highly recommended. My son managed to break his wrist 15 minutes into the first day of our last 2 week holiday Link to post Share on other sites
modern_messiah 0 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I dislocated my shoulder twice last year so I've been focusing on strengthening it as when I fall over a lot of force will go up through my arm and 'end' at the shoulder. The dislocations weren't snowboard related. On reading this I may strengthen the knees during my gym sessions as well. The new footy season starts when I get back and I can't afford to not run! Link to post Share on other sites
Ezorisu 0 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I remember more strain on the ankle rather than the knee when falling or nearly falling right off the lift sortie. Probably don't need a brace unless there is some preexisting knee issue (like a torn ACL). Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Originally Posted By: Ezorisu I remember more strain on the ankle rather than the knee when falling or nearly falling right off the lift sortie. Probably don't need a brace unless there is some preexisting knee issue (like a torn ACL). I agree. I reckon the ankle is the loser in a one-foot-strapped-in-stack. The knee and leg generally cops a bit on the long chair rides but the foot rests generally help with that. Shoulders can also take a bit of a beating. Having a helmet stops the occassioanl head slam from being a holiday wrecker. The jury is still out on wrist guards. Some like them, some reckon they just transfer the impact stress to other parts of the arm. Never used them myself. In Japanese conditions with the considerably softer snow and general absense of ice, the need to use them is quesitonable I reckon. Better off being careful to avoid catching your toe side edge. Link to post Share on other sites
Sciclone 2 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I twisted my knee pretty badly the first time I went snowboarding (my lower leg twist 90 deg toward the outside of my knee, had to get towed up by snow patrol, took 6 months to heal because I went back out and snowboarded ). Keeping your legs bent to absorb shocks and support you weight on your calves will help this. (Do squats and calf raises to strengthen). If anything, I recommend you learn to fall over properly. You'll be doing a lot of it if its your first time (we all started somewhere and not all of us are surfers/skaters), so learn how to do it in a way thats easiest on the body. I personally found toe side into the mountain the easiest as it made it easier to get up and you weresn't falling on your butt the whole time. Also be careful about the tendency to put your arms down when you fall heel side, as if you are going at any speed, it can feel like you're trying to rip your arms backwards out of their sockets. I'm not an instructor of any sort. I'm just speaking from experience as when I went the first time I was a fairly uncoordinated, unfit, unconditioned person. Next time I went, I did a bit of exercise before I went and saved myself a lot of pain. Link to post Share on other sites
Rag-Doll 0 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Sciclone's comments are good. Pers preference is important though. I've found heelside is the best for stacks - just sit down if you're going too fast or heading off a cliff or into a bunch of school kids. Generally speaking - toe side is for better fine control and rough ground - standing on your toes gives better balance and heel side for gross speed control - just rock back on your heels and take the force through your quads, if you lose the edge at worst you'll just drop on to your bum. There is a knack to getting up too, if you're not a super flexible 10 yr old - roll over so you're facing up hill on your front. Move into a squat position on your toes and stand up. Standing up while facing down hill is a bit tricky, I reckon. Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Originally Posted By: Sciclone If anything, I recommend you learn to fall over properly. Interestingly, at thredbo, they no longer teach you how to fall properly - they argue that if someone falls and hurts themselves after being taught, then there is a risk of litigation. these damned ambulance-chasers are spoiling it for everyone else! Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 another suggestion for standing up: if you are sitting down, facing downhill, dig an approx 5cm deep V trench with your heelside edge, then place your toe edge into the trench as you stand up. the trench will stop your board from sliding away from under you, and also, if the slope isnt very steep, it will lower the height of your feet relative to your bum, and make it easier to stand up Link to post Share on other sites
dawnblue 0 Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 thanks guys, will refer my pal who is going to niseko on 23jan to this forum.... he may decide to ski instead of board after reading all this! Link to post Share on other sites
dawnblue 0 Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 snowhunter how long have you been skiing? are you converting? i must say carrying one stick and having soft boots is heaven! Link to post Share on other sites
dawnblue 0 Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 gareth oau two weeks after niseko, there is still tenderness in my knees too! hope it doesn't warrant a checkup. i dare not face my orthopaedic surgeon! what do you mean by 'inside and outside'? do you mean front and back? Link to post Share on other sites
Sciclone 2 Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Gimp: I suppose it all depends where you learn to snowboard as to your method of stacking it. I learnt at Perisher (Aust), which has death nuggets by the hundreds. After tearing my knee out, landing on my tail bone and trying to stop myself with my shoulder sockets, I was very cautious about landing the wrong way. Falling toe side into the mountain allowed me to get up quickly with my arms (like doing a push up), even though my knee was wrecked. DawnBlue: Don't let my comments scare you or your friend. Snowboarding is hella fun, and I still couldn't get enough despite my injuries. At least you are going to Japan which has proper snow not crushed ice, so just head for the nearest powder bank to slow down. No hurt necessary! Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Originally Posted By: dawnblue gareth oau two weeks after niseko, there is still tenderness in my knees too! hope it doesn't warrant a checkup. i dare not face my orthopaedic surgeon! what do you mean by 'inside and outside'? do you mean front and back? Hi Dawn, i dont mean the front and back (ie quads and hamstrings), I actually mean the sides. Its a bit tricky to explain in words, but instead of sitting on my bum and doing a normal leg extension, i sit on my hips and one leg at a time, using the sides of my ankles, do leg extensions - use the inside of the ankle then the outside of the ankle, then swap hips for the other side (hope i havent confused you altogether now!!) Link to post Share on other sites
snobee 0 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 Now I know why - in writing - why I've never made the transition to boards. If I was young(er) and a beginner maybe I'd try - just all that sitting, unbuckling - ratcheting/buckling, hobbling on & off lifts etc leaves me a bit cold on the idea. Smooth sailing on me twin planks - wink! Link to post Share on other sites
gareth_oau 2 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 very true snobee. the biggest hassle with boarding is the traversing. we need to invent some sort of telescopic snowboarding pole thats used for the traversing/commuting so its not necessary to undo the bindings all the time. Link to post Share on other sites
Sciclone 2 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 Another option is to wear knee pads under you pants. Unless you wear racing bodysuits, most pants have enough room to pull them over a set of pads. Snobee: You only need to unbuckle one binding when you get on/off the lifts and skate past the exit. You don't even need sit down to buckle up again (the other option is to use a Flow binding). The skating took a bit of getting used to. I used to rollerblade when I was younger, so getting used to going sideways and controlling movement with toes and heels without straps was different, but once you get the hang of it easy enough. The only time when I wish I was a skier was in big flat sections. Its easier to just take the board off and walk. Proper trail planning negates this though, unless its like in Furano, where the only way to get back from the Furano zone to Kitanomine, is flat because they didn't think a bit of gradient was necessary. Anyway... lets not turn this into a board vs ski debate. We all love the cold white stuff, so just have fun doing what you do. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted January 16, 2009 Share Posted January 16, 2009 Papabear boards with a brace on his rear leg, the one that gets unclipped. But he had an ACL reconstruction about 16 months ago. Gareth - horror story about your son doing his wrist 15 min into your holiday! We have been so lucky so far, with 6 of us I am surprised we have not had more of an injury count. Papabear has Level gloves with built in wrsit guards, and he bought a few other pairs for us to use he liked them so much, but only the eldest child uses them - we feel ungainly in them, and I reckon I would do more harm with them on.....each to his own I suppose. Honestly if someone wants to learn to snowboard the place to do it is in the Japow fluffy stuff, it makes the falling, of which there is alwaÿs a lot when you are learning, a lot less painful. My rear knee is giving me trouble tonight, but I did a big day, covered masses of terrain and not much of it soft, and I am no spring chicken anymore! Maybe an easier day tomorrow, some tiger balm into the knee tonight and a few extra ghluweins tomorrow! Link to post Share on other sites
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