Link snowboard turns.
You’re almost there! Once you’ve figured out toe and heel turns, linking them is easy with a little practice, timing and confidence. In this episode, we’ll help you link the C-turns you have already mastered.
Since you already know how to turn both directions, linking turns doesn’t really involve learning a new skill. The motions are basically the same. But it does require a little more risk and a lot of courage. Commit to the movements and you’ll be making smooth turns in no time.
Step 1 – Review proper snowboard alignment
Keeping proper alignment can be difficult when you learn new things. You might think it would be easier if you move your arms, but remember to keep your arms down at your sides and your shoulders parallel with the board. This will help you maintain good balance and alignment.
Step 2 – Practice on flat ground
Have a friend or coach push you along flat ground. You can link turns even with a tiny bit of pressure using just your feet and knee. Press on your front foot, then back foot, then rotate your knee. Your feet start the direction change, but the knee really rounds the turn. If you can convince a friend to push you, this is a great way to begin linking turns.
Step 3 – C-turns with a traverse
On a green run, practice a few C-turns (both toe and heel).
- Make a turn but don’t stop. Instead, traverse across the fall-line slowly (it’s okay to pause)
- After you’ve regained composure during the traverse, slowly shift weight over your front foot. This will move the snowboard downhill and prepare you for the next turn
- Once your snowboard is pointing downhill, then and only then, press down on your front foot, then back foot, and round the turn with your front knee
- Repeat
Step 4 – Reduce the traverse
Gradually reduce the pause between each turn until you are linking them confidently. You will leave an S-shaped track in the snow and make runs faster than ever before.
At this point, it’s just mileage. Have confidence in your turns and take as many runs as you can. You are a now a snowboarder. We’re proud.
What’s next: Explore Intermediate lessons
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Jill and/or Rick, Thank you VERY VERY MUCH for the website.
It has helped me a lot!! I’ve started boarding this year! However I
am a slight problem and was wondering if you could help…. I can
link my toe-to-heel turns fairly well. BUT Heel-to-Toe, I can not
do well. Sometimes I’ll catch my toe edge and other times I’ll have
to traverse a bit until I feel comfortable changing to toe edge
(mostly because I dont want to catch my toe edge). Any suggestions,
comments on what I’m doing wrong? And any advice you can give? Also
note, if I “kick back” my board, I actually CAN do heel-to-toe
turns, but that doesnt seem like proper technique. Thanks guys!
Jeremy
Hi Jeremy!
Thanks for the comment! From your description, it sounds like you may be rushing the heel-to-toe turn a bit. Rushing the transition between the turn would result in catching your edge, since you aren’t giving enough time for the board to naturally go on edge. To fix this, try to slow the transition down (traversing a bit is good). Traverse until comfortable, then turn. Try to reduce the amount of time in the traverse gradually until you are linking them smooth. Kicking the board around is probably not the best long-term technique — even though it may be effective occasionally. Smooth turns will come eventually with some patience and more mileage.
Same problem here. I have had zero trouble with toe to heel turns, but heel to toe ends up with a wipeout or I end up “switching” (the right foot becomes the lead foot instead; I ride regular foot, not goofy.)
Hi Jill/Rick – You have no idea how helpful your instructions have been! I’m a 40yr old new boarder this season and have been viewing your videos closely so much that I think they are better than the lessons I’ve taken. So I can link turns but I’m getting stuck from heel to toe transitions. I’m able to complete the turn but once complete from heel to toe I don’t seem to have enough balance/control to quickly transition back to heel and end up traversing on my toes for a distance and eventually uphill to slow down! Too much speed? Can you offer any help? Thanks a ton for your very helpful and creative advice – I think you shortened my learning curve quite a bit!!
Scott
Hi Scott! Thanks for the message! You described one of the more common issues we see. There isn’t any real fix for this, just more practice. The more repetitions the easier it will become and you will gradually shorten the gap between turns. A few things to consider:
* Ensure you are not leaning back. Over-exaggerate putting weight over your front leg.
* Ensure your knees are bent — keep ‘em soft and bouncy
With a bit more practice you will be linking them smooth!
Jill and Rick-
Thank you for taking the time to make this excellent website. I watched these videos before I went snowboarding for the first time (today actually!) These lessons gave me a lot of confidence and were a nice supplement to the lesson I got from the instructor, as I already knew the basics and the terminology beforehand.
Anyway, I’d like to ask what your guys’ opinion on wrist guards are? One of my friends (that’s a skier) told me he heard they were a good idea, but the guy at my local board shop told me he heard they make it more likely to break your arm in a bad fall.
Hi Jared, Thanks for your comment and glad the videos helped you out. I am somewhat neutral on wrist guards. I have had 3 wrist surgeries myself (all from snowboard falls where I wasn’t wearing wrist guards). I asked my doctor about it, and he said wrist guards CAN help protect the wrist joint, but with a hard enough fall you will still break your wrist (either at the wrist or further up the arm). It’s better to just avoid putting your hands out to break your fall. Try to roll/land on your side instead (yeah right, that’s mighty hard to do).
But do invest in a helmet. Those are a good piece of safety equipment in my opinion.
Hi,
There is a relatively new wrist guard developed by an orthoopedic surgeon, called biomex. It is integrated with Level brand snowboard gloves. This was my first season boarding, and I fell quite a bit on my first two days on the mountain. I am certain that these gloves saved me from several serious sprains and / or breaks. I am not falling as much thank goodness, and your videos helped me immensely, especially this one about linking turns. Coming from a skateboarding background I was putting too much focus on leaning my body instead of the subtle toe / heel mashing that you demonstrated. Thanks guys, you have helped add a super fun dimension to my life !!
Jared,
On the matter of wrist guards:
I have heard the same pros and cons. The best tip I got about wrists was to always punch the snow with a fist when you fall. That helps to prevent the wrist from bending backwards.
The injuries usually happen when you catch your heel edge, so try to use your elbows or just let your self roll over when you fall backwards.
Good luck!
Rick/Jill,
I am using your videos again. They were very helpful in teaching my boys to ride and now my boss is watching them in preperation for me dragging him out tomorrow night for his first lesson.
Keep up the good work!
I don’t know Duhg, teaching a boss sounds a lot like teaching a spouse. SnowProfessor is not responsible for lost jobs or divorces due to attempted snowboard instruction.
: )
Ha ha!!! Dugh, you are treading in dangerous waters. Rick’s right, we aren’t responsible for any firings…but on the flip side, we maintain credit if you get a promotion. Please report back on your success.
Hello Jill + Rick!
My names Annie, I’m 23 years old, lived in New England ALL MY LIFE and just started snow boarding! I’ve always hated the winter and never thought much of the snow, so my boyfriend took me skiing at WaterVille valley last year and I absolutely hated it. ]: Loved the mountains but hated getting on the slopes. So this year I tried snowboarding and if it weren’t for your videos… I’d be so lost!
You guys really nailed every aspect and I found it VERY easy to adjust to the snowboard with your videos. The toe and grape part on the J-turns was really funny and every time I am practicing my turn on the slopes my boyfriend just says, “Are you squishing the grape?!” Lol!
These videos really helped me build my confidence and now I love the snow. :]
Just wanted to say thank you for these VERY helpful videos and enlightening me about snowboarding + Winter!
<3 Annie
Hi Annie!
So glad to hear you are out enjoying the winter (and happy our videos played a part). I hope you aren’t too snowed in!
Thank you for the videos. I’m a beginner snowboarder who has been taught the wrong way to move my arm/shoulders. I’m improving with your videos, but…are my calves/lower legs supposed to be really sore? Before, my legs were never that sore and if they were it was my thighs, not calf muscles.
Thanks!
Hi Elcee! Sore calf muscles are probably just the result of new movements. This should get better the more you go riding. If you were previously turning with your arms, you probably weren’t using your legs as much. Sounds like you are on the right track though. Sometimes it can lessen strain to think about relaxing your ankles and knees (not just bending them). Let the boots hold your weight up and drive your knees into the hill.
Thank you guy soo much for the time/effort you put in making these video’s.
As a 30 year long skier, I have decided to enjoy the thrill of snowboarding. I went to the trail and tried to applied you suggestions. It was just one day but I don’t remember having slammed so much in my entire life as I did that day. My problem is that the board tends to rear-wash out quite a lot, especially going heelside, often resulting in spins. Even if I don’t spin completely, my board gets too transversal that makes the subsequent toeside transition terrifying (yes, right, catching the edge and BAM!). Also going straight feels like fishtailing. The board (freeride) has a default setback stance of 3cm. Should I put the setback to zero? What can you suggest?
Thank you again sooo much…
Hi Mau, Thanks for the feedback and glad you have seen how much fun boarding can be. Without seeing you ride, it’s hard to diagnose exactly what is going on. It sounds like you may have your weight too much over your back-leg. Focus on keeping weight over your front leg — exaggerate leaning over your lead leg. This should help prevent the spins. Thanks!
The boss lesson was a success. In three hours he went from falling while skating to linking turns on a blue square run.
On his second day, he was doing flat spins and even threw a 180-looking-thing off of a quarter-pipe-like side of a trail.
He is having a blast. My kids could not believe how well he was doing for just 2 days on the board.
I now have a reputation at the office for being the guy to go to to learn how to ride. My first instruction? Watch your videos.
I just got word that I am being transferred out of his group though… Hmmmmmmm.
LOL
Hi Jill and Rick!!
We recently started snowboarding and its tons of fun!!
Your tutorial really helped us a lot!! We can now finally link our turns!!! We were first taught to use our shoulders by instructors in the resorts, but you guys really convinced us to stop doing that!! Tons of thank you!!
Derek&Carmen
hi jill & rick!
thank you so much for these lessons! for me both the videos and the texts underneath them have been more than useful.
do you think you could do a lesson about falling (the right technique to fall)? i fall down time to time, especially when trying out new things. since i’m a begginner my speed isn’t that high, so i haven’t hurt myself, but when i learn more and my speed increases…
If you are falling back, try to land on one cheek or the other. If you fall forward, make you hands into fists and land on your entire forearm.
If you can do this every time you fall, please let me know how you do it. My falls happen so fast I usually don’t have time to remember the proper way.
thanks rick! i’ll try that next time. i bet it would be wise to practise it, so that when i fall, it comes automatically. because now, every time i fall back, i put my hands behind me to protect my bum. (i once fell on my tailbone pretty badly, and ever since this has been the automatic reaction.) wrist guards help a little, it’s my forearms that take the hit (instead of my palms and wrists). but from now on, i’ll try to turn the other cheek
I believe the technical term for this is “One-Bun” falling.
just a quick update.
i did practise falling. but then, when i actually fell (backwards), i put my hands behind me… luckily, i had my wrist guards, so i only strained my wrist (otherwise it would be in bits and pieces now).
what’s weird is that i seem to hurt myself only when there’s no speed. while riding i’m kind of prepared to fall (and my center of balance is lower). but while standing, i’m stiffer and the smallest thing can throw me off balance. still a beginner… but the season’s not over yet!
Thank you so much for these quick but informative video’s.
I’m taking my first lesson tomorrow night at my local dry ski slope… I’m 40 for pity sake!
Thanks to the videos I might just be able to get a little head start, but even if I don’t, I’m looking forward to my lesson more than ever…
Thanks again.
Darron
Hi Darron! Glad you like the videos! Good luck on your upcoming lesson.Sounds like you have a great attitude!
Great videos guys!
I am awaiting the upcoming season and these videos have helped me learn a lot. I will definitely watch them again right before I head up to the mountain. They are informative and very fun to watch. Last time I was up I had a lot of trouble getting the hang of toe-side turns and I learned some helpful tips for that.
Also, I hope you guys come out with new videos this season. Some videos of you guys just riding the mountain would be fun.
Thanks guys
Hi Thomas! Thanks for the feedback.
I’m not sure when we’ll have new videos — Rick and I have been pretty busy lately with work, kids, families, etc. I’d love to get more videos done, but it’s tough with so many other responsibilities.
Hi Jill and Rick
I’ve been learning to Snowboard for exactly 3.5 weeks and although my lessons in an inside snow centre [live in uk
] have been great your videos have been a constant source of homework and really helped me a lot. I head out to France in 3 weeks to go boarding for the first time and can’t wait!
Hello Rick and Jill,
I am curently in austria now and boarding for the first time on real snow(Have done lessons on a dry ski slope) But real snow is much better lol.
Ok so my problem is not going down steep reds,or even linking turns its when I come to a small blue flat trails its so hard to keep on my edge and I find if i make turns I catch edges so easy. I also dont like to go fast on the Trail as its often busy and I can not control it but the slower I go the more I fall ? I absolutly love going on red runs as there challenging and I hardly ever fall but I like to have fun on blue runs too but all my confidence has gone …. Could you please explain how to keep an edge or how to ride flat surfaces without turning to much so you stop and have to walk or slide every where and catch an edge.
Hope this makes sense many thank for the vids the best on youtube
Hey Jill and Rick,
Thank you for this great free content. I went from never snowboarding to linking turns in one day because of it. Group instruction was free where I snowboarded, then I practiced all the skills you described in the recommended order. Good work, it’s important to not ignore, “boring,” fundamentals. Being patient till I learned each skill is why I progressed quickly!