How to ride powder / What you’ve never thought of before / Part #1

[@flareblitz8640]

Great video. I've ridden powder for so long its just natural to me but listening to the movements being broken down into down-weighted riding was super cool. Nobody taught me to do it, I just figured it out after years of practice 😅

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Yeah, it's such a FEEL thing! Most people eventually just feel it out and do it well. But I was hoping to offer a short cut ;-)

[@69fabricio]

It all makes more sense now. I've only had a couple of days of experience in deep powder (about 2-3 feet) and they were both miserable. Not only I was on the wrong kind of snowboard, but I totally remember having to lean on my back foot so the board would not sink in the snow, and just kept loosing control and falling time and time again. It was a terrible experience because it drained all my energy just trying to get up again in such deep snow. But what you are explaining in this video about having a true powder board and specially the technique to keep floating without having to pivot the whole board from the back foot, it just makes a lot of sense. Thanks for sharing this usefull info!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Thanks for sharing!! So glad my video made sense to you!

[@tedjohansen6535]

Thanks for sharing - I'm going to think about this next day on the slopes. "Porpoising" through powder is pretty amazing! Front foot then back foot, then flooooooat, and repeat - it's a wacky game of momentum, height/float, slope, and avoiding obstacles. These type of turns you describe make it so you don't have to speed check to a complete stop when things start to get hairy - I think it's basically carving but for powder.

[@HotChips-ot3rm]

You've done it again, Lars. More great content. Let's hope the pow flies soon in Fernie and elsewhere in the Rockies

[@martin0708]

Deutlich! Front and aft well explained. Now the sides and using the sidecut-radius and the flex of the board: where at turns by extension you slowly sit down and balance on your edge throughout the turn, in powder 'the turn by flexion' you gradually push with both feet on the half of the board you are turning on. So you really push the board away from you on both heels or on both balls of your feet. Push and let it spray! Have a great season Lars!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@martin0708 nice one!! 👏

[@dawidjuros474]

December - The June of Winter - Snowfall - The June Heat of December. Family, snowboard content, weekend, freedom. 😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@jameslee7961]

I think that most of the riders I see on the mountain can benefit from just riding more directional tapered boards. Unless you ride park or switch a lot you don’t need a twin or even a directional twin. Boards like korua (pretty much all of their boards), excavator, dancehaul, warping, etc… are more than capable of floating in pow, carve and some can even handle park. My riding changed so much since I bought a directional board because of exactly what Lars is saying about less pivoting w/ back foot and more up/down unweighted turns. If you’re on the fence, just go buy one!!! It will expand your riding, especially on pow!

[@neilbower123]

Good tips cheers. Just about to start my season in Austrian Alps, so yes, hopefully all will be useful.

[@iamkeir]

This is a really intriguing and enlightening idea 🎉

[@evan_ry]

Great video! Found your channel a year ago, and now starting one more new snow season with great tips. Thank you!

[@AluinKali]

I live pretty far from the mountains so I only get one to two weeks of riding every year. Last season was the first time in my over 2 decades of snowboarding that I experienced pow riding and I could have really used this advice. I loved the sensation but I fell over in pretty much every turn because nothing that I have learned before applied to pow riding. I even hired two different instructors and even they didn’t explain this. So thanks for sharing your expertise with the world. It’s highly appreciated.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

I hope it will make a difference!! Speed is still an important factor.

[@gmezzy209]

Great explanation! This is spot on!

[@UncIe_Drew]

You must have read my mind! Bought myself a freeride powder focused board for this year. The plan is to ride it a lot and improve with this style of riding. I have definitely felt weighting the front foot help but also still use a lot of rear. Thanks for another great video!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

You gotta ride the back foot, for sure. But you can't be stuck there. ;-)

[@cherrycarves]

Hey Lars! Will you be in Montucky in February? I've had the best powder days of my life at the Montucky Clear Cut! Three feet in as many days and only 100 riders on the entire mountain... Dreamy.

[@BryanPortmann]

cant wait for Part 2 :)

[@marcusoutdoors4999]

I’ve ridden a lot of powder over the years and your theory / technique sounds very good. It makes loads of sense and I think is what I do when I get it right, achieving a delicate bounce is critical. I’ve spent the last few weeks playing with the set up of my first new board in quite a while, and Amplid, Singular, Directional which is a tad wider in the nose, has early rise in the nose and about 6cm more nose than tail, so I am super interested in seeing how it rides. My hope is it will carve well (it’s supposed to) and be good in powder…hopefully without having to set the bindings too far back, we will see! Regardless I’ll be thinking through your technique tips for carving and now powder, especially as I’ve a new set up. PS. As we’re off to Alpe D’Huez, I’m hoping to get a lesson from one of your followers, Malcolm Moore.

[@partnah2887]

true to a T. lol my first pow day, my quads were burning up by the second run lol trying to put weight on the back leg is tough stuff

[@michaelpeternixon]

Finally, at 13:08 the image of the dolphin. There were some very agreeable words leading up to it: extension compression momentum rebound. Envision the dolphin as it dives to its nadir and with its tail generates energy to breach the surface in the familiar arc. This is you with practice. At the apex of the arc the dolphin does not flop into the water without intent but dives forcefully to power off the nadir once again. This art can be learned on groomers, and by using up unweighted turns. Picture a straight fall line down a broad shallow pitch, and your toeside and heelside turns as symmetric c turns on either side - like a long continuous dollar bill sign. Don't cross the fall line on the snow, cross it in the air. Breach the fall line. Your board is a dolphin: the nadir is the deepest part of the c turn, the apex is directly above the fall line (in the air). Try again using down unweighted turns. Once you get this sorted practice in the pow on each side of the trail. I'm a regular - I hit the trail berm on rider's right for some air and land in a heel turn, power out and hop over the trail berm. This will mimic the "snap" our host describes. Now, the number one unmentioned reason people fail to master the dolphin AND generate momentum out of turns is by NOT doing full rail turns. Anyway, that is my 2 pence, now buy me a coffee

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@michaelpeternixon beauty! You’re right on the money! Nicely explained!! 🙌🤙👏

[@michaelpeternixon]

@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel you do good work, thanks

[@LagmasterB]

“You’re like 🤙🏻 yeah powder let’s go”..I know of this that you speak of.

[@swych4746]

Thx for the video Lars. You mentioned a few videos back how stance location should have some correlation to the effective edge, notably that you want to be centred. How does pow riding relate to stance location (on the board), if people are setting their stance back towards the tail for powder riding? What controls how far you should set back?

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Great question! Groomers and pow are two very different scenarios. You don't turn that much on the sidecut of the board in powder but more through flexing the board and a bit of a drift. So priority here is float, and on a non pow specific board that can be achieved by setting the stance back - as far as it needs to go to feel more effortless to stay on top. Consider that eventually things can start to feel 'wrong' and awkward... As much as you want a shorter tail than nose, a tail still offers support and you need some of that... Pow boards are so great, because they add length in the nose PAST the effective edge!! So that's just added material to get the board to float, but you can still be positioned in a good spot over the sidecut to actually ride groomers. Really, for someone who is not into freestyle a pow board can be a one board quiver. My Stranda Shorty and also the Bowlrider are perfect carvers and amazing pow boards, and I never worry about where I mount the stance. I ride all conditions in the exact same spot... Hope this helps a bit!!

[@RaduCrican]

Thanks! It's nice to get this points, at least theoretically as TBH I was so far a bit confused what I actually should do. I mean I live like 2 hours from snow areas so it's pretty hard to try much as it's not so common. On the pistes if it's powder I manage well, going off piste though it gets quite difficult, kind of like what you say. My board is a Lib Terrain Wrecker. I feel like I stay on the back but then I was not really sure how to turn :)) and ending up turning pretty badly and going switch / front :)) I get down fine, but... I will try to think of these points next time. Ideally I would like to learn using my board as 2 boards for my available time is a bit too much

[@JukkaliMx]

Dude, if I lived two hours away from the mountain, I'd be going all the time, haha. The Terrain Wrecker is actually good for this, because the camber profile lends itself to floating. It's not a true pow board, but if you set your stance back on a pow day, you shouldn't need to lean into your back leg too much. Watch Malcolm Moore's videos on down unweighted turns. He breaks down the movements very well, and it's something you can easily practice on powdery groomers or slush (the poor man's powder).

[@Boardrider3x1]

Excellent!! Hope I'll be needing this soon 😄 Thanks for dropping all that knowledge and helping us progress! Can't wait for the pow video to drop 😉 have been wanting to get some relief on my backfoot for a while 😅 Have a great season and a wonderful X-mas Lars! And thanks, once more, for all the work you put into these videos to help us to get better riders!!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Thank you so much and Merry Christmas to you, too! :-)

[@victoralekseev5671]

Thanks for video. I am a groomer big time, all that eurocarve things and such. Pow days is when i stay home, BUT your video just explains how wrong i was with technique and thus never enjoyed riding powder. Challenge accepted! I'll give it a try with mindful technique in my tool box. Thanks

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Ha!! Amazing!! Thanks for sharing!!

[@LagmasterB]

Nothing like powder. Life changing.

[@SirCamma]

Thanks for this information! Every video you make hells us out in some way. Hoping la niña will hit very soon and there will be Endless pow days! I'll get you some coffees soon, what's life without coffee? That's like snowboarding without snow 🤘🏂

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@SirCamma love this! Thank you!!🙏

[@JukkaliMx]

Love the video. I only have one question: how many of those cardboard snowboard shapes do you have, and how often do you have to make new ones? 😂 Keep up the great work, Lars!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@JukkaliMx love this! 😂 I have two!!

[@mayankgupta716]

Hey Lars, super awesome video! I am curious to get your thoughts on stance angles for powder vs carving, do you think there are different stance angles for different riding types that are optimal? E.g. I know in your carving videos you recommend posi posi, but would this movement be made easier with “less” posi posi? Or a different binding set up?

[@matejzima8210]

Hah, came here to ask exactly this

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Great question! Riding pow is riding terrain... Direction changes need to happen quickly. Therefore steering with the feet and twisting the board torsionally is important. Therefore lower angles work better as they direct pressure more ACROSS the board... I ride 27/+6 in pow. Used to go with 21/0 before. It's a bit of a matter of what you're used to, but lower angles work a bit better IMO.

[@mayankgupta716]

​@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel Thank you for your response! Maybe this is getting too detailed, but does that mean a powder board is supposed to be inherently less stiff to allow for more of the independent knee steering Malcolm Moore often cites in his videos? I see many boards which are positioned as powder boards that are also carving boards, and I am assuming that stiffer is better for engaging an edge which is a little confusing. I think what I am asking is, what is the priority and importance of different board characteristics for a board to be a good powder board? (Or is this all way too nerdy and it really doesn't matter that much :)?)

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@mayankgupta716 Taper, longer nose than tail, setback stance, nose rocker... That'll create float. Stiffness needs to be softer in the nose than tail. Torsional stiffness is personal preference. A pow board doesn't need the torsional stiffness of a carving board, but the faster you ride, the likelier it is that you would want some of that stiffness, and the unlikelier it is that you use knee steering. Again, never just one solution or view point!!!

[@mayankgupta716]

@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel thanks Lars, just got a Stranda Biru, and super keen to try it out, thank you for sharing knowledge on this channel, love getting deep in the theory, it has really helped my riding!

[@LagmasterB]

Dude you’re such an f’ing awesome human. Lars for President 2028.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@LagmasterB 😂 no politics! Haha…

[@maximesanchez2588]

Super useful information Lars ! I started working on my down unweighted turns on groomers to be able to apply it in powder but I felt I was missing a key to really see the effect of the technique. I just found that it's probably the releasing and rebounding part because I struggle to quickly link turns, at least on toeside. I will definitely give it a go next time 🙏🏾😁

[@JukkaliMx]

It's hard to practice down unweighted turns in firm snow, but if you wait for slushy or powdery groomers to practice on, you can really feel the difference with the right movements.

[@frozenwastz111]

I had the chance to try an SG Soul Surf (prototype)and also a Free Solo in November this year. Initially I tried to ride the Free Solo as I normally would my normal board (80% on my back foot). Let’s just say I fell over, a lot, until I shifted my weight a bit further forward. The soul surf was much easier to handle as it was an extra wide with a shorter nose and I had a better idea of the weight distribution but it was still a fight. I think you are on the money though, I was sitting too far back on the board to begin with (and possibly for the rest of the day). I’ll take carving groomers over POW though 😁🤷‍♂️

[@absmith17148]

Would you ever consider doing a review of the K2 Excavator?

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

I’ve ridden it. Great board. Radius is too tight for me, but overall a great board.

[@ktgordan]

Great video. What bindings angle do you use for powder days?Thanks!

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

27/+6 But that is so subjective....

[@ktgordan]

@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel I mainly ride posi posi as well. But I am thinking what are the key differences between duck vs posi posi when it comes to riding powder. Especially if I want to go in to the trees, duck seems to give a more flexibility and control.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@ktgordan riding pow for most people is purely uni directional riding - no switch. So pointing the back knee back is just dysfunctional. 0° on the back foot is a great stance in pow, if you don't want to go posi. But duck for me has become a no go in pow. Depends a bit on what you're used to. Took me a while when I switched from negative to positive back foot.

[@ing4u]

Is that Graig Kelly on the wall.?

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Craig is on all my walls! 🙂❤️

[@fanonche1]

Lars, are you riding Posi Posi in Pow? Also, are you widening your stance in Pow or are you able to stay in narrow stance carve mode? I generally widened my stance for stability, but I want to find that sweet spot for mobility and stability (see I have been listening). Thanks in advance.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

I dial back angles a small bit to 27/+6 and I play with the width depending on the conditions. When it's choppy or when it's big mountain freeride stuff I ride wider. Otherwise I stay pretty much around 53 - 54cm all the time.

[@jankellner4441]

Great Video!! I have a question. I just got a new snowboard the nitro alternator 160. i am 183 cm big and 80 kg. Do you think the size is good? And also i want to ask, i have sice 10.5 and the wayst witdh is 256mm. I am a good carver but i am not sure if it is too narrow for me. Can you help me?

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Likely too narrow. Otherwise no idea since I don't know the board. Sorry!!

[@sconover1]

What are a couple of good basic commonly available powder boards to try? (Trying to figure out what to demo)

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Sorry, can’t answer that question. Huge market and depends on location.

[@sconover1]

@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel understood. great video, looking forward to the next one in the series.

[@ericmikkelsen]

Different topic but have you ridden Korua or Soul Stick boards?

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@ericmikkelsen Korua yes, soul no.

[@ericmikkelsen]

Do you have any videos on that which I can't find?​@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@ no videos. Sorry.

[@P00nda]

What do you think about down unweighted technique for carving groomers? Most carving youtubers teach up unweighted turns, but I've become very comfortable with down unweighted turns on my regular board before getting a carving weapon last year.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

They both have a time and place. One should learn both and learn to apply them where appropriate. I often mix the two where needed.

[@yakked]

I wonder your opinion on waxing the nose and tail for pow riding. My thought is they're more in contact with the snow when it's deeper. It's not much different, but I'll take what I can get.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Why would anyone ever not wax the entire base?!

[@snowboardguru6794]

Now it’d be great to actually see a video of a long run riding powder instead of someone standing around talking about it. 😉

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

Hahahahahaha.... This is so classic! The person that has only ever criticized me here, who is hiding behind weird fake names and has never been able to show one split second of their own riding while always moaning about my content has now come to criticize that I'm not riding in this video (which is also false!! there are two clips, which you probably didn't watch). You're so ridiculous! It's not even funny anymore! - Now it would be great if you ever for once listened with both ears to what I'm saying in the video! I said TWICE that this is meant to be a PART #1 to get people to think about what they do - since I haven't had a big pow day yet this season. I also said that a PART #2 ON SNOW is gonna come with the next snowfall.... You can't help it, can you?! Not a single constructive comment from you EVER! Thanks for still watching my terrible videos that are so full of misinformation! Every time you watch, you make me some money in add revenue! Much appreciated!

[@MPLines]

@@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel There’s always gonna be crazies that’ll comment things like this. Don’t waste your time replying to them Lars just keep doing what you do 🫡 Great vid

[@nathansutter6253]

@snowboardguru6794 "It is easier to put on a pair of shoes than to wrap the earth in leather." In other words - we can continue to work on ourselves and the way we respond to the world, or we can wait for the world to satisfy us and continue to react when things aren't the way we want them to be. Best wishes to you; I know life is hard; be kind to yourself.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@nathansutter6253 thanks for that!! Very thoughtful and nail on the head!! This applies to myself just as much. I, too, have a lot of work to do on that end... Kind to myself is also rather my weakest point... 🙏🙏🙏

[@snowboardguru6794]

@@MPLines And more riding would be cool would it not? As if that’s a bad thing. Lol

[@Serh1y]

😂😂😂 when you on 75 degrees slope the only way you can ride is on your back foot. Proof me wrong

[@marcusoutdoors4999]

I’ve ridden a 73 degree slope in over a meter of powder and I was riding the board fairly flat because I was going fast. Leaning back just slows you down. Watch the big decent videos, you’ll see.

[@Justaride-Snowboard-Channel]

@@Serh1y and that’s most everybody’s first problem when riding pow, that 75 degree slope they choose….