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1)
Start off in your normal stance and turn on your heelside edge into
switch stance, this is easier than turning backside into switch. |
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2) Use your arms for balance and
keep your stomach low to the ground by
bending your knees, but don't hunch over. This will give you a solid
center of gravity and will reduce the distance to the ground if you
begin to fall. |
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3) When in switch stance, begin by
turning onto your heelside edge
using your head and shoulders to initiate movement. It is
very
important to look towards the direction you want to travel as you move
your body. |
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4) Keep your arms below your
shoulders and when turning keep your
elbows an equal distance apart throughout the turn. It's
important to
not just turn into your carve but to also lean with the angle of your
carve. You already know what it feels like to lean into a
nice and
clean effective edge as you carve. Try to reproduce that
feeling. |
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5)
Stay up on your heelside edge and feel the snow move along your
effective edge as you find a line in the snow. At this point
your body
will be in a slightly open stance with your chest facing down slope. |
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6) To
come out of the heelside carve you will first turn your head and
shoulders towards the other direction. As your body becomes parallel
with the falling line of the hill you will quickly come back to the
flat based position on your board for only a brief moment. Then push
with your toes onto the effective edge of your toeside edge and hold
that carve line. |
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7) The
edge change will happen as a quick transition of the full carve
and will happen as your shoulders point down slope. For the
first
couple of times you should try to slightly kick that edge out when you
come off your heelside edge onto your flat base and then onto your
toeside edge. The transition will become smoother and look
better with
practice. |
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8)
When you're riding with your toeside edge try to keep your weight
balanced on both feet, even though you will want to put more pressure
on your back foot. |
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9) To
come out of the toeside carve you will again first turn your head
and shoulders down slope. As your body begins to turn, push
your butt
forward as you move onto the flat base of your board and transfer onto
the heel edge in a natural flow. As your body comes onto its
heelside
edge, keep your focus, because you don't want the terrain or your
laziness to allow your toe edge to catch as you're in position to ride
the effective heelside edge. |
