snowboarding for the 1st!

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Ron Dunkin on December 7, 2009 at 10:37am

Evelyn,

From what I have been told by a skiing instructer that we always ski with in SB you should prepare for 3 days of instruction to learn but if he has snowboarded at all , the learning curve should be faster. As far as action and food,, you are going to the right place . No shortage of either in Steamboat.
available.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by skisteamboat on December 7, 2009 at 11:31am

Glad to hear your son is well enough to ride. I would expect it to take at least three days to get reasonably proficient.

As far as food, let us know what kind you like and we can suggest places to go.Some of my favorites are Cuginos for Pizza and The Cantina for Mexican.

Cheers

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Melanie McDaniels on December 7, 2009 at 8:05pm

Evelyn,

Thus far what the others have posted is correct. If your son has snowboarded before, he should pick up the very basics again quickly, however 3 days will give him optimal results. Does your other son snowboard as well and is the 16 year old looking to catch up to his brother in terms of ability? (If that is the case, I would actually highly recommend a couple of private lessons for the two of them--our family private accommodates up to 5 people per lesson without the price changing.)
The bonus of a private rather than a group is how much more individual attention your son will receive, which can and in many cases does help expedite the learning curve. I have been an instructor at Steamboat since the 07-08 season and would be glad to answer any other questions you have. The ski and snowboard school offers a tremendous amount of products (in terms of lessons) to suit the many needs of our guests.

As far as food and extracurricular activities, the community of Steamboat offers amazing choices for any budget. There is sledding, ice skating, snowshoe tours, strawberry park hot springs, the old town hot springs, great shopping downtown and at the mountain.
There are sleigh ride dinners (super fun), great breakfast joints, and some amazing pizza!

Transportation is also a breeze with the free bus system run by the city of Steamboat Springs, a little leg work getting the schedules and you will be able to breeze around town without ever driving your car.

I hope this information helps!

Cheers and enjoy a wonderful stay here in Steamboat
Melanie

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by mTnsmith on December 8, 2009 at 8:59am

Hello,

I agree with the 3 days to feel good on a board, not sure 3 days of lessons will be needed. I would suggest at least one day of lessons, and he should have an idea after that if he needs anymore or not. Its one of those things, when you get it, you got it.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Evelyn Carbonell on December 8, 2009 at 7:55pm

Thank You all for your experience. My son has never snowboard. I already have him hooked up to one day of lessons in Roughriders. I have to see whether he'll like it and if not, proceed with ski lessons. In the past, he has also broken his wrist (steroid tx). Is there any advice as to clothing wear and arm protectors (if there is such a thing). My other son has a hx of a week of snowboarding lessons. Thank You! Evelyn

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Tracy Riser on December 8, 2009 at 9:05pm

Hi Evelyn,
As far as clothing.. They will need waterproof pants and jacket, goggles, gloves, some kind of synthetic (not cotton) base layers -shirt and pants, and 1 pair of socks (smartwool are good). We require that all kids in our kids programs wear helmets. These can be rented along with equipment. Wrist guards can be purchased at several of the shops in the base area. They even have gloves with built in wrist guards. Just be sure to read their disclaimers. Personally I think they do more good than harm, but it is still possible to break a wrist, or an arm with them on.

Oh.. and I see that you signed your son up for rough riders. Just FYI, roughriders is our program for kids ranging in age from 1st grade up to 15 or 16. We try to divide classes up by age as much as possible, but there is still a chance your son will be in a class with kids much younger than him. If thats okay with him ... then great. If not, you might want to consider putting him into an adult group. Just a heads up. Either way he is sure to have a great time : )

Hope this helps. We look forward to seeing you in a few weeks!

• ▶ Reply