Snowboarding: more tricks, fewer injuries, better experience

Eighth grader Charlie Park kneels in front of his next run in Vancouver last November. This was Charlie’s favorite run of his trip because of the vast amount of tricks he completed on it (photo courtesy of Joan Park).
Eighth grader Charlie Park kneels in front of his next run in Vancouver last November. This was Charlie’s favorite run of his trip because of the vast amount of tricks he completed on it (photo courtesy of Joan Park).

Snowboarding vs skiing has been the age old debate ever since the rise of snow sports.  There are three kinds of people in this world, those who ski, those who snowboard and those who do neither. I fall into the second category and will tell you why.

Although there are many reasons on both sides of this argument I chose snowboarding over skiing. My parents required that my siblings and I all learn to ski first, so I spent several seasons on two skis until I “graduated” to snowboarding at age 9.  They wanted us to have the more traditional sport mastered so that we’d have the skill for life. They both snowboard exclusively now which shows that times are changing and there may not be one traditional choice.

I prefer snowboarding because of the vast array of tricks that can be performed. The tricks range from simple slides and jumps to crazy combinations and flips. Another reason I prefer snowboarding is that the bindings keep the board connected to the rider’s boots and it rarely detaches, even in a bad fall. A border can usually pop back up and keep going without even stopping.  In skiing, however, wiping out is not simply a matter of picking yourself up again. Skiers often have to march up hill in a pair of uncomfortable, plastic boots to retrieve their poles or skis that have flown off. This can be a dangerous situation as other people could collide with the struggling skier or the lost equipment. Accidents happen in both sports, but in snowboarding, injuries tend to be to the shoulders, arms or wrists.  Skiing injuries, however, tend to be to the legs knees or ankles, which seems more difficult to recover from.

Not only are there less injuries, but snowboarding boots are much easier to walk in and don’t need to be uncomfortably tight in order for them to f-unction properly. They are very similar to normal snow boots. Facts aside, nothing beats the thrill of cruising down a mountain on a snowboard.  Whether it’s in the terrain park doing jumps, speeding down a groomed run, or working on carving, snowboarding is a pure adrenaline rush.

About Charlie Park ('20)

Staff Writer

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