How to be a snowboarder in 5 steps
In 2005 Adam Bowcutt took one of our snowboard instructor courses, the 11 week snowboard instructor course in Banff. Since then he's spent 14 seasons in the mountains of either New Zealand, USA or Canada. He has competed at both the NZ and Canadian Snowboard Opens, he's taught thousands of people to snowboard and lately he's been training people to become CASI snowboard instructors. Adam's passion for snowboarding is as authentic and infectious as it gets - and this energy is evident in the following blog where Adam uses his impressive experience, alongside beautiful photographs, to advise on how to become a snowboarder in five steps (plus a final bonus tip!)...
The Beautiful "Remarkables", New Zealand
STEP 1: STAND SIDEWAYS
My name is Adam and I’m a snowboarder. I wasn’t always one. It’s a process. But now I would proudly call myself, a snowboarder. It all started when I was a teenager in Great Malvern, Worcestershire, home of the Malvern Hills in England. It was an older boy named Radley who taught me to Ollie on my skateboard. Ever since that day I’ve been hooked to boardsports and any kind of sideways action sport.
360 kickflip, Queenstown, NZ 2010
I used to eat, drink and breathe skateboarding. I’d dream day and night about learning and doing new tricks; so much fun. The visualisation of a new trick, let’s say a kickflip, would mean spending hours and even days trying again and again to perfect that one trick. The Ollie (photos below) is the foundation of, and creates a path to, all other skateboard tricks. I had to perfect this one.
STEP 2: Be willing to take a risk
At 19 I took a trip to Tamworth indoor snow-dome. I booked a lesson because it made sense to learn properly how to do it. A cool instructor dude taught me the basics. I learned how to get up, sideslip and change direction on my snowboard. I was snowboarding for the very first time in England, albeit in a big fridge. The one thing I remember about the instructor was that he was wearing a stud earring on the fleshy inside bit of his ear. What’s that part called? I’m not sure but it stood out. I thought to myself, hmm that’s pretty different. Being a snowboarder in a sense is pretty different, pretty cool. I know this may seem like a tenuous link, but it’s true. Being a snowboarder means taking risks and willing to be slightly different. I wanted to be a snowboarder. Do you?
Frontboard ‘Hurricane’ 2009 - Hemel, London
STEP 3: Commit!
Sign up to do a gap program in Canada. The reason I took the plunge to become fully entrenched into a snowboarder lifestyle began at Nonstop. It was a way I could spend a season snowboarding and learning how to be better at it. I also gained a valuable certification that would enable me to earn some cash and sustain my addiction, wherever that took me. Canada was calling.
Why did I choose Nonstop? To be honest, it was their website. It had a simple, crisp & clean feel to it; just like Canada turned out to be. After chatting with the friendly staff I immediately felt at ease choosing them for my structured winter adventure. The other programs out there appeared slightly inferior.
Backside 5 Indy - 2010 Sunshine Village Terrain Park: progression sessions with friends
So the winter of 2005 brought me to Banff, Canada. My very first season as a snowboarder began. Nothing prepares your senses for Canada, especially the Banff National Park. This place is beautiful. SEE for yourself:
Springtime view of Banff Springs Golf course from Tunnel mountain, I took this photo! Stoked!
STEP 4: Learn fun tricks on your snowboard
The trick I’d love to perfect is ‘The Method’. Why? Because it’s a trick that can define a rider.
My method at Lake Louise 2010, I’m still working on it. I’d love to tweak it out just a little more.
Photo credit: http://rideclass.com
The Back one. Why do I like the backside 180 so much? Well, you see it’s the feeling of it. It’s the closest to flying through the air I’ve ever felt. The rotation is super slow, unrushed. Time slows down. With this trick, the couple of seconds of hang-time you get off a biggish jump is inexplicable. You need to feel it for yourself. The word I like to use as a lame attempt at explaining this is ‘visceral’. It feels awesome! You know that warm butterfly feeling you get in your stomach when you’re so excited about something? It’s not even close to that. Way more intense. The worse part about this trick is landing as that means it’s over! Oh well, we’ll just have to do it all over again!
The back one is my favourite trick. Why? Because it FEELS so good. So simple. You don’t even have to grab sometimes
The Ollie. You MUST learn this one. It’s part of being a legitimate snowboarder
A little vid on YouTube of me doing a backside 5 stale
STEP 5: Be willing to travel & make new friends
The photos do all the talking...
Living the life with friends
Beautiful Coronet Peak
There will always be risks
Kink rails... you need full focus and commitment on these terrain park features. Rail fail! Also, it might be cool (at the moment) to wear sunglasses lapping the park at springtime. But, if you faceplant, you could end up like me in this picture. I was wearing Rayban Wayfarer sunglasses. What I later discovered was that RayBan lenses are made of glass. They simply shattered and cut my face in the process. I was soooo lucky not to cut my eye. Lesson learned. Wear goggles! Not as cool, but way safer) Word of wisdom: FOCUS. Full focus is needed when taking risks snowboarding. If your concentration or focus lapses even for a split second, injuries can easily occur.
You’ll meet many friends on your snowboarding journey. One thing to remember is that we all will die. Hopefully, this’ll give perspective when you’re alive. It’s cliché to say, but treat your friends and loved ones as if it’s the last time you’ll ever see them. This way you’ll appreciate their friendship and love daily.
R.I.P Carter Antilla (white hoody in front), such a cool dude. He died way too young
BONUS STEP: Be a teacher
Lake Tahoe, USA, California Powder
I read somewhere that if you teach someone then you’ll live forever. When you die your memory will live on. For example, I taught a guy named Matt to Ollie for the first time on his snowboard. If I died tomorrow, Matt would still be able to Ollie and have fun snowboarding. With friends he does a pretty sweet Ollie off drop at his local mountain resort. “Hey, Matt, where did you learn how to Ollie like that!? That was sick!” Stoked by the compliment-infused question, Matt replies “an English snowboarder called Adam, he was rad! He taught me that the Ollie was the foundation trick in snowboarding. That it leads to almost all other tricks in snowboarding. Tomorrow I’m going to learn a backside 180, yeowwww!!”
‘If you think you know everything, then you probably know the least of all.’
I love learning. Every time I learn a new thing it sparks my interest in another thing. Snowboarding and being a snowboarder has been a huge passion in my life. Business, psychology, social media, investing, reading and above all, learning, are my passions. I figure if I commit to learning something new every single day. Then, I’ll stay young at heart. In 34 years when I’m 68 years young, I hope to still love learning and still call myself a snowboarder. We’ll see. The 8 great years from 2005 to now (2013) have been nonstop adventure. The key is learning. Learning and teaching. Teaching and learning. It’s cyclical. Just like a backside 360 on your snowboard.
If you follow step 1 through to 5 then you’ll undoubtedly become a snowboarder. That’s not a fact. That’s my opinion. It worked for me. It may or may not work for you. However, I highly recommend you try it. You won’t regret it!
If you're keen to follow in Adam's footsteps get in touch with us and we'll help advise you on the training, certifications, and work visas you'll need to lead the life of a snowboard instructor.
