My first Harboot and EC Style learnig Season

[bowen]

Season has starded!!!

hello together,

as some of you know from my older postings, last year i was infectet by the carving virus. i am driving for 7 years and last year i buy my first "real" snowboard the eliminator and hard step-in soft boots. i am driving for 6 years a foamd crazy-creek board for 150,-euros with boots and binding. as i realized wath you can do on a good board and more than 5 days boarding in season i was totaly adiceded that i want to drive like j&p at one day*i am a dreamer*g*
ok, so i choose to swich on hardboots! i have the cheap ones from deeluxe for three times in the eliminator, there where horible!!! but i can swich them into susuka(for the same price*g*) but i cant test them very much im last season!
so tihis is my first real hardbootseason, and because i never was a racer befor i decided to learn it from the beginnign with the ec-styele and settings!

unfortunately swoard has problems with there manufacturing in exactly my starting season. and i have account for the elliminator i destroyed so i have to choose a board from this store. after some testing on kaunertal-openig and the only board wich have nearly the specifics from a board for ec setting was the f2 speedcross.
so i take it because it was the best alternativ and i have a smoth start into my first hardboot season, also i have an allrounder that i can can use for bad conditions, when some day a swoard will be my own*dreaming*

<ok now i will give you here my impression from my season with the gear, settings an technique that i have chosen.>

<i will post my impressions, pictures and viedeos>

<so please dont hesitate to comment it and help me to learn it faster>

...thanx for the help that hopefully will come, and have fun with my first steps*g*

and btw....i am dont an english-specalist*mfg*...but i know everybody understand me*rotfl*

[bowen]

ok, first in overview my gear an settings:

gear:

f2 speedcross, 165
bomber td2 standard(no canting or lift, yellow elastomere ring)
deeluxe suzuka gr.46

setting:

middle of contact length(ihope contact length means effektife kantenlänge)
52cm
51/59 degrees
boots: both at 2 on the "vorlageeinstellung"(is this rigth"same calf canting at both boots?!")

....as soon as i have teh small viedeo from our first trip i will post it with my first impressions!

is the setting ok so far?

[István]

Just one addition to your old gear: last weekend in Sölden I've seen a guy with a freestyle board and with soft-boots coming down with linked turns, both hands touching the ground in both directions..... looked surprising.... of course he did short turns and usually there was some skidding at the end of the turns, but looked cool.


Cheers,

István

[tigger]

hi bowen,
so you can finally start now
if i had to make your choise:
i would set the bindings at 52 F and 45 rear, so you re not so far from the edges,
and leave the "vorlagemechanism" on your boot open. its the best for your shin and gives you the needed flexibility ( i guess your boot binding set up is a bit stiff for the board otherwise)

[bowen]

...i am not far from the edges!!! i have overhang with this setting!!! it is not much only the belt on the rear foot wich has 5mm overhang. i set as flat as possible with no overhang.

the bomber is in my eyes not a very stiff binding. i have a good control and moving of forces to board, while a very smoth riding.

i hope i will have a small video after this weekend, than i can priscribe my first hardbootweekend*g*

[skywalker]

Hi Bowen,

I also would recommend you to start with lower angles. As it is not very likely that you reach angles in the 80s, you better go with little overhang than with steeper angles. In the beginning you can totally ignore the overhang of the bails, better set your bindings in the 48R / 55F -range and increase them whem you boot out. Just some tips by a seeking himself

Regards

Tom

[bowen]

ok day 7...so far so good, at the moment there is no viedeo, because when the weather is good everybody wants to drive*g*

but i have some moments:
first, i opend both of my "vorlageeinstellungen" because one of them was frozen and diddend work....and oh wonder it is a better driving with opend boots somebody of you still write it here and cant belive it....it`s defnetly better! maybe with springs it is perfect...where can i order them?!?!

then i set the angle down to 48/55 and set a bigger stance of 53 wath makes a better "gradeauslauf" and a flexible standing on the board.


servus soweit,

der bowen

[bowen]

...jipiieeiyaihh my first picture this season*thanx to schatten how take some last weekend*

i was very impresed my self how it looks like *lach*

ok a cant do on on the other turn looking like this, and of course no backside, but i dont`have to lay it completely down to do some moves like this.

i am happy with my sucsecces so far an i will go on trying. and i will try it on a swoaaaaard

maybe i will have a viedeo soon*g* but it is still a top secret action that i planed with another guy from our board
--> www.snowboard-community.de

http://www.snowboard-community.de/index ... ost&id=930

[bowen]

...now first a big, big thank you to my buddy wiesi!!! he nearly filmed the hole day, and there was top conditions that he spend, wihle holding the cam than he cutted through the nigth and it was ready the next day! thank you!!!

so this is my first video of me with ec-style trying...so have a look let me know wath you think and have fun

http://www.eyewax.de/portal/index.php?o ... cdesc=DESC
klick pitztal mit wiesie und bowen
-->

servus
der bowen

[bowen]

...only some views, and no comments

is ist that bad come on guys, i know you are all thinking of zinal in the moment*g*

but please have a look and let me know wath you thinking.

a opinion of jaques or patritce where an honor, that i know wether i can force this style further or wath i have to cange to be worthy for a swoard

servus
der bowen

http://www.eyewax.de/portal/index.php?o ... cdesc=DESC

-->klick Pitztal mit Bowen und Wiesi

[tigger]

hey bowen, the video is really fun to watch and one can see you were improving. but take care of the evil counterrotation, and try to do a stronger Tiefentlastung. btw. who cut that circle into the slope (if you stop the video at 2:44?) looks like a tight vitelly.
and yes i think we should discuss your ride as the thread becomes a good example for learners, and its good to see what youre talking about!

[gdboytyler]

Bowen, it looks to me that you have to rotate your shoulders more. You should also bend your knees more. You also seem to reach for the snow instead of letting the snow come to you.

I had some great snow conditions last week in Mammoth, California. I wish I had a camera man to record some of the action and also get some critiques on my technique.

[rcrobar]

Hi Bowen

Since the real experts are very busy, here is a bit of feedback from one EC apprentice to another. I hope it helps

My advice would be to focus on the following:

1) A larger and stronger body rotation.
2) Bending and extending the legs more.
3) Getting the hips lower (and square to the board on the heelside).

The legs and hips are the foundation of a strong rotation, with the HIPS being the KEY.
Think of a shoulder rotation as a core muscle leg and hip rotation where the shoulders and hips move as one.

Imagine a heelside turn (backside), and try the following carpet test.

Get the hips LOWer and square to the tip/tail of the board.
Bend your front leg until it forms an angle that approaches 90 degrees.
Drive the REAR knee towards the front knee.
Drive the rear knee-cap forward & DOWN, this will square the hips to the board.
Get your hips low BUT keep the upper body upright and balanced evenly on both feet.
The belly button and chest both face the tip of the board during the heelside turn.

Thanks for the fun video, this is an excellent way to get feedback and have fun.

Cheers
Rob

[frunobulax]

I'm not quite convinced that it's all about too little rotation and too little bending your knees. Ok, there could be more rotation, and one can see some unexact rotation moves esp on BS (conterrotation esp when you go too slow and seem to be not quite sure what to do with your time), and yes, bending and extending your knees more would help you laying the turn down, but overall it's very smooth riding, very much the EC way compared to most of the alpine guys.
But I do think
1. the slope is much too flat for proper EC turns. Go to the steeps!
2. to my opinion the F2 SX is much too short and too soft for this sort of riding. One can see how it gets unstable at nearly every turn, esp at the end of the video at 5:55 min. You try to do wide turns just like it would be necessary for EC but the board won't carve a clear line because the sidecut radius is lower than your turning radius. Get yourself a swoard (I guess I need not tell you...)!

[WokkingMax]

nice video esp. fpr an ex-softie

but where is that great music from??? wanna have it i mean i know the group but cant imagine the name.. shame on me

greetz max