New Stomp Pad: New Equipment Helps

While "slippery" is a good quality for the underside of a snowboard, it's not a good quality for the topside. The last thing you want to do when you put a foot on top of the board is to slip away. That's what stomp pads are for.

Today I installed a stomp pad on my "new" (used) board. I am not sure yet where my bindings will end up, or even if I will want to change from a regular stance to a goofy one, so I didn't want to put it too close to either set of binding holes.

That's not the optimal choice. Ideally, I should put it next to where my bindings will end up being permanently. But since I don't know where that is yet, it is better to minimize the downside that would come from having it in the wrong place. Better "middle of the road," which is where the new pad is: in the middle of the board, right between the two sets of binding holes.

My first day ever out on snowboarding was on a rental board (as part of a class) that did not have a stomp pad. It wasn't until my second lesson that I got a stomp pad, and understood its value.