A New Map

Someone recently left a comment on another blog post. The entry has a spammish feel to it in that it encourages readers to click through to a vendor's web site "with good deals," or words to that effect.

But I let it go because it actually has some useful information. Christy Sports has a "snow reports" feature. OK, so many sites do. But what I like about this feature is that it offers clickable Google Maps for each state that you pick. Ever wonder where Vail is in relationship to Aspen? Click on the Colorado map and drill down to the pin marks on the map.

By the way, the Grays On Trays site has its own directory of ski areas (snow reports not available). You can use it to get an overview of a state through JPG files taken from Google Earth images. The upside is that it actually names each resort. The downside is that unlike the Christie site, it doesn't have a road map. The Christie side has the reverse weakness: the road map is there but you need to click on each pin to find out what resort it represents.

What a Lesson

In addition to writing about snowboarding and simply riding around, I also teach snowboarding. Being an adult snowboarder it in itself somewhat of a novelty, at least in the Midwest. Being an adult snowboard instructor is also fairly unusual.

The instructor corps of the snowsports school where I teach leans towards the older side on skiing, and on the younger side on snowboarding.

Most of the lessons I give are to late elementary or middle-school students. I take special delight in teaching adults, but when you're in a service business, you respond to the market.

And of the lessons I give, most are basic lessons, to people just starting out. (For one thing, I'm in no way ready to perform most freestyle tricks, let alone teach someone how to do them.) The lessons are typically 90 minutes long, though I often take a big longer.

On this weekend last, I was given a private lesson to teach. It was scheduled for 2 hours, but went on for a third when the customer and his mother decided on a third hour.

It took a good chunk out of the day--and the best time for riding--but there's nothing to challenge your understanding of something like trying to teach it to someone else.

New Year, New Gear

My old snowboard equipment was getting on the worn side, so I thought it ways time to ante up for a whole new setup.

Ouch.

Snowboarding can be an expensive activity, even if you find ways to get discounted gear. But I'm in for it now that I've worn the boots a few times, and my board suffered a chip to the topsheet when an out-of-control kid slid over it. I was standing at the edge of the run-out area from a lift when I heard an awful sound. "Sorry dude," a guy said, before shrugging and riding off. When I got home that night, I noticed a chip on the top.

The board is a Salomon Special. It is stiffer than what I am used to, but that's by design. I washed out during my first time using it, but I'm getting accustomed to it.

I've also got new boots, also Salomon. They're a bit tighter than I would like, so the other day I took them into a shop and they did some heat molding work. Briefly, they heated up a footbed and put it into the boot. I put an foam insert on the end of my toes--to make them longer--and stepped into the boot. Walking around for a bit with this arrangement packed out the front of the foot enough to make for a better fit.

Another piece of new equipment is a pair of Flow NXT-AT bindings. I've always said that a person either loves or hates Flows. Up until now, I've loved them. Now ... I'm not sure. I finally have had to deal with the "pressure points" that some people have talked about with strap bindings. I wonder if the bindings are the wrong size. I had bought XL based on what I had on my old set, but these aren't sitting well on one foot. Or maybe it's that the boot is too small. I'm going to take my old stinky boots for a ride in the new bindings and see what happens.