The Sexy Shape Of A Snowboard
By Jakob Jelling, Thu Dec 8th

Everyone knows that an hourglass figure turns heads. Not as manypeople know that the same figure is also behind the design ofmodern snowboards. While the hourglass figure on a snowboarddoesn't turn heads as fast as a women's figure does it does helpyou to turn faster than any head can.

The degree of side cut on a snowboard does effect itsperformance on the hill. The side cut radius is the size of thecircle that is cut out of your snowboard. To put this intoperspective, most skateboarding ramps have a radius of 9' andprofessional ramps as seen on TV will have a radius of 11'. Asyou can imagine, there is a definite curvature to the snowboardbut it is subtle enough that it isn't always easy to spot.

When a person first thinks about the side cut they may feel thatit is a ploy by manufacturers to reduce the materials and thuscost of producing the snowboards. This can not be further fromthe truth. To understand side cuts you must think of why the mapof the world has slices in it. A flat object can notproportionally represent a round object. For this reason asnowboard with a curve, or side cut, can turn faster and moreaggressively than a snowboard that is straight along it's length.

The reason that this is true is due to the way that thesnowboard tries to bend and comfort to the surface that it is onwhen riding. When you turn your snowboard your weight andtwisting causes the snowboard to flex and bend. The key toturning is to have the effective edge bite into the surface thatyou

Savoie / Val D Isere Face Du Charvet

Savoie / Val D Isere Tour Du Charvet

Hautes-Alpes / Serre Chevalier Off Piste

Isere-Drome / Dome De Pravouta

Isere-Drome / Col De La Lavey North

Isere-Drome / Grand Replomb by the br?e Ouest

Isere-Drome / Rochers Du Midi Via Sources Du Guiers

Isere-Drome / La Combe Du Giclas

Isere-Drome / les Illettes by the col de l'Aigleton

Isere-Drome / Dents De Bedina East Face

Isere-Drome / Cime De La Jasse

Hautes-Alpes / La Rouya North Couloir

Haute-Savoie / Pointe Du Midi South west Couloir

Isere-Drome / Grands Moulins South Face

Isere-Drome / Pic De Barlet North West Bowl

Jura / La Dole Figure Of Eight From La Cergue

Haute-Savoie / Point Du Midi Tour Of The Cu Deri

Jura / Pointe De Poele Chaud East Couloir

Haute-Savoie / Le Mole Normal Route

Haute-Savoie / Sur Cou South Face

are riding on while being flexible enough to twist so thatyou can control the movement. A long straight line does not liketo deviate from its basic shape but a curved line will meld withthe hill and still have enough flexibility to bite into thesurface as needed.

When it comes time to purchase your snowboard you must think ofits use and how it will react to the environment that it isexposed to. Proof of this fact comes when we think of surfacearea on a snowboard. A small side-cut radius means that more ofthe material has been cut out of the center of the snowboard. Alarge side-cut means that the cut is shallower thus leaving moresurface area.

So what difference does side cut make to the rider? Simple, moresurface area means more pressure is spread out over a largerarea, which leads to more potential energy and thus greaterspeed due to reduced friction. Basically if you want to go fast,and reduce your maneuverability, than you want a large side-cutin your snowboard. However, if you seek more control and sharperturning than you want a small side-cut in your snowboard.

To many people snowboarding seems like an easy and simple pasttime that can be mastered in a very short amount of time. Whileit is true that snowboarding can be learnt in fairly short orderthere are many fine details that a snowboarder must payattention to in order to achieve their peak performance. As youcan tell from this even the seemingly minutest details can havea big difference.

About the author:Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snowboardinghelp.com.Please visit his website to discover the world of snowboarding!