I managed to get out one short screeching yell before I fell-hard.
That pretty much sums up my first experience snowboarding ... or attempting to. Thankfully, my private two-hour lesson and nearly full day on the slopes in nearby North Carolina didn't leave me with any broken bones (although check back with me about my wrist and shoulder). But they also didn't yield me the ability to stay up on the board for very long before falling, again and again.
If you aren't falling, you aren't trying," my instructor, Geoff Griffiths, told me after I seriously began to question my abilities, which included being able to walk properly once unstrapped from the board. But apparently I was par for the course when it comes to learning to snowboard. That first day is typically pretty much all about falling.
"Skiing is easy to learn but hard to master. Snowboarding is [really!] hard to learn but easy to master," everyone at Beech Mountain Resort told me. Apparently it takes about a full day to master the most basic of snowboarding basics, though I didn't make it quite that far. I did, however, manage a few runs down the bunny slope that didn't end (and start again ... and again) with falling.
Stopping, changing directions, finally getting going (really fast!) once up on the board-it all ended with me falling. But my brief time maneuvering the board in between my dozens of falls yielded some perspective on what my instructor had been trying to impart, and the bunny slope offered the distance I needed to almost put it all into practice. Things finally began clicking into place by the end of the day. Until I had to go "toe side." Then I just fell again.
The (un)natural order: Toe side vs. heel side
Most right-handed people like me feel more natural with their left foot in front as they face down the mountain, which places your body in one direction and your face and board in another. That alone feels a bit unnatural, often causing you to lean back to maintain your balance, which causes you to fall. This stance is called "regular" and transitions into "heel side" when you're trying to slow down or stop by bringing the board parallel and leaning back on your heels, all the while maintaining your balance as you start to skid forward down the incline.
A "goofy" stance, with your right foot in front, transitions into "toe side," meaning you come up on your toes to slow down or stop, therefore digging the front of the board into the snow. Toe side puts you facing backward, i.e. up the mountain, which felt even more unnatural for me-and yielded my more epic falls (picture a starfish bumping down a snowy slope). While I came to terms with the fact that I had to make very good friends with the machines furiously spitting snow from along the edge of the slope, riding the whole way in my more natural stance was not an option. The way you're riding determines which direction you go.
Maybe I'll add those snow machines to my Beech Mountain Resort Christmas card list, because I am determined to not see so much of them next time. And there will definitely be a next time. The beauty of Beech Mountain outside of the height of the season aside, snowboarding is one of the most exhilarating things I have ever tried. My halting screeches combined triumph, fear, adrenaline and determination, but I'll be honest, many of them were pure frustration and near defeat. There was even a time or two I wasn't sure I could physically push myself back up, which is really hard to do from the ground when you can't get your legs fully underneath you. Or even just one leg fully underneath you. But I wanted to get back up, even if it meant falling down again, because I have never experienced anything quite as rewarding.
Beyond the ego's reward that nearly every outdoor venture holds of pushing your limits with the promise of sometimes being able to best yourself, riding that board down the mountain (OK, the bunny slope) is also rewarding in an "id" kind of way. It's fun! Think Talladega-"I like to go fast!"-and the thrill of traveling carnival attractions that could come unhinged at any moment, all rolled into one hell of a ride that kept me coming back for more.
See you on the toe side.
Learn more about Beech Mountain snowboarding at beechmountainresort.com