Billy Morgan Superstyled For Bronze

Billy Morgan has done it!

Four years after Jenyy Jones won Bronze in Sochi Billy Morgan has backed up the pedigree of the UK fridge kids. Now Britain has another Bronze medal to celebrate on the snow at the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics. Seven days after Izzy Atkin won Britain's first Skiing Medal the British flags waved again. Giving Great Britain a record fith medal at an Olympic games.

The success of Britsh snowports is huge for snowboarders and skiiers alike from these small powder starved isles. Deprived of a big mountain Billy Morgan took his first lessons on Southampton's dry slope at the old snowboarding age of 14. Again at 28 years old he was also the veteran of the Big air competition. Compare that to other countries where kids take up the sport from the age of 3 or 4 then the acomplishment is even more remarkable. I took my first lesson in Southampton as well and know that it is far harder than learning on snow. For Billy Morgan to start on the unforgiving dry slope and go on to win an Olympic medal is awesome.

He faced Big Airs Bigg Hitters. Canadas Mark Mcmorris and Max Parrot were favourite going into it. Yet it would be the Canadian Sebastien Toutant who took Gold with Kyle Mack taking Silver for the USA. The confirmation of Billy Morgans Bronze would have to wait. With what has become a new British tradition. The agonizing wait for the judges score and the even harder wait to see if the rest of talented field could beat him. It happened with Jenny Jones in 2014 and again with Izzy Atkin in these games. James Woods wait was also hard to watch with freestyle skiier narrowly pipped to a medal.

You would think that the British snowboarder would be nervous, especially after crashing on his first jump. But just before the second run he gave a joke stare to the camera in the preperation area  to show that he was remarkably relaxed. Something that competitors have to be in this sport. Many of the best scorers from qualificatons failed to land two jumps. But Billy Morgan produced his best when it mattered. Showing how the qualities of a chilled attitude shine through in freestyle.

With two of the hardest and most stylish grabs of the day Billy Morgan reached the podium. The event proves why Big Air deserves its place in te Olympics and gave the Brit the sporting recognition he deserves.The first man to land a quad cork he had at times been seen as more of a gymnast with a snowboard, Yet today shows the whole world how he embodies the true spirit of the sport.
Stylish,relaxed,humble and dedicated, Billy Morgan has done Great Britain Proud,

Snowboarding Tips: How To Still Push Yourself When Riding With Slower Friends

If your the fastest in your group you can still challenge yourself

Whether we are out for a whole season or just one week a year, snowboarding is a sport we like to enjoy with our friends. However one of the big problems to overcome is always the broad range of abilities within the group. Some may cautiously glance  at a blue run whilst others are speeding down the blacks and cruising off piste. Snowboarding has a big advantage over skiing as you don’t have to be an advanced rider to mix up your style on the easy slopes .There are loads of simple tricks to  learn even if you’re an intermediate rider. These will slow your ride down yet keep it fun and exhilarating. Why wait around? Get the most out of each run.

Jibbing
Twists, butters, ollies, nollies, 180s, these all add some fun variety to the ride and a gentle slope is a perfect place to practice. As your friends learn to link turns you can learn new tricks leaving everyone stoked with the progression achieved at the end of the day.

Film your friends
Filming someone whilst you are both moving is a challenge for any rider. Not only do you have to ride smoothly, you also have to keep your friends in shot. Looking back over the footage will help a beginner see where they need to improve. It also improves the camera mans riding as they have to be very precise with each movement and understand the terrain through feel as well as sight. Seeing yourself ride is a joy and it will be greatly encouraging to beginners.
Find some tips on filming in my Article

Snowball fight
A running snow fight with other advanced friends will slow you down and will be a good laugh at the same time. Just keep an eye out for other slope users.

Practice Switch
Switch riding is a crucial skill to learn for anyone wanting to progress with tricks and this is the perfect time to learn. It will take you back to the basics and can help you to explain the techniques to friends who are learning. One of the hardest things to do is stick with riding switch when you know you can ride so much better regularly. But if you are with slower friends then there is plenty of time to practice. It’s extremely satisfying when you can start carving down runs riding switch.
If you can learn and improve along with the beginners then each run will be satisfying and fun. When you want to push yourself there are still plenty of opportunities to go and do your own thing.

Filming Extreme Sports: Snowboarding

Although it may seem simple to turn on the camera and start waving it around the results don't always turn out how we expect them to. There are a few simple techniques which will produce results to enjoy for years to come.

Cradle the camera in the palm of your hands
Using a side strap restricts your freedom of movement and can make shots judder. Holding a camera in the palm allows a wide range of movement left, right, up down. It is also smoother for when you walk with the camera.

Avoid commenting on everything you see
Firstly a commentary on the obvious is very annoying. If needed words can be added later. If you want to edit a video, cutting several scenes together with talking is tricky and may restrict what you can use. Also if someone says something funny do not laugh! It will distract viewers and could spoil the joke. You are likely to be the closest to the the mike and will drown out the person being filmed.

Interviewing
If asking someone questions try to stand slightly to one side of the camera. It is distracting to an audience if someone looks directly into a lens. It is also distracting if they are looking to the far left or far right.

Filming on the move
I will use the example of snowboarding but this can apply to many sports. When snowboarding I have found it far more exciting to capture someone whilst boarding alongside them. If you're in one position the most interesting part is when a boarder comes close to you, the shot gets duller as they move away from the camera. Unless they're going over a big jump which if you follow them, could go badly if you are inexperienced. When filming on the move like this it is best to hold the camera with you fingers having your thumb on the cameras top. If you can attach the camera to the end of a pole for riding, even better.

Head cameras
You may wish to use a head cam, however this does have one major drawback that you have to constantly look at what you're filming. This may be OK when directly behind them but not when you're alongside or in front. After all even the most seasoned snowboarder needs to look out for ice, trees and skiers with a dubious sense of spatial awareness.
If you are uncomfortable holding a large video camera whilst speeding down a mountain most digital cameras have a video mode. Many of these give you a decent quality and have the added bonus of fitting easily in your pocket.

Cutting Through The Crud: Picking A New Snow Board

(One of my tongue in cheek pieces from 2011)

Some of the crazy claims manufacturers have made over the years.

Deciding on a new snowboard is not easy. With so many a snowboard manufacturer describing themselves as the forerunner of snowboard technology and style. Excellent! You think now all you have to do is decide how much you can justify spending. Whilst you think about this you may as well look at the other snowboard manufacturing losers. Wait a minute! The first line you see on their page is “From our early pioneering days we have pushed snowboarding to ever greater levels.”

Eh? All advertisers have a certain artistic licence with there claims but no one can match a snowboard company in there claims at being the best.

Firstly I’ll mention the more down to earth and modest sites.

Palmer

Santa Cruz

Forum

Never Summer

Ride

Rome

Atomic

These are some actual claims from the least modest websites.

K2

Podium

 “The best board for the buck anywhere, the Podium is best in class combining superb technology and all terrain performance and versatility for any rider.”

Libtech

Swirl Sintered UHMW Base

A long name for a base which is described as “Slippery like banana” Great tech info guys.

Burton

By far the worst offender, but the company has come a long way since the days when they tried to patent the snowboard.

Vapour
Setting a standard that the competition can’t even fathom.

Ok…

Custom

From jumpers to jibbers, pow slashers to cruisers—this is without a doubt one board that everyone will have a blast on.

Except those who’ve been on the Vapour we assume.

Joystick

“three-stage rocker designs don’t get more turbo-charged than this”

Supermodel

“The Channel is snowboarding’s most direct connection—focusing power through a central connection spine that evenly distributes energy for added rebound and snap.”

Mayhem

Slow down. Just because the Mayhem™ is capable of supersonic speeds doesn’t mean you have to go that fast.

Faster than the Vapour and cheaper, brilliant. May as well go for the cheapest as they are all described as the best board.

Then there are statements which are just bizarre.

Balancing warp speed edge control and drive with force field stability on takes-offs and landings, (Burton website)

Those Trekkies wont be able to buy the board without some technobabble.

We even put the Deuce through our Infinite Ride™ factory break-in for perfect pop that lasts longer than you will.

So they’re saying the board will outlive me? When I’m snowboarding I really don’t want to think about my life expectancy.

Slow down. Just because the Mayhem™ is capable of supersonic speeds doesn’t mean you have to go that fast.

Don’t insult our intelligence.

To cut through the crud of snowboard boasts the best thing to do is talk to some experienced riders. There are a lot of good forums and a good shop should be able to help you. You can also look out for snowboard reviews but beware of reviews giving by snowboard pros who ride for that company.

Fun And Easy Tips For Learning To Snowboard

Flat light have a snowball fight

Fun for both advanced riders and newbie’s alike when visibility is poor. Since the terrain is not easy to see why not have a running snowball fight on your snowboards. It takes the beginners minds off falling over and they often get confident and try to chase you, in which case you can egg them on and increase their speed a bit. Great fun as long as you know the slope you're using so that you don't keep getting stuck on flats.

You don't have to keep your weight on the front foot all of the time
Always have your weight on your front foot! This is one piece of advice that lessons drill into people continually but will turn the ride into a complete mess when you hit powder or choppy terrain. It is best to learn this way to begin withy as the natural tendency to lean back will make it difficult to steer and cause you to topple. Shifting your weight is necessary for it allows you to go into a quick ollie on bumps, whichcan be more fun sometimes. As long as you land it... Whilst you are progressing it is important to be flexible whilst your lean to adapt to the mountain conditions which can change rapidly.

Do what you can to stay on your feet
It is often down to confidence that when you feel yourself going off balance you topple over. This can cause unnecessary pain and pain is bad. If a sharp movement is needed to stay on your feet, or even a small hop, do it. You'll be surprised how you can recover yourself from a potential wipe out and your confidence will grow as you stay upright through difficult spots. However this does have to be done within reason if the crash is unavoidable it is unavoidable. But a controlled stop is going to help keep you boarding all day.

Ride like you drive
Or better than you drive if you are someone who tail gates. One of the chief rules of driving is being able to stop in the distance you can see available. This is more tricky when boarding but it would help to avoid a lot of collisions. It is definitely good to apply this in narrow spaces, or through the speed gates at the bottom of a piste. Crashes are common yet riding to your ability and looking at the terrain ahead will go a long in reducing these.

Push yourself but not too quickly
If you want to progress then you’ll need to be motivated and take steps out of the comfort zone. It helps to increase your confidence as you achieve goals and try things you never saw yourself doing. Take some lessons and listen to the instructors. They will be full of good advice and will not push you to do anything they think is too much for you. Also try to go out with more experienced friends, pushing you to keep up with them and they can give encouragement.

Wear wrist guards
Decent wrist guards are comfortable and unnoticeable when riding. They’re a cheap bit of kit that can save you from a bad injury.

The pros and cons of wearing a helmet

Cons
Can make you hot on the 20 or so really hot days you have in the season.

Pros

• Keeps you warm in cold weather
• Take a hard knock to the head and it can stop your snowboarding for the rest of the holiday. Wearing a helmet can get you boarding again after a quick cup of tea.
• It will have an effect on future ski insurance if less people need lifting off the mountain or medical care.
• People don't laugh at helmets anymore (at least not intelligent people) the way you ride makes you look cool.
• It could save your life!

And finally....
Think about what you wear!

Comparing Boardercross With Ski Cross And The Thrills They’ve Brought To The Olympics

A Fantastic Sport For The Olympics

Four racers start. Between one to four racers finish. The excitement of Boardercross and Ski Cross doesn’t let up until the finish line. Boardercross hit the Olympics in 2006, Ski cross in 2010 adding new life and competitiveness to the games.

Fast wax, quick minds and a lot of courage are needed to compete in this high speed sport. Zoe Gillings was the great British hope in Boardercross at the last Olympics. Placing 8th over all after an injury in the semi finals. She had a tough time getting to the Olympics after injuries and the financial melt down of Snow Sports GB. But this didn’t affect her focus on the day and focus is what each competitor needs.
The Olympic course in Vancouver was built primarily for the Boardercross and the shape of the jumps proved a challenge for the skiers in their hard boots. This led to several skiers getting far too much air and crashing spectacularly. The skiers do however have an advantage with their poles. Allowing them to recover from heavy braking and stumbles a lot quicker than their snowboard counterparts. But the ski poles are a mixed blessing being an extra hazard to avoided when overtaking or simply trying to stay on course.
Ski Cross was just as exciting as Boardercross and it is surprising how aggressively the skiers overtake considering the speeds they are going. This may be down to the extra stability of skis around corners giving them more confidence to get closer. They often banged into the back of opponents skis when striving to overtake. Several skiers have come across from alpine skiing so they are also very competitive in keeping their line and reaching the finish line frst.
The skis do not pop off easily, so as with the snowboarders a crash didn’t always eliminate someone from qualifying. A great move was pulled off in the quarter final as a skier caught the back of a crash spun a 360 and still came very close to finishing 2nd.  The length of the skis cause an extra hazard in a crash and skiers can’t wipe out as neatly as snowboarders. But they are just as determined as the snowboarders top finish the race.
Both disciplines are incredible to watch and the athletes need a broad range of skills. They may qualify with a good time but the real test comes when racing with three others. Constantly adapting their race line and avoiding collision whilst understanding their opponents techniques and strategies. The snowboarders have an extra challenge with this as the opponent will be hard to see if overtaking on their blind side. Snowboarders also have an extra challenge keeping an edge through fast and icy corners. Watching the riders skilful navigation of the course as they adapt to the unexpected. Going as fast as they can over tough obstacles with the competitors close by brings a unique excitement to these sports. Boarder Cross and Ski Cross make a welcome addition to the Olympics and will continue to grow in popularity.

Written during the 2010 Vancouver games