As the season turns from fall to winter, snowboarding starts again. Snowboarding is my favorite sport for a variety of reasons. First of all, I have to explain what kind of snowboarding I do.

 

I do freestyle or park snowboarding. Freestyle is pretty much just a fancy word for doing tricks off of jumps and rails. Im in a club called FVSC or Fraser Valley Snowboard Club. We’re pretty much a group of teenagers that just practice over the season with each other. My local mountain is Mt. Seymour. It’s a 30 minute drive from my house to the top and it’s my favorite mountain. It’s my favorite for a few reasons. Firstly, I like the shape and the runs on the mountain. At different points, the mountain gets really steep and then really mellow and flat again, this provides variation which makes it more fun to ride. Another reason is like Seymour is because of the vibe. When you go up, everyone seems to know everyone and it’s a really fun and encouraging environment. Mt Seymour is also the last family owned / non-corporate resort for a long ways too. The last reason Seymour is my favorite mountain is because of the brands that started up Seymour. Salmon arms is a local glove and mitt company that started on Seymour and is making it big. Another company which makes snowboards, called Dinosaurs Will Die is also now a fairly large company. 

 

On Mt. Seymour, there are two size large jumps. On these jumps my best trick is a Frontside 540 ( one and a half 360 degree turns). On rails, I can 50-50 (slide the rail while parallel with it) and boardslide (90 degree turn on so you are not parallel with the rail). On some jumps, I can backflip, but not consistently. Right now I’m doing snowboarding training on a trampoline. On the trampoline I can cork 720 (two 360 degree spins but off axis) which is my best trick. 

I would say snowboarding is my favorite sport because of the freedom you feel when going fast and quiet along the snow, the stillness when you’re high in midair and the fun you can have with your friends.