Skies just want to be snowboarders. Some can admit it others can’t. Snowboarding has saved skiing from dying on its ass. Everything that’s cool about sking these days has been plagerised from snowboarding. The fashion, style, the tricks. Skier kids even say they’re going ‘riding’ now. Pathetic. The only original thing a skier ever came up with was the ubiquitous iron cross and lets face it that one got boring five years ago.

I do find it interesting that so many British skiers/snowboarders are full of opinion, despite only spending about 30 days on snow in their lives.

Interesting assumption there Sponger…..utter bollox of course………

I had considerably more than 30 days on snow before I was 15 and there was none of this them and us rhubarb – the fact that snowboarding hadn’t been invented is beside the point 😉

Scotland does get the white stuff now and again, and you can even do it 1/2 hour from my house in England – Sum boarders r just 2 cool 4 skool

Skies just want to be snowboarders. Some can admit it others can’t. Snowboarding has saved skiing from dying on its ass. Everything that’s cool about sking these days has been plagerised from snowboarding. The fashion, style, the tricks. Skier kids even say they’re going ‘riding’ now. Pathetic. The only original thing a skier ever came up with was the ubiquitous iron cross and lets face it that one got boring five years ago.

Bollox.

Little edit:

Skiing dying on its ass? Since f*ing when?

Mate I have no desire to be a boarder as I spend most of my time way off in the back-country in places your average skier/boarder cant get to & its taken me years to get the skills I need to be able to do that. Why the f*ck would I want to go back to bloody nursery school & the pistes?

Folk have been heading out into the wild white yonder long before boarding turned up. Skiing dying on its ass – dont make me laugh.

Snowboarding is just cooler…FACT.

If you don’t realise that yet, you aren’t cool….FACT.

This thread can be closed now.

Apparently wearing your sisters jeans is cool. Skiing is about having fun not being cool and has been for years.

You only think that because you aren’t cool.

I win.

Snowboarding wins.

Thread closed…again.

Thread closed…again.

How old are you? 12?

Back country skiing is a nu-skool fad

Step-kicking up and standing glissade down wearing a tweed suit, clinker-nailed boots, a felt hat and carrying an iron-tipped staff, is the only authentic snow sport.

😉

When I was 15 my mate said “A horny girl is great, until she knows it”.

Wise words indeed for a lad so young.

By the same token, if you have to tell people you are cool, you aren’t, no matter what method you choose to have fun in the mountains.

There’s a natural hierachy of cool and everyone knows it. The lower down the hierachy your chosen sport is the bigger the chip on your shoulder but the fact remains.

In basic terms it goes something like this:

1. Surfing
2. Skateboarding
3. bmx
4. snowboarding
5. downhill/ dj / freeride mtb
6. climbing
7. skiing / bodyboarding / rollerblading
etc etc etc

Of course with so many niche sports these days like wakeboarding, kitesurfing, microscooters and so on the hiearchy is probably more of a web.

Ultimately everyone wants to be a surfer really, it’s simple and pure but difficult to master. Apparently surfers want to be fishermen but thats another story.

disclaimer: I’m not saying all of these lower sports aren’t fun, just not as cool as those above them.

Snowboarding has saved skiing from dying on its ass.

Yup. I remember cueing for 1/2 hour + freezing my tits off in Val d’Isere/Tignes/Glenshee in the 80’s thinking “thank god skiings on its arse otherwise I might not make it up the hill before lunchtime” !

Yup, I’m 12….12 times cooler than you that is…ha!

The fact that people are taking the ‘snowboarders vs skiers’ rivalry thing seriously makes me laugh.

I don’t know any snowboarders who actually mean it, although it seems that many skiers genuinely have an issue with snowboarders.

For those of you who think snowboarding hasn’t helped in propping up the winter sports industry in recent years…try speaking to someone who works in the tourist industry in the French Alps, see if they agree.

Snowboarder aged 12 & 1/2 😉 We stand sideways. We get up early and go to sleep late. We may get mocked but we are relentless. We dream it, we make it, we break it, we fix it. We wreck ourselves day in and day out and yet we stomp that one trick or find that one line that keeps us coming back.

Snowboarders don’t hate skiers they just like to take the @iss, you know a bit of fun.

Mate I have no desire to be a boarder as I spend most of my time way off in the back-country in places your average skier/boarder cant get to & its taken me years to get the skills I need to be able to do that.

Fair enough, I wouldn’t want to re-learn something either.

Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior vehicle for sliding down a powder covered hill.

I don’t know any snowboarders who actually mean it, although it seems that many skiers genuinely have an issue with snowboarders.

ie the chip on the shoulder.

One of the joys of being a snowboarder is winding up the skiers.

Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior vehicle for sliding down a powder covered hill.

You had a bit of a typo there…

Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior vehicle for sliding down a powder covered hill.

Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior ….plank?
Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior…tool for nob jockeys?
Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior…posing prop?
Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior…snow shovel?
Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior..mid piste seat?

You had a bit of a typo there…

Typo corrections should at least make sense young’un 😉

I’ve never been so insulted.

Although you get points for not taking this nonsense seriously.

Can we start next on “how can you call it an Indy grab when you’re on skis?” 😉

Ok. As I have a foot (or should that be feet) in both camps I’ll end with a link to my favourite video clip which wins by a very small margin to the “Tribute to Tommy Brunner’ clip by virtue of its ‘holy shit’ factor.

Indisputably seriously kool

For all the arguing, do the sales figures speak the truth?

Worldwide snowboard equipment sales are decreasing, whilst skiing increasing…

“a snowboard is a far superior vehicle for sliding down a powder covered hill”

Well modern skis…

Sales figures prove ?…… that lots of people learn to ski because its so easy, just take a good look on the slopes every season, full of learners, bless them. The drop in snowboard sales is simply because its difficult to learn to snowboard (first 3 days are tough). You have to stick at stuff to be cool. Its a bit like the SS world tuff and niche just how we like it 😉

wow, didn’t realise this was still debated without tongues firmly in cheek ..

for my part, I love skiing, … but snowboarding is better.

but then again, both need a helicopter to be done properly.

imho of course

Some very confused people on here

Eh stumpy, got a spare £600 and a week off from new years day. On me todd at the mo as all so called mates are messers. UPCA all in. Can bring cow girl outfit!

Quick question, are mitts uncool and a bit girly and ghey or ok. Answers from boarders only please as skiers would have no idea what I was talking about.

” its difficult to learn to snowboard (first 3 days are tough)”

Yes but after 3 painful days you can more-or-less do it. I could basically carve a blue slope after 3 days of snowboarding lessons. It took me three weeks of lessons and two more weeks to achieve that on skis. I never managed powder on skis, but it’s fairly straightforward on a snowboard.

Some caveats though –
1) I skied first, which probably made learning snowboarding easier
2) I had rubbish ski lessons
3) I learned on long skinnies, not modern skis

Heh Swede…. Would have loved to come but thats the only week Mrs Stumps(skier)gets off until we go again in Feb. I have had a recent change of life plan and I intend to do a month or two on the slopes shacked up with buddies I could let you know details and you would be most welcome to come over for a week. Looks like I would be based at Vallandry below les Arcs.

Mitts….? You wear what you want sunshine you are already on the cool wall in my book just for having a go at snowboarding 😉

Buzz..ditto me to…I came from a ski background but I wouldn’t go back to skiing…But heh its all snow sport..each to their own.

learned to ski.

learned to snowboard.

went skiing.

went snowboarding.

want to improve my snowboard trickability.

want to try ski-touring.

anyone got some scarpa avants for sale? – size 44.

(swede – mitts are fine. they’re the only choice for me when it gets properly cold)

Worldwide snowboard equipment sales are decreasing, whilst skiing increasing…

Is that true?

TheSwede – Member
Quick question, are mitts uncool and a bit girly and ghey or ok. Answers from boarders only please as skiers would have no idea what I was talking about.

Mitts rock, but these rock even more!

wow

i have done both and both are great fun.

i have met both skiers and snowboarders and both groups contain a roughly equal proportion of great people.

i have played a couple of rounds of golf as well and they were a bit of a laugh.

netball is pretty crap tho.

Most skiiers though will at least admit that a snowboard is a far superior vehicle for sliding down a powder covered hill.

Disagree. It’s easier on a nice safe steady gradient. I’ll never forget my mate Rob (most of my slope buddies are boarders btw) telling me how my new carvers were crap and how a board could go anywhere. As we hit the first virgin slope after a 2m dump in Arc1800 he hit a snow drift that I had just got air off. He stopped dead and spent the next hour trying to get out. At least on skis if you can get them on you can get moving, knackering though it may be. I use Pocket Rockets almost exclusively these days and float down the pow as well as any board. They are a nightmare on ice though but still better than a tea tray. 🙂

Cheers stumpy. Let me know but funds / time may prove interesting though as going again in feb hopefully and spain biking in march 😯

WOW! I’m amazed at how some people are so sensitive/concerned as to whether they are thought of by others as being cool! Who really cares what other people think? I say be your own man, stuff the trends! FFS! Let the sheep follow you if they want to, but equally, if they don’t who cares!

If you love the snow, who cares how you get down the mountain?

Can only be a bunch of kids who’re getting steamed up about this.

Worldwide snowboard equipment sales are decreasing, whilst skiing increasing…

Is that true?
[/quote]

Yeah I think snowboard equipment has been in decline the last few years. I can’t remember where the article was that I saw. A quick google shows that it certainly is the case for the US.

“Snowboard equipment sales were down -9%” and “Alpine ski equipment sales increased 2.5%”

http://www.firsttracksonline.com/News/2010/1/28/Ski-and-Snowboard-Retail-Equipment-and-Apparel-Sales-Steady-Through-Holiday-Season/

“Snowboard equipment finished the 2009-10 season in decline at specialty retailers with unit sales down 7%” and “Alpine ski equipment sales increased 5%”

http://www.firsttracksonline.com/News/2010/5/6/Ski-and-Snowboard-Retail-Market-Up-4-This-Winter-Over-Prior-Season/

It does not surprise me really. Fashion victims are just as likely to ski as they are snowboard now, when before they’d only snowboard.

It does not surprise me really

Me neither, although not quite for the same reason! Skiing has been on the slide (badoom-tish!) and snowboarding growing for so long that there had to come a switch-over point.

Here in the French Alps, from what I see around me, snowboarding has never been higher than maybe 25% of everyone on the hill. That’s probably true for our guests as well – and that’s despite us being very openly snowboard-friendly.

Probably adding to the statistics myself – planning to buy some skis this year (touring setup) but no/minimal board gear. I do have 8 boards already though – some of them are even rideable… 😳

Now that’s exhausted…

Lets talk about crash helmets for winter sports.

Are you in favour?

Should it be compulsory?

[runs away]

Research has shown there’s a rise of head and spinal cord injuries among skiers and snowboarders on the slopes. One way to avoid such potentially traumatic injuries is to make helmets compulsory.

There you go Buzz the blue touch paper has been lit (and also runs away)