Ski Trip: Advice Needed

[Strych]

Ok, with the Ski Trip of Impending Doom, er, impending, as it were, I need advice on how to NOT sustain further bone-snapping injuries.

Currently my plan stands thus:


4 pints of milk a day until departure
Stay away from Bvark


Any further suggestions welcome. Many thanks.

[Cabe]

right

remeber when falling

snow good

ice bad

rock worse

[phil]

How to avoid breaking your wrist in the first 10 minutes.

Step 1: Take chairlift to top of first slope
Step 2: Sit at top for 10 minutes
Step 3: Commence 1st run (breaking of limbs optional)

:)

[Cheez]

If you try and stay standing up rather than rolling down the mountain head first, you will find that broken bones are kept to a minimum.

[phil]

Originally posted by Cheez
If you try and stay standing up rather than rolling down the mountain head first, you will find that broken bones are kept to a minimum.

The problem isn't head first - it's falling backwards! :)

[Strych]

I was looking for ACTUAL tips, despite the tone of the original post - eg will hitting the gym a little harder in any way improve my ability to "bounce" as opposed to "snap"?

[her0n]

take it steady i guess... also i believe if you are boarding there the a 'right' way to fall..?

[Big Giant Head]

despite both mine and bv's scepticisim of wrist guards and the fact they are generally a pain in the arse I think in this case they might not be a bad idea.

Other than that practice rolling backwards onto your backside without putting your arms down and falling forwards onto both forearms, rather than the strych patent of flailing and landing on your wrist ;) (the first part of that is serious advice)

I don't really think anything you do in the gym can help stop bones breaking really

[Cabe]

you could always give in to temptation and gain I nice set of padding, I mean I always have a cusion to sit on.....

[afty]

Having stronger muscles/tendons will indeed help to prevent snappage, aswell as reducing tissue damage a little in the event of a sprain causing injury, however by *FAR* the most dramatic benefit you could (I imagine) would be to learn how to fall.

No, seriously. Learn how to fall to your side, rear and front and rolling on a slope, go to your local park with some old clothes on and practice *not* getting your limbs to impact too hard, or get in the way when falling.

The amount of strength work you could do in 3 months is not really very significant, but falling better would be a huge benefit.

[her0n]

i was gonna suggest wrist guards but was scared bgh would go 'THEY ARE BAD' :/

one of the duty managers at work got some specially made for her at the hospital, moulded for her wrists and everything. advantage of this is that they are low profile so fit under gloves. Dakine do a pair of wrist guards for about £15.. failing that, california pro do ones for roller blading and sports like that :)

[Strych]

Originally posted by afty
local park

Park? In London?

[her0n]

oorrr... book lessons at southampton then practise and be l33t for the mpuk trip :)

<shameless pimp>Southampton Alpine Centre (http://www.southampton-alpine-centre.co.uk)</shameless pimp>

[Big Giant Head]

Such a whore

Its actually a pretty nice slope, I can recommend it (sigh)

[Cabe]

clearly I need boarding lessons on a 1-to-1 basis where no one will laugh at my falling down alot approch to boarding.

[Aardvark]

I'll demonstrate my comedy falling over for everyone at i18 if desired. Its not just comedy, its practical too! :D

[phil]

Originally posted by Strych
I was looking for ACTUAL tips, despite the tone of the original post - eg will hitting the gym a little harder in any way improve my ability to "bounce" as opposed to "snap"?

Learn to fall. You will fall a lot, so you need to fall correctly. Land on your forearms rather than your hands.

I've read that wrist guards can actually increase you chances of injury as a beginner falling wrongly, so maybe they're not a good idea.

[afty]

Originally posted by Strych
Park? In London?

Doesn't that Birmingham Palace place have some gardens you could practice in? Or are they all flat?

Incidentally, as I mentioned on another thread just 2 mins ago, I think the wrist guards idea is a good one (cue Heron)

[Mamacita]

Originally posted by Cabe
clearly I need boarding lessons on a 1-to-1 basis where no one will laugh at my falling down alot approch to boarding.

I'll do it with you, we can both look silly trying to learn :p

[her0n]

see above pimpage.. i cba to write it out again :P

[bvark]

if hitting the gym makes you less likely to break bones whilst boarding, then I should have broken every bone in my body by now.

you already know how to fall, you just forgot to do it. I presume the lesson was painful enough to serve as a decent reminder :-)

I still have wrist-guard gloves here - it's probably going to be useful to wear a wrist guard on the wrist you broke in March, because it'll still be a bit weak.

[wotzit]

if you want a tip dont go up the slope and you wont fall down it stay in the bar at the bottem

or you could go dry slope sking to get the hang of what it would be like
:sconf:

[Zakalwe]

Tips from me (I was worried about breakage pre first time I went so I talked to all sorts of "professional" people - well I talked to lots of shop assistants and one doctor, who was a bit drunk at the time)


Milk = good idea

Wrist guards, as in hard or moulded bits of plastic = bad idea. The consensus view was it was better to break your wrist than your forearm (which is where the impact can be transferred to). Everyone recommended using tubi-grip style wrappings instead and (a bit oddly) elbow pads (I guess the idea is that you can then flail your elbows back with impunity and are less likely to put a hand down).

Gym also = good idea, but not for strengthing your arms. Do general snowboard exercises (PM me for details) and you'll find learning easier. If you want to strengthen wrists without stressing them do lightweight wrist lifts and rotation with dumbells (about 4 kg max).

All the advice on falling practice is good, practice relaxed falls in the comfort of your own home (unless you've got wood flooring) otherwise I guess you could use the bed.

I'm sure you'll be fine this time.