Skiboards: You Won't Believe How Fun They Are
Written: Mar 27 '00 (Updated Mar 28 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Incredibly Efficient and Easy to Use, Much Less Expensive
Cons: Not as Fast as Regular Skis?
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| skadar's Full Review: Archived Outdoors Reviews |
This past ski season I made an incredible discovery, skiboards. If I believed in a god, I would praise her up and down for the creation of these little babies. I predict that most recreational skiers will become skiboarders within the next 5 years. Skiers will become a rarity on the slopes... at least the groomed, pack powder slopes. Trust me. There is no way you can go back to skiing after trying skiboards. I like to tell people that if skiing is like driving a car, then skiboarding is like riding a motorcycle.
If you don't know already, skiboards are kind of like mini-skis. They are short... usually between 85 and 100 centimeters, and a little bit wider than your average ski. You do not use poles with skiboards... mostly because you can easily skate with skiboards on the flats. Skiboard bindings fit normal ski boots and they are non-releasing. Because skiboards are rather short, you don't run as much risk for twisting your leg as you would with regular skis. So the theory goes. But the smaller and simpler bindings are easy to use, adjust, and are light weight.
Skiboards handle like a pair of ice skates or rollerblades. You can virtually stop and turn on a dime. The best skiboards, those made by companies like Line, Canon, Groove, or Imperial are double tipped, meaning you can ride backwards (fakie) just as easily as forwards. The feeling of freedom that you get with skiboards is nearly indescribable. You have nothing in your hands, and you don't have to work to keep your skis parallel. Your natural body stance with legs slightly separated is perfect for skiboarding. When you turn, the boards go into a natural stagger. They are not as fast as normal skis and they obviously won't handle deep powder as well because they don't have the surface area to pop you up.
Skiboards are incredibly efficient. You don't have to worry about poles and you don't have to constantly strap and unstrap like snowboards. Just clip them on and hit the lift. There's no pausing at the top to adjust your poles and whatnot. Simple efficiency. And because skiboards are so small, they are a breeze to transport and carry to and from your car. You can even strap them to a backpack!
I am sooooo happy that I tried skiboarding! I will never go back to skiing or snowboarding. If you have done either of these, you will have absolutely no problem with skiboards. They have an extremely shallow learning curve. If I had kids I would skip skiing altogether and go with skiboards right off the bat.
Finally someone figured out how to do skiing right. Trust me, you'll never go back.
Recommended:
Yes
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skadar
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Location: Connecticut
Reviews written: 158
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