HangBoard from Mobius Communications on Vimeo.
Attendance at mountain resorts has been declining for the past few years and the snow sports industry is begging for something new. Hangboarding is that revolution. Hangboarding combines the three well-established sports of snowboarding, hang gliding and mountain biking, and yet it is something completely different.
Hangboarding is not like anything else. You’re not connected to your edges; you’re suspended above them. You’re not in bindings; you’re harnessed. And you sure as hell aren’t vertical; you’re horizontal. So we understand if you need a little explanation. We can explain the technique and the setup, but to really understand hangboarding you have to get on the snow and ride.
So now you know. Hangboarding is like nothing you have ever done before. Let us tell you what it is like. With every activity the rider, the player, the driver, whatever they are, they have to learn the sport in their mind and in their body. Mentally, hangboarding is much like skiing or snowboarding. You have to know your lines and know your mountain. For the body though, hangboarding is unique.
Aside from the obvious fact that the HangBoard pilot is horizontal, hangboarders make turns by leaning their whole body out over their edges while controlling rudders behind the board with their feet. A turn on a HangBoard is awesome. On a good run you stretch out your arm, shift your weight out over the powder, and dip your head toward the snow flying under the front of your board. Rudders, when applied at the same time, act as brakes so you ride in control. The experience is, at first, unfamiliar but the body loves a new challenge and is quick to learn.
Here are the basics: to carve to the left you begin by kicking down the right rudder with your right leg. You use this technique to begin your turn. The rest is done with bodyweight. From the neutral suspended position, you shift your shoulders and hips out to the left (the direction you are turning), and balance your weight against the force of your edge that is cutting the snow. To stop the turn, you tap your left rudder. This points you straight down the hill again and you can use this turning momentum to carve back to the right. After a few runs, you get your carving down and the technique becomes natural.
Then it’s up to you to improvise and develop a style. Some riders like to stay low, as if they are ducking below branches on the left, then the right, and so on. Others like to shift their weight to the back of the board for tighter turns. Because you’re suspended above the snow, you have a lot of freedom. Use this freedom to develop a style that works for you.
