Halifax Session 2
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
So last Saturday a group of us went to ride at Halifax. For most it was their first experience of snowflex, which made things quite interesting. Overall everyone had a good day, with each person wanting to ride there again...
The weather was fairly warm and windy, which made the slope pretty damn dry. I don't think the sprinkler system was/is working as well as it could do, but there was at least some water coming out, which helped a little. The budget washing up liquid did it's job.
I'm yet to ride the slope when it's wet, so I have nothing to compare the first two trips against. When the slope is dry, it makes the kicker really inconsistent: one hit you're sticking all the way down the run-in and you get no air, then the next hit is much faster.
But it's not the dryness that I'm struggling with the most - it's the transition to riding on snowflex. I'm still putting too much pressure on the heel edge which is making frontside rotations off the heel really hard. On the plus side though, I seem to be fairing much better taking off the toes, which has resulted in my backside rotations getting some much needed practice. In fact, Saturday was the first time I've paid any significant attention to the backside 180...
So, I've put some video clips together from the day. Whilst the camera was on I was trying to get to grips with a frontside shifty stalefish (I think) and a backside 180; both met some success, but they need more work yet. I just can't wait to ride the kicker again! I've used a track by The Postal Service called We Will Become Silhouettes (iTunes UK). If you like it, you can buy it here:
---
The famous car rental companies usually have deals with northwest airline and the midwest airlines. The indian airlines although sell cheap airline tickets but still don’t do a lot of business.
The History Of Snowflex
Sunday, April 29, 2007
There's a bit of a snowflex theme running on this blog at the moment, but given that summer is approaching and I've had two really nice sessions on the stuff, that's understandable. I hope to ride more at Halifax as the year goes on...
I was pointed at the following video on YouTube: the history/development of snowflex. I found it pretty interesting, so here it is:
Labels: snowflex
Wax Or Washing-Up Liquid?
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
The first time that I tried riding on snowflex, I was surprised to discover that the method of choice for making your board faster on dry days is to apply washing-up liquid. And it really works.
Just pour the liquid onto a mat and then rub your board across the top. Job done. It seems to last for a couple/few runs and then you need another application. Of course I'll know a little more after I've riden on the snowflex a few more times...
So in preparation for this weekend's riding, I've been scouting a cheap source of washing-up liquid. I found some in town today at 13p per litre. That should do the trick nicely.
Much better would be a little bit of rain, but you can never rely on the British weather...
Labels: snowflex
Airbags and Snowflex: Video
Thursday, April 12, 2007
So here's the video that we took last Saturday at Halifax and Castleford. Whilst we were riding that day we met a fellow rider - Sam. It turned out that it was his first taste of snowflex too and he was heading over to Cas' to session the airbag afterwards! What are the chances of that? Nice guy, good shredder...
Just in case you like the track, it's Soul Meets Body, by Death Cab For Cutie. Here's an iTunes link:
Labels: airbag, halifax, snowflex, video, xscape castleford
Halifax Snowflex Pictures
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Here are some photos of the slope at Halifax. I'll try to add one or two more that show the kicker from the side/above...
|
|
|
|
|
|
Labels: halifax, photo collections, snowflex
Airbags and Snowflex
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
So I got my first taste of snowflex at the weekend and I've got to say I really enjoyed it. I'll definitely be riding at Halifax again.
In fact the whole of Saturday was great; really busy, but great. First off was the drive down to Halifax, then a couple of hours riding on the snowflex, over to Castleford for the airbag night, and finally a late night drive home.
There were two firsts in there for me, so here's a little bit of info about each:
The Halifax Slope I opted to pay for flexi hours on the slope, which seems to be a really good idea. Basically you get a card with some credit on it, and then swipe in and out as you please.
Two hours of credit costs £18; but at the time there was a deal giving you £35 credit for £25, which is what I went for. There's more information on the website.
Airbag Night at Cas' The airbag night at Castleford was an extra freestyle session, in addition to the regular Thursday and Friday freestyle nights. So as well as the airbag itself, there was a collection of rails and boxes too.
Time on the airbag was separated out into four, fourty-five minute slots. Each slot was limited to eight people and you needed to book yourself in. The cost of a booking was £8, but this did not include your time on the slope. That is, you need to cover your time on the airbag with paid-for time on the slope.
The guy marshalling at the top did a pretty good job of checking tickets for the airbag; but invariably there were people sneaking on which added to the waiting a little. Someone called it air-blagging :-)
Video from the day and thoughts on riding snowflex to come...
Video Of The Halifax Slope
Friday, April 06, 2007
I've had a quick look on YouTube to see if I could find anything showing what the snowflex slope is like at Halifax. Check this out...
Off-Season Riding
Friday, April 06, 2007
Now that I've done all of my riding for this season on real mountains, I'm starting to think about riding here, in the UK.
Historically, I've done just about all of my homeland riding at Xscape Castleford, on the indoor slope. I say just about, because I have ridden on a nearby dendex slope a handful of times.
What I've never done is ride snowflex. Snowflex is definitely a target for this off-season. Ideally I'd like to ride it regularly, but in the least, I'd like to try it out a couple of times. The slope at Halifax is well known for having a good kicker, and that's where I'd like to start.
I also plan to continue riding at Castleford, and I'd like to make use of the airbag sessions that they have lined up. I've never hit an airbag before, but I'm guessing that it's lots of fun.
So my aim is to ride somewhere between 2 and 4 times each month, and it would be nice if one of those sessions was a snowflex session. To help me in this goal, I've decided to start some kind of shred counter; a simple record of how many days I go riding between now and next season.
If all goes to plan, I should be off to a good start. I'm gonna be hooking up with Martin tomorrow at Halifax for my first taste of snowflex, and then tomorrow evening we're gonna ride at Castleford and try out the airbag. The intention, maybe not tomorrow but in the future, is to take some photos and video throughout the summer. Let's see how well I keep it up...
Still hungry for more? Check out the archives.
