FreeRiding

As the name of the style explains, Freeriding is about mastering an all-round style that will allow you to ride, carve, and jump on any terrain - On Piste and Off Piste. This Snowboarding Style involves riding almost any terrain while spending most of your time on the ground rather than in the air. Although it is not as much inclined to aerial tricks as the Freestyle, Freeride does involve jumps and aerial maneuvers.

Freeriders generally love powder and will go Off Piste as soon as fresh powder hits the slopes. Freeriding is also called "All Mountain Riding" since this Snowboarding Style tries to utilize everything a mountain has to offer for this sport.

This Snowboarding Style is usually considered as the most suitable Style for first-timers and beginners. Normally, novices start out with a beginner Freeriding Snowboard. As a result, the Freeriding Snowboard has become the most popular board style, and most of the time, the boards that you will find in shops and on the slopes are Freeriding boards.

There are various designs of Snowboard for Freeriding. To be able to differentiate a Freeriding board from other variations, examine the following characteristics:

• Relatively longer boards with a narrower width, a deeper side cut, and more directional in their shape
• More often than not, the nose will be longer and the stance of the riders will be slightly positioned towards the rear of the board to make it easier to hang back when riding deep powder

Other FreeRiding Equipment:

• Soft Boots
• Strap or Flow-In Bindings

FreeStyle

Freestyle focuses on adrenaline rushes and is considered by many the most spectacular and wild style of Snowboarding. It involves doing tricks both on and off the air in Snowboard parks, Halfpipes, and the natural obstacles a mountain can offer. Unlike Freeride, a lot of the tricks in Freestyle are done in the air in the form of twists, turns, grabs, and other radical Aerial Movements. On the ground, the common Freestyle tricks are performed using rails and Halfpipes.

The most popular Snowboarding events are the Freestyle competitions. These include halfpipe, quarterpipe, slopestyle, and big air competitions. Freestyle riders are not necessarily advanced riders. Their environment, however, is mainly snow parks, halfpipes, and natural obstacles.

Some Freestyle Snowboards are designed specifically for the halfpipe or for the perfect rail slide. Although it would be nice to have a board for every occasion, keep in mind that these Snowboards are not likely to perform well outside of that specific terrain which they have been designed for. General Freestyle Snowboards, on the other hand, are designed to handle well on jumps, spinning in the air, and riding switch. To be able to recognize a Freestyle board, check out its following characteristics:

• Shorter, lighter, fatter more maneuverable boards
• The boards have a twin tips, which means that the tail and tip are identical in shape
  

Other FreeStyle Equipment:

• Soft Boots
• Strap or Flow-In Bindings

If you're not sure which style to choose, just start with Freeriding to become accustomed to the feeling of Snowboarding. However, keep in mind that before you drop your hard-earned money on a New Snowboard, Snowboarding Boots, or Snowboard Bindings setup, you must first know what type of Snowboarder you are, or are interested in becoming. Manufacturers carefully design Snowboards for specific Types of Riding. Hence, you don't want to make the mistake of buying an expensive big mountain board if you'll be spending all day in the pipe.

Snowboard Buyers Guide

This guide will help you Choose a Snowboard that will not only enhance your learning and performance in Snowboarding, but also ensure your safety.