Terrain Park Riding
Efficient group management and making considered decisions will lead to long-term success in the park. Educate students on park etiquette and Park Smart so that they will continue to use the park safely.
With any lesson in the park, offer options for each skill set to include everyone, particularly in larger groups. Remember that park riding isn’t for everyone and skills can and should be developed out of the park (sometimes referred to as the outside in approach), this is a great way to keep everyone in the group satisfied and progressing.
Scoping the Park
Before dropping, take the time to identify the flow of the park and the layout of the features. This will help identify safe stopping and meeting areas that are visible from the first drop in and clear of all features and landings. This can be a decision made as a group, highlighting pros and cons of any suggestions.
For the first run through, let students ride past features slowly to look at the zones of ATTL (explained later in this section). It may take more than one run to gain confidence within a terrain park environment. Encourage students to ride next to the features matching their speed to what might be suitable. Through this process scope the snow conditions, the condition and pitch of the takeoffs, landings and the features themselves. Ensure that all scope laps are summarised with questions about how the park is riding, encouraging them to share what they saw and developing their park awareness. Finally, ensure students know how to call their drop and know the arm signals, “O” for open and “X” for closed.
Features
There is an increasing variety of park features available and they can be categorised into jump features, box/rail features and pipe/transition features.
When introducing the park, focus on features that are small. They can be identified by small signs with an ‘S’ on them. Small sized boxes will be close to the ground, ride-on, flat, often quite wide and usually the first features in the park. Small sized jumps will be tabletops or step-overs usually 5-10 feet in distance (2-3 metres) from the takeoff to the sweet spot in the landing (the steepest part). They are usually the first jump features in the park.
Jumps, by definition, have a takeoff transition ending in a lip and a required trajectory distance to the landing. The style and build of a jump will dictate the speed required to make the landing, the airtime and forces that students will experience. Common jump types include tabletop, step-up, step-down, step-over, hip (left and right), whale tail and gaps.
Boxes and rails can broadly be defined by their shape and change in pitch or kink angle. From the rider’s view down the fall line they can be straight, curved (C) left and right, S and elbow kink left/right. From the rider’s view from the side the box/rail can be flat, rainbow, banana, up, down, roller coaster (variation of rainbow and banana), flat-down, down-flat-down, flat-down-flat, up-down, up-flat, down-flat kick (or down donkey) and waterfall (flat-drop-flat). The width of the box/rail can vary. A wide “dance floor” box can be as wide as two metres. A typical beginner’s box is typically 30 to 50 centimetres wide, and a narrow rail can be as skinny as five centimetres. The surfaces to slide on can be flat (box or bar), round (handrail or tube) or multiple round features side-by-side (two are known as a shotgun rail).
Transition features include halfpipes, quarterpipes, berms and bowls. Each will have a flat bottom (ridden through on approach to transition), transition (the curvature of the feature that is ridden), a deck (at top of the feature) and a coping or lip (to mark the change from transition to decking). Resorts are shaping transition parks to focus on providing versatile lines within terrain parks for riders to enjoy.
ATTL: Approach-Takeoff-Trick-Landing
Similar to the phases of a turn, ATTL describes the four zones when hitting a feature in the park as well as when doing tricks outside of the park. Using ATTL we can focus on what movements are required in each phase of a trick.
Takeoff – Inspect snow conditions, pitch and height compared to the feature or gap. The riding focus will be on creating smooth, well-timed pop relative to the feature and a blend of movements to achieve the desired trick.
Trick – Varies depending on the feature type. A box/rail feature will have a trick zone on the feature itself and a jump feature will have a trick zone in the air between the takeoff and landing. Riding focus will be on maintaining strength through the core, staying balanced and being aware of where to look through the trick.
Landing – Check snow conditions, pitch and to see if it is level or bombed out with uneven bumps and ruts. The riding focus will be on absorbing the landing, through efficient vertical movement, keeping eyes forward and riding away in a straight line.
Park S.M.A.R.T
Start Small – At the start of the day keep it simple and land tricks that are comfortable then build from there. This will help with scoping the park, feeling out the snow and warming up to bigger tricks.
Make a Plan – Have a clear understanding of the tricks that will be attempted on every feature, every time. What movements need to be made in ATTL for each trick?
Always Look – Inspect each feature before riding it, keep an eye on other park users to gain a grasp on speed and how to hit features and make sure all ATTL zones are completely clear before hitting the feature.
Respect – Respect gets respect. Look after yourself, the other people in the park, the features and remember everyone is there to have a good time.
Take it Easy – Know your limits and your capacity, land on your feet and push yourself safely.
