Last Updated2 May 2023

Learning Beginner Turns offers an example progression to help students make their first turns, building upon the skills in the First-Timer progression, and work towards linking turns. These activities should be carried out on a groomed beginner area or gentle green slope. Generic goals for any learn-to-turn lesson include safe stopping; moving across the slope on both edges; speed control; and turning.

Keeping the class safe is your responsibility, so stop them on the sides of the runs and in places that will not cause problems for other beginners. Keep referring back to previous exercises that you have already done with your class. There are only small changes from exercise to exercise, whether it be an added movement or a timing change.

Steered Traverses (Garlands)

What, Why, How

A skidded traverse, guiding the board into and out of the fall line, leaving a wavy or step-like track in the snow.

This is to learn how to initiate or begin a turn, and complete or finish a turn without changing the edge. It is also used to increase confidence in pointing the board into the fall line and riding a flat base.

Start with a skidded traverse, looking towards the nose of the board.

Heelside; begin by flattening the lead foot slightly, gently rising and moving the lead knee and hip over the board. This will twist the board and guide it down the hill. When ready to finish, progressively steer the snowboard back across the hill to a traverse by turning the lead knee and hip back uphill a little, gently flexing the knees and hips will help stay balanced over the heel edge.

Toeside; begin by flattening the lead foot slightly, gently rising and moving the lead knee and hip around and over the board. It will help to turn the head downhill a little too. This will twist the board and guide it downhill. When ready to finish, progressively steer the snowboard back across the hill to a traverse by turning the lead knee and hip uphill, gently flexing the ankles and knees will help balance on the toe edge again.

Try multiple steered traverses across the slope, then roll over and repeat in the opposite direction on the other edge.

VIDEO: Steered Traverses with Rich Waldie

Example

Most adult students have experienced driving a manual car. Draw a parallel between the front foot and the accelerator: “As you gently lower your toes on the front foot and move your knee across the board, you speed up just like pressing the accelerator in a car, while gently lifting off the clutch. If you push on the gas too hard the car will jump and potentially stall.”

Movements & Board Performance

Lateral with Edging

Similar to what has already been experienced in the skidded traverse exercises, but the initiation will happen more easily given the forward momentum. Torsional twist is necessary to release edge grip at the nose and guide it into the fall line. Encourage this to come from the leading ankle, knee and hip. The completion uses similar lateral movements to the skidded traverse.

Rotational with Steering

Movement rotationally increases slightly here when compared to previous steps. This is used primarily to steer the board back across the fall line but may also be used slightly when guiding into the fall line at initiation. Rotational movement should ideally be created from the lower body, lead knee and hip, but it is essential that the upper body rotates in conjunction.

Longitudinal

A slight fore movement can be used to help guide the snowboard towards the fall line; however, even weight should be a priority as the board steers back across the hill.

Vertical

A slight extension at the initiation of each traverse will help to blend lateral and rotational movements, and keep the hips over the contact edge. As momentum is beginning to increase, encouraging slight flexion at completion will help to control speed and blend other movements.

Terrain & Group Management

Steered traverses are an excellent exercise for turn initiation and completion, especially if your students are having trouble gaining the confidence to turn or are moving with limited or no control into or out of the fall line. As students become comfortable with each traverse using steering, try to increase the distance they travel down the slope. Encouraging students to look and give themselves plenty of space is important as others may not be expecting them to turn back across the hill.

Hot Tip

This exercise can be used for any beginner or intermediate student to teach new skills or correct inefficiencies.

Practise new movements on the flat ground before taking them up onto the slope. This way you can show your students which body parts to move while they are stationary. The most suitable terrain to use for steered traverses is a wide area with a consistent pitch and fall line. Start on flatter terrain if it is available as this will help with the students’ confidence in allowing the nose of the board to travel into the fall line. Remain on the uphill edge at all times when demonstrating. Slower snow conditions will require longer, more drawn out steered traverses. Faster, icier conditions will require very subtle and gentle steering. Hands-on assistance should only be required if your student is showing strong signs of fear when steering into the fall line.

Demonstrate this activity with the stop, drop and roll in between initially, however, this can be a good time to allow more confident students to adapt their skills and try a small turn at the side of the run instead of stopping and rolling over.

Example

Utilising terrain which has a gentle cross fall line can both help and hinder the student, depending on the direction they are travelling. Look for terrain that has a fall line which goes in the opposite direction to the direction you are travelling in and use an analogy like: “Imagine a series of cascading waterfalls that get progressively bigger as they progress down the hill. Draw an imaginary waterfall down the run and adjust where you place the individual waterfalls depending on the fall line.”

Corrective Teaching

Student is scared to steer into the fall line:

Spend more time on the floating leaf and traversing, encouraging even weight on two feet.

Try holding the student’s board on flatter terrain, while they stand on a flat base with the nose pointing directly down the hill, and explore small longitudinal movements.

Student lacks speed control:

Encourage students to spend more time travelling across the fall line before choosing to start their next steered traverse. If it helps, they can focus on the sensation of deceleration.

Practise smooth steering and rotate through the lower body while looking where they want the nose to point towards.

Student is over-flexed at the waist when steering back onto their heel edge:

Reinforce the heelside basic stance encouraging a strong core.

Encourage them to gently lift their toes rather than feeling their calves press into the highbacks.

Encourage them to stand up more with a straighter back and look ahead.

Student falls uphill onto their knees when steering back onto their toe edge:

Reinforce the toeside basic stance, focusing on keeping the hips over the toe edge and simply standing up balancing on the balls of the feet.

Encourage them to balance on the balls of their feet and feel gentle pressure in their shins from the tongues of the boots.

Self Reflection

“Are my students leaning back as they steer into the fall line?”

“Do they edge the board aggressively when turning back across the fall line?”

“Can they ride the board with a flat base momentarily in an efficient stance?”

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