A lot of snow boarders get into the sport after having had some experience skiing. For first timers, there are a few things you’ll need to know.

Before stepping onto your board, consider clothes. Dress in comfortable, loose-fitting snow clothing and of course gloves, goggles and a hat are essential. For beginners, wrist injuries are not uncommon so wrist guards are a good idea, as is a helmet.

First, get into the bindings. On a flat area with the snowboard in front of you, place your front foot in the front binding. If you have strap bindings, pull both the toe and ankle strap until they are snug. If you have step-in bindings, step in and roll your foot around to make sure it’s properly secured and the binding is engaged. The rental shop will give you instructions if you ask. You’ll want to move around a bit before setting off to the lift.

When not actually going down the hill, you’ll normally leave your front foot in the binding and disengage your rear foot for pushing. Try a few steps up a slight incline.  Turn your shoulders and toes directly up the incline with your snowboard going perpendicular to the incline.

Take one step with your foot that is not attached to the snowboard, then lift your foot with the snowboard attached to it and take a step with the entire snowboard, keeping the board perpendicular to the slope. Keep taking steps until you are a little ways up an incline. Nothing to it. Now you’re ready to coast down that little slope.

The heelside slide is actually similar to a side slip on skis where you use the edge to control your rate of decent. With both feet attached to the snowboard. With your snowboard across the small slope, stand up so you are looking downhill. Your weight will be mostly on your heels, if you slowly shift the weight from your heels to the front of your foot, you begin to slide.

You can alter your speed of decent simply by shifting your weight back to the heels.  Similar to skiing, it’s all about edge control.

“Skating” is essential for maneouvering through flat areas and getting from the chalet to the lift. It’s how snowboarders push themselves along using their back foot while the front foot is in the binding.

Practice skating for a few minutes near the chalet, don’t feel silly, just pretend you are looking for a friend. Push off the snow with your back foot and slide your front foot forward with the snowboard.

If you’re a skier you probably remember the angst of your first experience on the lift. Most resorts have a beginner lift. Stand around for a few minutes looking for that imaginary friend and take a look at how others get on and off the lift. When you’re ready, give it a shot.

Once on the beginner slope, you are going to slowly slide back and forth, traversing across the hill staying on your heelside edge the entire time. To begin sliding, press down with the toes of your front foot. To stop sliding, shift the weight back to the heel of the same foot, kind of like the gas pedal in your car.

When you reach the edge of the run, stop and press down with the toes of the other foot to start sliding in the other direction. Continue back and forth across the hill. If necessary, stop in at the chalet for a bit of fortitude in a glass. On the next run, try this same thing but on your toeside edge. Practice your edge control.

Once you are comfortable traversing the hill using both your heelside and toeside edges, you are ready for the J-turn. The J-turn uses the same technique, but your goal is to point the snowboard directly down the slope for a moment before turning and coming to a stop.

Start on your heelside edge. Looking down the slope, press on the toes of your leading foot to begin sliding. Keep pressing on your toes until you are going directly down the slope, then pull up on your toes to go into a heelside turn and come to a stop. Repeat. Continue doing J-turns on your heelside edge all the way across the run.

Now try a toeside J-turn. Flip over so you are standing on your toeside edge. Press on the heel of your leading foot to begin sliding. Keep pressing on your heel until you are going directly down the slope, then press on your toes to go into a toeside turn and come to a stop.

Once you’ve done a few runs and you are comfortable with the J-turns, you’re ready for linking turns together, by going from a heelside J-turn to a toeside J-turns together.

As soon as you finish a heelside turn, press down on the toes of your front foot to start heading downhill again and continue pressing on your toes right into a toeside turn. Now press down with your heel to start heading downhill and continue pressing with your heel until you complete a heelside turn.

That’s about all there is to it, it’s just a matter of practicing your technique. Once you are comfortable you’re ready to tackle some larger hills.

Planning a snowboarding vacation?  Check out http://www.ifyouski.com/snowboard/ride/ for holiday bargains.  For more detail on technique try http://www.cs.uu.nl/~daan/snow/stance.html