Snowboard Binding Setup
I recently replaced my snowboard setup. I was very happy with my previous setup but it got nicked so I have had to put together something new.
Note: I am going to describe how I setup snowboarding bindings, this is opinionated and I will not cover all snowboarding styles and corresponding setups.
All-mountain Freestyle is how Nitro describe it and I quite like the term. Basically, it involves hitting all sorts all over the mountain. Its not just a freeride setup as your not just carving or powder riding and often want a bit of the fakie fun.
You qualify for this type of riding if you:
- Spend time in the park.
- Spend glorious hours riding in glistening, deep powder bowls.
- Look of anything which you can hit on the way down. Its a playground duuuude!
- Ride fast and straight.
- Turn sometimes; normally on steeps or to stop.
Elements of snowboard stance.
- Stance width
- Binding angles
- Placement (centered / back)
- Forward Lean
- Heel and Toe Drag
Stance Width
This is down to personal preference; but I recommend going as wide as you can. This gives great control in the air, looks sweet, is stable at speed and landings are easier. Dont take the piss like the pure freestyle boys and girls. A good guide is to start at a centered stance for the board (middle of each binding rail) and then increase as you ride more. A starting point of shoulder width then going a bit wider is a good plan. But do it slowly, dont start as a beginner with a massively wide super duck stance. Tone it down a bit if you are a beginner.
Binding Angles
Its all about the duck stance really, if you want to spend some time riding / landing fakie, or any time in the air. Slightly more in the direction of travel and a difference of about 30 degrees is good. I ride +21 -9 and might go up to +21, -11 this season but you have to make sure you knees can take it.
Placement
Set the bindings back if it snows? Dont bother unless you are spending a day of riding 30cm+ of fresh. If you are riding is shallower stuff or for not that long then centered is fine for most things. Often the centered stance of a board is designed such that it is set slightly back anyway. (Unless you have a twin)
Forward Lean
Dont go crazy with this one, but its good to ‘go mean and huv a bit o lean’ as it means that you:
- Have less downtime between edge switching and feel more connected to the board.
- Your legs are more bent, initially this is a bit tiring to get used to, especially on Peak to Creek at Whistler but after your legs get used to it, you wont go back. It feels natural, stable and powerful.
Heel and Toe Drag
This should be at a minimum and the drag should be equal on both sides. It is possible to sometimes be placed wrongly by wearing bindings that are too large or too small for your boots. Make sure that you are sized correctly for both your board and binding size.
In the worse case if you have a pair of binding that are not friends with you boots you can move the bindings forward and back by rotating the base places to make sure your boots are centered on the board.
Finally
Play about with your stance. Remember its your stance not what is hot and generally thought to be hip. Get your own setup dialled and your snowboarding will be much more enjoyable. Also remember what you stance is if you change boards etc!
Hope this helps anyone wondering, leave comments please.