Just checking if this song - my biggest favorite - plays properly on blogspot.
To relax, I often listen to it over and over.
21.5.07
Skiing-Snowboarding Debate
A clipping from my English textbook. This is just to increase my vocabulary.
Skiing-Snowboarding Debate
Given the ubiquity of snowboarders at resorts these days, it's hard to believe that 20 years ago the sport barely existed. It wasn't until the date '70s that such snowboarding pioneers as Jake Burton began testing their new surfboard-like contraptions. Much to the chagrin of many hard-core skiers, the fad caught on faster than a California wildfire, especially among kids who loved the sensation of flying on snow but saw skiing as something more suited to their square parents.
Thus a rivarly was born. Though attutudes have softened in recent years, the skiing-snowboarding debate - which
is cooler? - still rages in the 21st century. Why can't we all just get along? Well, there are some crucial differences between skiing and snowboarding, both physical and cultural. If you're trying to decide which sport is for you, consider the following points:
Learning Curve: Many people believe that snowboarding is easier to learn than skiing. David Precit, director of the Squaw Valley Ski School and a certified ski and snowboard instructor, says it isn't quite that simple.
"Snowboarding is easier at the very beginning because the board is wide and balance is fairly easy," he explains, "But then you begin what I call the '500 Fall Method," meaning, you fall about 500 times before you really get it."
Skiing, on the other hand, takes more patience and practice at the beginning, but having your feet strapped to two boards instead of one has many benefits, including increased mobility on flatter terrain.
Snow Conditions: Are some kinds of snow better for snowboarding than skiing? It depends on whom you talk to. Precit points out that the wider surface area of a snowboard keeps it more "buoyant" in deep snow. In the same snow, skis may dive or catch, leading to more falling, or certainly to more difficulty in staying upright. That's why many hard-core skiers prefer to board on powder days. Traitors? Not likely. They just seem to have found a good thing. Either that or they need the extra cushioning.
Image: You read it here first: Snowboarding is not cooler than skiing, nor is skiing cooler than snowboarding. Each offers its own physical thrills, and both foster hell-bent attitudes. Today's "new-school" skiers are throwing down mind-blowing, Ninja-style tricks right down alongside snowboarders. (If you have any doubts about this, just watch the X Games in late January on ESPN, or pick up Powder or Freeze magazines.) Nope, skiing isn't square anymore (was it ever?), so don't pass up a good time.
Cost: No doubt, top-end ski gear is way more expensive than top-end snowboard gear. However, you have to note that gear at the intermediate level is more comparably priced for the two ports, except for ski boots, which can cost $100~150 more than their snowboard equivalents. But a lift ticket is a lift ticket, whether you're skiing or boarding.
Resorts: The vast majority of ski areas acroos the U.S. welcome snowboarders and their disposable incomes with open arms, but there are a few top resorts where snowboarding is not allowed - including Alta, Utah, and Taos, New Mexico. Why? In part, because of tradition. Alta, for instance, is considered by many skiers to be the spiritual epicenter of the sport. Besides, Alta's terrain also isn't consisntently snowboard-friendly. There are a lot of flat spots between peaks and lifts where skiers can efficiently pole or skate, but snowboarders must walk.
Peer Pressure: Chances are if your friends snowboard, you will too. The same goes for skiing. Give both a whirl and then decide for yourself. You can't go wrong either way.
Skiing-Snowboarding Debate
Given the ubiquity of snowboarders at resorts these days, it's hard to believe that 20 years ago the sport barely existed. It wasn't until the date '70s that such snowboarding pioneers as Jake Burton began testing their new surfboard-like contraptions. Much to the chagrin of many hard-core skiers, the fad caught on faster than a California wildfire, especially among kids who loved the sensation of flying on snow but saw skiing as something more suited to their square parents.
Thus a rivarly was born. Though attutudes have softened in recent years, the skiing-snowboarding debate - which
is cooler? - still rages in the 21st century. Why can't we all just get along? Well, there are some crucial differences between skiing and snowboarding, both physical and cultural. If you're trying to decide which sport is for you, consider the following points:
Learning Curve: Many people believe that snowboarding is easier to learn than skiing. David Precit, director of the Squaw Valley Ski School and a certified ski and snowboard instructor, says it isn't quite that simple.
"Snowboarding is easier at the very beginning because the board is wide and balance is fairly easy," he explains, "But then you begin what I call the '500 Fall Method," meaning, you fall about 500 times before you really get it."
Skiing, on the other hand, takes more patience and practice at the beginning, but having your feet strapped to two boards instead of one has many benefits, including increased mobility on flatter terrain.
Snow Conditions: Are some kinds of snow better for snowboarding than skiing? It depends on whom you talk to. Precit points out that the wider surface area of a snowboard keeps it more "buoyant" in deep snow. In the same snow, skis may dive or catch, leading to more falling, or certainly to more difficulty in staying upright. That's why many hard-core skiers prefer to board on powder days. Traitors? Not likely. They just seem to have found a good thing. Either that or they need the extra cushioning.
Image: You read it here first: Snowboarding is not cooler than skiing, nor is skiing cooler than snowboarding. Each offers its own physical thrills, and both foster hell-bent attitudes. Today's "new-school" skiers are throwing down mind-blowing, Ninja-style tricks right down alongside snowboarders. (If you have any doubts about this, just watch the X Games in late January on ESPN, or pick up Powder or Freeze magazines.) Nope, skiing isn't square anymore (was it ever?), so don't pass up a good time.
Cost: No doubt, top-end ski gear is way more expensive than top-end snowboard gear. However, you have to note that gear at the intermediate level is more comparably priced for the two ports, except for ski boots, which can cost $100~150 more than their snowboard equivalents. But a lift ticket is a lift ticket, whether you're skiing or boarding.
Resorts: The vast majority of ski areas acroos the U.S. welcome snowboarders and their disposable incomes with open arms, but there are a few top resorts where snowboarding is not allowed - including Alta, Utah, and Taos, New Mexico. Why? In part, because of tradition. Alta, for instance, is considered by many skiers to be the spiritual epicenter of the sport. Besides, Alta's terrain also isn't consisntently snowboard-friendly. There are a lot of flat spots between peaks and lifts where skiers can efficiently pole or skate, but snowboarders must walk.
Peer Pressure: Chances are if your friends snowboard, you will too. The same goes for skiing. Give both a whirl and then decide for yourself. You can't go wrong either way.
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