Snowboard Bindings Set-Up Guide

1. Goofy Stance vs. Regular Stance

First we will determine which foot is your dominate foot. Your dominate foot is usually the same as your dominate hand. This foot will assist you in steering the board, which is why it will go on the back of the board. If you're still unsure on which foot is your dominate foot, have someone gently push you from behind. Whichever foot you use to catch yourself with first is often times your dominate foot. 

Next, we will move on to determining your stance:

Regular Stance:

• Left foot on the front of the board (foot that will lead down the mountain first)
• Right foot on the back of the board (dominate foot)

Goofy Stance:

• Right foot on the front of the board (foot that will lead down the mountain first)
• Left foot on the back of the board (dominate foot)

2. Stance Width

Your stance width is measured from the middle of your front binding to the middle of your back binding. Stance width is important when figuring out what your riding style is and what feels comfortable to you. The wider your stance is, the more control you'll have over the board and the less likely you are to catch your edge. A narrow stance allows for easier carving and more speed.

Stand on your board and line your feet up with your shoulder width. Now slide your feet out just a tad further than shoulder width. Bend your knees slightly, as if you were riding down the mountain, just to get a feel for the stance width your at. If it feels good enough for a test run, measure the distance between the center of where you would put your bindings.

Here is a chart to help if you're still unsure about your stance width:

Photo Credit: http://snowboarding.about.com

3. Angles

The angle of your bindings is very important. Your angle depends on your body type and personal preference. If your bindings aren't set at the right angle for you, this could potentially make you work harder and hurt your knees. There is a lot of factors to consider when choosing the right angle to set your bindings at. I provided you with a video from Snowboard Pro Camp's Youtube Channel below:

Colorado Resorts

Colorado is known for its gorgeous mountains, mass amounts of snowfall, and for it's many skiing and snowboarding resorts. Colorado has over 20 resorts where you can snowboard down some of the best runs on the freshest powder. Here is a list of the resorts and their websites, along with a trail and/or village map to give you an idea of how much variety Colorado resorts have to offer!

Copper Mountain Resort 

Trail Map: 

Photo Credit: http://www.coppercolorado.com

 Village Map:

Photo Credit: http://www.coppercolorado.com

Aspen Mountain

Winter Map: 

Photo Credit: http://www.aspensnowmass.com

Summer Map: 

Photo Credit: http://www.aspensnowmass.com

Steamboat Springs Resort

Trail Map: 

Photo Credit: http://www.steamboat.com/

Base Area Map: 

Photo Credit: http://www.steamboat.com/

Winter Park Resort

Trail Map: 

Photo Credit: http://spatialdrift.com/

Colorado Ski Country USA can provide you with the many other Colorado resorts.

Shopping Online for Snowboard Gear

Shopping for online for snowboards and snowboarding gear can save you money and time. But sometimes it can be hard to determine which websites are the most reliable and which ones have the best deals. I'll list my top five websites for purchasing snowboarding gear based on my experiences and reviews I have read from other users.

The House - The House board shop is the first place I go to when buying any snowboard gear online. It's a great website, with a lot of variety, at low prices. They have almost every brand you could think of and an abundance of merchandise and gear from every brand. They also keep their prices low and are constantly having sales once new inventory is in. When using this website I almost always sort by brand because they have so many options. They also provide an in-depth review of each product, so you're not buying gear blindly. This is definitely the place to shop at, get product reviews at, and to use as a price comparison with other websites.

DogFunk - DogFunk is a great website for snowboards, snowboard gear, and for other accessories and clothing. They have a lot from every respected brand in snowboarding. They have a lot of extra accessories such as snow pants, coats, gloves, goggles, and helmets. They way they categorize their merchandise makes it easy for the user to find exactly what they're looking for. The website has a great layout, while maintaining simplicity. DogFunk is also a great place to shop online even if you're just looking for a new hoodie or hat.

Evo - Evo is a great website with great merchandise pricing. Their website is sorted into categories by sport, allowing you to find all things snowboarding. I have ordered bindings from them in the past and was impressed with their product and services. While throwing in stickers and other "extras" is a common practice among snowboard companies, Evo threw in stickers and lift ticket discounts for me. It's a great website, easy to use, cheap prices, and good customer service. 

Backcountry - Backcountry is a website that provides gear for all outdoor activities from hiking to skiing and snowboarding. Their website is easy to access and use. You can search by brand, mens/womens, accessories, hiking gear, snow gear, and many other variations of search preferences. They have all their categories sorted for you at the bottom of the page and in the tabs at the top of the page. Although there is a lot of good reviews about Backcountry's customer service, there are quite a few negative reviews. Most of the negative reviews talked about not being able to price match and a lot of complaints about shipping issues. I have never ordered from here but their products seem reliable, their guest service is good, and their prices are fair. The only obvious downside to shopping with Backcountry is shipping and handling issues they seem to have with multiple customers.

Buckmans - I chose this website because I have shopped online through them in the past. I ordered Forum women's snowboard boots because they were cheapest through Buckmans when I compared their prices with the prices of other websites. Buckmans has everything from summer apparel to winter equipment. Their prices are reasonable and they have a lot of online merchandise. They also have a very detail-specific filter tool that the user can use when looking for an exact match on an item. One thing I don't like about the Buckmans website is the layout and the clutter. The homepage has so much going on as far as links and other pages on their website which makes it look cluttered and unorganized. Overall, Buckmans is a reliable and reasonably priced website.