Attempting to graduate from being a Snow Boarding Newbie into more of a Novice hasn’t been easy.  I need to spend more time stretching and preparing for hitting the slopes.  In my opinion stretching is very important not only because I’m 33, but moreover I want to kill some sweet tricks.

Stretching is very important, especially ones out in the cold where turning will come into play. You need to maintain your body and recover quickly from those hard days riding, try these stretches you can do on or off your board.

1)  Your core is going to pull you through each carve and twist out of the halfpipe, stretch it out by standing on your board, or in your riding stance and twisting slowly from side to side. Let you eyes and neck lead the twist. Keep your arms and shoulders relaxed.

2)  Your quads are going to take some abuse in those big bumps and recovering from all that deep back country powder. Stretch them out by doing some three point toe touches. Starting in the middle, try to place your palms flat against your board without bending your knees, let your spine bend down slowly and gracefully then back up. Do another stretch to one foot, then the other.

3)  Your neck needs to be limber and quick to twist around and spot those landings. Do some neck rotations pulling your head down towards your chest then rotating to the right and to the back, then back to the front again. Do each direction three times, being careful not to pinch a nerve across the back.

Here’s a great snowboarding resource.