Park snowboarding refers to freestyle snowboarding. The term park refers to the Terrain Park which is made up of man-made features such as jumps, rails, half-pipes and other obstacles for the riders to test themselves on. These parks have been introduced to just about all resorts to cater for those boarders who love spending their day in the air for about as much time as they do on the surface of the snow.
With the freestyle snowboarder it’s all about the tricks, the more creative and original, the better. Going downhill fast is not what these competitors are about, instead they aim to thrill the crowd and impress the judges. At least, that’s competitive freestyle snowboarding. The social freestyler is merely looking for the adrenaline rush that comes with sailing through the air, unsure whether the landing is going to be soft or hard.
To make things easier for the freestyle snowboarder, the snowboard companies have catered for their style by manufacturing shorter, more flexible boards. Burton freestyle snowboards are different to their all-mountain boards which are designed to maximize speed or to float over the powder of the softer snow. The freestyle boards are capable of wild turns and are light enough to easily grab some wicked air.
What we are seeing is that there is a strong interest in the sport from female riders who have come looking for the adrenaline rush that park riding gives you. To cater for this increase the snowboard companies have been quick to jump at the opportunity and have been bringing out new freestyle snowboards to cater for the market.
Some of the most popular women’s freestyle snowboards include Burton Stria, Roxy Ollie Pop, Ride Canvas, Never Summer Pandora and the Forum Craft. Each of these boards has been specifically designed for the smaller framed rider to perform all kinds of tricks in conditions that vary greatly. The graphics are often fun and very busy which also reflects the attitude of the freestyle rider quite well.
Buying the correct type of equipment is essential and if you are planning on hitting the terrain parks, there’s no point taking out a board that hasn’t been specially designed for the job. If you decide to take an all-mountain board in there, the chances are you’re going to have a miserable day and you could come out of it with a damaged board.