First steps towards riding switch on a snowboard

by James Streater @maverixsnow — Updated 2021

Starting to work on switch can be a nightmare. Typically we go straight into turning just like our normal riding and things rapidly get out of control as we accelerate and start leaning back, or whip our shoulders around and catch an edge.

The key is to keep things simple and take your riding back a notch. Think about your first ever turns. They were very ‘C’ shaped. You didn’t spend much time in the fall line. You traversed across the slope, completed a quick edge change and then started to control your speed on the new edge going back across the slope.

Thats the perfect start for learning switch. Most guys can get the toes to heel edge turn as you often just look round and let the board flow into the turn. The problem happens when you start to look at the other turn. The heel to toe edge turn is a the most common issue I have to resolve in coaching switch. Thats’ what I’ll focus on in this article.

Switch Heel to Toe Turn — Left Foot Forward

The heel to toe turn is tricky. The most common issue is people leaning over their back foot as they try to turn. This make turning difficult so people try to use their shoulders to force the board around and dump the toe edge in the snow resulting…