- 1). Conduct a few simple tests to determine your riding stance. Natural or regular boarders ride with their left foot forward; goofy foot riders ride with their right foot forward. Have someone push you gently from behind when you're not expecting it and see which foot you naturally put forward. Alternatively, try sliding across a wood floor in slippery socks to see which foot feels more natural to be in the lead.
- 2). Measure out the width of your riding stance. The width affects flexibility, stability and the ability to rotate effectively. The width is how far apart the centers of each binding are placed on the board. Some suggest the width should be the same as the measurement from your knee cap to the floor or slightly wider than your shoulder width. Comfort is the most important determining factor.
- 3). Choose the angle position for your bindings based on your riding style. Angles are either positive or negative: If the binding is angled to the front of the board, it's positive; toward the back, it's negative. The degree of the angle is how far the binding is turned on the binding mount.
- 4). Use a duck stance angle -- a positive front angle and a negative back angle -- for greater stability in your riding. Common choices include 12 to 18 degrees on the front and minus 6 to 15 degrees on the back and at a difference of no more than 10 degrees between the two.
- 5). Use an alpine angle for racing or carving. Set your front and rear bindings at high positive angles, 35 to 70 degrees, depending on the width of your snowboard and at a difference of at least five degrees between the two.
- 6). Use a forward angle for freeride and freestyle riding. Set your bindings at moderate positive angles of 15 to 40 degrees on the front, 0 to 30 degrees on the back and at a difference of no more than 10 degrees between the two.
previous post