Intermediate rider here. I've been watching hundreds of hours of instructional video recently trying to improve my edge control. All I can say is there is no way the views on these videos will do anything but explode. This is REALLY good stuff and I can't wait to try it out. You seriously stand out amongst the rest.
I tried these today and after a few long runs of doing them, I was able to carve steepers slopes than I had ever done. You sir, are an amazing instructor
Thank you so much James for your no crap straight to the point carving videos! You are becoming a hero to many snowboarders around the world! Keep up the great work!!!
seriously underrated. for learning carving this is one of the best channels out there. way better content than those popular channels! To the point and no BS👍
James! The best snowboard teacher ever! I tried your instructions from the previous video yesterday. I improved lots! I could really feel it. And my friend who was taking a lesson from a private coach, said to me, "I think you are better than my coach. Can you teach me?" Bro your one video changed my skill in one day. boom! just like that! This video makes more sense now. I'm going to practice more from that and now try more from this video. Tipped $10 brother! Thanks for such an awesome video! Btw, I've never tipped any youtubers ever. You are the only one and I tipped twice. I'm so happy! Lots love and respect James!
Too easy... I should have kept more secrets to myself! Pretty soon everybody will be riding like me and I'm gonna have to start getting up early on groomer days so I can get first tracks on the fresh corduroy! Thanks for the tips Bro. Enjoy your carves!
After years of frustration, a couple of weeks of using your drills, modifying posture and binding angle as per your advice, made a huge difference in my snowboarding experience. I still have a long way to go, but I think I finally know what I have to do for those pencil lines. I watch your last 2 videos and drill at home daily. Can't get enough of your expertise. You make it simple to understand. Thank you so very much.
Looking forward to that confused look from behind the rental counter after I tell them to set the bindings to posi 27 and 12! Love the videos. Watched every one, especially the 42 minute Secrets of Carving. So much packed into that one. Thanks for helping this 55 year old lifelong surfer (now taking up snowboarding) try to unlearn all the bad habits- slarving turns, flailing/trailing back hand, you name it and I probably do it. Keep them trays level, everyone!
@@cherrycarves thanks for that tip. It's already difficult enough to learn making only about two trips a season (if I'm lucky) to the mountains, which is about 6 total days of riding. Having said that, I never get tired of seeing the views from the top and that alone keeps me going back for more.
Brother James, my name is Seal, (I’m the recording artist known as). I love what you teach and the candour with which you do it. thank you for your ‘no-nonsense’ tutorials. They help a great deal. ✌🏾&💜
Wow, for real? This is my closest brush with celebrity since Craig Kelly signed my hat in 1989! Respect, man. My father was a huge fan in the 90's. I was listening to the Pixies and the Pumpkins myself back then, punk kid skater/snowboarder.
I just came back from Val Thorens too. Would love to meet more carvers that regular there. But seems most carver events in Europe are in Switzerland :(
Awesome! I don't have any social media except TH-cam and of course the alpine snowboard forum... Email me please. The address is in the start of the Drills video.
I have been really focusing on carving the past couple of years and i get it right on mellow slopes but could not get it together on steeper stuff and just could not figure out what i was doing wrong. I think you just revealed the key so i am excited to try these drills
Fantastic advice. I started snowboarding in the early '90s, and it was so different, as you mentioned in another video. I'm getting back into it with our kids, and in the videos that are available now, the dudes are riding boards barely wider than the width of their shoulders and just linking butters. THIS is the riding advice I'm after. Thank you.
Your videos are the best…true carving, exceptionally well explained. I’m also a guy from the time when carving was the real deal…in the early 90s…never had someone who explained it as good as you do…we just kinda did it until it worked :-) The Tray-Drill is perfect. I told my 12years old son to try this and he had immediate results, especially on heelside, Thx a lot 👌
Thank you for this! I was having trouble not side-slipping on the heel edge after switching to a posi-posi stance and tucking the back knee even more is what made it click for me.
@and497 Yeah... The posi-posi stance allows your hips to face the front of the board on heelside. It also allows you to pressure the heel edge between the bindings by dropping the back knee in that direction in heelside. But honestly, the "why" is unimportant. "That" it works is the key. Do it for a few runs and feel how it smooths out those fast heelside turns.
I was previously riding with 24F 3R and have changed it to 27F 9R and have found it to be more comfortable on my back leg when riding, steering, and absorbing shocks. I would have never thought. Thanks for sharing.
Your hand to knee drills and tray drills helped me correct my posture for my heel side carves which I had so much issues with! And switching to +12 +27 as well made my knees much happier and the carves so much better. I’m finally starting my journey towards pencil line carves. Going to be a long journey ahead to be able to do it on steeps. But at least I’m finally getting there on greens. Thanks for sharing, really appreciate it!
Thanks so much for putting these videos out there. I started riding in the late 80’s but was absent for most of 2000-2020 with only a few days out during that time. Last two seasons I’ve been getting out more consistently and all I want to do is carve like you! The drills in this video were super easy to remember and apply on my last two day trip to the mountains. I can’t wait for more of your content. Keep it up!
Kia ora James. Its off season here in NZ, but great to see this video. I'm 52 years old and this is how we learnt to snowboard back in 1989 as instructors. Had a break for a number of years and I have been second guessing my technique since, so great to have you reaffirming... worked out that the boards back then where so much stiffer so we had to ride this way. Still have an old Burton M5 with hard boots that I go for a spin on once and a while.
Haha... You must have some balls on you Simon. Those old boards scare the hell out of me. The M series was certainly a little friendlier but those PJs and Factory Primes were monsters, so hard to tame. Try something with Titanal and rubber in it, you'll see how easy carving has become...
@@cherrycarves How about doing a video on boards and soft boots ? I had a Burton Prime and tried to learn carving on it. I never got off the beginner slopes. What is a good setup these days ?
@@cherrycarvesFYI Sensei, there is carving competition in Japan. th-cam.com/video/rLG4IAB1K1w/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUe5pel5pys44Kr44O844OT44Oz44Kw44CA5aSn5Lya
That's very good content in my opinion. So much other content seems to be about getting as low as possible without much info about the fundamentals. I wish your videos existed when I got into carving. They would have saved me a lot of trial and error. But TH-cam didn't exist back then😂... Even the Internet! I attended a few SES events in the late 2000s. The tray exercise reminded me of the tip we got from some racers about "carrying" a virtual frame ahead of us. The hands were a bit higher from what I remember but that might have been racing focused too. I'm glad to see so many comments and likes on the videos, which would indicate there's still interest in carving. I wouldn't know it from riding on my local hills as I've seen less than a handful of fellow carvers in the last 10 years. I also appreciate your style if these videos are indicative of how you are riding on your own (not for instructional purposes). I aim for something relaxed myself (some examples on my channel). Last season was a record for me with 13 sessions. I usually get half that so I can barely maintain my level. I'll keep this video as a guideline for upcoming seasons. Hopefully, I'll get back quicker to my base level! Yesterday was session #2 this year and my sore obliques agree with your guidance in the secrets video 😂. I'm somewhat mind blown with your equipment though. Your setup is quite different from mine (165 Madd, 18cm waist, 65-55 angles). I've never ridden in anything but hardboots on alpine boards (all the way to Skwal) so this would be quite a change. The closest I've tried are the Swoard boards ridden by the EC folks that came to SES and I felt awkward transitioning edge to edge on something that wide.
I wish my videos existed when I started too... I used to learn a lot at the SES and other sessions too, now I teach a clinic at the Montucky Clear Cut. If you haven't heard of it, look it up! You'll fit right in! montuckyclearcut.com Cool videos. Did you know the old Bomber forum is now at aplinesnowboarder.com? Some of your old friends from SES are still active I'm sure.
@@cherrycarves, which SES did you attend? I don't think we met. I just checked and I was there at least in 04 & 05 (Summit County) and 06 (Aspen). I think I went twice to Aspen but can't find much about my second visit. I heard about MCC. It looks like this year was cancelled? Maybe next year... I found the forums again last year as I was looking for info wrt my boots and bindings. I vaguely remember some names...
I’d love to master carving, as I ride mostly groomers here in the Northeast. I went out today and kept my shoulders level, boy what a difference it makes! This is spot on.
Can‘t wait to try your tips next week, i was looking at so many tutorials how to carve better and my edge always slipped away, i eighter skidded or fell down. Your videos give an entirely different approach, i already changed my duck stance to posi posi and i‘ll try my best, i have a really good feeling because when trying out different stuff the facing forward always felt better even tho many say you need to be parallel to your board
@@cherrycarvesi tried it today. I feel like the most important and gamechanging thing was changing the stance to posi posi and keeping your shoulders level. At first, i couldn't even get my back foot into the binding, at the end of the day, i had no problem riding around. On shallow runs i got a pencil line just with the stance, right rotation and level shoulders. On medium runs i got a quite thin line and on the steep runs (especially because they were icy) i got no carving. I tried all your tips and for the beginning i focused on shoulders and rotation since i felt like it was the most important and those got me to the lines i said above. The biggest problem i feel right now is ice and that the heel side turns arent as nice as the toe side ones. I really love your video, it sounded really promising and not that i've tried what i could try in one day i can say with confidence: your videos are awesome, thank you so much. These are true gems for snowboarding youtube, i really hope these are gonna blow up hard. Also just in case anyone is thinking their board isn't good for carving: I use a farely old burton instigator (flat top, not really flat anymore tho because it is already loosing its tension and sticky because it is already white at the bottom (and yes i've used wax)), so you can probably do it to a certain extent too, it is really so much little technique things that change a lot
Thank you sir for the high level instructional video. I don't ride any ware as good as you but I wanted to be able to carve decently. I hope you get more subs and private lessons request
They recommend 5 to 8-minute TH-cam videos. I think you might want to explain your online private lessons when you get a chance. I want to learn more and sure other views got similar interest. @@cherrycarves
Loved your precious video a lot!! This one is also just awesome as a follow up tutorial. Love the concise explanation and visualization. Absolutely appreciate you sharing your knowledge and expertise with us aspiring wanna-be-future-carvers! Happy riding & Thank you!!
Sweet! Hope I don't regret giving away all my secrets when everybody is carving in five years and all of a sudden groomer days are as busy as powder days...
@@cherrycarves ain't got a whole lot, so sad, warm winds and rain and the occasional white highway down the mountain without real snow... Just got some way up, so with a hike/bike you cam get to touring terrain, but the snowpack-layering is quite tricky... but I haven't given up on it yet, still think we'll get some and snowboard till late April 😄 still hard to fathom the heaps of snow (and the tutorial gap) in front of your house...Have a great season and happy riding
So helpfulll… Thank you so much to share your knowledge with us! I struggle to crunch the right oblique on the toe or heal side… Practice makes it perfect they say!!!
did this drill and by end of the day the carves i was doing destroyed my gloves. expensive hobby this way, got to grab some welders gloves. and in fact pretty much loosened all 8 screws in my bindings, and realized my boots are trashed as well. love it.
48,5 mph toe edge pencil line :-) thank you for your lessons! Today is the ending of season, that was wonderful! P S : sorry for my English, i'm from Russia :-)
I tried the carry tray exercise yesterday - carves were on autopilot - but I've only been carving for decades - goes to show we can always learn something new and HELPFUL! Owe you a beer or two if you are ever up this way....
@@cherrycarves just north of the state of maine in nova scotia - 5 hrs from the border- another great carving day today :) Your dollars worth 35% more up this way
@@cherrycarves I love the way you mix in environmental sounds. When used with Apple Spatial Audio I genuinely feel like I’m there in person as a student. Of course, me not being there saves me from the public embarrassment of jumping out of my skin when Tyler spoke up ….
This is amazing thanks @cherrycarves for these simple drills. I will take 'em to the mountains next weekend :-) I am still using a RaceBoard with hardboots and cant adjust my bindings to the mentioned angles, as my boots would not fit the board anymore and then ... you know what happens in the turn, off you go :-) Front side is easy but i cant reach into the snow on the backside... let's see what your drills will do for me
Not sure it’s the stance, it takes some balls to throw yourself at the mountain without really seeing what is coming your way /-) frontside seems easy😂
I love the holding something drill - since I got my Insta360 camera my carving has improved because I've been riding sometimes with a selfie stick - and this is forcing me to stop my arms going all over the place.
this would make a great movie similar to martial arts ones, where the instructor forces the student to actually use a tray and beer, and spilling the beer is the largest blasphemy possible. doing hours and hours of this drill makes an otherwise struggling kid become the best carver in the world and he defeats the other "dojos" in some world competition and gets the girl..
Amazing drill. Love your teaching method. May I ask you what are your boot angles? Cause I'me a big footer (12 US) and I suffer a lot of toe and hell drag during inclination/angulation on steep slope. Thanks in advance.
I ride from 27/12 up to 39/24 on narrower boards. Only Donek Snowboards will make a waist width over 300mm. Flow makes the lowest profile bindings. Risers from jaseyjay.com (or others) can help too. Bending more in the knees also moderates bootout, but it's less fun.
Amazing, thank you so much for this valuable drills. Sick riding too, you are a goal I strive to reach one day with lots of practice, my riding/carving is pretty bad atm (see 30s clip on my yt channel) but I am hoping with drills like these I can take it to the next level
Yeeah Bro... You're making all the classic mistakes. You're touching your hand on toeside sure but you're breaking at the hips, clamsheling and reaching for the snow. Drop your knees toward the inside of the turn and lean your upper body away from the snow, toward the outside of the turn. Holding the tray (or string) level will correct this. Keep the shoulders level by crunching in the obliques reaching away from the snow and let the snow come to you as you generate enough g-force to lean hard. Work on keeping the track thin, worry about dragging your hand later.
Maybe your bindings are overhanging too much on the heelside? Anyway... on my new board I'm carving 720s now. Haven't got one on video yet, but I have some cool still photos of the tracks.
Thank you very much! Even though that's my first season snowboarding, I'm making a conscious effort to get the hang of carving. For now I'm enjoying a moderate success. Should the piste be a bit harder or icy, I frequently end painfully on my butt... Right in this very moment I'm recovering from a fall three days ago. And being a complete rookie (and 40-years-old at that) I'm thinking maybe my hardware is to at least partially blame. I'd appreciate it if you take a minute to answer my questions: 1. Would you consider a Burton Process Camber board + Burton Swath Step on a combination capable of carving? 2. I'm trying to carve standing sideways on the board, my leading left food is turned only slightly towards the nose of the board and my back (right) foot is perpendicular to the board. Is that also hindering my effort to master the technique? Can one carve sideways? 3. Am I going ahead of myself even considering carving? You can see my (flawed!) technique in the last two shorts of my channel. I'd be more than happy if you'd reply. Thank you!
Great vid! I just watched your 40 minute explanation of carving while on my trip to Austria. Unfortunately I'm back home already wishing I could have tried these drills separately. This is a really important video as those 9 elements can be a lot to remember all at once. I tried it on a wide pow board but you inspired me to get a separate carve board. Coupe you please do a video on the boards you think are best for beginner / intermediate carvers? I was for example looking at the Jones Freecarver 6000s but the boards you showed in this video look very different.
Indeed they are. There's a big difference in performance as well as shape between a custom carving board and a stock production model. Lots of companies make carving specific boards, I use thegoodride.com for basic information and then look at the specs. Get the widest one unless you have tiny feet and then there are more options open to you. The Jones Freecarver looks like a good choice but I would get the 9000, not the 6000. 6m is too small for closed shape carved turns.
Awesome content! I fell in love with pursuing carving and this is exactly what I need to improve! Any tips for gear selections and maintenance particularly to make carving easier?
@dirkholzman5855 It's not about edge angles. That may make a slight difference if you're racing on eastern "hardpack" but board width, stance setup, and technique are much more important.
That depends on where and what you ride. 8.5-9m is common for production carving boards, I prefer a little longer myself. My slowest custom carving board s a 10m, my fastest is a 16m. But really, width underfoot is more important than sidecut radius if you're choosing a production board for carving. Boot out becomes the limiting factor very quickly. Look too at the effective edge length of boards that you're comparing, longer will be more stable.
I have a snowboard trip in one week and can’t wait to try these drills out on the mountain! I’m still trying to find a posi posi stance that feels comfortable, too much + on my hind leg, and I get hip and leg discomfort. BTW, did you ever finish the beer?
Try some inward canting in both bindings coupled with some heel lift in the back foot and toe lift in the front. This might assuage your hip pain. I glue strips of rubber on top of the footbed. Yes the beer is gone, you're too late.
Hi James, you are making the best tutorials on YT. I have seen all your replies about gear, but I can’t find answer to one question. What’s your boots size?
Ha! I wear size 9 driver X. My street shoes are 10s, the smaller performance fit reduces boot out and performs better too. I recommend the smallest size you can wear without pain.
great video as always. One selfish video suggestion is how to progress to carving deeper slopes? i can draw lines in green and blue-ish runs, but i lose grip and cant make right turns in deeper slope😢
Just stumbled upon your videos and digging them. I currently run a never summer swift amd a jones storm wolf. Im thinking of adding a 3 rd board for this exact purpose. What board would you recommend? I wear a size 12 boot and typically ride 162-166 boards.
Oh yeah, I have a board for you! And 29 other lucky riders too. The official announcement is coming within a few days, sign up for the mailing list to be among the first to know...
Another great video! Thank you James! Would you be willing to share more thoughts on what to do with that back knee on the heelside? Seems like you gotta rotate it inward to get the forward stance. But it feels like I'm fighting the back binding (usually set between +18 to +21 degrees). And thanks for the humor!
@ryanallen6092 Cool channel BTW! I wanna get one of those pivoting truck skates in the spring. What's the best one for slow speed carving and pumping through the skatepark?
@@cherrycarves Carver CX truck set. I’ve tried almost all the different surf skate systems and like the CX the most for carving and riding ramps and bowls. Thanks!
That's called chatter, the enemy of the pencil line! Well, that and boot out. The causes range from poor technique to unsuitable equipment, improper setup, and bad surface. All the samr tricks and hints apply, use the stance I suggested and practice the drills...
Hi James, I really improve a lot from your videos. And I have a question. Is about how to carve in a bumpy snow condition. Because here in Japan is hard to find a nicely packed route to carve. Thank you and love your video as always.
Hey James, thank you thank you for making these amazing vids. I’m still a little new to carving in terms of board set up etc. what boards do you recommend for carving (I’m not sure if there are particular brands or specs to look for)? Also, how should the board and bindings sit in terms of boot or binding overhang at those angles?
If you want a production board look at thegoodride.com for reviews and choose one wide enough so that your feet don't overhang at all at +30/+15. If you want the real deal custom go to coiler.com or jaseyjay.com. More on equipment coming in the next video.
i heard you say to do exercises for your obliques for that crunching, what about legs for getting low? Should i be doing squats while waiting to go snowboarding?
I said crunch in the obliques to keep your shoulders level through the whole turn. I recommend a calisthetics program with a focus on the core and legs. Squats and lunges sure, but train your core too so you can absorb the bumps and keep your edge in snow.
Hi James, I have watched your last video 5 times. I went to the slope each time and found ways to improve my riding. It’s one of the videos for the ages. Thank you! I’m now on posi-posi, 30-12 felt more natural to me. I’ve taken my back hand and brought it forward. I’ve been touching the knees. I’ve kept my shoulders level. One thing I’m having trouble doing is carving deep. The edge angle is not nearly as high as yours, even though I’m practicing your tip of “pour the water out”. I’ve been suspecting that I may be going too slow to have a high edge angle. But in your videos, I didn’t see that you needed high speed to achieve a high edge angle. Do you know what I may be doing wrong?
Yes. First, I'm going way faster than it looks in video, but my boards are faster than yours. Focus on balance. Find the position I kept repeating in the secrets video, tip the board up and balance on the edge. Find patience, hold the position and ride the board through the turn. One turn at a time. Video on J-turns coming soon.
Hi James@@cherrycarves, on the topic of stance... I tried posi-posi and really liked it. Specifically, I really liked that I was able to engage my obliques, avoid clamshelling, and gain an additional degree of freedom (fore-aft). I tried 27-12, and my body wants to go more posi to avoid rotation at the hips. Is there any reason I shouldn't set up my bindings at 45-30, or something like that? What do I lose when I go extremely positive? I have a much narrower, old-school board than yours. (I am willing to buy another board if the equipment is holding me up, and I am eagerly waiting for your next video on boards!)
@and497 Ya man. The style in Asia is generally extremely steep stances (like 45/30) and narrower boards. If you like it, do it. The tradeoff to steep stances (or posi-posi in general) is the jump turn and landings from jumps or cliffs. I still ride 18/-6 on my pow/freeride and split boards. I guarantee your equipment is holding you back... No doubt about it. Stay tuned, I'm working on getting boards for everybody!
Great breakdown as usual. Will be trying these drills today. Regarding the end of the video, do you find more stability boots? Does your camera person also use boots? If so...knocking boots!
Hey! Awesome guide, really improved my technique I have a question: what stance degrees do you use and what do u recommend for beginner-intermediate lvl?
I recommend between 27/12 and 33/18 depending on the size of your feet as compared to the width of your board. Same as I ride. I also recommend the JJA boards for sale on carversconnection.com for intermediate riders.
I’m racing this week on my schools race team. No carving board just a normal twin tip. Tips to go faster during my Gs race? Should I be carving like this?
Yes, I often use risers. Palmer risers are good but hard to find in North America. Risers are a good way to mitigate bootout without buying a wider board.
Yeah. Don't try to touch your hand down. Aim to touch your butt down before the hand and keep your hips facing the front of the board on heelside and you shoulders level on both sides. Good luck in the race!
Yeah, I carve rockered NeverSummers all the time. Width is more important than base profile or sidecut for carving, for me anyway because I'm always fighting boot out.
Keeping your shoulders level will help, as well as steering from the hips and exaggerating flexion. Touching the knee on heelside might be tough and put you in an awkward position.
@@cherrycarves Thank you James. I'm on a knapton twin with 12m radius and think I'm finally ready to graduate to a slightly larger waist width and sidecut on my next board. Great videos thanks for making this content.
Holy shit those carves are insane. I've only seen something similar once from a skier who did a U-turn and charged back up the hill towards me. I always wondered how he did it.
@@cherrycarves Thank you so much for your insights. Today, I focused just on keeping the downhill hip pushed forward and centre. I had no idea how far back I was sitting. No wonder my quads were burnt out after one run before. Going into switch and back feels much more stable too. Feels like my upper and lower body is finally done working against each other and I can start skiing properly. Can't wait to figure out how to bring the obliques into the movement and try doing some actual carving. P.S pretty counter intuitive that pulling the leg back is what brings the hip forward. I got lucky and only stumbled onto this feeling while practicing different movements on the chairlift. Surprised how well it worked and focused completely on mastering this instead of the exploring the shoulders. Edit: I'm a skier
@@alant779 Kind of hilarious that even skiers are benefitting from my videos... You're not the only skier who has commented. I'm okay with skiers, just don't try to pass me on the heelside!
@@cherrycarves haha, I'm glad I clicked the video despite it being about snowboarding. Don't worry, I'll ski switch when I see you so we can be blind together. What you said about leaning being similar with skaters and motorcycles resonated with me. Speaking of, I should totally check out what speed skaters do. There are so many parallels.
On toeside yes, the technique is almost identical except the oblique crunch feels more like a cobra position. On heelside though, you'll be limited to green and blue runs. Smooth up un-weighted heelsides without chatter on steeps are very difficult in a duck stance, but green runs are fun too.
@@cherrycarves Gotcha. I noticed that my toeside carves are clean but there's a slight skid in my heelside turns - I never leave a thin pencil line. Guess I've got to adjust my stance if that's my goal. Thanks!
Thank you for the tips. But... The last one, I'm sure it is a , commonly known as, fals friend. I mean, you don't go down to the snow by flexing knees but by tilting on very high angle. I can't put here a screen shot but if you stop frame at the apex, in your film, the legs are almost straight, especially the front.
Yes, mine look straight in the video but that's because I have excellent style and so my kneee bend is almost imperceptible in video on good surface. But now look at my position in the start of The Rant video on chunky snow. In poor conditions I bend my knees a lot more, and I encourage you to bend your knees too if you're learning. Good luck!
No, it's very important, not irrelevant at all. Initiate with your weight more forward on the board (front leg bent and weighted and hips bowing forward), finish with your weight further back (pushing off the back foot). I like to ride my carving boards with my bindings in the front inserts so I don't have to lean so far forward in initiation. Look at the Secrets video, the sections on fore-aft motion for more details. Thanks for being a fan!
Thank you so much! My bindings are placed in the center of the board, (it's not directional) and I think if I put them in the back I'll have more time or space to group my body. I feel like I'm ahead of myself, it's hard to explain.
@@elenajb8479 Definitely experiment and see what works for your body and your style. I find initiation is quicker from the front. Carry a screwdriver; it's best to make changes between runs on the mountain because every day the conditions change and your body may feel different. When I'm testing boards for example I'll bring multiple boards with the exact same bindings and stance ,and switch up every run or two. That way I'm changing only one single element at a time.
If it's not too much abuse... The last question...☺️ Do you think that knee valgus influences driving with positive angles, both in technique and in comfort and joint health? 9° 0° Goofy, my feet are comfortable looking to my left but my trunk is telling me to look up the slope. Gracias!
@elenajb8479 Sorry, I don't want to touch that question. I can't make specific recommendations for individual bodies without seeing video. I can say you're going to have trouble getting smooth heelsides on steeper terrain with that stance. Should work fine on greens though.
Shaka! Thanks man. Let's make some turns together soon! Revelstoke is in great condition right now with only sun and cold in the forecast. Dreamy. The ending wasn't scripted... I can't help it if my heelsides are super sexy!
Great videos, but my position is that it take two things to be a good rider/carver/whatever.... Natural ability and fearlessness. You can watch all the step by step videos in the world and try to remember and execute all steps, but if you're doing so while fearful, with a lack of inherent skill, you're going to have a lot of trouble.
Dude, do you mention getting a giant board specifically designed for carving? Look at that canoe! I’m sure you can on any board but the gear certainly helps.
No doubt! I make no secret of the fact that part of the reason I can do what I do is that I have the best boards in the world right now... There are exactly six builders in the world who will make a 300mm waist, I've had custom boards from five of them. Having said that, all the drills in this video were shot on a production NeverSummer West Bound DF, a stock all-mountain 162cm. The intro however, features custom Coilers and JJAs. Check out coiler.com and jaseyjay.com.
@@cherrycarves you are the first one who thinks the same as me. What is your opinion about the work of the foot of the back leg? On the front edge, press the toe down more and lift it on the back edge.
@@akulsnow My boots and bindings are very stiff. I focus more on the knees and treat my lower leg and ankle as one solid unit, pressuring the boot cuffs.
@@cherrycarves I understood you. I use medium boots to feel more variability, now I’m trying to understand how much I can lay the Ride TwinPig with a radius of 6m. I also started playing with the toe and heel of the back leg, it feels like it helps to cut more
@@akulsnow Right on Vasili. You're gonna need another board, The WarPig is known as good carver but 6m is too small. Try a 9m, maybe something wider. More information on boards coming soon...
Intermediate rider here. I've been watching hundreds of hours of instructional video recently trying to improve my edge control. All I can say is there is no way the views on these videos will do anything but explode. This is REALLY good stuff and I can't wait to try it out. You seriously stand out amongst the rest.
Well thank you very much! Try it out and let me know how it goes!
I tried these today and after a few long runs of doing them, I was able to carve steepers slopes than I had ever done. You sir, are an amazing instructor
That's what I do Bro. Thanks for the tip!
Thank you so much James for your no crap straight to the point carving videos!
You are becoming a hero to many snowboarders around the world!
Keep up the great work!!!
Thank you for the cash and the very kind words too!
seriously underrated. for learning carving this is one of the best channels out there. way better content than those popular channels! To the point and no BS👍
Yup. That's how I dooze it!
James! The best snowboard teacher ever! I tried your instructions from the previous video yesterday. I improved lots! I could really feel it. And my friend who was taking a lesson from a private coach, said to me, "I think you are better than my coach. Can you teach me?"
Bro your one video changed my skill in one day. boom! just like that!
This video makes more sense now. I'm going to practice more from that and now try more from this video.
Tipped $10 brother! Thanks for such an awesome video!
Btw, I've never tipped any youtubers ever. You are the only one and I tipped twice. I'm so happy!
Lots love and respect James!
Too easy... I should have kept more secrets to myself! Pretty soon everybody will be riding like me and I'm gonna have to start getting up early on groomer days so I can get first tracks on the fresh corduroy!
Thanks for the tips Bro. Enjoy your carves!
@@cherrycarvesget up early? Nah
@@brianp9268 Who are you? How do you know that about me? It's very true, I won't waste your time with denials...
James is a top notch rider and his videos are the best instructional ones out there. He deserves every ounce of respect and kudos.
Thanks Russ. You're still my biggest fan and my only follower on ASB...
After years of frustration, a couple of weeks of using your drills, modifying posture and binding angle as per your advice, made a huge difference in my snowboarding experience. I still have a long way to go, but I think I finally know what I have to do for those pencil lines. I watch your last 2 videos and drill at home daily. Can't get enough of your expertise. You make it simple to understand. Thank you so very much.
You're welcome! That's what I do!
Looking forward to that confused look from behind the rental counter after I tell them to set the bindings to posi 27 and 12!
Love the videos. Watched every one, especially the 42 minute Secrets of Carving. So much packed into that one.
Thanks for helping this 55 year old lifelong surfer (now taking up snowboarding) try to unlearn all the bad habits- slarving turns, flailing/trailing back hand, you name it and I probably do it.
Keep them trays level, everyone!
Excellent! Shop around for a rental board, find the widest one you can (probably a NeverSummer DF model).
@@cherrycarves thanks for that tip. It's already difficult enough to learn making only about two trips a season (if I'm lucky) to the mountains, which is about 6 total days of riding. Having said that, I never get tired of seeing the views from the top and that alone keeps me going back for more.
@@TheHappyHaole Nice!
Brother James, my name is Seal, (I’m the recording artist known as). I love what you teach and the candour with which you do it. thank you for your ‘no-nonsense’ tutorials. They help a great deal. ✌🏾&💜
Wow, for real? This is my closest brush with celebrity since Craig Kelly signed my hat in 1989!
Respect, man. My father was a huge fan in the 90's. I was listening to the Pixies and the Pumpkins myself back then, punk kid skater/snowboarder.
I just came back from Val Thorens too. Would love to meet more carvers that regular there. But seems most carver events in Europe are in Switzerland :(
Awesome! I don't have any social media except TH-cam and of course the alpine snowboard forum... Email me please. The address is in the start of the Drills video.
I have been really focusing on carving the past couple of years and i get it right on mellow slopes but could not get it together on steeper stuff and just could not figure out what i was doing wrong. I think you just revealed the key so i am excited to try these drills
Ya man. It's all open source now...
Fantastic advice. I started snowboarding in the early '90s, and it was so different, as you mentioned in another video. I'm getting back into it with our kids, and in the videos that are available now, the dudes are riding boards barely wider than the width of their shoulders and just linking butters. THIS is the riding advice I'm after. Thank you.
You're welcome!
Looking forward to trying these! The ending was great LOL!
That was unscripted. I had to beg my wife to let me keep in it. (I mean the dialogue at the end of the video, not the other thing.)
Your videos are the best…true carving, exceptionally well explained. I’m also a guy from the time when carving was the real deal…in the early 90s…never had someone who explained it as good as you do…we just kinda did it until it worked :-) The Tray-Drill is perfect. I told my 12years old son to try this and he had immediate results, especially on heelside,
Thx a lot 👌
Right on! I used to start every morning with the tray drill...
Thank you for this! I was having trouble not side-slipping on the heel edge after switching to a posi-posi stance and tucking the back knee even more is what made it click for me.
Nice! Love comments like this!
Can I ask why posi posi helps with the heel edge? I always slipped on my heel edge, and just switched to posi posi.
@and497 Yeah... The posi-posi stance allows your hips to face the front of the board on heelside. It also allows you to pressure the heel edge between the bindings by dropping the back knee in that direction in heelside.
But honestly, the "why" is unimportant. "That" it works is the key.
Do it for a few runs and feel how it smooths out those fast heelside turns.
I was previously riding with 24F 3R and have changed it to 27F 9R and have found it to be more comfortable on my back leg when riding, steering, and absorbing shocks. I would have never thought. Thanks for sharing.
Yup. That's how we dooze it!
Your hand to knee drills and tray drills helped me correct my posture for my heel side carves which I had so much issues with! And switching to +12 +27 as well made my knees much happier and the carves so much better. I’m finally starting my journey towards pencil line carves. Going to be a long journey ahead to be able to do it on steeps. But at least I’m finally getting there on greens. Thanks for sharing, really appreciate it!
You're welcome! For the steeps you'll likely want a better board. Watch this space, an announcement is coming soon.
@@cherrycarves hmmm Stranda sponsorship maybe?
@@saltycoke Hahaha... No. Way better...
Thanks so much for putting these videos out there. I started riding in the late 80’s but was absent for most of 2000-2020 with only a few days out during that time. Last two seasons I’ve been getting out more consistently and all I want to do is carve like you! The drills in this video were super easy to remember and apply on my last two day trip to the mountains. I can’t wait for more of your content. Keep it up!
Very cool! Gotta love that feeling when the board digs in deep. Filming part 2 this weekend...
Thanks for both your snowboarding expertise and my go-to insomnia therapy… Good stuff, brother.
Oohhh... You're gonna like the rant at bed time tonight!
Kia ora James. Its off season here in NZ, but great to see this video. I'm 52 years old and this is how we learnt to snowboard back in 1989 as instructors. Had a break for a number of years and I have been second guessing my technique since, so great to have you reaffirming... worked out that the boards back then where so much stiffer so we had to ride this way. Still have an old Burton M5 with hard boots that I go for a spin on once and a while.
Haha... You must have some balls on you Simon. Those old boards scare the hell out of me. The M series was certainly a little friendlier but those PJs and Factory Primes were monsters, so hard to tame. Try something with Titanal and rubber in it, you'll see how easy carving has become...
@@cherrycarves How about doing a video on boards and soft boots ? I had a Burton Prime and tried to learn carving on it. I never got off the beginner slopes. What is a good setup these days ?
@@SomeTechGuy666 Videos on gear coming soon...
thank you for the video, saved to watch on the slope
Nice. Something to do on the chairlift. Bring a few feet of twine up in your pocket...
Awesome! Tried keeping my shoukders level after watching your previous video: wow, what an overall improvement! Thanks man!
Right? Carving is not that hard, there just aren't a lot of good instructors. Yet.
this is awesome, snowboarders need something like this as skiers had
Right?
Thank you very much for the awesome drills Sensei! Looking forward to trying these drills! 😊
Seito! Glad you're back for more. Keep those shoulders level!
@@cherrycarvesFYI Sensei, there is carving competition in Japan.
th-cam.com/video/rLG4IAB1K1w/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUe5pel5pys44Kr44O844OT44Oz44Kw44CA5aSn5Lya
Great exercises, thank you! ❤
Amazing lesson. Going to try this drills next time on a hill. Thank you!
Right on! Good luck!
That's very good content in my opinion. So much other content seems to be about getting as low as possible without much info about the fundamentals. I wish your videos existed when I got into carving. They would have saved me a lot of trial and error. But TH-cam didn't exist back then😂... Even the Internet!
I attended a few SES events in the late 2000s. The tray exercise reminded me of the tip we got from some racers about "carrying" a virtual frame ahead of us. The hands were a bit higher from what I remember but that might have been racing focused too.
I'm glad to see so many comments and likes on the videos, which would indicate there's still interest in carving. I wouldn't know it from riding on my local hills as I've seen less than a handful of fellow carvers in the last 10 years.
I also appreciate your style if these videos are indicative of how you are riding on your own (not for instructional purposes). I aim for something relaxed myself (some examples on my channel).
Last season was a record for me with 13 sessions. I usually get half that so I can barely maintain my level. I'll keep this video as a guideline for upcoming seasons. Hopefully, I'll get back quicker to my base level!
Yesterday was session #2 this year and my sore obliques agree with your guidance in the secrets video 😂.
I'm somewhat mind blown with your equipment though. Your setup is quite different from mine (165 Madd, 18cm waist, 65-55 angles). I've never ridden in anything but hardboots on alpine boards (all the way to Skwal) so this would be quite a change. The closest I've tried are the Swoard boards ridden by the EC folks that came to SES and I felt awkward transitioning edge to edge on something that wide.
I wish my videos existed when I started too...
I used to learn a lot at the SES and other sessions too, now I teach a clinic at the Montucky Clear Cut. If you haven't heard of it, look it up! You'll fit right in! montuckyclearcut.com
Cool videos. Did you know the old Bomber forum is now at aplinesnowboarder.com? Some of your old friends from SES are still active I'm sure.
@@cherrycarves, which SES did you attend? I don't think we met. I just checked and I was there at least in 04 & 05 (Summit County) and 06 (Aspen). I think I went twice to Aspen but can't find much about my second visit.
I heard about MCC. It looks like this year was cancelled? Maybe next year...
I found the forums again last year as I was looking for info wrt my boots and bindings. I vaguely remember some names...
@@ericperlcarves SES Aspen 2009 or 2010, and ATC Aspen 2017. MCC 2019, 2020, 2022. Other smaller events too.
I’d love to master carving, as I ride mostly groomers here in the Northeast. I went out today and kept my shoulders level, boy what a difference it makes! This is spot on.
Right? Carving isn't that hard, it turns out ..
Can‘t wait to try your tips next week, i was looking at so many tutorials how to carve better and my edge always slipped away, i eighter skidded or fell down. Your videos give an entirely different approach, i already changed my duck stance to posi posi and i‘ll try my best, i have a really good feeling because when trying out different stuff the facing forward always felt better even tho many say you need to be parallel to your board
Right on! Let me know how it goes!
@@cherrycarvesi tried it today. I feel like the most important and gamechanging thing was changing the stance to posi posi and keeping your shoulders level. At first, i couldn't even get my back foot into the binding, at the end of the day, i had no problem riding around. On shallow runs i got a pencil line just with the stance, right rotation and level shoulders. On medium runs i got a quite thin line and on the steep runs (especially because they were icy) i got no carving. I tried all your tips and for the beginning i focused on shoulders and rotation since i felt like it was the most important and those got me to the lines i said above. The biggest problem i feel right now is ice and that the heel side turns arent as nice as the toe side ones.
I really love your video, it sounded really promising and not that i've tried what i could try in one day i can say with confidence: your videos are awesome, thank you so much. These are true gems for snowboarding youtube, i really hope these are gonna blow up hard.
Also just in case anyone is thinking their board isn't good for carving: I use a farely old burton instigator (flat top, not really flat anymore tho because it is already loosing its tension and sticky because it is already white at the bottom (and yes i've used wax)), so you can probably do it to a certain extent too, it is really so much little technique things that change a lot
Thank you sir for the high level instructional video. I don't ride any ware as good as you but I wanted to be able to carve decently. I hope you get more subs and private lessons request
Thanks! Best of luck in those nerf gun wars!
Can't thank you enough for such valuable information!
You're welcome!
Tried #1 and #2 last week but forgot to change my bindings to +27 +12. Already saw huge improvements. Thank you !
Wicked!
Hi James, Thank you for the great lessons. I love your simple-to-follow drills and can't wait to try them on the snow.
Turns out they're the same drills as in the Secrets video. People weren't making it all way through that one so I made a condensed version.
thanks @@cherrycarves , i got lost on the Secrets video too :-)
@@JuergMaier Too much information, I know.
They recommend 5 to 8-minute TH-cam videos. I think you might want to explain your online private lessons when you get a chance. I want to learn more and sure other views got similar interest. @@cherrycarves
Loved your precious video a lot!! This one is also just awesome as a follow up tutorial. Love the concise explanation and visualization. Absolutely appreciate you sharing your knowledge and expertise with us aspiring wanna-be-future-carvers! Happy riding & Thank you!!
Sweet! Hope I don't regret giving away all my secrets when everybody is carving in five years and all of a sudden groomer days are as busy as powder days...
@@cherrycarves 😆 I am TRYING to carve little slopes in Germany, so nothing to worry there 😉
@t.blaschke7461 Oh good. How's the snow this season?
@@cherrycarves ain't got a whole lot, so sad, warm winds and rain and the occasional white highway down the mountain without real snow... Just got some way up, so with a hike/bike you cam get to touring terrain, but the snowpack-layering is quite tricky... but I haven't given up on it yet, still think we'll get some and snowboard till late April 😄 still hard to fathom the heaps of snow (and the tutorial gap) in front of your house...Have a great season and happy riding
Thanks James will take these drills to use asap. I’ll lyk how it goes
Sweet!
So helpfulll… Thank you so much to share your knowledge with us! I struggle to crunch the right oblique on the toe or heal side… Practice makes it perfect they say!!!
Focus on the level shoulders, the oblique will crunch itself.
did this drill and by end of the day the carves i was doing destroyed my gloves. expensive hobby this way, got to grab some welders gloves.
and in fact pretty much loosened all 8 screws in my bindings, and realized my boots are trashed as well. love it.
Yup... carving will push your gear to its limits for sure
this is the best lesson!
thank you!
i will try it at rhe mountain
Enjoy!
@@cherrycarves already 40mph
48,5 mph
toe edge pencil line :-)
thank you for your lessons!
Today is the ending of season, that was wonderful!
P S : sorry for my English, i'm from Russia :-)
@harveisterharveister3830 Nice! That's fast!
We still have snow at higher elevations, if it stays cold I'll be riding for two more weeks.
Nice lesson and cabin. 71 years old and like to carve 8 runs twice a week. Actually just getting into carving instead of skidding or whatever.
That's no cabin, that's my barn! 8 runs twice a week sounds lovely
I tried the carry tray exercise yesterday - carves were on autopilot - but I've only been carving for decades - goes to show we can always learn something new and HELPFUL! Owe you a beer or two if you are ever up this way....
Awesome! Where you at? I like beer.
@@cherrycarves just north of the state of maine in nova scotia - 5 hrs from the border- another great carving day today :) Your dollars worth 35% more up this way
@@gboates Not my usual stomping grounds, but I did see that NS got dumped on recently!
Love your videos James. Thank you. I've been riding 30/9 but will switch it up to 30/12 on the next outing.
Awesome end! 😂
Do it! I don't notice a difference between 12 and 15 degrees, but if I go down to 9 in the back foot the extra chatter is very noticeable.
The rooster was the best. 🐓💪
And, yes: that's including the ending. 😉
That's Tyler. He's part of the family.
@@cherrycarves I love the way you mix in environmental sounds. When used with Apple Spatial Audio I genuinely feel like I’m there in person as a student.
Of course, me not being there saves me from the public embarrassment of jumping out of my skin when Tyler spoke up ….
@@kuanjuliu Funny... I wasn't trying to mix in environmental sounds, that rooster just won't shut up!
@@cherrycarves Lol, love the cat, the rooster ….
This is amazing thanks @cherrycarves for these simple drills. I will take 'em to the mountains next weekend :-) I am still using a RaceBoard with hardboots and cant adjust my bindings to the mentioned angles, as my boots would not fit the board anymore and then ... you know what happens in the turn, off you go :-) Front side is easy but i cant reach into the snow on the backside... let's see what your drills will do for me
The drills and body positions are identical but not the stance. I recommend 60/55 for hardboots, or 55/50 if your board is a little wider.
Not sure it’s the stance, it takes some balls to throw yourself at the mountain without really seeing what is coming your way /-) frontside seems easy😂
@JuergMaier Oh yeah, it's committing on steeps for sure. Feel it out on green runs first and keep your shoulders level.
I love the holding something drill - since I got my Insta360 camera my carving has improved because I've been riding sometimes with a selfie stick - and this is forcing me to stop my arms going all over the place.
Nice! These drills work for real, I've seen them tune up intermediate carvers' riding in just a few runs.
Perfect!
My fear of spilling beer may be greater than my fear when riding.
Lol!
this would make a great movie similar to martial arts ones, where the instructor forces the student to actually use a tray and beer, and spilling the beer is the largest blasphemy possible. doing hours and hours of this drill makes an otherwise struggling kid become the best carver in the world and he defeats the other "dojos" in some world competition and gets the girl..
Amazing drill. Love your teaching method.
May I ask you what are your boot angles?
Cause I'me a big footer (12 US) and I suffer a lot of toe and hell drag during inclination/angulation on steep slope.
Thanks in advance.
I ride from 27/12 up to 39/24 on narrower boards. Only Donek Snowboards will make a waist width over 300mm. Flow makes the lowest profile bindings. Risers from jaseyjay.com (or others) can help too. Bending more in the knees also moderates bootout, but it's less fun.
Amazing, thank you so much for this valuable drills. Sick riding too, you are a goal I strive to reach one day with lots of practice, my riding/carving is pretty bad atm (see 30s clip on my yt channel) but I am hoping with drills like these I can take it to the next level
Yeeah Bro... You're making all the classic mistakes. You're touching your hand on toeside sure but you're breaking at the hips, clamsheling and reaching for the snow. Drop your knees toward the inside of the turn and lean your upper body away from the snow, toward the outside of the turn. Holding the tray (or string) level will correct this. Keep the shoulders level by crunching in the obliques reaching away from the snow and let the snow come to you as you generate enough g-force to lean hard. Work on keeping the track thin, worry about dragging your hand later.
I can do a frontside 360 turn, but I can't get anywhere near as much angle as you on the backside turn. That backside 360 turn is super impressive!
Maybe your bindings are overhanging too much on the heelside?
Anyway... on my new board I'm carving 720s now. Haven't got one on video yet, but I have some cool still photos of the tracks.
@cherrycarves No, I don't have a problem with toe or heel drag. I have a ride superpig, which is super wide but not a dedicated carving board.
@aerickvesereu1796 I wrote a carved 360 tutorial, maybe it will help? carversconnection.com/community/carving-technique/how-to-carve-a-360/
LOL THE ENDING KILLED ME
She's so impatient, but it's not her fault. I just look so sexy in those pants...
Thank you very much! Even though that's my first season snowboarding, I'm making a conscious effort to get the hang of carving. For now I'm enjoying a moderate success. Should the piste be a bit harder or icy, I frequently end painfully on my butt... Right in this very moment I'm recovering from a fall three days ago. And being a complete rookie (and 40-years-old at that) I'm thinking maybe my hardware is to at least partially blame. I'd appreciate it if you take a minute to answer my questions:
1. Would you consider a Burton Process Camber board + Burton Swath Step on a combination capable of carving?
2. I'm trying to carve standing sideways on the board, my leading left food is turned only slightly towards the nose of the board and my back (right) foot is perpendicular to the board. Is that also hindering my effort to master the technique? Can one carve sideways?
3. Am I going ahead of myself even considering carving? You can see my (flawed!) technique in the last two shorts of my channel.
I'd be more than happy if you'd reply. Thank you!
1. Capable yes, high performance no.
2. Change your stance to +27/+12 for best results.
3.You're ready to start learning to carve, saw the videos.
Thank you!
Great vid! I just watched your 40 minute explanation of carving while on my trip to Austria. Unfortunately I'm back home already wishing I could have tried these drills separately.
This is a really important video as those 9 elements can be a lot to remember all at once.
I tried it on a wide pow board but you inspired me to get a separate carve board. Coupe you please do a video on the boards you think are best for beginner / intermediate carvers?
I was for example looking at the Jones Freecarver 6000s but the boards you showed in this video look very different.
Indeed they are. There's a big difference in performance as well as shape between a custom carving board and a stock production model.
Lots of companies make carving specific boards, I use thegoodride.com for basic information and then look at the specs. Get the widest one unless you have tiny feet and then there are more options open to you.
The Jones Freecarver looks like a good choice but I would get the 9000, not the 6000. 6m is too small for closed shape carved turns.
Now, I'm imagine doing what I love holding a beer tray.
Right? Combine two of your favourite activities!
Thank you!
No sweat. That's what I do (at least until conditions improve...).
fantastic
Thank you! Cheers!
:-)) as they say "watch till the end" :-))
It was either that or an outtake reel...
good stuff thanks bru
helpful, nice tips 👍👍
Cool, thanks
Love the ending…
Yeah, we have fun...
Fantastic videos. What happens on icy runs ? Any advice for those conditions ?
Stay home. Ice is scary.
Awesome content! I fell in love with pursuing carving and this is exactly what I need to improve! Any tips for gear selections and maintenance particularly to make carving easier?
Yes. Videos on gear coming soon. I'll leave the maintenance stuff to others, my expertise is in carving and teaching carving.
Looking forward to it! Wasn’t sure if you tune your edge angles differently at all?
@dirkholzman5855 It's not about edge angles. That may make a slight difference if you're racing on eastern "hardpack" but board width, stance setup, and technique are much more important.
the ending lol
Yeah, that video is private...
Is a 8.5 a good side cut for a carving board?
That depends on where and what you ride. 8.5-9m is common for production carving boards, I prefer a little longer myself. My slowest custom carving board s a 10m, my fastest is a 16m.
But really, width underfoot is more important than sidecut radius if you're choosing a production board for carving. Boot out becomes the limiting factor very quickly. Look too at the effective edge length of boards that you're comparing, longer will be more stable.
James, I need to know your thoughts on Burton Step On bindings from a daily all-purpose setup!
I don't know, I haven't tried them. Ask that question at carversconnection.com, you'll likely get some informed opinions there.
I have a snowboard trip in one week and can’t wait to try these drills out on the mountain! I’m still trying to find a posi posi stance that feels comfortable, too much + on my hind leg, and I get hip and leg discomfort. BTW, did you ever finish the beer?
Try some inward canting in both bindings coupled with some heel lift in the back foot and toe lift in the front. This might assuage your hip pain. I glue strips of rubber on top of the footbed.
Yes the beer is gone, you're too late.
Hi James, you are making the best tutorials on YT. I have seen all your replies about gear, but I can’t find answer to one question.
What’s your boots size?
Ha! I wear size 9 driver X. My street shoes are 10s, the smaller performance fit reduces boot out and performs better too. I recommend the smallest size you can wear without pain.
Hi James
Great video!! I will try it out after I get the right carve board. Can you tell me the name of the board you used in this video. Thank you
Sure. In the intro I'm riding Jasey-Jay Anderson's boards, in the drills it's a NeverSummer West Bound DF.
great video as always. One selfish video suggestion is how to progress to carving deeper slopes? i can draw lines in green and blue-ish runs, but i lose grip and cant make right turns in deeper slope😢
The technique doesn't change. If you're struggling on steeper slopes improve your technique and/or buy better equipment.
@@cherrycarves thanks for the advice!
Just stumbled upon your videos and digging them. I currently run a never summer swift amd a jones storm wolf. Im thinking of adding a 3 rd board for this exact purpose. What board would you recommend? I wear a size 12 boot and typically ride 162-166 boards.
Oh yeah, I have a board for you! And 29 other lucky riders too. The official announcement is coming within a few days, sign up for the mailing list to be among the first to know...
I ❤the rooster
That's Tyler. We ate all the other roosters.
Another great video! Thank you James! Would you be willing to share more thoughts on what to do with that back knee on the heelside? Seems like you gotta rotate it inward to get the forward stance. But it feels like I'm fighting the back binding (usually set between +18 to +21 degrees). And thanks for the humor!
Try some inward canting in the back binding, as well as some lift under the back heel.
@@cherrycarves Thanks, will do!
@@great_lakes_ryan More on this in Part II of the "Secrets" series. Coming soon...
@ryanallen6092 Cool channel BTW! I wanna get one of those pivoting truck skates in the spring. What's the best one for slow speed carving and pumping through the skatepark?
@@cherrycarves Carver CX truck set. I’ve tried almost all the different surf skate systems and like the CX the most for carving and riding ramps and bowls. Thanks!
Great tutorial video!!! Question: How do you avoid the "rattling" of the board during backhand turns? Any tricks or hints? Or what is the cause of it?
That's called chatter, the enemy of the pencil line! Well, that and boot out. The causes range from poor technique to unsuitable equipment, improper setup, and bad surface.
All the samr tricks and hints apply, use the stance I suggested and practice the drills...
Hi James, I really improve a lot from your videos. And I have a question. Is about how to carve in a bumpy snow condition. Because here in Japan is hard to find a nicely packed route to carve. Thank you and love your video as always.
Same techniques, it's just twice the work and half the fun. Lots of extra flexion/compression when the surface is rough or icy.
Hey James, thank you thank you for making these amazing vids. I’m still a little new to carving in terms of board set up etc. what boards do you recommend for carving (I’m not sure if there are particular brands or specs to look for)? Also, how should the board and bindings sit in terms of boot or binding overhang at those angles?
If you want a production board look at thegoodride.com for reviews and choose one wide enough so that your feet don't overhang at all at +30/+15. If you want the real deal custom go to coiler.com or jaseyjay.com. More on equipment coming in the next video.
i heard you say to do exercises for your obliques for that crunching, what about legs for getting low? Should i be doing squats while waiting to go snowboarding?
I said crunch in the obliques to keep your shoulders level through the whole turn.
I recommend a calisthetics program with a focus on the core and legs. Squats and lunges sure, but train your core too so you can absorb the bumps and keep your edge in snow.
ill try next time，im wondering if my swallow tail board can do the same
Only one way to find out! Probably yes, but every board has it's limits.
I have found my master. Wax on wax off, my frens.....
Hahaha
Hi James, I have watched your last video 5 times. I went to the slope each time and found ways to improve my riding. It’s one of the videos for the ages. Thank you!
I’m now on posi-posi, 30-12 felt more natural to me. I’ve taken my back hand and brought it forward. I’ve been touching the knees. I’ve kept my shoulders level.
One thing I’m having trouble doing is carving deep. The edge angle is not nearly as high as yours, even though I’m practicing your tip of “pour the water out”.
I’ve been suspecting that I may be going too slow to have a high edge angle. But in your videos, I didn’t see that you needed high speed to achieve a high edge angle.
Do you know what I may be doing wrong?
Yes. First, I'm going way faster than it looks in video, but my boards are faster than yours.
Focus on balance. Find the position I kept repeating in the secrets video, tip the board up and balance on the edge. Find patience, hold the position and ride the board through the turn. One turn at a time. Video on J-turns coming soon.
Hi James@@cherrycarves, on the topic of stance... I tried posi-posi and really liked it. Specifically, I really liked that I was able to engage my obliques, avoid clamshelling, and gain an additional degree of freedom (fore-aft). I tried 27-12, and my body wants to go more posi to avoid rotation at the hips. Is there any reason I shouldn't set up my bindings at 45-30, or something like that? What do I lose when I go extremely positive? I have a much narrower, old-school board than yours. (I am willing to buy another board if the equipment is holding me up, and I am eagerly waiting for your next video on boards!)
@and497 Ya man. The style in Asia is generally extremely steep stances (like 45/30) and narrower boards. If you like it, do it. The tradeoff to steep stances (or posi-posi in general) is the jump turn and landings from jumps or cliffs. I still ride 18/-6 on my pow/freeride and split boards.
I guarantee your equipment is holding you back... No doubt about it. Stay tuned, I'm working on getting boards for everybody!
@@cherrycarvesI can’t wait to see your upcoming video on board selection for carving! Appreciate your response.
Great breakdown as usual. Will be trying these drills today.
Regarding the end of the video, do you find more stability boots? Does your camera person also use boots? If so...knocking boots!
Yeah, that video is private...
So is there a preference with jay boards over a donek? Being they both custom build?
Huge difference, due to materials and design. JJA is faster, smoother and holds a turn better. Much much better...
Hey! Awesome guide, really improved my technique
I have a question: what stance degrees do you use and what do u recommend for beginner-intermediate lvl?
I recommend between 27/12 and 33/18 depending on the size of your feet as compared to the width of your board. Same as I ride.
I also recommend the JJA boards for sale on carversconnection.com for intermediate riders.
I’m racing this week on my schools race team. No carving board just a normal twin tip. Tips to go faster during my Gs race? Should I be carving like this?
Racing technique is slightly different but carving is carving so practice the drills and keep those shoulders level!
I want to see you holding the kitten in the tray next time =D
There's a no fondling clause in Smokey's contract... He doesn't mind nudity though.
James, have you ever used binding risers (Palmer riser plates for example) on a narrow board and what is your opinion on using those?
Yes, I often use risers. Palmer risers are good but hard to find in North America. Risers are a good way to mitigate bootout without buying a wider board.
I’m doing this but can’t get that low especially on my heel edge to touch snow with hand. Any ideas? Or quick tips to be faster for my gs race?
Yeah. Don't try to touch your hand down. Aim to touch your butt down before the hand and keep your hips facing the front of the board on heelside and you shoulders level on both sides. Good luck in the race!
❤
Would you say it's possible to try it with a medium Flex rocker board or should I buy a new board immediately?
Yeah, I carve rockered NeverSummers all the time. Width is more important than base profile or sidecut for carving, for me anyway because I'm always fighting boot out.
Is there any way we can do this drill in duck feet stance?
Keeping your shoulders level will help, as well as steering from the hips and exaggerating flexion. Touching the knee on heelside might be tough and put you in an awkward position.
Hahah nice ending. What's the sidecut radius on that board?
Which one? There are 5 different boards in this video.
@@cherrycarves Thanks for clarifying. The one at 0:25 to 0:35 was where I was curious.
@durial702 that's a Jasey-Jay Anderson TCX 171cm with a 15m radius
@@cherrycarves Thank you James. I'm on a knapton twin with 12m radius and think I'm finally ready to graduate to a slightly larger waist width and sidecut on my next board. Great videos thanks for making this content.
@@durial702 Sign up for the mailing list. The board you want will be available soon, quantities are limited.
Holy shit those carves are insane. I've only seen something similar once from a skier who did a U-turn and charged back up the hill towards me. I always wondered how he did it.
Level shoulders and a lot of practice!
@@cherrycarves Thank you so much for your insights. Today, I focused just on keeping the downhill hip pushed forward and centre. I had no idea how far back I was sitting. No wonder my quads were burnt out after one run before. Going into switch and back feels much more stable too. Feels like my upper and lower body is finally done working against each other and I can start skiing properly.
Can't wait to figure out how to bring the obliques into the movement and try doing some actual carving.
P.S pretty counter intuitive that pulling the leg back is what brings the hip forward. I got lucky and only stumbled onto this feeling while practicing different movements on the chairlift. Surprised how well it worked and focused completely on mastering this instead of the exploring the shoulders.
Edit: I'm a skier
@@alant779 Kind of hilarious that even skiers are benefitting from my videos... You're not the only skier who has commented.
I'm okay with skiers, just don't try to pass me on the heelside!
@@cherrycarves haha, I'm glad I clicked the video despite it being about snowboarding. Don't worry, I'll ski switch when I see you so we can be blind together.
What you said about leaning being similar with skaters and motorcycles resonated with me. Speaking of, I should totally check out what speed skaters do. There are so many parallels.
I ride slightly duck-footed because it's comfortable for my knees. Is it possible to use these techniques without a posi-posi stance?
On toeside yes, the technique is almost identical except the oblique crunch feels more like a cobra position. On heelside though, you'll be limited to green and blue runs. Smooth up un-weighted heelsides without chatter on steeps are very difficult in a duck stance, but green runs are fun too.
@@cherrycarves Gotcha. I noticed that my toeside carves are clean but there's a slight skid in my heelside turns - I never leave a thin pencil line. Guess I've got to adjust my stance if that's my goal. Thanks!
Thank you for the tips. But... The last one, I'm sure it is a , commonly known as, fals friend. I mean, you don't go down to the snow by flexing knees but by tilting on very high angle. I can't put here a screen shot but if you stop frame at the apex, in your film, the legs are almost straight, especially the front.
Yes, mine look straight in the video but that's because I have excellent style and so my kneee bend is almost imperceptible in video on good surface. But now look at my position in the start of The Rant video on chunky snow. In poor conditions I bend my knees a lot more, and I encourage you to bend your knees too if you're learning. Good luck!
What angles are you bindings set?
It changes regularly but for carving it's generally around +30/+15
The board is one of the most important on your setup and your level.
I am in japan and it's so hard to find grommer. Will this technic work in ungroomed terrain?
Kind of, but it's way more fun on smooth surface. I say try it out! See if it feels good to you.
For some reason the lodge staff chased me to the lift to get their tray back. At least they let me chugg my beer
Yeah, that's what the backpack is for... And then just ride the tray on the second run!
Thanks for the explanations!! I'm a fan! Do you think you should carry more weight on your back leg? Or is it irrelevant for carving?😊
No, it's very important, not irrelevant at all. Initiate with your weight more forward on the board (front leg bent and weighted and hips bowing forward), finish with your weight further back (pushing off the back foot). I like to ride my carving boards with my bindings in the front inserts so I don't have to lean so far forward in initiation. Look at the Secrets video, the sections on fore-aft motion for more details.
Thanks for being a fan!
Thank you so much!
My bindings are placed in the center of the board, (it's not directional) and I think if I put them in the back I'll have more time or space to group my body.
I feel like I'm ahead of myself, it's hard to explain.
@@elenajb8479 Definitely experiment and see what works for your body and your style. I find initiation is quicker from the front.
Carry a screwdriver; it's best to make changes between runs on the mountain because every day the conditions change and your body may feel different.
When I'm testing boards for example I'll bring multiple boards with the exact same bindings and stance ,and switch up every run or two. That way I'm changing only one single element at a time.
If it's not too much abuse...
The last question...☺️
Do you think that knee valgus influences driving with positive angles, both in technique and in comfort and joint health?
9° 0° Goofy, my feet are comfortable looking to my left but my trunk is telling me to look up the slope.
Gracias!
@elenajb8479 Sorry, I don't want to touch that question. I can't make specific recommendations for individual bodies without seeing video.
I can say you're going to have trouble getting smooth heelsides on steeper terrain with that stance. Should work fine on greens though.
Thanks James (and love the ‘let’s have sex right here”😂😂)
Shaka! Thanks man. Let's make some turns together soon! Revelstoke is in great condition right now with only sun and cold in the forecast. Dreamy.
The ending wasn't scripted... I can't help it if my heelsides are super sexy!
Great videos, but my position is that it take two things to be a good rider/carver/whatever.... Natural ability and fearlessness. You can watch all the step by step videos in the world and try to remember and execute all steps, but if you're doing so while fearful, with a lack of inherent skill, you're going to have a lot of trouble.
Definitely takes balls and a willingness to commit, but technique also helps...
Dude, do you mention getting a giant board specifically designed for carving? Look at that canoe! I’m sure you can on any board but the gear certainly helps.
No doubt! I make no secret of the fact that part of the reason I can do what I do is that I have the best boards in the world right now... There are exactly six builders in the world who will make a 300mm waist, I've had custom boards from five of them.
Having said that, all the drills in this video were shot on a production NeverSummer West Bound DF, a stock all-mountain 162cm. The intro however, features custom Coilers and JJAs. Check out coiler.com and jaseyjay.com.
Thats right!
Of course it is!
@@cherrycarves you are the first one who thinks the same as me. What is your opinion about the work of the foot of the back leg? On the front edge, press the toe down more and lift it on the back edge.
@@akulsnow My boots and bindings are very stiff. I focus more on the knees and treat my lower leg and ankle as one solid unit, pressuring the boot cuffs.
@@cherrycarves I understood you. I use medium boots to feel more variability, now I’m trying to understand how much I can lay the Ride TwinPig with a radius of 6m. I also started playing with the toe and heel of the back leg, it feels like it helps to cut more
@@akulsnow Right on Vasili. You're gonna need another board, The WarPig is known as good carver but 6m is too small. Try a 9m, maybe something wider. More information on boards coming soon...