bindings - flow-ins

Cheers Boardbiker,

that's food for thought. gonna get a pair for the missus too. She is a little behind me in terms of experience (though I'm no expert) so not sure if the added flex will be a benefit or a hindrance to either of us, but a mate who is of similar ability swears by them.

I found the strapping in was a real pain when I first started boarding, it does get easier, and when you do longer runs it becomes less of an issue. If the resort is fairly quiet you could ride straight up to the chairlift and get on with both feet strapped in, no stop at all at the top! OR try strapping in on the lift, again no wait at the top and no chance of getting off with the lose foot forward!

This can be a problem on very busy chairs as the queue can be a problem if you have to hop your board all the way ( usually less pushing though) and leaning over the side to strap in can upset the French skiers that you are sharing with. ( TIP, just look at them with a totally blank face, they will usually give up then if they think that you don't understand)

:twisted: )

Jimbo261 wrote:I found the strapping in was a real pain when I first started boarding, it does get easier, and when you do longer runs it becomes less of an issue. If the resort is fairly quiet you could ride straight up to the chairlift and get on with both feet strapped in, no stop at all at the top! OR try strapping in on the lift, again no wait at the top and no chance of getting off with the lose foot forward!

This can be a problem on very busy chairs as the queue can be a problem if you have to hop your board all the way ( usually less pushing though) and leaning over the side to strap in can upset the French skiers that you are sharing with. ( TIP, just look at them with a totally blank face, they will usually give up then if they think that you don't understand)

:twisted: )

Unstrapping the rear foot is more of a safety issue. Many lifties (enforcing resort policy) won't let you on a chair lift with both boots strapped in. Being comfortable getting off the chairlift and steering with only one foot in seperates the men from the boys :wink: Though I would caution against going too fast with only one foot in. It's like a ski with a non releasable binding, an injury waiting to happen.

I'm a snowboarder and I'm irritated by boarders getting in the line without unstrapping first. They then mess up as they try to hop to the lift or make me wait while they unstrap in front of me. If unstrapping slows you down, get step ins.

Trencher

I did say if the resort is quiet, the only time I had a problem with a lift was falling over on my very first chair lift, it's also when I discovered that I should ride Goofey, after getting off loose foot first.

If there's a queue then use option 2, strap in on the way up. Also as you get better and fall over less it's not such a problem.

Still, button lifts are always good for a laugh! :!:

Flow Bindings are great for quick entry at the top of the run. Until you accidentally step on them (as opposed) to in them. Then it's a major pain...
If you really struggle with conventional strap-ins then go for flows. Otherwise strapping in becomes routine and pretty quick.

Most boarders progress from Flows once they have become int-adv. I think the response is not as acute as can be with conventional bindings. Not trying to diss the flows at all here - just relaying my experiences.