Schuyler Kropp, Staff Writer
In the early morning light of Austria, I saw different colors shaping out the mountain side view. As the cold air pressed in on my body, it felt as if I had dropped down a dark, black hole. My face turned red and my fingers locked up with stiffness. In this moment, I found joy and happiness in snowboarding.
Throughout my travels in Austria, my family and friends went up to the Austrian Alps. As we got to the top, I saw one of the scariest runs, a trip down the mountain on my snowboard, was a double black diamond. A double black diamond in snowboarding symbolizes that the trail is hard and recommended for experienced riders. Looking down on the run, my heart started to race. As I was racing down and carving my board, I felt scared by using a more difficult technique. I kept looking in all directions as I was frightened to crash into people and objects. I felt relieved once I returned to the base of the mountain. It was fun and I felt that I had accomplished something. That fear was now towards the back of my mind.
The snowboarding community in Austria is rather small but the global snowboarding community throughout the world is huge. I have snowboarded in the United States and Austria. I have skied in Switzerland and France. Even though people speak different languages in these places, everyone is able to come together through snow sports, and feels included in the community.
Throughout my different snowboarding experiences, I have found that the main reason I enjoy it is through the people involved. The support of fellow snowboarders and the surrounding community encourage you while you go on the mountain. People at bars and pubs share news about events in snowboarding or skiing. This continues on social media where bigger events can be organized. For example, the winter sports in the Olympics is where people from all around the world gather around to enjoy the time in the games and can learn new skills and snowboarding tricks. This connects you with your idols, the ones you look up to in snowboarding.
Learning to snowboard requires hard work, bravery, and confidence. Hard work is crucial to getting better and serves as a motivator for others. For example, a seasoned snowboarder struggling with a new technique can be inspirational for a beginner who’s trying to complete their run. However, this leadership is hard work. For example, I excel in skiing, which I did for eighteen years. Skiing can be difficult because of the intensive maneuvers you do that require your leg strength. That is where the hard work is applied, and where bravery fits in. You also use leg strength in snowboarding. Balancing is part of snowboarding even though it can easily be scary to do. You have to be brave in order to use the board on the mountain as you are telling it where to go.
One way that people gain confidence through snowboarding is by holding their chest up and sticking out their butt. This is showing good posture while snowboarding. Another way is by showing your clean turns and feeling confident to jump off high jumps or railings. You could use these skills daily by practicing them in your day to day life or routine. As you gain confidence, you are able to move through life and accomplish what you set your mind to.
Snowboarding is one way you can show that you are a hard worker, brave, and confident. It can connect you to a community by bringing people together on the mountain. All of this is made possible because of this amazing sport.