From experience don't just try it on your own. You will pick up some bad habits that every snowboard instructor will have a hard time to correct. You will have the best start when you book a course that lasts around 3 - 5 days. That may seem a lot but you will be able to board on your own with a good feeling after that. The first day is also the hardest. Once your past that you make gradual progress.

2. Should I buy hard- or softboots?

Nowadays allmost everybody uses softboots. But there are still some riders that use hardboots. Your choice depends on what you want to do. If you are planning to go in a halfpipe and nothing else you want to use softboots. If you want to go off piste and sometimes on a well groomed piste you also want softboots. If you mainly snowboard on pistes and sometimes go off piste you can do either. If you plan to carve on steep, hard and icy pistes you want to use hard boots. There is one big problem with hard boots: Finding a manufaturer. Most of them have given up production, because the hard boot market has become marginal. See also question 3.

3. Are softboots more comfortable than hardboots?

Not necessarily! I do both and there is not much difference. The important thing is that both fit well. Most softboot riders that complain about their aching feet have probabely the wrong boot for their feet. Taking your time when buying them pays out. A good idea is trying them out at test weekends.

4. What is more fun snowboarding or skiing?

No question! I skied for over 25 years and was always looking forward to the new skiing season. But after the first run downhill I asked myself "Was that it"? On a snowboard you always want more...

To be honest, carver skies are not bad (one probabely gets a similar feeling) but only snowboarding is the real stuff.

5. What about going off piste?

Never on your own! Never after heavy snowfall! Never on a glacier! I have seen several snowboarder/skiers being lifted from crevaces in a glacier, there is no fun in this. If you do want to go off piste hire a local guide. Attending a course where they teach about avalanches is also a good idea. Don't think that after such a course nothing can happen to you anymore.

6. Should I buy a stepin binding or a non-stepin binding?

I have used both. With softboots you definitely want a strap binding. Stepin bindings for softboots have several disadvantages: 1. There is not really a lot of choice in both, boots and bindings. It is quite difficult to find a shop that carries them. 2. The boots are not very comfortable. 3. The attachment of the boot to the board is not flexible enough. 4. In fresh snow it can become difficult to close them. With hard boots you can use a stepin binding. The Intec system with the cable is quite good. Be prepared that the cable breaks and you cannot get out.

7. I want to buy a snowboard. What brand/length/width should it be?

The brand is unimportant. Never buy a board you haven't at least tried out for a day. Even better would be if you tried it out in different snow conditions. You have to have a good feeling on it, that's what counts. When you put the board on its tail it should end between your chin and nose. You can choose a longer board especially when you go in powder. The longer a board the more stable it is when going fast. The width is determined by your boots. From size 43 europen (10 US MEN) you should use a wide one because otherwise the boots will stick out on either side and catch in the snow when you do turns. A wide board can also be used in powder.

8. What is the correct position of my binding?

There is no correct/incorrect position. It has to work for you! The stance (distance between center of the two bindings) should be around 45 - 55 cm. Try it out. Your boots should not stick out on the frontside and the backside. Good angles on a soft boot are 40 degrees in front and around 10 degrees in the back. You can change these but make sure you have a difference of about 30 degrees. Duck stance (a negative angle in the back) is usually used when you go over kickers or in the halfpipe. Possible angles are 25/-5.

9. Is goofy better than regular?

A goofy rider has its right leg in front and a regular the opposite. Some say there are about 30% goofy and 70% regular, others say it's about 50/50. Never mind. There is no better or worse, you have to find out for yourself which position is the best for you. Do the following: Skid over an icy surface an see which leg you have in front, that leg will also be in front on the snowboard.

10. What radius should my snowboard have?

First of all it's not the radius that makes a board turn, it's the scoop line and the outline, the shape of your board's nose. The radius is only secondary. If you want to do sharp turns also on steep pistes make sure you buy a board whose nose is well bent. A radius of 8 - 9 m is normal.