Find Harmony in Snowboarding

By Mike Roberts, Bridger Bowl

Just recently I began taking Aikido lessons at a local dojo. As with so many other activities, I've been able to find places where it overlaps with snowboarding. Being able to see snowboarding and skiing in a different context will always produce new insights that we can use while teaching, allowing us to present movements and concepts in another paradigm.

Aiki roughly translates to "harmonious energy." When we train in Aikido one of the first steps we take in any technique is to blend our energy with that of the attacker's. When we do this we are taking control of their energy and the situation in order to resolve the confrontation peacefully.

Watching beginner and intermediate riders, I can see their fight with gravity is counter-productive. Practically without exception when a beginner student starts down their first (. or 78 th ) run they attempt to stop or slow themselves by leaning in the opposite direction from their momentum. Pandemonium and frustration ensues. If we instructors can cajole, coax, finesse or bribe them into leaning into their momentum (blending with the pull of gravity) our students will find it much easier to redirect the energy of inertia, bringing their trip down the hill to a considerably less painful conclusion.

While I'll stop short of suggesting that we "become one with the mountain," you might see how we could come close.

Even at higher levels of riding much of our instruction is spent showing students how they might move more efficiently. This can be accomplished with small movements that capitalize on our inertia but produce an effective result. In Aikido it is the momentum of our training partners that we manipulate through adjustments in the direction or speed of their movements to produce the desired effects. I would not say that Aikido is reactionary. While it is defensive there is control through proactivity. Too, in our riding we should be mindful to maintain equilibrium throughout the terrain. This can help us ride the mountain rather than being taken for a ride.