Equipment Hire and Advice
Tignes Spirit is the place for anything and everything snowboarding. Tignes spirit is located in Lavachet, Tignes. They offer everything you could need for a snowboard trip from outerwear, snowboards and all the extra kit you will need for our backcountry courses. They also deliver to your chalet or apartment in Tignes, Val d'Isere and even St Foy free of charge.
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For an amazing 40% off click the below link.
www.tignes-spirit-rentals.com/partner/freedom-snowboarding
If you require any further information on equipment rental then please get in touch.
Snowboards
Snowboards come in all different shapes and sizes and what you go for depends on the type of snowboarding that you want to do. I could talk about all the different types and what their good and bad points are, but all that type of information is available elsewhere online. Our advice at Freedom Snowboarding is to go for something that does everything, that would be an all mountain-freestyle snowboard. Get something that is 'Cambered or Flat' with a 'Mid/soft flex' and preferably a 'true twin'. If you like riding the soft stuff then make sure you get something with an early rise tip and tail. This way you will be able to ride piste, park, and powder all in one day. Granted there is a bit of comprising with this, but unless you have the money and space to house a quiver of snowboards then stick to the above advise.
As for length, check out the weight ranges on the board spec, but as a general rule of thumb around about in line with your chin give or take a few centimeters. If you have large feet 10.5uk +, consider going for a wide board to avoid too much toe or heel overhang.
If you would like any more advice, please get in touch. If you have a lesson with us, no doubt we will give you a bit more in-depth advice on this and answer any queries you may have.
Bindings
Burton bindings have been a firm favorite at Freedom for a long time now, they offer comfort, support, and great customer service/warranty. However, don't rule out the brand's Ride, Switchback or Nitro. Just make sure they are the right size, adjusted to fit your boot and most importantly set on your board correctly.
Bindings can be set up in so many different ways, it can become very confusing. However, as a starting point set your bindings in the reference guild holes of the correct size snowboard, at angles +15 and -15 give or take a few degrees, either way, is fine. This will put you in a comfortable 'duck' stance to be able to make the correct movements on your snowboard.
Once on a lesson with Freedom Snowboarding, we will look at your stance and how it is affecting your snowboarding and adjust it accordingly. There are lots of small adjustments we can make to your equipment to help your snowboarding performance.
Boots
Boots should be comfortable from the get-go, make sure they are snug but not too tight either. A Mid/Soft flex boot should cover most riding styles. There are several different types of lacing systems on snowboard boots, at Freedom we believe the old fashion laces still work the best as you can adjust them to exactly how you want and they won't slip or create pressure points.
As for doing your boots up for a days riding, make sure only your foot and sock are inside the boot (no thermals or 'snow gator') do the inner part of the boot up nice and tight, this is what holds your heel down in your boot. As you tighten this part, pull your toes up towards your shin several times. The outside of the boot needs to be really tight at the top, as this is what supports you whilst on your toe edge, but don't worry too much about the bottom part of your boot as having this too tight will cause foot pain/cramp.
Other Equipment
Get in touch if you are after any advice on avalanche safety kit, protective equipment or any other snowboard related equipment as we are always happy to help.