SNOWBOARDING EXTRAVAGANZA!!

Yesterday marked my first ever try at snowboarding. And what a day it was. At -15 degrees and snowing heavily I knew I was in for a challenging first experience. On the other side of the coin, the more snow there was, the less painful it was to fall, and when I did fall it was like dissappearing into a cloud of soft powder! And did I fall. A run down the mountain that usually takes an experienced snowboarder 10-15 mins took me bout an hour on my first try. It was bloody frustrating falling consistently and not knowing how to stop, but I occasionally got a glimpse of the thrill of snowboarding that everyone keeps raving about.
On my next try and after some encouragement and coaching from the big "T" and Roy I went at it again. No improvement, and more falling. I was getting frustrated and began thinking this snowboarding thing "sucks". (Nothing like aiming for perfection of your first go, but anyway!!) Then halfway through my second run it clicked, I worked out how to stop successfully stop, (which is pretty important!), and my confidence was given a boost. More falling but longer boarding times. Then on my third go I started to get the hang of it, I could actually stay on the board for a period of time before falling. The speed you can get on these things is amazing.
Then after succesfully mastering the 360 reverse kickback thrust powerslide I decided I might give the Italian Winter Olympics a go!!!