DVD Review

by Ed Kane

Focus on Riding - AASI has produced a new comprehensive video that brings together the essential elements required to effectively teach clients how to efficiently ride on their snowboard.  The production is done in the same unique, user friendly format pioneered by AASI in all of their instructional material.  This 5 chapter video contains well over 1 ½ hours of material and can be ordered from the Divisional and National websites (as well as our Office) for $34 plus tax, shipping & handling.  The first two chapters attempt to capture the excitement and free spirit that attract clients to riding in the mountain environment.  The remaining three chapters provide visual and verbal material that will help the instructor become more proficient at helping those clients to more quickly achieve their goals and maximize their enjoyment of the mountain playground.  Bonus features include the original AASI Snowboard Video and an e-book version of the “Tiny Bubbles” approach to constructing progressions of exercises.

While the material in this DVD is by no means a complete treatment of what skilled professional instructors have at their fingertips, it is a very comprehensive start and will help entry level instructors orient themselves relative to the demands of the job.  The method of presentation is well laid out so that one can quickly return to the section or chapter of interest and pick up some guidance for effective teaching.  This being the case, it can be used as a ready reference along with the manuals and other materials available to help achieve success with our clients.  The following is a brief review of the content of each chapter which may aid in determining where to look for specific information.

Preview:  This chapter sets the tone for the content of the video and those aspects of riding that draw clients to the sport.  It contains fun pictures and video clips of riding in diverse situations from extreme terrain and snow conditions to the park & pipe.  (Watching this footage in the summer caused me to pull my board and skis out and tune them for the coming season, sigh!!)

Focus on Riding:  This chapter features a cross section of reasonably adept riders in various terrain and snow conditions.  Each of these riders has integrated into their riding some rather unique and personal movement patterns.  This allows the viewer to observe these unique movement patterns while the narrator discusses how these moves might affect the outcome experienced by the board and/or the rider.  I found this to be a rather interesting method for introducing instructors to effective movement analysis.  This particular chapter would be excellent for use in a class room environment during preseason and in-season clinics.

Movement Analysis:  The movement analysis chapter takes a rather unique approach to showing how different viewers can see the same movement issues, but describe them in different ways.  Two riding sequences are shown.  One on groomed terrain where the rider is attempting to make linked carved turns and the other in off-piste conditions on various terrain.   Three to four team members comment on what they observe and identify how the movement issues affect the outcome experienced by the rider.  The viewer can select which of the team members to review.  It was interesting to watch the footage and listen to the variation in the words used by each team member to describe what they were seeing.  All were seeing the same thing, but describing it in slightly different terms.  This will help the instructor see that there are differences in the ways that their clients might receive and interpret the coaching provided during the lesson.  Many times we need to describe the same thing in different ways before the student “gets it”.

Teaching:  This segment illustrates the teaching approach by following an apparent real-time lesson that shows a progression of exercises leading to a more efficient blending of skills.  The instructor introduces the segment and then the footage follows the class as they practice. It is interesting to watch the progressive changes in the skill blending as they spend more time playing on the mountain playground with the exercise.  These riding sequences show more efficient riding with the incorporation of the refined movements accomplished by practicing the exercises on the varying terrain.  The remainder of this chapter contains a segment illustrating a collection of exercises that can be used to develop a better blending of rotary and flexion/extension skills.  It is left to the viewer to use these in appropriate sequences to accomplish client goals.

Lesson:  The final chapter contains an overview outline of the Snowboard Teaching System and the elements of actions of the rider creating reactions of the board to control direction and speed.  A number of references to the AASI Snowboard Manual are made throughout so that this visual footage can be related to the words in the manual.  It includes approaches to both branches of the “Y” Model through carving and freestyle.