DICTIONARY OF SNOWBOARDING TERMS

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G's

Gap Jump
A jump constructed with empty space in-between the takeoff and the landing. Not clearing the gap usually has detrimental consequences.

Gay Twist
A Caballerial which includes a grab. See Caballerial.

Goofy Footed
Riding on a snowboard with the right foot in the forward position.

Grab
To grab either edge of the snowboard with one or both hands.

Grind
To slide with the board parallel to the coping. Also see 50/50. (This is not a snowboard trick but we put it in here anyway.)

Grommet (Grom)
Another name for a small, young snowboarder. Especially one who is very "in" to snowboarding.

H's

Haakon Flip
An inverted switch 720. A halfpipe trick in which the rider approaches the backside wall riding fakie and rotates in the backside direction while going upside down. Invented by Terje Haakonsen.

Half-Cab
Cannot be performed in the halfpipe. It is the freeriding version of the Caballerial in which one rotates 180 degrees from fakie to forward off of a straight jump. Also see Caballerial and Gay Twist.

Halfpipe
A snow structure built for freestyle snowboarding. It consists of opposing radial transition walls of the same height and size. Snowboarders utilize the halfpipe to catch air and perform tricks by traveling back and forth from wall to wall while moving down the fall line. The following are some recommended dimensions:

                     Measurement Dimensions
Inclination 20 degrees
Length 110 meters
Width wall to wall 15 meters
Height of walls 3 meters
Transition radius 2 meters
Vertical 20 centimeters
Rollout deck width 1 meter
Drop in height 3 meters

Handplant (Backside)
A 180 degree handplant in which both hands or the rear hand may be planted on the lip of the wall and the rotation is backside.

Handplant (Frontside)
A 180 degree handplant in which the front hand is planted on the lip of the wall and the rotation is frontside.

Handplant (Layback)
A 180 degree handplant in which the rear hand is planted on the lip of the wall behind the take off point and the rotation is frontside.

Hard Boots
Footwear designed for use in carving and racing. Boots are stiff and may use hard plastics to provide maximum support. Similar to alpine ski boots.

Head Wall
When a road cuts across a ski run it creates a flat spot on the hill; which also makes a good place to catch air.

Heel Drag/Overhang
If the bindings of a snowboard are mounted so that the heel hangs off the edge, the heel may drag, catch in the snow, and cause one to slide out while turning.

Heel Edge
A snowboard has two different edges. The heel edge is the one at which the heels rest.

Heelside Turn
A turn made on your heelside edge.

High Back Bindings
A binding system which includes a highback component that extends perpendicularly from the board, lies flat against ones calf, and provides support, especially for edging and turning on the heel edge.

Highway
A large groove that forms across the flat bottom and/or up the wall of a halfpipe. Usually it forms on the first hit of both sides of the walls where everyone is riding in the same place.

Ho Ho
An old-school general term given to any two handed handplant.

Hole Pattern
The current standardized hole patterns for snowboard bindings are one of two types, four hole and three hole. The majority of snowboard companies use four hole.

Hucker
One who throws himself/herself wildly through the air and does not land on his/her feet.

I's

Iguana Air
The rear hand grabs the toe edge near the tail. Made famous by Damian Sanders.

Indy Air
A true "Indy Air" is performed backside with the rear hand grabbing between the bindings on the toe edge while the rear leg is boned. Done correctly the board will be even over high than the riders head.

Insert
A piece of metal with a threaded hole. It is laminated into a snowboard in order to screw the bindings to the board.

Invert
A trick where the head is beneath the level of the board and the snowboarder balances on one or two hands.

Inverted Aerial
A maneuver where the snowboarder becomes airborne and upside down at any given moment.

Inverted 180
See Crippler.

Inverted 540
See McTwist.

Inverted 720 (720 McTwist)
An inverted aerial where the snowboarder performs a 720 degree rotational flip. In other words, the snowboarder approaches the wall riding forward, becomes airborne, rotates 720 degrees in a backside direction while performing a front flip, and lands riding fakie.

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