Equipment
Bindings are used to attach your feet to the snowboard. Boots are worn to keep your feet dry and help you make the moves you need while on the snowboard. Crampons are sharp metal devices you place on the bottom of your boots when negotiating snow and ice while climbing. You take them off before competing in any events. A leash is used to keep your foot attached to the snowboard. The tail is the back end of the snowboard, and wax is used to make the snowboard slide faster and smoother.
Events
Snowboarders participate in the giant slalom, an event that requires a snowboarder to travel around a series of poles on a predetermined route. A slalom event is the same type of event, but the giant slalom takes place on a longer course. The half-pipe is both a U-shaped, double-walled ramp that helps a snowboarder get height when performing jumps and the name of a competitive leaping event. A quarter-pipe is a single-walled ramp used to perform jumps and maneuvers.
Jumping
Aerials are any snowboarding maneuver that includes a leap into the air. A snowboarder gets big air when he goes off one of the half-pipe walls and goes high in the air. A caballerial is a jump in which the snowboarder spins 360 degrees. A face plant occurs when a snowboarder falls face first into the snow. A snowboarder is said to invert when he flies upside down during the course of jumping, and he is jibbing when he rides his board over a rail, stairs or other platforms. An ollie is a leap when he does not have the benefit of a ramp.
Additional Terms
Snowboarders are said to bone out when they straighten one or both legs while jumping to increase style points. Snowboarders often have to perform on corn snow, which means the snow has thawed and then refrozen. A snowboarder will be freestyling when he does a series of tricks and leaps while on a downhill run. A spinal tap is the opposite of a face plant. It occurs when the snowboarder takes a hard fall on his back.
