How to stop on a snowboard

On your heel edge you face down the slope with the board across the hill. This is usually where beginners start, because you can see where you are going. The heel-side stop below, often just called a heel stop, is the braking move you will use most in your first days.

1. Stand across the slope. Point the board across the fall line (the direction a ball would roll), so it is not pointing downhill.
2. Lift your toes. Raise your toes gently inside your boots so the heel-side edge of the board bites into the snow. Keep your knees bent and your hips over the board rather than sitting back toward the slope.
3. Release a little to slide. Lower your toes slightly to flatten the board. It will begin to slide straight down the hill in a controlled sideslip.
4. Add pressure to slow down and stop. Lift your toes again, gradually, to tip the board back onto its heel edge. More edge angle means more grip and less speed.

Keep your eyes up and ahead, not on your feet. Small, smooth changes in how much you lift your toes are what control your speed. Sudden movements tend to make the board skid or catch.

On your toe edge you face up the slope, with your back to the bottom of the run. It feels less natural at first because you cannot see downhill as easily, so take it slowly and check the slope below you before you start.

1. Face uphill with the board across the slope. Kneel or stand up on your toe edge; your instructor may show you how.
2. Press your toes and shins forward. Lift your heels slightly and press your shins into the front of your boots. The toe-side edge grips the snow and holds you in place.
3. Relax the pressure to slide. Lower your heels a little and the board will sideslip down the hill.
4. Press again to slow and stop. Bring your weight forward over your toes, gradually, until the board stops. Keep your knees bent and your upper body over the board rather than leaning into the hill.

Learning to stop on both edges matters because a turn always finishes on one of them. When you start turning on a snowboard, you will slow down and stop on whichever edge the turn ends on.

Stopping well is also about managing speed before you need to stop, and choosing a sensible place to do it.

• Control speed across the slope. On a snowboard you slow down by bringing the board across the hill and pressing an edge, not by pointing it straight down and hoping. When you can turn, use your turns to keep your speed in check.
• Look ahead and plan. Pick your stopping spot early so you have room to slow down gradually.
• Stop where others can see you. Stop at the side of the run where people above can see you, not below a ridge, a bend or a lift unloading area. This is part of the Your Responsibility Code used at many ski areas.
• Look uphill before you start again. Riders coming from above may not expect you to move. Check, then go.

• Leaning back or sitting down. Pushing your hips toward the slope takes weight off the board and makes the edge slip. Keep your hips over your feet.
• A flat board on the downhill side. If the downhill edge touches the snow while you slide sideways, it can catch and flip you. Keep a little pressure on the uphill edge at all times.
• Looking at your feet. Your body follows your eyes. Look where you want to go.
• Stiff legs. Locked knees make it hard to absorb bumps and fine-tune edge pressure. Stay flexed and relaxed.
• Too much, too soon. Practicing on terrain that is too steep builds speed faster than you can manage. Move to steeper runs only when your instructor agrees you are ready.