Snowboarding is a sport of enjoying 'instability'

Is snowboarding a stable sport?
I believe it is the opposite.
It is a sport of enjoying instability.
That is what I think snowboarding is.

When you think about it, even just standing is unstable.
Both feet are fixed to a single board, and furthermore, sideways.
On top of that, you are sliding down a slope due to gravity.
It is a sport based on the premise of constant movement rather than staying still.
In other words, it starts
in an unstable state from the beginning.

But what is interesting is that
the better someone is, the more stable they look.
Beginners are wobbly.
Advanced riders look like they have composure on any slope.
So, are they truly stable?
I think it is a little different.

Actually, the better someone is, the more
skillfully they use instability.
That is what I feel.

Take turning, for example.
When you tilt the board, your body tries to lean outward.
This is not stability.
You are clearly losing your balance.
But because of that instability,
you can receive a large reaction force from the snow surface, in other words, external force.

If you did not tilt at all,
the external force would also be small.
The turn would also be small.
No speed would be generated either.

In other words,
by becoming unstable,
you are generating external force.
You could say that.

And what exists to utilize that external force is the
sidecut.

When you put the board on edge,
the sidecut cuts into the snow,
and the board naturally tries to draw an arc.

I once rode a board with a reverse sidecut.
Even when I put it on edge,
the board did not enter the inside of the turn,
but rather felt like it was escaping outward.
That was truly a different vehicle.

At that time, I felt it once again.
A sidecut is not for a person to force a turn,
but a
design for it to turn naturally.

A turn
is not something you create with your body alone.
You generate external force with your body,
the sidecut receives that force,
and the board turns naturally.

In other words,
nature, equipment, and body.
Only when these three connect does it become a turn.

So, what is the body doing?
I believe that
the body is not there to bend the board, but is
preparing to receive external force.

Supporting with the whole body.
Supporting asymmetrically.
Changing the roles of the front and back feet according to the situation.
That is how the body
controls the unstable state.

What is interesting here is that
what you are aiming for is not 'stability'.

If you were completely stable,
no external force would be generated.
A turn would not begin either.

Conversely,
if you are too unstable, you will fall.

Therefore, what is necessary is
stability within instability.

While losing your balance,
do not lose it too much.
While receiving external force,
do not fight against that force.
Instead of going against nature,
move together with nature.

I believe
that this sensation is the true charm of snowboarding.

Improvement is not about becoming stable.
It is about becoming able to handle greater instability.
And,
being able to turn that instability into natural stability.

That is why I believe snowboarding is
not a sport that aims for "stability",
but a "sport of enjoying instability"
as well.

In that,
there is the fascination of nature,
the fascination of the equipment,
and the fascination of people.

This was Rei Aoki, the demon of verbalization.