l know its late summer. But I've been thinking about snowboarding this winter. l just started snowboarding 3 or 4 years ago. l know my limits and I'd say im pretty good. I've been down the black diamond a few times, and l barley fall. l turn properly and stuff.I've always wanted to compete in snowboarding contests. So, do you think this would be the year to try the terrain park out. l feel pretty confident doing it.
I am 13, turning 14 in 2 months.I am a female and l can ride switch, I am used to riding both ways although regular is my main stance. l actually had a smaller ramp placed in my yard because we havepretty steep hill. l would place garbage cans and ollie or 180 over them.

Theres a few questions that need to be asked before l give an answer.

1) How old r you/How far do u want to go in the sport? If u want to go far in the sport l would suggest hitting the park this year, but if u r 18-20 it is pretty much past ur prime unless u really want to make some sacrifices like not getting a job or falling behind in school. l am an amateur snowboarder who is about to break into the professional ranks & have been in a few pro contests. l am constantly traveling from about november to around march & miss a lot of school. Luckily for me l go to Stratton Mountain School & they completely understand what goes on in competitive snowboarding & l get my work & tests emailed to me to complete so l can get as much riding in as possible.

2) If u want to go far r u ready for the stress u will be under?
Everything in trying to break out in this sport is SUPER STRESSFUL. Whether it is trying to get footage for a sponsor me tape, or the actual contests themselves it is very very stressful to be competitive in this sport, & with Snowboarding getting more popular it is just going to get more stressful. l have been in prob over 50 contests already & l still get nervous to the point of vomiting before a majority of my runs. Everything in a contest is even more stressful. It is not like u can just wing a run. You have to watch other runs & see what the judges r liking & not liking. You have to be smart with it. Also if u decide u want to go far l would suggest Stratton Mountain School. It is a great school that helps u progress while still giving u a great education. But now this opens up a whole new can of worms. Are u ready to be away from ur home & family for months at a time. Last season (07/08) l was home a total of about 35 days from November to March. You r going in & out of airports & living out of ur suitcase. Sometimes l get really homesick still even though l am ''grown up''. l miss my mom & my home friends. No doubt u will meet some rad kids while riding like l have, but nothing compares to the kids u grew up with. There r points when l am out for almost 2 months going from country to country & contest to contest & would kill for a home cooked meal with my family. Just like any sport it takes a lot of hard work & a lot of sacrifices to make it, but l personally think the sacrifices & the stress r worth it because l am ultimately doing what l love.

3) Are u ready for the business portion of Snowboarding?
l have seen the nasty parts of the business & trust me it can get VERY nasty. You have to constantly perform well or u will get kicked to the curb. You constantly have to be better than the next guy. If a better rider comes along ur sponsors will not hesitate to drop you. l had a very rocky relationship with my original goggle sponsor, which l will not go into detail with, but long story short l placed out of the top 5 in the USASA nationals in 06 & got dropped by said sponsor just for one contest. Some of the people in this business r RUTHLESS. They know this is a business now & do not have time for kids who do not perform up to their standards. It is very sketchy being an am rider & trying to break into pro because a lot of the contests u have to have at least one major sponsor in order to even ride & if the sponsors r being so critical then u can not progress like u want to.

Long story short & to answer ur questions. Definitely go into the park this year if u can turn & stop. l would recommend trying to learn how to ride switch if u want to compete because their r spins & grinds that u will come out of riding switch & if u can not ride switch u will most likely just catch an edge & eat it. If u want to start competing then definitely looks into what l wrote.