The holidays are approaching and the shopping season is in full effect. We are here to make sure everyone on your list gets exactly what they want. We will be doing a 4-part shopping guide for every athlete in your family – the snowboarder, the skateboarder, the longboarder and the stand up paddle boarder. We will give you some great ideas for gifts – even for that guy or girl who seems to have it all. Since it’s that time of year, we will start with what to buy a snowboarder. In no particular order, here are some great gifts that we know the boarder in your family will love!
DVD’s
Unfortunately, most of us can’t actually ride every day of our lives. The second best thing is getting stoked via the latest snowboard videos. We can live vicariously through our favorite riders and find great locations to add to our “must ride” resorts. Every year, all the big video companies come out with a new video so there is usually at least one or two videos that the boarder in your family has not seen yet. For a list of the latest and greatest DVD’s available
Home Tuning Kit / Gift Card For Tune-Up
Much like your car, our snowboards need a good tune up now and then to keep them running their best. For the hands-on guy or girl, tuning a board yourself is pretty easy to do once you have all the right tools. A solid tuning kit will consist of base cleaner, a wax iron (not your Mom’s iron for her work clothes!), hot wax, a scraper, edge tuning tool, gummi stone and tuning vices. Check out our video to see how easy it is to tune your own board. If this all sounds way too complicated, a gift card for a tune here at Windward will get the job done.
Weekend Lift Ticket at Their Favorite Resort
What’s better than a free weekend of snowboarding? Nothing, that’s what! If you really want to treat your favorite snowboarder, get him or her a weekend lift ticket to their favorite local resort. By the time you gas up your car, pay for food and a lift ticket, the day can get pretty pricey. Hooking them up with a free lift ticket will get them out on the mountain, guaranteed, so they can really enjoy themselves this holiday season. If you are in the Chicago area, here is a list of some of our favorite local spots that might be just the place for you to buy this gift.
Chestnut, Devils Head, Cascade, Raging Buffalo, Tyrol Basin, Granite Peak
New Board Bag
A board bag is something not every snowboarder thinks to purchase but is a crucial part of their snowboard kit. If you ever plan to travel, you will need one. They also come in super handy when storing your board and all your gear in the off-season. There are several different options out there from simple day trip bags to super padded multiple board carrying heavy duty bags. All you need to know is how big the snowboard is that needs to go inside and the rest is easy.
Snowboard Socks
Probably #1 on our stocking stuffer list, snowboard socks are something that ever rider needs. No rider can have enough pairs, we promise. If you put in a long day of riding, your socks are not going to work the next day, so even quick weekend trips require at least 2 pairs of socks. Please, whatever you do, don’t be the guy or girl that thinks that classic tall cotton socks will work. They won’t. Your feet will sweat, then freeze and you will be bummed. We have great options that go from simple acrylic blends all the way up to some toasty warm merino wool.
First Layer
Layers are another key part of a snowboarders outerwear kit that can often get overlooked. They are just as important as what’s protecting you on the outside (jacket and pants) but few seem to understand that. No, you cannot just wear jeans underneath your snowboard pants. Anything cotton will get wet and freeze later when the sun goes down so choose your layers carefully. These items make great gifts because the recipient may not know how badly them need them, until that first day out with legit layers on. Change someones world today:
Helmet Audio
Hopefully your favorite snowboarder that you are shopping for is smart enough to wear a helmet. Let them ride to their favorite tunes with a helmet audio kit. All you need is the audio compatible helmet and the right speakers that drop into the earpads on the helmet liner. This is much more comfortable than wearing headphones and you also stand a better chance of hearing what’s going on around you (like the kid screaming “I can’t stop” thats coming up behind you). All you need to know is what kind of helmet they wear and we can help figure out the rest. For a full list of the helmet audio we carry:
Bindings
If you really want to treat your favorite snowboarder to something special, invest in a new pair of bindings for them. So many boarders will upgrade their boots or maybe their boards over the years and keep putting miles on their old bindings. Although bindings do last a long time, tech changes and chances are there is something new and exciting out there that this person would really appreciate in a new pair of bindings. All you need to know is their shoe size, what kind of board they have, and what kind of snowboarding they like to do. Do they ride big mountains? Do they prefer the park? If you know a couple of key things, we can take it from there. To see a list of the bindings that we carry:
Snowboard
Clearly, we’ve saved the best for last. If you really want to go all out this year, the best thing you can do is buy your snowboarder a brand spanking new snowboard. What could be more exciting than watching them unwrap a brand new board? We understand that this is a big purchase so we recommend doing a little sneaky research before attempting to buy someone else a board. If this is their first snowboard, the process should be pretty easy. Just know how long they’ve been riding, their weight, height, shoe size and what kind of snowboarding you think they intend to do. If this is not their first board, find out what they are currently riding (model, size) and we can make some suggestions for a great upgrade. If you want to give the best gift ever this holiday season, this is the gift to give! To see our full selection of boards:
