An open letter to the man who says he’s an avid snowboarder / skier:
Dear rad man dating a snowboarder chick,
I want to say that I’m happy we are here getting a cold beer and getting get to know each other. I’m impressed that you’re brave enough to take on my aggressive, overly sarcastic personality. Since I’m on a date with you, I’ve seen a glimpse of potential in us being a pair. I’ve been on some pretty terrible dates in the past and some pretty neat ones. As a lady who avidly snowboards and has almost always only dated men who also snowboard, let’s have a smooth sailing date by doing a few things.
First and foremost, I only want honesty when talking about really anything. If you’re going to fib about something, fib about how much you play video games or about how much you actually work on your car; you know, something along those lines. We all exaggerate on a first date like “yeah, I’m a published writer” when really you’re just editing Wikipedia pages or “I LOVE to eat everything”…except anything containing animal byproduct, kind of things. If you’re going to bring up snowboarding or skiing, most likely because you saw it on my dating account or deep in my social media, please be honest about your skills on the snow. What I cannot get down with is a man who tells me he is super fantastic and can do so many tricks…someone who really loves snowboarding / skiing, but doesn’t. My reason for this?..I greatly enjoy snowboarding and if you lie, we no longer have something that is a major part of my “winter life” in common even though you said it was a part of yours.
Jumping for joy in Steamboat Springs, CO with my friend Brandi (PS; that’s my Gaper Day outfit)
I love when a man asks me questions about what I like to do for fun, especially when he actually cares. I am not saying to not talk about snowboarding at all, it’s my favorite hobby (other than eating and playing with dogs), so you telling me about your experiences with it is totally cool. Another thing I don’t prefer, (as well as a few of my lady friends who also snowboard) is when you ask us if we can do tricks. Why must you ask this question? Has a woman you’re out on a date with ever asked you if you can heel-flip x-number of stairs because you showed up in some skate shoes?..I didn’t think so.
If you are enjoying the date, be honest about your snowboarding / skiing life. If you don’t snowboard often that’s totally okay, you’re still out there in the cold weather having a blast, and that’s what is important. If you say that you’re a regular park rider, but really you’re a one-time a year late night Friday snowboarder (you’ll get this if you ride in Minnesota / Wisconsin), you’re going to lose your credibility the moment I find that out. If you don’t snowboard at all, I really don’t care. I didn’t go on this date because you snowboard, I went on this date with you because you put the charm on and are pretty cute so let’s have fun!
My six pieces of advice, to get the coveted second date:
- Show interest in her love for snowboarding / skiing.
- Probably don’t ask if she can “do tricks.”
- Do not lie about your snowboarding / skiing ability.
- Share your on-snow experience (funny story could help you get a second date, because most ladies love guys who are funny)
- Be honest!
- Finally, drop the snowboard / ski talk and have a good time talking about something else.
My great friend from college, Tina and I taking chair laps. (She’s a super rad lady skiier)
Sincerely,
Your date.
33M that is finding myself jealous that my girlfriend is a great snowboarder and I haven’t ever tried – even though it’s that also spark my interest throughout my life. I have skated for a long time though. Just never invested or found an opportunity for myself to snowboard. Been struggling to cope with how fun it must be and how I am just behind her in skills, completely. We are going in about 2 weeks, and we are both very excited to have this trip together, but I hope none of jealousy or anxiety it gives me that I never learned will appear when I see her all geared up and ripping. Any words of advice?
Great, fun article by the way.
Don’t worry about it, everyone had to start at sometime and no one is instantly good at riding. It’s mostly in your head. Think about when you go skating and see a kid whos trying to learn. You are stoked to see them try because you remember what it was like when you learned. It’s the exact same thing with snowboarding, just no wheels and its a bit colder. Your skateboarding background will help immensely, and you will have no problem learning to ride and progress quickly. Check out this playlist (especially the “how to snowboard” video) for some good basics to keep in mind when you head out for that first day -> https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgxyfeQ4TnEyGjbUv_-uf7dRATAsK7ELa