My first snowboard I bought off a fellow board bunny in Summit County, CO. I think I paid a hundred bucks for the board and the bindings. It was a Lib Tech, and had the most beautiful graphic of a weeping blue woman and several large flowers on it. The board was old, so it was extremely heavy and difficult to manage. However, it distinguished me as a learner on the mountains from the average tourist, and many a lift operator helped me up when I fell down–a Lib Tech was a real sign of a hipster, a non-tourist, and most importantly, a local. Several weeks after I bought the board and started learning, I *lost* it. Either I left it in the parking lot of Arapahoe Basin or it was stolen out of the backseat of Josh’s Montero. We’re not really sure what happened, and I felt terrible at the time. However, it was probably the best thing that could have happened to me because I went out and bought myself a brand new Gnu, specifically the Rider’s Choice. I fell in love with snowboarding on that board, it was so light and easy to manuever. I was faithful to the end, I waxed that board, had its edges sharpened, and repaired a large rip in the toe. There also was a big status thing as a Northwesterner to ride a board from a Northwest company. It was if Josh (who has remained faithful to Lib Tech) and I were representin’ out there in the Colorado mountains. The majority of our friends rode local, made-in-Denver boards, so seeing a Gnu or a Lib TecH on the mountains was rare. Josh went as far as plastering his SUV with snowboard stickers that pledged our allegiance to the Northwest snowboard brands. Here we are rockin’ our boards in Vail:

Well, eventually I wasn’t riding as often (five days a week), and Josh and I moved to Fort Collins and became “Weekend Warriors.” And then our priorities shifted and it became all about getting Josh to graduate, and going up to the mountains just didn’t seem worth the two hour drive on the weekends. My Gnu became flat, it no longer felt firm and stiff, instead I felt like I was riding a big wet noodle. Sure, it still functioned well, but the poor girl was suffering. Snowboards run in price anywhere from $250 to $700, and usually I would just tell myself I ‘ll buy a new one in the off-season to save some money. Plus, there’s all this pressure when buying a board and most shops will try to get you to ‘demo’ one before you buy it. (Which is a great idea, I just don’t know how to swing it). Meanwhile, Josh has already cycled through several boards while I’ve clung to my li’l Gnu, my first real board.
My class gave me a $100 gift certificate to REI on the last day of school, which was so very generous but my first thought was: I’m not outdoorsy, what am I going to spend that kind of money on at REI? Answer: A snowboard!

Due to REI’s limited selection, I strayed from my Northwest allegience and purchased the Salomon “Ivy.” I was so excited when I went to pick it up that I actually HUGGED my new snowboard.