Update

Spring is getting busy and I really want to get out to a mountain to start practicing. This project is a really good lever to get my dad to let me go snowboarding!

Lacrosse is starting, and this is the last Friday and Saturday I have off. I have talked to my friends and we already anticipate to head up this weekend.  I am going to make a video documentation of my entire experience.

This weekend I'm and going to master the flat-land 360 and introduce myself to prolonged air jumps. I'll let you know how it goes.

Rotational Dyanamics

This is a struggle. 

I would have never thought that this concept would be so hard to understand. I love science, especially physics. so I assumed this would come easy to me. I've talked to two science teachers, Ryan and MacMinn, and both started writing formulas on the SMARTboard that, to me, looked like hieroglyphics.

I've been surfing YouTube and have found a some videos explaining torque and angular momentum, two huge parts of rotational dynamics. These videos are extremely helpful but I still need some guidance. Later today, I am going to try to get switched out of my I/E and head into the 'Physics Support' one instead. MacMinn told me he'd help me and I feel as if he would be a wonderful source for my investigation.

While talking to my Dad about the project and telling him about how hard the concept of rotational dynamics was, he made a good point. He told me that spinning is spinning so think of other things that spin and research the technique how to do that. BAM a whirling figure skater comes bashing into my brain.

What I have found out about spinning from figure skating:

• If your body is not balanced in the air you will travel off center causing what is called corking* in snowboarding. To address this they say it has nothing to do with the placement of your arms, it has to do with a bending of shoulders. One shoulder should be slightly bent forward while the other is bent slightly backward. This will keep your body in a balanced state and maximize your revolutions.
• The more center the object rotation is the faster it should spin. That is the reason the skaters hold their arms close to speed up and reach them out to slow down at the end of their spin. This all has to do with the conservation of momentum. 

"Well, if a figure skater starts their spin with their arms spread wide, they have a large moment of inertia.  When the skater tucks their arms to their chest, the moment of inertia decreases.  Conservation of angular momentum tells us this – if the moment of inertia gets smaller, the object's angular velocity is going to be faster." (Spangler)

*Corking is when the snowboarder starts to spin vertically instead of horizontally. This is applied in very extreme tricks.

I will apply this to my technique by opening my shoulder the way that is explained by the skater and also condense myself as much as possible to maximize my angular velocity.

Putting the science into a more familiar idea really helps me understand the concept. I'll probably end up trying this in the classroom as well.

Technical Figure Skating: http://web.dit.upm.es/~jantonio/personal/patinaje/
Steve Spangler Experiment: http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/ice-skating-spin

Introduction

            Snowboarding is the way I get high up in the mountains and let the snow guide me down. My love for snowboarding comes along with the fact that I enjoy learning new things. I’ve come to a point where I have mastered everything I need to ride the mountain, but now I want to take it to a new level. I want to learn the most efficient way to execute a 360 spin. This will involve researching rotational dynamics, watching or reading professionals explain how they do it, practice and commitment. Before I present, I am traveling to the home of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics: Whistler Blackcomb. There, I shall take a high-quality video of me putting all my knowledge together and attempting the trick. After I complete it, I will officially become a snow-bum.

            I was fortunate enough to be up in the mountains since the age of two. I started skiing in ski school every year. I’ve traveled to Whistler Blackcomb, Park City, Breckenridge, Canyons and Killington. In each different place I kept learning and eventually became swayed to the side of snowboarding.

I started snowboard at the age of eight in Breckenridge, Colorado. I liked the concept of having both of your feet attached to the board at the same time. In my mind, it looked harder to get hurt. Plus ski boots are like big bricks tied on to you feet and shins. I also watched snowboarding on TV and the tricks looked so much more extreme.

            Now, I’ve been snowboarding for about seven years and a friendly competition has erupted. My friends and I (the ride crew) send each other videos of us doing a trick, or getting some air; then we all try to mimic it, or exceed the last video. If I am able to execute a 360, I will have the best trick in the ride crew.
            Everyone seems to be concerned with my safety. I can assure you that my father has required me to wear plenty of equipment, which includes a helmet, wrist-guards, etc. Safety is the number one priority, and with my research I should be able to conquer the trick and not fall at all.
            I am aware that the 360 is a underestimated trick and I will have to progress by doing simpler tricks before I complete the entire rotation. I should be comfortable spinning before I even enter the air, so I am going to learn how to flat-land 360. This first step is a full rotation without ever leaving the ground. After mastering spinning on the ground, I shall take it into the air. Before I go for the entire trick I am going to get used to being in the air for an extended amount of time. I plan to hit jumps and try to get a minimum of two seconds of air time (this should be enough time to spin in the future). After I have both spun on the ground and done some straight airs,  I will combine them into a 180 (half of a three sixty) to introduce myself to spinning in the air. Once I feel comfortable spinning in the air, I'm going to give myself an motivational speech going up the lift, my boys will cheer me on as I attempt the 360. If I follow this plan, this will be a a piece of cake.
             The resources I plan to use are my science and math teacher to learn about rotational dynamics and angular acceleration, and I will use TRANSworld magazine to refer to for tutorials and articles regarding the trick. On YouTube and other video sites I will look for X-Games clips to use for evaluating professionals and applying their moves to my attempt.

Example: