I am a bodyboarder from way back. I don’t know exactly when I first jumped on a piece of foam, but I am guessing it was sometime around the time that I was twelve. The waves at that Phuket beach were choppy but fun; nothing like the knee-deep reef breaks and pounding shore breaks that I would later go on to ride. I was nothing special in my bodyboarding days, I could handle my own in anything up to about 3 meters. I could probably have gone bigger but never encountered it. The one thing that I remember more than anything was the pounding that my back took. Come into a wave too late and you will find your heels touching the back of your head as you get pancaked into a sandbar. It is not fun and if you are not conditioned you will hurt yourself on big days in ways that you do not wish to imagine. Facial joint dysfunction is no joke.

At least in the water, you have water to cushion your fall, with the Airboard Classic 130 Bodyboard, you only have snow, ice and the occasional skull splitting rock. There is also the potential of it turning into a kite and getting you blown off a lift. I so want to try one of these. Does it look dangerous? Sure, but you trade the unpredictability of a breaking wave for the surety of a snow covered slope and a much harder landing. Wear a helmet and have some fun is what I say. This looks a thousand times easier than skiing or snowboarding, I want to see some action videos. It is made from urethane impregnated nylon and is inflatable, which should give your torso a little bit of cushioning. You can inflate your Airboard in 3 minutes with a hand pump.

Price: $280

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