Riders who spend years in hardpack-prone climates develop the technique and attitude to rip up the bluest of ice. So the next time you're out riding and there's not a speck of loose snow in sight, consider the following modifications to your approach. More Many riders react to ice by tipping their board way up on edge to try to get more grip. These riders mistakenly believe that more edge angle always means more bite. However, when you use a high edge angle to carve a turn on ice, chances are good the edge will release and skip out across the hard snow.
Ice is slippery and hard, and is a difficult and unreliable surface in which to set an edge.
By using a lower edge angle while more actively flexing and extending your knees and ankles, you can press on and scrape the ice with your edges. Scraping is a way to control the edge bite that allows for a predictable amount of skid through a turn. Planning to create a controlled skid on ice is a smarter tactic than trying to slice a razor-thin line that could result in a spectacular blowout if the grip fails. The Turn Shape Snowboarders are familiar with the crisp S-shaped tracks they leave when carving turns on groomed snow. The thin lines that form the S are signs that a snowboarder is riding on his or her edges.