The advanced rider lets the board do as much of the work as possible just by putting it in the right position on the snow to let it do what it was built to do. The same movement patterns that make the board do all those different turns can also help the rider stay on the board. The basic movement patterns can be adjusted by changes in amplitude, intensity, and timing to create an infinite number of turns customized for any spot on the hill. These adjustments fine-tune the effects of the basic movement options to the individual turns and snow conditions of the moment. For example, as it relates to flexing and extending, a rider using low amplitude moves his or her head only a small amount closer to or farther away from the feet.
High amplitude calls for using the whole range of flexion and extension.
Intensity is the strength of the movement. With an upward move, the intensity could be high enough to spring the rider into the air or low enough to just unweight the board for a fraction of a second. Timing has to do with how movements are timed with the turns. Flexing and extending can be very even where the rider extends for half the turn and flexes the other half, or he or she could extend only the first tenth of the turn and flex the rest. To be a great teacher, you must be able to identify what each student is doing and suggest other movements that will expand his or her repertoire of useful movement options.