Outline For Math Snowboarding Project 58l1d

Did you know in 2000, Snowboarding was the fastest-growing sport in the US, with just over 7.2 million enthusiasts. This is because of the fast growing geometrical aspects that make the sport what it is today. Although no one knows exactly where the snowboard came from, Tom Sims was one of the first inventors soon to be revolutionized by Jake Burton. Jake Burton was one of the major contributors to snowboarding. It all began for Jake when he got a “Snurfer” for Christmas in 1968 (a Snurfer is a snow surfer, the first name for a snowboard). Soon after in 1977 he started Burton snowboards, one of the most popular snowboard brands in the world. Little did Jake know that his company would revolutionize the whole sport of snowboarding with geometric aspects. This leads me to the question of, how does geometry relate to snowboarding? I will first start of with the mountain terrain. There are countless geometrical features on the mountain. One of the geometrical features at a ski resort is the mountain itself. An example of the mountains geometrical features is the angle of the slope. The more acute the angle is the ride will go slower, for instance a 10˚ slope would be very gradual and the rider would gather little speed compared to a 45˚ slope were the rider would gather speed quickly. Another example is the different type of jumps. This also relates to geometry because the steeper the angle the more altitude the rider will gain and a more acute angle like a 30˚ angle jump will give the snowboarder more distance.

Your snowboard and position on your board is key. Even the position that you stand can affect the way that you know board. It is to stand with your shoulders parallel your feet. Also your knee position it very important part of snowboarding. If your knees are at a straight angle you will not be able to turn and you can fall and hurt yourself. This is why it is important to keep your knees bent for maximum control. The geometrical aspects of the board itself are very important. When you first look at the board it may seem that each edge is parallel, but they are not. The reasoning behind non-parallel edges is because it makes it harder to maneuver and gives the rider less control. These are all important aspects to snowboarding.

Another geometry related feature about snowboarding is sidecut. Side cut is the measure of the turning radius. Sidecut is the waves along the rail of the snowboard that swiftly allows you to cut through the icy snow that makes the rider feel as if they are riding through thick powder. The smaller the radius measurement is, the sharper the board will turn. If the radius measurement is larger it will cause the snowboard to make wider turns. The most well known side cuts are; radial and progressive. Radial side cut has a unchanging radius along the side of the whole board and progressive side cut has a variety of measurements along the edge.

In conclusion, snowboarding and geometry relate a great amount. Snowboarding has come a long way from a rectangular block of wood with parallel edges and string to hold to a fiberglass board with several high tech geometrical aspects. The mountain, your body position, and the board all have numerous characteristics of geometry. With out geometry snowboarding would not be what it is today and people would still be riding wooden parallelograms down the mountain.

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Slotnik, Daniel E. "Tom Sims, Pioneer in Sport of Snowboarding, Dies at 61." The New York Times. The New York Times, 18 Sept. 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2014. .