Physical Activity: Mountain Boarding (Page 4 of 6) in pdf

SOME FUN IDEAS

1. Encourage participants to try a new activity at camp and to compare it

with mountain boarding.

2. One way to measure the amount of daily physical activity is by counting

the number of steps taken in a day. On average, there are 2,000 steps per

mile (30 minutes of continuous activity). Participants can calculate the

number of steps they have taken in mountain boarding using the number of

minutes they have participated in it. As a guide, participants can estimate

this number using snowboarding rates: Moderate-intensity snowboarding

equates to 182 steps per minute.

There are recommended guidelines for the number of steps that constitutes

moderate to intense physical activity and can add up to the recommended 60

minutes of daily activity. For young people, 9,000 steps is the magic number.

Participants can chart the number of steps they have taken in a day,

including swimming, general walking (using a pedometer), and other

activities. Post the Step Conversion table on page 12 of the Facilitator’s

Guide for participants to see, and/or distribute it so they can refer to it at the

end of each day. Have participants share their step rates, looking at

increased activity, the effect on their bodies, etc.

3. A variation on step-based measurement of physical activity: 2,000 steps

equals one mile; 10,000 steps is 5 miles.

Post the Mileage Conversion Chart

on pages 13-15 of the Facilitator’s Guide for participants to see, and/or

distribute it for them to refer to at the end of each day.

Have participants

share how many steps they took/miles they covered.

MOUNTAIN BOARDING: Interesting facts

In the early 1990s, a few snowboard bums in California were looking for a

way to beat the summertime blues. They rigged four knobby tires (off-road

tires that have knobs to provide more traction on unpaved surfaces such as

loose dirt, mud, sand, or gravel) to a snowboard-sized deck, screwed on

some modified bindings and started “shredding” (riding the terrain) the

grassy slopes of ski resorts in the off season. Bailing (not landing a “trick” or

a specific maneuver or move) on dirt, grass, and gravel proved a bit more

painful than doing it in snow, but the ride was equally addictive.

Jason Lee, one of these California pioneers, was the first to call the new sport

“mountain boarding.” Little did he and his buddies know that all across the

world, off-season snowboarders were building their own versions of “dirt

boards” and “no-snow boards.” A sports phenomenon was born.

FROST VALLEY YMCA • PHYSICAL ACTIVITY CURRICULUM: MOUNTAIN BOARDING • PAGE 4

2000 Frost Valley Road, Claryville, NY 12725 TEL: 845-985-2291 FAX: 845-985-0056 WEB:

Physical Activity: Mountain Boarding Page 4