Wednesday, 6 February 2008

An urgent appeal on behalf of goofy riders

I'm right handed but somehow when I first learned to snowboard, I found it much easier to ride goofy (with your left foot forward) and have been that way ever since. Please don't feel sorry for me but as a result I have been subjected to 'upside down' snowboard graphics ever since!

Why oh why does no-one think about the goofy riders? Even the name suggests you're a bit of a wrong-un. If you ride goofy, by implication you don't ride regular.

Riding goofy is the snowboarding equivalent of being left-handed, or being a 'Southpaw' since that is the slang for a left handed sports person.

"Even the name suggests you're a bit of a wrong-un. If you ride goofy, by implication you don't ride regular."

In some ancient cultures, including Western ones, being left handed was a bit like being cursed.

The word 'sinister' comes from the Latin word for Left but has become understood to mean evil or at best 'unlucky'. Another suggested derivation of the word comes from the Roman name for the single pocket in a toga which was always on the left.

But it's not all bad. Southpaws have been rehabilitated in recent times as 'creatives' since so many designers and musicians are left handed. Chris McManus of University College London has claimed that proportionately speaking, the number of left-handed people is rising and as a group have historically produced more than their share of high achievers.

So why is it then that when 'creatives' design the graphics for their snowboards they either go for a bland 'any-way-up' abstract pattern or if they do produce something with an illustration on it, it often appears kinda upside down to goofy riders?

I mean when I ride my Jussi signature board, even the writing is upside down!

So all you rock star snowboarders out there, designing the graphix for next seasons' signature board, please spare a thought for the goofy rider!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

But goofy is right foot forward no?

Anonymous said...

nice concept, im a goofy rider too, but just throwing this out there.. goofy is right foot forward.

Al said...

You are probably both right... it is right foot forward... but I am going from memory. I wasn't able to snowboard last season due to a serious illness and haven't taken my board out of its bag in at least 18 months!

I figured it would make me too upset to look at it and not be able to ride.

This blog is the first step in rehabilitating myself with my old friends the mountains!

Fingers crossed I can get away before this 07/08 season ends.

Anonymous said...

Goofy is right foot forward.

To be honest I've never seen any difference between how regulars and goofys are treated or catered for.

I am regular, but both my brothers are goofy.

It's not really like left/right hand. A board (the only time it's an issue) can be changed from regular to goofy and back in a few minutes, plus it's far more common than left handedness.

Al said...

Mmmmm ... the humour in this blog entry wasn't quite as obvious as I thought it was. You aren't from the USA by any chance? Midwest maybe?

And yes, I'm *still* joking!

I meant what I said about upside down graphics though.

Anonymous said...

I also ride goofy - you can just rotate your bindings 180 degrees to set up your board goofy.