Snowboarding is a popular winter sport that involves sliding down a snow-covered slope on a snowboard that is attached to the feet. It is a hybrid sport inspired by skiing, surfing and skateboarding. It was developed in the United States in the 1960s. Early snowboards were very basic in design compared to the models being used today, which reflects the variety of riding techniques that have appeared within the sport. The two primary styles of modern snowboarding include freestyle or freeride and alpine style or carving, each requiring a specialized set of equipment. Snowboarding events include halfpipe, boardercross, slopestyle and parallel giant slalom.
Snowboarding is one of the most popular and fastest-growing sport in the United States today, with an estimated following of 7.2 million participants. It debuted as a Winter Olympic Sport in Nagano, Japan in 1998 and returned to the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah with the halfpipe and parallel giant slalom. Most ski resorts have certified snowboard instructors ready to provide snowboarding lessons including proper techniques, safety policies, mountain etiquette and other basic rules. These lessons can either be group or private lessons, but group lessons are often cheaper.