Hey y’all! I might still be covered in bruises, but I did it - I survived my first snowboarding trip! My husband, Kollin, has gone on an annual boys snowboarding trip every year since college with his best friends and this year because of COVID it got pushed back. It ended up landing on his golden birthday (that means you’re turning the age of your birth day date - ex: 28 on the 28th) and rather than spend his golden birthday apart, he invited me on the trip!

I tried skiing when I was 14 and was NOT a fan so I kind of avoided it ever since, but when Kollin went to Colorado for college I knew I would probably need to pick it up at some point. While living in Chicago there wasn’t really anywhere nearby that was worth the trip so Kollin would do his solo boy’s trip each year and I didn’t think I needed to learn. When we moved to Nashville we were closer to some places that were basic mountains (ok, more like hills) and I tried snowboarding this time after Kollin showed me some pointers in the living room lol. We made a trip to Perfect North in Indiana and y’all, I didn’t hate it! I had some hard falls, but overall got the hang of it pretty quickly. As a practice run for the Squaw Valley. CA trip, I’m so glad we went because the mountains out west are no joke. To be totally honest, I was pretty scared that first day. Since the weather can change pretty quickly I wanted to be prepared with different options. I decided to go with a onesie style for my outer layer for ease and budget. Skiing and snowboarding clothes are pretty expensive and I didn’t want to spend too much without knowing that I was going to continue with the sport. Here’s what I packed for snowboarding:

SNOWSUIT

When Kollin wanted me to come on the trip I was immediately shopping for outfits because duh, I’m me, but I didn’t realize that snow clothing were so expensive! Everything I loved was $500+ and finding things on a budget was tough. I wanted it to be cute, but also functional, which funny enough didn’t really go hand in hand. Enter ASOS. I found some great options for lower budgets.

I wore this one on our trip and while there is a guy in the picture, I would say it is unisex. It is meant to fit tightly like a onesie so be sure to pay attention to the sizing. I ordered the XS small size and am 5’6 and 118 lbs for reference. I’d say it fit pretty true to size and was still loose enough to be comfortable. Now, let’s get into the most important part: the base layers.

BASE LAYERS

Since we were snowboarding in pretty mild temperatures we got lucky with nice weather and not needing anything for frigid temperatures. However, in order to stay warm throughout the day, layers are really important. One of the first things Kollin said I needed was base layers. Thankfully, from living in sub-zero temperatures in Chicago for 5 years I had some options in that department. I went with this set from Under Armour and love them. Here’s the order I went with:

• Sports Bra

• Under Armour shirt (x2 if really cold)

• Under Armour Leggings

• Thick black leggings (I wore my Fabletics pair, but anything thick will work)

• Snowsuit

This is just my personal preference and allows for layer changes if you get too warm. All of this fit nicely inside the snowsuit without feeling too bulky. But, if you prefer a jacket and pants you’ll definitely have more room for layers. For example, Kollin likes to wear a pair of sweatpants over his Under Armour rather than two pairs of leggings. You could also do a thermal or long sleeve shirt in place of the UA shirts.

ACCESSORIES

Now that I had the important parts of the outfit down, I was ready for accessories. I rented my actual gear so I didn’t need a helmet, boots, or a board, but most of these items I recommend going ahead and getting prior to your trip. First up, goggles. This is a personal choice based on what type of look you want, but also keep in mind the weather. You want to make sure you get goggles that can work in most types of weather like sunny days, cloudy, actively snowing, etc. Visibility can be an issue, but rather than spending a ton for my first trip I went with these from Amazon. They had amazing reviews and are a 1/5 of the price of the Smith ones I had my eyes on. The goggles held up great (spoiler alert: we went on another trip and they were great again!).

Next up on the list are the neck gaiters/face coverings. Everywhere we went requires a mask even while on the mountain so having a face covering that is the dual purpose of warmth and safety from Covid was great. These are great for that. I went with just plain black, but you can get these in a ton of colors and patterns depending on the look you’re going for. Highly recommend getting two or more because these will get a bit wet from breathing in them and wearing them all day. We snowboarded two days so I just swapped for the other one on the second day and washed the first.

Gloves are another really important aspect of your snow gear. As a beginner, I was falling and sitting down quite a bit for breaks so having really good gloves that are waterproof and warm are a must. Kollin has been snowboarding since he was a kid and prefers to snowboard pretty low to the ground and use his hands to glide quite a bit so no matter your skill level having durable gloves is important. First question: do you prefer gloves or mittens? Kollin prefers mittens and I prefer gloves so it really is a personal preference. No matter what you choose, I suggest a thinner glove layer underneath for when you need to use your hands, but still want to be warm.

APRES-SKI

During our trip, I took some long lunches and on the second day only did a half-day while most of the group continued to snowboard until the end of the day so rather than wearing my snow gear around the rest of the day, I opted for a quick Apres Ski outfit change. I headed back to the car and removed my boots, snowsuit, neck gaiter, and other snow-specific accessories. I kept on my base layers and then threw on a sweater, jacket, and my favorite find of the season: Moon Boots. Are they ridiculous? Yes. Are they comfortable, warm, and absolutely epic? YES. These are especially great if you are going somewhere that gets a ton of snow. I also threw on a cute beanie to keep warm and a pair of sunglasses to replace my goggles since it was so nice and sunny.

While I’m no expert on the ski or snowboard front and I’m sure I left out a lot in these categories, I hope it was somewhat helpful! I’m excited to add more to my snowboarding wardrobe and share some more amazing locations with y’all! Thanks so much for reading!