Do you ever feel the toe or heel of your boot touching the snow while turning on your snowboard? Or worse yet, have you ever “booted out” and completely lost your edge grip mid-turn because of toe or heel drag? It seems to come out of nowhere, right?
If this is happening to you, this is an issue that needs attention. It might require an equipment change, but it also might be able to be fixed by simply changing your stance.
In this guide, we’ll dive into how to identify toe or heel drag and what to do about it.
What is Toe and Heel Drag?
Toe and heel drag is when your boot overhangs your snowboard so that it is over the snow and it touches the snow when you tilt your edge throughout a turn.
If the overhang is large enough, you will end up booting out, which is where your boot actually interrupts the grip your edge has with the snow, resulting in a fall.
The way to check for toe or heel drag is to strap your boots into your board and give it a visual inspection. Check to see if:
- The boots are centered along the width of the board. If they’re not, you can adjust the position of the bindings. Make sure to adjust the toe ramp to support the toe of your boot.
- The boots are not too big for the board. You’ll be able to see this if the boots have a sizable overhang, even when placed at an angle on the board.
Change Your Angles
Before rushing out to buy a wider snowboard, check if you can solve your toe or heel drag issue by changing your stance angles.
Try larger angles to see if you can minimize the overhang. Be careful not to go beyond a 30° splay, i.e., the sum of the two angles of your bindings, to protect your knees.
If you’ve currently got a +9° and -9° stance, try to widen it to +15° and -15° to see if it minimizes overhang.
If this doesn’t solve the problem, you’ll likely need to visit the snowboard shop to find a wider board.
Change Your Equipment
If you’ve changed your angles and your boots are still overhanging the snowboard by too much, then likely your only option is to get a wider snowboard.
Most brands design “wide” editions of their snowboards. There are even some brands that design “mid-wide” boards.
If your boots are size US Men's 11 or US Women’s size 10 and above, you need a mid-wide or wide snowboard.
Conclusion
Toe drag and heel drag can cause a snowboarder to “boot out” and lose their edge grip. This is an issue that needs to be addressed or it will hinder your progression.
It can be addressed by either changing the angles of the snowboard bindings or by purchasing a wider board.
For more information on how to choose the right snowboard, check out our article How Do I Choose the Right Snowboard?
