Now boarding! You too can take the ups, downs, twists, and turns of snowboarding like a pro

The blazing sun over Breckenridge, Colo., is invigorating. It's March 20, and I'm hurtling down an icy hill at 40-plus miles per hour on a piece of wood barely wider than a skateboard, attempting to push aside doubts placed in my head by cultural taboos about gays in sports and, um, trying to ignore the other 100 men in tight Lycra bodysuits. I'm here at the 2004 Alpine Snowboard National Championships as the only openly gay snowboarder on the North American FIS snowboard tour.

Snowboarding, though similar to skiing, surfing, and skateboarding, is much more physically demanding than those sports. A day on the slopes is equivalent to a day of nonstop crunches, twists, squats, and lateral raises. When you're turning on a snowboard, your whole body arts like a spring that's being wound from both ends. As your head focuses on where you're trying to go, your shoulders are perpendicular to the board and your hands and arms are out to each side as if you're walking a tightrope, which in a way you are, since you're riding a piece of metal the width of a pencil and as long as you are tall. Your hips are parallel to your board, your oblique abs are pulling your upper body downhill, your knees and ankles are bent, and the board is trying to catch up with your head. Now, as if that weren't enough, as you enter the next turn everything relaxes for a fraction of a second only to start all over again--in the opposite direction. You'll definitely sweat! Unlike a gym workout, however, snowboarding is actually enjoyable.

I started snuffing (as snowboarding was first known) during my preteen years in southeastern Pennsylvania. In college, after years of trial and error on a tiny 375-foot hill near my hometown, I turned my attention to competing. Upon joining the now-defunct U.S. Pro Snowboard Team, I came out to my coach and teammates. Their reaction was less than ideal--they ostracized me, forcing me to switch teams (literally, not figuratively). The Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club welcomed me with open arms, and as a member of that organization I placed 18th overall in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Snowboard Team qualifying competitions, this despite suffering two broken vertebrae in a training accident just two days prior to the start of the first event.

The sensations of racing are truly hard to explain. Things tend to slow down, much as they do in the fight scenes in The Matrix. My breathing becomes slow and rhythmic, as if I'm doing yoga. My vision narrows. Sounds diminish--the idle chatter of the cute boys in Lycra, the frantic calls for assistance between course keepers and the starters, the advice of coaches--and then, as I take a deep breath and launch myself into the air, the MP3 player in my head kicks in with a song to match the rhythm of the course ahead. Sometimes it's Garth Brooks, other times Metallica. The cue is as random as the weather in the Colorado mountains.

Here in sunny Breckenridge, after two days of competing, working on my tan, and overcoming broken equipment, I finish in 20th place, my best performance in a major event since the Olympic team qualifiers. So where does the lone queer in a sport dominated by straight dudes go once the season ends? Steamboat Springs, of course, to help organize Outboard, the largest gay and lesbian snowboarding event in the world. It's March 31, and I'm surrounded by hundreds of other gay and lesbian boarders. We've descended on this northwestern Colorado ski town for five days of intense riding, serious socializing, and hard-core hot-rubbing. Outboard was started in the mid '90s as a means for gay and lesbian snowboarders to network via the Internet. Its first yearly gathering, in Telluride, Colo., attracted 14 people, but it has grown to draw over 300 people from all 50 states and 25 countries.

Each morning, before carving up the slopes, we gather for a hearty breakfast. At noon we invade one of two mid-mountain lodges to refuel while enjoying incredible views of the Yampa Valley. Then it's back to the snow, which unfortunately does not include the previous year's four feet or fresh powder. The hot menu item for the evening is Boy Soup, a two hour apres board event held in the two 40-person hot tubs at our host hotel, the Steamboat Grand. What better way to soothe (and show off) a day's worth of well-earned bruises? The weekend wraps up at Levelz, the largest club in Steamboat. As DJ Frank Foos from Denver spins, we twirl the night away, to last call and beyond.

On the drive back to Denver, where I currently live, I'm struck by the difference between the straight and gay snowboard scenes. The gay scene is all about meeting new people You'll often hear people planning dinner at a chic local mountain restaurant while waiting to ride the pipe. The straight world is more about, Where are we going to get trashed after riding, and which girl or guy do we want to bed? In my experience, the gay snowboarding culture skews older: mid 20s and up. Most of the riders in the straight scene are in their teens and early 20s.

The next Outboard event will be held at Keystone Resort in Colorado. If you go, remember, it's never hard to find a riding group that matches your own pace. From first-timers to those of us who've been riding nearly as long as the sport has existed, attendees are never pushed to do more than they can handle. You'll be riding like a pro n no time--maybe you can even join me in preparing for the 2006 Olympic team qualifiers!

Where Ryan Tears It Up

Outboard, America's largest gay snowboarding event, will be held March 30-April 4, 2005, at the Keystone Resort (970-496-2316) in Colorado. Keystone offers above treeline riding and night boarding. Outboard 2004 was at Steamboat Springs (970-879-6111), pictured below. While there, slip off the slopes at club Levelz (970-870-9090) or nearby Strawberry Springs (970-879-0342), a clothing-optional hot spring. Host of the first-ever World Snowboard Championships in 1985, Breckenridge (970-453-5000), also in Colorado, has excellent snowboarding facilities, including half-pipes. On the East Coast, Bear Creek Ski Area (866-SKI-AT-BC) in Macungie, Pa., is where Ryan developed from snuffer into snowboarder. Its snowmaking systems allow for great coverage, but for a blizzard of merrymaking, snurf to Stonewall Bar (610-432-0706) in nearby Allentown. For Web sites and a list of gay snowboarding events and organizations, log on to www.outtraveler.com.

Lingo Lesson

What's a Gay Twist?

(a) Ketel One martini with a twist of citrus

(b) Reality TV plot device

(c) Dance performed at Levelz during Outboard

(d) Half-pipe trick involving a 360-degree rotation while grabbing the board in the air

Answer: (d)

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