For those of you who are new to snowboarding & its terminology, here’s an overview courtesy of Brandon Arnold from www.about.com.

A printable version of this information will be available soon.

What is a Halfpipe?:

The Halfpipe's origins lie in skateboarding, a sport that invented the Halfpipe -literally a formation in the shape of an imaginary pipe sawed lengthwise in half. Skateboarders make their Halfpipes out of wooden ramps, and once a skater "drops in" to a Halfpipe, they skate back and forth inside it. Snowboarders perform many of the same tricks as skateboarders inside a Halfpipe made out of snow.

The Halfpipe at Canada Olympic Park is built to the most recent specifications, to mirror the pipe that will be built at Cypress Mountain for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Specifications include: 170 metres in length, 22-foot high walls and an incline of 17.5 degrees.

The Physical Halfpipe:

Wall - The section of a Halfpipe that slopes up from the flat bottom, propelling the rider into the air.

Transition - The section of a Halfpipe where it "transitions" from the flat bottom to the vertical wall. Transitions are measured as the radius of a large imaginary circle.

Lip - The upper edge of the Halfpipe where the wall ends.

Deck - The flat area on either side of the Halfpipe where people hike back up the pipe or stand and watch.

Terms Describing Maneuvers or Tricks:

Once a snowboarder or "rider" is inside a Halfpipe, they perform tricks as they go back and forth down the pipe. Most Halfpipe vernacular has to do with these tricks, which all have a name and can include subtle variations that have a different name.
Here is a basic rundown:

Dropping or Dropping In - To start a run inside the Halfpipe, you first "drop in".

Hit - Each time a rider goes into the air and performs a trick, it is called a hit.

Straight Air - When a rider goes into the air and pivots 180 degrees to re-enter the pipe, but does not spin around and around while in the air.

Grab - A trick whereby a rider goes into the air and grabs the snowboard. Each grab has a different name that depends on where and with which hand the snowboard is grabbed. Some common grab names are: method, lien, stalefish, melancholy, indy, mute, tail, nose, etc.

Spin or rotation - When a rider goes into the air and spins 360 or more degrees before coming back down into the pipe.
3, 5, 7, 9, 1080 - Spins are measured in degrees, but sometimes these are shortened to just the first digit. Hence, a 360 degree spin will sometimes be called a "three", likewise with a "five" (540), "seven" (720) and "nine" (900). The 1080 (pronounced ten-eighty) is such a big trick, it is referred to in full.

Cab or switch or fakie - All riders prefer to have a specific foot in front, like being right- or left-handed. When the opposite foot is in front from the rider's natural preference, it is called switch, fakie or Cab; e.g., a Cab 900 is a trick where a rider spins 900 degrees while in the air and takes off with the unnatural foot in the lead.

Frontside wall and backside wall - Describes which way a rider is facing when going up the wall of a Halfpipe. A frontside wall could be either side of the pipe, it just means that the rider is going up it on their frontside (or toeside) edge with their back facing down the pipe. A backside wall means a rider is going up it on their backside (or heelside) edge, chest facing down the Halfpipe.

Frontside spin and backside spin - Refers to the direction of a spin, relative to the rider. A frontside spin is when a rider turns their chest into the spin first; a backside spin is when a rider turns their back into the spin first (also known as blindside).

Alley Oop - A spin that rotates in an uphill direction; i.e. back up the pipe. Usually, spins rotate down the pipe in the direction of travel.

Inverted - Any time the rider's head is below their feet while performing a trick.

McTwist - One of the most common inverted tricks in the Halfpipe, a McTwist is basically an inverted 540 or a backflip with a twist. Other inverted tricks are: Michalchuks, cripplers, Kasseroles, and Haakonflips.

Sketch or sketchy - Being slightly off balance or out of control, but not necessarily falling down. Judges will dock points for sketchy tricks or sketchy landings.

How Halfpipe Competitions Are Judged:

The Nokia Snowboard FIS World Cup Halfpipe will be judged by five judges who will each give an overall impression score based the following criteria:

1.     Amplitude

2.     Difficulty

3.     Variety

4.     Pipe-use

5.     Execution of all tricks 

Stay tuned for Slopestyle details...