What is bonking?

Bonking is on of those strange little things that snowboarders do for the fun of it. As far as tricks go there isn’t much point to learning this as it isn’t much you can add this to. For this reason bonking is done purely for fun.

Bonking is the art of slapping an object with your snowboard as you pass it in mid air. Depending upon what you are bonking this will result in a satisfying sound that will make any unsuspecting person jump. There’s tail bonk or nose bonk depending upon which part of the snowboard is used to do the bonking.

Bonking basics

To learn to bonk you must first find a suitable object to practice on. Approach the object so that you will pass along side it about 2 feet from it. As you get close to it, ollie into the air. While gaining air pull your feet up so that your knees are bent almost 90-degrees, and your snowboard is parallel to the surface that you intend to bonk. When the height and moment are correct simply extend your foot slightly to bring the appropriate edge in contact with the surface briefly.

One important thing to keep in mind is the reaction that you will experience after bonking the object. When thinking of tail bonking the force from tapping the object will tend to try to spin you into the surface of the object. Make sure you bend your knees to allow you to cushion the force of the impact and try to slide you snowboard onto the object instead of driving it into the object.

High Five

Bonks are a fun thing to do on the hill. There is often a gratifying sound that will turn heads and the act itself can look kind of cool. Perhaps the coolest bonk of all is when you do a true “High Five” and bonk against the snowboard of a person. Have fun trying to “High Five” and turning heads with the resounding smack that comes from bonking.