Adventurous Sports

tl;dr: I started knowing nothing, a few lessons later, I can snowboard.
A truly amazing way to learn to Ski or Snowboard without leaving the city. I just came back from my second day on a mountain and can attest that it works. I was shocked that after a few half-​hour lessons that felt like goofing off on a giant arcade game, I showed up on a mountain and could snowboard.
I tried snowboarding about 15 years ago and on my first and only lesson on the mountain (lead by an instructor who was about 14) and I fell so hard so many times that I sprained both of my wrists and had to go home having learned nothing. I found this place a little over a month ago and I really only had three questions. How much? How long? Does it actually work?
1: How much does it cost: a series of 1-​on-​1 lessons from a qualified instructor for the same price as a day one day on the mountain in a crowded class: worth it. To learn snowboarding on a mountain for just one day from SF (where I live) is 3 – 4 hours of driving and gas each way; a lift ticket; board, binding, boots, and helmet rental; rather overpriced ski food. Add to that the cost of even the cheapest, most crowded beginner snowboarding class, and you’ve paid as much as you would’ve for four super personal sessions where you can sleep in your bed and eat your own food.
2: What’s the time/​energy commitment?: Classes are 30min. Just as you start to get tired, you’re done. You don’t have to bring anything with you, just swing by after work, and go home. I spend more time (and probably more energy) playing angry birds on any given day.
3: Does it work?: I was very VERY skeptical that a few 30-​minute classes would be enough to learn to do something as difficult as snowboarding. And despite it being really fun all by itself, I wasn’t sure that my skills would translate to an actual mountain… I went to a couple mountains. It works.
Instead of standing still in a line with 8 other people while your pretend to snowboard and then waiting your turn while an instructor yells vague instructions, your first lesson on the machine is actually moving while an instructor looks at just you really focuses on your technique. By the time I got to the mountain, I had the reflexes necessary for a fun day without even realizing it. I even signed up for a beginner class my first time up, just in case. The group session was a waste of time. I would’ve been much better off using the time going for it on the easiest slope and the other people who took the beginner class had to go home afterwards because they didn’t learn enough to actually snowboard. Did I fall? yup. Am I a master snowboarder? nope. Do I know how to snowboard after a couple half hours on a silly machine? You can bet your boots I do.

HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. If you want to learn how to ski (carve turns and not do a death wedge down the mountain), come to Adventurous Sports. The instructor (in my case, Sarah, who is beyond awesome) helps you distinguish each action/​motion in a way that can’t happen on the snow (shift your hip more over your downhill ski; transfer your weight sooner) because she controls the speed of the treadmill and is observing you from three feet away. Then you practice, practice, practice and build muscle memory. After just two sessions with Sarah, I went out on the snow and was actually carving turns down intermediate/​advanced runs that would have freaked me out last season.
If you want to improve your skiing without having to haul yourself and all your gear to the mountains, Adventurous Sports is the place to do it. It is a great place for beginners to learn fundamentals, and the perfect place for intermediate skiers to gain new skills to break through to the next level and for advanced skiers (my two alpine ski racer sons) to improve and perfect already solid technique.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! I have been raving about this place to friends who like me didn’t start learning to ski till well into adulthood. After 15 years of trying to learn to ski I am finally rocking it as a result of just 3 hours of instruction on the «endless slope» — a 1 hour introductory session plus 4 half hour sessions spread out over about 1 month led to a MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH. Seriously, I wish I’d known about this place years ago. I could have saved myself a lot of frustration and money/​time wasted on the mountain. Prior to my lessons with Tony (who is awesome, by the way) I had never once managed to get down a blue run without being utterly terrified and out of control, even with an instructor close at hand. Practicing on the Endless Slope in 30 minute increments enabled me to build the muscle memory I needed to be able to confidently perform turns all the way down the mountain. Now I can ski with my kids and really enjoy myself on the mountain. Goodbye boring greens, hello awesome views and adrenaline rushes!

I trained on the Endless Slope in preparation for a 10 day ski trip to Europe. Not only was it fantastic ski conditioning — «pre-​ischishtica», it advanced my form and control of my skis in a significant way.
My instructor fine-​tuned my weight placement from a vantage point that one could never have on the mountain … right there with his face 36″ away from my feet.
«Skiing» on the slope feels different from the real mountain, but the muscle memory really stays with you. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to learn from scratch, break through a plateau or just get fit.

Did a fast start session a couple of weeks ago. It was a lot of fun and it works! As a matter of facts, my legs were sore after a few minutes. It seems to be very intense training as you are essentially skiing non-​stop while skipping the time on the chair lift, so half an hour on the machine is equivalent to almost a full day of skiing. This is by far the best dry land training I have ever seen. If you want results fast, this is definitely something you want to try.

cheap private lessons that exhaust. i like how it’s similar to real life skiing and snowboarding and the obvious benefits: cheaper, no wait times w/​creepy pervs, no falling, accelerated learning curvers, private lessons, no need to rent equipment. i miss anthony though, he was my first instructor, my fave, and really experienced. plus, he looked like robert downey jr.

The season for snow is just around the corner and I have been wanting for awhile to get up to it. So I decided that snowboarding would be my way to enjoy it.
Adventurous Sports definitely got me started on the path to enjoying the upcoming season. I purchased the Facebook deal for $ 38 and went at it for an hour on the endless slope. The instructor Joni was really cool and positive throughout the entire hour.
When I got there we wasted no time and got to work. We started with learning about edges and how they can make you fall. Then worked on how to go from neutral into a falling leaf and then progressed into turning. All throughout the lesson Joni was very focused on explaining what I was doing right and what could be done better. Personally I like that feedback the best.
Overall it was a solid lesson and got me wanting to get back there so I have the smallest learning curve when actually on the snow.

My boyfriend bought a deal on howaboutwe for a couple skiing class so we ended up coming here to try the endless slope. I must say, this is pretty innovative!
I was pretty wary at first since I have almost zero experience of skiing (other than falling flat on my face and tumbling down the bunny slope), while my boyfriend is pretty comfortable on the blue runs.
Our instructor was awesome, and he taught us how to turn on the skis. We had a 2 hour lesson, and we kept swapping since it gets pretty tiring after about 15 – 20 minutes on it. By the end of the lesson, I became very comfortable with turning on the skis.
I’m not sure how realistic this is compared to real skiing though. I felt like I’ve only learnt how to turn, but I’m still not sure how to use the poles, etc. Would probably still need lessons on the actual slopes. Then again, this was probably just an introductory lessons, so I guess progress was decent enough ;)
Definitely a fun date!

Since there aint no snow up on the hill earlier this season, I signed up my boy to learn how to snowboard here. This place rock n rolls. literally… you learn on this big ass carpeted treadmill.
With support bars in front and behind you, it really takes the hurt out of the ass beatings on the bunny slopes. With about 4 – 6 lessons here and about an hour on the snow, you will be at a high beginner\low intermediate boarder\skiier. It really does take away the frustration of falling on your face\ass when in the learning process.
As a pretty good boarder myself, I went on this thing for about 15mins. It took about 10mins to get used to the machine. When I was done, I was completely drenched in sweat. 30 minutes on this machine is like a day on the slopes. I plan on buying package lessons to work on the fakie.
Cool facility, kinda easy parking, great, patient instructors. Ian and Sarah are the best. Tip — hit up Ikes sammies a mile up the street after and not before your session. Bring your own gear if you wish, bring your own socks, bring a change of clothes. Wear shorts. Love the free Luna bars.

I made 2 reservations through Sarah. Though its easy to sign up, it seems hard to cancel. Sarah takes her time in refunding you and does not contact you in a timely matter or at all. Poor business ethics. I understand refunds can take a while to be processed but timely communication & handling is very important.
I am still waiting for a refund 2 weeks later without knowledge of when it will go through but I am trying to stay patient. From this experience, I would not recommend this to my friends.
Update: Refund came through but I had to involve my bank. No fun.

Unfortunately, I did not have the same great experience as most of the other reviewers. The emails below (READ FROM BELOW) outline the less-​than-​stellar service you can expect if things don’t go right.:
A refund was eventually issued in July 2011.
—-July 14, 2011 Sarah Cooper wrote:
Subject: Unilocal review for Adventurous Sports
Hello CC,
I was wondering if you would be willing to remove your Unilocal review, or perhaps at least post an update that we did provide the refund.
Your review is of course accurate, candid & honest. I simply want to share that sports is a very low-​margin industry and those of us who work hard to provide services do it because we completely believe in the wellness benefits we provide. However, the financials of our industry mean that it’s just not possible to hire the additional admin and other types of support sometimes required to provide appropriate client satisfaction.
I hope you’ll consider my request.
Respectfully,
Sarah
— On Thu, 6÷2÷11, Sarah Cooper wrote:
Subject: Re: covering hotel for CC
Thanks CC. So you still live in XXXX; we’ll correct the address.
And the check went out to your (work address). I’d be grateful if you could drop me a quick «got it» email when the check arrives.
many thanks,
Sarah
—On 6÷2÷2011 11:55 AM, CC wrote:
You were close. My home is XXXX.
Thank you
—On Jun 2, 2011, at 11:15 AM, Sarah Cooper wrote:
Hi CC,
Thanks for your email. I see we sent the check to XXXX. I’ve issued new check # —6; it will go out in today’s mail to your (work) address.
Sarah
—On 6÷2÷2011 10:42 AM, CC wrote:
Hi Sarah,
Thank you, but I never received anything. My work address is XXXX.
Thanks,
CC
—On May 11, 2011, at 9:56 AM, Sarah Cooper wrote:
Hello CC,
I’ve just mailed off check # — 0 in the amount of $ 206.54. I imagine you’ll believe it when you see it. I’m sorry for such a long wait and I apologize for the extra time and trouble this has taken for you.
kind regards,
Sarah Cooper
—THEN, FOLLOWING THE NEGATIVE POSTING ON Unilocal—
On 02÷21÷11, CC wrote:
Hi Sarah,
It’s been a month now since I emailed you last. It’s been several months since the clinic was canceled and you agreed to pay for the hotel room. Please contact me within the next week to confirm whether you intend to compensate me for the hotel and clinic. It’s great that you’re busy, but my patience is running pretty thin.
Thank you,
CC
—On 1÷19÷11, CC wrote:
Hi Sarah,
I found the charge for
($ 121.54) I also paid for the clinic ($ 85). I would be grateful if you can send me a check for the total ($ 206.54). I’m still interested in doing the similator, but want to wait until the weather warms up for the outdoor clinic or surf camp.
Thanks again,
CC
—On 1÷19÷2011, Sarah Cooper wrote:
Hi CC,
I’m so sorry. We’ve been quite overwhelmed by new interest in our ski & snowboard deck! But that certainly shouldn’t be your problem. Can you remind me of the hotel room cost? We should reimburse you for that. Would you be willing to take a credit for that amount with Adventurous Sports, or do you need us to send you a check? Thanks for checking back and my apologies on our tardy handling of this matter,
Sarah
—On 1÷19÷2011 12:37 PM, CC wrote:
Hi Sarah,
It’s been a while since we spoke about the hotel room I reserved for this clinic — and you said you’d send a check. I left you messages about this and never heard back. So, I wanted to check with you one more time about whether you still plan to do so.
Thanks,
CC
( — This one came after the previous month’s session was also cancelled — )
—On 10÷8÷10, Sarah Cooper wrote:
Hi CC,
I’m so sorry — we’ve had a bunch of changes in your surf class. Two clients had to back out due to a work crunch of one of them, and another two had a back injury occur to one of the pair which is not healing as she had hoped. So we’re left with our beloved, tenacious CC. And I’m afraid we can’t put on a class for one person — even though this is certainly no fault of yours! However, we’d like to bend over backwards to make it work for you and we have an idea. I know you’re working on getting back into shape and this is part of your plan to be more active. We could do a private simulator session for you on a future Sunday, which would be helpful for you because actually the simulator clinic can be quite physical and we’d like to make sure it’s successful for you. Then, we’d work to find a good day to hit Santa Cruz for you… or maybe you want to join us in Mexico Nov 14 – 20. We have a specially priced Preview Trip that week, that will also be prefaced by a Simulator Clinic on Nov 6 (which you’re also welcome to

Last year was my first year on the slopes and after making a fool out of myself and spending most of the time on my butt I decided a lesson at Aventurous Sports was probably the best thing I could do for myself aside from just recognizing my lack of talents and pursuing something I may actually be good at. After an hour lesson with Anthony I am actually looking forward to using what I learned and maybe actually going down the mountain on my board instead of the paramedic’s snowmobile. Anthony is a great (and cute) instructor who put me at ease and made the experience incredibly fun and valuable. Thanks Adventurous Sports! See you on the slopes!

Review is for Ian-​Michael for the Endless Slope lesson (1-​hour intro).
So like most folks, I got the Groupon for snowboarding lessons. Why? Cause I have a boyfriend who snowboards and well, after my first time out last year, I definitely can see how fun it could be. I also cheated the first time I went out on the slopes because I did heel side a bunch and my front side was flipped each time. Yeah, I was «inefficiently» going down the mountain… in a sense, I was able to get down on the blues easily cause I can go regular and goofy all at the same time!
Well, I went again to the mountains last weekend determined to snowboard properly but I just got super frustrated and well, I’m really glad, I got this Groupon and lesson scheduled because today was probably one of the most fun I’ve had on the snowboard while doing it properly!
I met Ian-​Michael at the Endless Slope place, so if you plug in the location of 650 Florida St, you’ll see it has this through way on the left, you’re supposed to go through that and the place is actually on the left with 1 parking spot RIGHT in front. So feel free to park there for your lesson. We ended up parking on the street which wasn’t too bad since well, we didn’t know where to park to begin with. I know better now for next time.
There’s a restroom inside, so feel free to bring a change of clothes since you will get tired and sweaty, okay, I was pretty much dripping due to my stubborness and inability to quit. Anyways, beginning is getting the boots on, learning how to go balance on the board on the floor (toe side and heel side). Then off to the Endless Slope carpeted treadmill. It was pretty exciting and scary all at the same time since the harness was a little loose on me so I was afraid to let go of the bars. First up was going «down» heel side feeling the edge then it was toe side… then turning from heel to toe… toe to heel, then carving. Ian-​Michael was pretty helpful in understanding how to maneuver and I did stumble a few times since I have «trust» issues. And he also made sure that I could stop any time. He made it really fun and complimented me on how I did well for the first time there. I felt super safe and they have a way to stop and start the machine. So no worries! Also you can grab the bar… the bar was my friend. Ian-​Michael was definitely challenging me and ensuring that I should trust my board and just feel the movements instead of going against instinct. He was very personable and friendly so he made it really easy to ask questions.
I definitely am looking to go back to the mountain soon so I can try what I’ve learned. Then go back to lessons to improve! 3 more lessons to go!
Definitely a great way to learn if you’re not wanting to go to the mountains for lesson. No cold, no hard ice to fall on and a knowledgeable staff to help you on your way to conquer your fears. At least I have for now!

My daughter and I had a fantastic time at our «Endless Slopes» ski & snowboarding lesson yesterday. The instructor, Anthony, was awesome, and he had a really great way w/​the kid. I was concerned that she would feel pretty scared, as new things can tend to make her rather nervous — but Anthony put her at ease really quickly, and within a few minutes she was riding w/​a smile on her face. Moreover, I was blown away that by middle of the lesson she was making edge turns! He was also great at teaching me boarding (I’m a skier, but complete novice at boarding).
You folks have a great service — we’ll be coming back, I’ll be booking a 4session via your website, and have referred you to a couple of parents at the kids school already!
EDIT (after my first two times boarding in the last couple of months):
I had a great time boarding a couple of weekends ago at Sierra@Tahoe — prior to hopping onto the bunny slope (which would’ve been my first time on a board), I took their 1.5 hr 1:1 early bird lesson, as I was a little nervous re: how my board skillz would transfer from the slope to the mountain. The instructor kinda scoffed when I told him the sum-​total of my boarding experience was limited to an hour+ on the ‘ski treadmill,’ and he started off on the flats w/​the basics, balance, walking, pushing off, etc.
As I progressed rapidly thru these, we were up the magic carpet within 20 minutes … and by my 3^rd or 4^th run down that slope, I was linking turns (albeit, slowly ;) Still, the guy was pretty blown away at my progression, and was suddenly that much more interested in hearing about the Endless Slope ;)
I then did a couple of runs down the bunny slope, and headed up to the top of the mountain — did the green sugar&spice run with my family the whole day, and was able to keep up with them. So, overall, my first day boarding was a big success! Learning the basics at your shope allowed me to get comfortable with stance, balance and build up a little muscle memory, so that when I was at the actual mountain, I could focus on actually boarding and having funning, rather than trying to stay upright!
Thanks again for bringing this teaching technique to the city! I’m making sure I tell anyone who’s remotely interested in learning ski/​board-​ing about you guys, as it worked out really well for not only me, but my daughter as well — she was doing ‘hip turns’ on her skis at the mountain after only a couple of lessons on the slope.
BTW, here’s prooft — pic of me ‘mini-​carving’ on my 1^st day boarding at :)

This review is for the endless slope ski/​snowboard lessons. I have taken 2 lessons from here on the endless slope and had Adam & Ian on each of the lessons. They both very knowledgeable and helpful in making sure your form is correct and you’re doing the right thing.
I opted for snowboarding lessons as I am inept in staying vertical on my board. My snowboarding abilities have yet to catch up to my skiing abilities. The endless slope really helped me. The feel is definetely different than actual snow but practicing on the endless slope did help and when I actually did hit Tahoe 1 week later, I did have a noticeable improvement in my ability to carve and stay upright.
I want to see how well I can improve on the actual slopes this season. I think if I hit a plateau, I’ll come back here to see if they can help me with more of the fancy technical stuff.

My girlfriend and I had Groupons for the Endless Slope here. It’s actually a pretty cool concept with the whole «inclined carpet treadmill» thing (although sometimes the carpet seems wear a little thing at the seams yielding a pretty good bump every two seconds or so).
Anyhow, my Groupon included two appointments and I had a much better time on my second class with Ian-​Michael. He had a more aggressive approach to training and I felt like I got a lot out of the class. I definitely look forward to hitting the slopes for the first time as a snowboarder and I will hopefully now spend more time on the board than my ass.

I took the skeet shooting class. It is like playing golf with a shotgun. Awesome fun. Never did it before. Because the teachers were so good, it was not intimidating and just a fun day spent in the sun learning something new. It was perfectly organized and I look forward to trying some more things I would not ordinarily do, with Adventurous Sports.

My experience at Adventurous Sports was pretty cool. I really love the surf class and the SUP (standup paddle boarding)! It was a gorgeous day at the Alameda Crown beach, and I felt like hiking on water! Both thumbs up for Adventurous Sports! I look forward to the next fun event!

I had an awesome experience at my Endless Slope lesson. Sam is an awesome instructor who is totally passionate about skiing/​snowboarding. I’ve been snowboardng for the last two seasons and wanted to brush up before this season. They have a October 2 for 1 special for $ 75 so my bf and I took the class together. I would definitely recommend taking the class with someone else who is at the same level because you take turns snowboarding on the incline carpeted treadmill machine thing and you get to learn from the other person.
oh, and awesome workout…

Adventurous Woman or
has lots to offer any gender. Classes to teach you things like poker, snowboarding, skiing, surfing, and SAMBA!
I love my Samba class, the instructor has a butt like I have never seen… not that I was really looking. But she is amazing and gives you energy to join her dance party instantly! There are 5 live drummers to boot. Shake your booty and lose that burger you ate at Cable Car.
Also, check out the Indoor Snowboarding lessons on a moving carpet. yes yes. I am one of the instructors, but really I don’t do it for the money. It’s a great way to learn with out the snow, people, and distractions. It’s also a great way to rehabilitate a bum knee.
FYI — my bread and butter comes from sitting behind a computer and working for the man, so my snowboarding reviews are not a way to promote my instructor jobs. I do it cause I believe in snowboarding :)