Have you ever dreamed of boarding down a volcano? Now is your chance to do it. In Leon (Nicaragua) you can climb an active volcano. Once up you will be embraced by the magnificent surroundings. But not for long. It’s time to choose. A board or a sled? Take a deep breath… prepare mentally and just go on the rocks down. Be careful! The ground is not so soft as snow, water or sand. It’s obvious that when your ass touches 90km/hour the ground you will cry it out. Welcome in the world of volcano boarding!
The Bigfoot Hostel in Leon offers tours for everyone who wants to try this extreme sport out. I had an interview with Celo Melo – one of the instructors of the volcano boarding tour. Here you can read what volcano boarding is about.
Could you describe what volcano boarding is?
”Volcano Boarding is an extreme sport that can only be done at Cerro Negro (Black Hill) in Leon, Nicaragua.
The experience is unbelievable! Simply because you slid an active volcano on a piece of plywood, formica and tin. To top it up you can reach up to 95km/h.
A slide can take 20 seconds if you really wish to break the 95km/h record or 20 minutes if you wanna do really slow and enjoy the view.
Bigfoot offers all the safe equipment needed to provide a safe tour.”
How is volcano boarding invented?
”It all started with an Australian guy named Darrin Webb.
At first he wanted to board down the volcano. But a snowboard didn’t work as he planed.
So he tried things out like a fridge door, car door and even a mattress.
On April 2004 he had finally designed the board we use now a days.”
Can you tell me how it feels to climb on a volcano and go down boarding?
”Feels amazing. This is an unique experience of a life time. The climbing is 45 minutes and the view is beautiful.
Going down is the hard part as you have to fight the fear of highs and speed. But once you start it, you will just love it. The fear will be gone.”
Do you prefer a sled or a board to ride down the volcano?
”Sled down gives you the extreme sport experience that we all are looking for. Because you go a lot faster and just sit or lay on it. Going down standing on a board is a lot more difficult. Sliding like a snow field is impossible as there are way more friction between the board and the powder rocks. So a lot of people end up disappointed after the boarding session, because everyone expects to be just like at snow.”
What are the best ‘volcano’ tricks done on a sled or board?
”Honestly there are no tricks to sled down as it is a straight line and you decide how fast you wanna get down there.
For the board again, there is not much that can be done.”
If you have an idea for some nice volcano tricks. Just comment below, maybe you will be the first one attempting it!
Is volcano boarding dangerous? If yes what can be so dangerous about?
”It is very dangerous. One because you are sliding an active volcano. Two because we are sliding in a high speed and you can crash during the sledding if you loose balance.”
What kind of equipment do you need for volcano boarding?
” You need close toe shoes to protect your feet when you want to stop. Rocks are harder than snow. Further you need a suit to protect your body and glasses for your eyes. Also a bandana is handy when you don’t want to have rocks in your mouth. Ow yea and don’t forget a board or a sled to slide on.”
Source: Copied from Youtube
Visit: http://www.bigfoothostelleon.com/ if you want to try some volcano boarding!
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That is awesome you are like crazy boy bad next time me with you……
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