Mountainboarding

Mountainboarding is a board sport where you ride down grassy hills and dirt tracks on a board fitted with four big, air-filled tyres. Think snowboarding crossed with skateboarding, built for the great outdoors. Your feet are strapped onto the board, you stand side-on and you steer by leaning onto your toes or heels.

The deck is longer and tougher than a skateboard, with a set of wheels at each end mounted on trucks that tilt as you lean. The tyres are chunky and pumped up like mini bike tyres, so they soak up lumps, bumps and molehills. Foot straps called bindings keep you attached to the board, which is reassuring when the hill gets interesting.

Some boards come with a hand brake on a cord. Most riders, though, learn to control their speed by carving across the slope, just as you would on snow.

Freeride is the chilled one: cruising down the hill and linking big, smooth carves. Boardercross is a head-to-head race round a course of bumps and berms, where elbows stay in and nerves stay steady. Freestyle is jumps, ramps and tricks, for when you fancy some air. Downhill is speed, pure and simple.

Beginners start with freeride on gentle slopes. Pick it up quickly and small ramps might start calling your name.

Yes, and you don't need to have touched a snowboard or skateboard before. Your Activity Leader starts with a safety briefing and gets you kitted out with a helmet and pads. First you find your stance: regular is left foot forward, goofy is right foot forward. Then it's gentle slopes, heelside and toeside turns and learning to stop with a bit of style. Expect wobbles, a few tumbles onto soft grass and a very big grin when it all clicks.

Sensible closed-toe shoes, ideally flat-soled trainers that sit snugly in the foot straps. Wear comfy clothes you can bend and move in, and long sleeves and trousers will save your elbows and knees from grass burn. Helmets and pads are provided. You'll need to be able to balance on both feet to ride.

You might also like Grass Sledging, Skateboarding and Quad Biking.

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