What to Wear Snowboarding: The Ultimate Guide to Women’s Gear
When winter rolls around, temperatures on the slopes drop drastically, allowing for the snow to fall, covering the hillsides in perfect powder. Snowboarding is a unique sport that combines skilled athleticism with style. Before we can strap into our snowboard, however, there is one important question: what to wear snowboarding?
There are five essential keys to creating the best snowboarding outfit; warmth, breathability, dryness, comfort, and safety. From base layers that keep you dry and warm to the technical outerwear that withstands the harsh winter elements, what you choose to wear snowboarding will have a major effect on your overall experience.
In this post, I’m going over snowboarding style, offering insights, tips, and inspiration for this season’s outfit. So, whether you’re totally new to the world of snowboarding or a season pro, I’ve got you covered in this inclusive guide to women’s snowboard gear.
For more information on how to find a snowboard and boots check out these posts.
Types of Snowboards: Explained
Snowboard Boots: How to Choose
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The 5 Essentials of Snowboard Gear
1. Warmth
The last thing anyone wants when they’re out shredding is getting too cold to continue riding. When it comes to what to wear snowboarding, having proper insulation in your gear is super important to help keep your body heat trapped close to you. Warmth will come from each piece that you wear, so choose wisely and don’t skimp on well-insulated gear. Make sure to also pay attention to the insulation type as this can affect dryness, pack-down ability, and of course warmth. Everyone usually reaches for a natural downfill. However, natural down has a tendency to hold onto moisture, making it ideal as a mid-layer. Synthetic down can often be more breathable, and warm and keeps dryer.
2. Breathability
Of course, we need to stay warm, but overheating and sweat buildup can actually be a sudden problem on the slopes too. We can burn up to 600 calories an hour snowboarding; talk about building up a sweat. To avoid this problem of overheating and being covered in sweat, we need gear that is also breathable.
Gore-Tex is the industry standard material for not only breathability but warmth and dryness – which we’ll discuss next. Avoid materials like cotton that will trap sweat and lose body heat. On top of material type, having ventilation options on jackets, and pants can be especially helpful during those warmer spring months. As a reference, breathability ratings go from 1K (being the least breathable) to 20k (being the more breathable), and Gore-Tex is the most breathable.
3. Dryness
Investing in high-quality waterproof gear, including a waterproof jacket and pants will help keep you dry in the inevitable wetness that comes with snowboarding. You’ll want to look for jackets and pants with sealed seams and a synthetic down. Waterproofing also has ratings that can be found on the clothing. These ratings usually range from 800-20k.
As a rule of thumb, when you’re choosing what to wear snowboarding never get outerwear that has a rating of less than 10k. 10k is generally water-resistant, and not fully waterproof. This usually means there will be less sealing of seams, and is usually coated in a water-resistant DWR coating. More waterproof gear will typically have a waterproof membrane.
4. Comfort
Comfort is the key to a nice long day of riding. Having gear that fits properly from your boots and bindings all the way up to your helmet is essential to help avoid potential injury or cold. Having a good system for layering in place will help you to ensure you’re staying comfortable throughout the day and make it easy to switch out pieces if and when you need to. I’ve found that less layers can help increase maneuverability and comfort. When we dive into layering, I’ll let you know how to gear up without the bulk.
5. Safety
One thing you should never compromise on when it comes to snowboarding is safety. Head injuries are no joke, and all it takes is one catch of an edge to end up with a severe concussion. Not only are helmets literally life-saving, but they also help keep you warm and boost your confidence to try new things. Other equipment worth investing in are impact shorts, wrist guards, knee pads, and possibly a spine protector. As always, ride within your skill level, obey signs, and be aware of your surroundings.
What to Wear Snowboarding: Base Layers
Baselayer Tops
The best kind of material I can recommend for base layers is merino wool. Merino wool is super light and thin, and moisture-wicking all while still being extremely warm. Like I mentioned before, you would not be doing yourself any favors by wearing something like a cotton shirt that will trap sweat and let out all your body heat at the same time. Polyester blends are also popular for base layers as they are often made with moisture-wicking and insulating properties.
Baselayer Bottoms
One thing you absolutely do not want to put under your snowboarding pants is a pair of jeans. For a base layer, again something made from merino wool, or another type of wool would be ideal. There are other technologies out there like Columbia Sportswear’s Omni-Heat, that I personally recommend. This technology actually uses your own body heat and reflects back onto you.
However, my favorite base layer I’ve ever owned (3 times at that) is Airblaster’s Ninja Suit, specifically the Merino wool version. Packed with a hood that has a ponytail hole so your hair doesn’t stick to you, and a drop seat so those bathroom breaks are quick, a ninja suit is a one-of-a-kind piece of gear you won’t want to miss. Most of the time, I can get away with just a ninja suit and my bibs over the top for my bottom half layers.
Snowboard Socks
A good pair of snowboarding socks should be warm, and lightweight, come over the calf, and have some compression components. Compression socks help support your muscles, tendons, and bones throughout the day and also support a healthy blood flow.
When it comes to sock length, you do not want anything shorter than over the calf, or you might suffer from your boot pressing into it, potentially causing a loss of circulation.
It’s really important to only wear one pair of socks, you do not want to have spent all that time investing in a good pair of boots just to ruin the fit with added bulk. This will not help keep your toes warm, but it will restrict their movement making them frozen in no time. When you purchase a pair of socks for snowboarding, look for socks made specifically for the sport, that way you’ll know they’ll fit right and be warm enough. My favorites are Stance socks for all their different styles.
What to Wear Snowboarding: Mid-Layers
Whether or not you decide to wear a mid-layer will be dependent on whether you tend to run hot or cold and the temperature outside. Usually, I only wear mid-layers on the top half of my body, or I tend to get too warm. If I do decide to add a mid-layer on those extra cold days, I’ll usually opt for another pair of thermal bottoms with a looser fit than my base layer.
Remember, when we begin to add layers, we can start to restrict our movement, the goal here is to stay warm, but agile as well. For this reason, it’s important to keep your mid-layers light and loose.
My favorite lightweight mid-layer top is a waterproof puffer jacket with some synthetic downfill. I like wearing these because they are super warm, and on those spring days, I can wear only this instead of my outerwear and still be safe from the elements. A good fleece hoodie or zip-up will also be fine for a mid-layer.
What to Wear Snowboarding: Outerwear
When purchasing your outerwear it’s important to note two key differences; a shell vs. an insulated piece. A shell is usually wind and waterproof but offers no warmth factor. These are great for spring laps when the sun is nice and warm. An insulated piece speaks for itself – it’ll keep you warm on top of those other things.
Snowboard Jackets
When choosing your jackets, remember the 5 essentials; warmth, breathability, dryness, comfort, and safety. A good snowboarding jacket should have at least a 10k waterproof and breathability rating, forms of ventilation, pockets galore, and a powder skirt. Make sure to try on jackets at your local shops to see what kind of fit you like best. I recommend getting a jacket that isn’t too long, this can really restrict movement of the hips. A powder skirt is meant to button tight so no snow gets up where it doesn’t belong throughout the day. Ensure your arms have a full range of motion and that you are able to bend comfortably at the waist.
Snowboard Pants
Once again, refer back to the 5 essentials when picking a pair of snowboarding pants. Same as snowboarding jackets, you want a minimum of 10k on the breathability and waterproofing. Shell pants are great for those who run hot, or prefer a more robust mid-layer like sweats.
I, however, prefer to wear bibs. Bibs make a huge difference in my day – from not allowing snow up my back, never falling down, to the sheer comfort of a bib, I just love them. Just make sure, if you get a bib that it has a drop seat zipper to help with bathroom breaks, like these ones.
Snowboarding Gloves/Mittens
Gloves don’t just keep your hands warm, they keep them safe. I have cut and scraped my hands and fingers countless times trying to mess with my bindings or carrying my snowboard. Having a good pair then, isn’t just helpful it’s essential.
What makes a good pair of gloves? Well, I’ll be honest here, I don’t actually wear gloves, I wear mittens. Mittens keep your hands warmer by allowing your fingers to stay close. Gloves may give you a bit more dexterity, but I’ve found mittens plenty easy to work with.
To help with the dexterity issue, my favorite type of mittens are Crab Grab’s trigger mittens. These let the index finger free, allowing you to work with your phone and bindings better. Since I’ve been wearing these, it’s been really tough to get into anything else.
What to Wear Snowboarding: Headwear
Snowboarding Helmets
The first, and most important piece of gear for your noggin is a helmet. A good helmet should have Mips technology, be compatible with your goggles, and fit correctly without a beanie underneath. Contrary to popular belief, wearing a beanie under your helmet doesn’t actually make it safer. A helmet is meant to fit snugly on your head to provide maximum protection.
A beanie will throw off the fit, potentially causing unnecessary injury. I prefer my helmets to be ultra low-profile so I can slip my hood over it on those extra cold days, and just generally not look like a giant bobblehead. I definitely love the Smith Code for that reason.
There are helmets out there with options for headphone inserts, which can be really helpful. Wireless headphones are really easy to lose on the slopes.
Balaclavas/Neck Gaitors/Beanies
Listen, I wear a neck gaiter no matter how warm it is out. Not only does it protect my face from the cold wind chill, it protects it from the sun as well. Since I wear them even when it’s warm, I want them to be as thin and breathable as possible. I stumbled across the BackStrap brand at my local hill a few years ago, and they are hands down my favorite balaclavas and facemasks. The balaclavas are thin enough that you can wear them under your helmet. However, I prefer a neck gaiter to keep the space under my helmet clear. These are also freeze-resistant, unlike a lot of other thicker facemasks you find out there.
When I do wear a beanie, I go for a classic ribbed knit, shorter style. You can’t go wrong with a Neff beanie. If you’re not going to wear a helmet, that’s on you, my suggestion for a beanie then would be a thicker and longer one to help keep you warm.
Snowboarding Goggles
Goggles are another piece of gear you really can’t go without. Fortunately, there are hundreds of goggles on the market. Like I said when discussing helmets, it’s a good idea to make sure your goggles are compatible with your helmet.
Having a good seal between the helmet and goggles will help guarantee no fogging or windchill. Something else to consider is how easy the lenses are to change out. Throughout the year, you’ll want to change lenses according to the lighting. Any goggles with magnetic technology are top tier in my opinion and make change-outs so quick.
When you’re riding a snowboard in particular you want maximum peripheral vision. Choosing goggles that not only fit your face but that are wide enough that you can see well will help your riding confidence. The Smith I/O Mags are my goggles of choice. Although, I own a couple of different pairs of Smith goggles and I’m happy with all of them.
If you wear glasses, grabbing goggles that are made to fit over them is a must. Don’t just assume goggles with come big enough, they won’t, and I know from personal experience. You also don’t want to try and ride with just your glasses as they will fog up almost instantly, leaving you visionless on the way down. It’s a true nightmare… Trust me.
All Bundled Up
When choosing what to wear snowboarding this season always remember: There are five essential keys to creating the best snowboarding outfit; warmth, breathability, dryness, comfort, and safety.
By following these guidelines, you can be sure to find the best gear for you, your style, and your skill level. Don’t forget, safety first, no matter what.
