Freestyle or Freeride? A glossary for enthusiasts

Freeride and freestyle are passion-driven sports with their own very specific, sometimes technical, vocabulary. Cornice, run, sluff… Not ringing any bells? To help you get your bearings, we’ve decoded the essential jargon and popular expressions of snowsports, so you can talk like a true freerider/freestyler!

What’s the difference?

Freestyle takes place in a snowpark or half-pipe, sometimes with features. Freestyle riders perform tricks and jumps. It’s an Olympic discipline.

Freeride takes place off-piste on mountainsides with rock bands. “It’s what we call ‘riding a line’,” Kevin explains. “We’re judged on the line we draw on the mountain, the flow, the commitment, the execution and the landing of the jumps.”

...Ski or snowboard?

At °Fahrenheit Seven, there are no clans! We’re all snowsports lovers, whatever your style. The Maison °Fahrenheit Seven also supports the Freeski des Belleville, chaired since 2019 by co-founder Stéphane Vidoni.

Freestyle Snowpark

A dedicated, shaped freestyle area with bumps, half-pipes, rails...

Freeride

Committed off-piste skiing with jumps off rock bands.

Freerando

A blend of “freeride” and “randonnée” (ski touring): a short climb on skins combined with a hunt for untracked slopes on the way down.

Line / run

The route you take down a mountain on a freeride descent.

Scouting

Finding your line and studying the snow conditions and any potential hazards before dropping in.

Sluff

A small-scale avalanche that is already very dangerous.

Cornice

An overhang of snow on a ridge crest, sculpted by successive winds. A trap for anyone who comes across it, as it is hard to see.

Couloir

A concave snow slope between two banks, often rocky.

Wind slab

A build-up of wind-blown snow on a slope, which triggers slab avalanches.