HOLIDAYS : Hit the Boards : Snowboards, that is. Organized excursions offer young enthusiasts days of supervised fun on the slopes.

Snowboarding is one of the hottest sports around, but you need cold weather and a decent snow pack to do it. For parents who don’t want to spend too many of their winter Saturdays driving to Big Bear or Mountain High to take their children for a day of it, there are organized programs that provide transportation, supervision and lessons.

The excursions are not inexpensive, but then nothing near snow other than sledding, inner-tubing or snowshoeing is cheap. The good news is that the youths don’t demand special ski clothing; they just wear warm baggy pants with pads under the pants and jackets, at the knees and elbows. And they can rent the boards for $20 to $25 a day. The boards typically cost between $300 and $500 to purchase.

The Blue Angels, based in Manhattan Beach, offers a six-Saturdays coaching program that begins Dec. 6 and includes round-trip transportation to Bear Mountain Ski Resort, all-day lift tickets, a pullover jacket and a photo identification card good for discounts at several area ski shops.

Heidi Thompsen, director of the program, said eight to 10 students--ages 6 to 16--are grouped with kids of equal ability and assigned to an instructor. The group stays together as a team for the entire six-time season, which culminates in a Feb. 20 “Friend and Family Day,” a carnival of races and awards for the students, their families and an invited friend.

The cost, $399, includes everything except lunch and equipment for the six Saturdays. Pick-up spots are located across the San Fernando Valley and nearby areas, including Granada Hills, North Hollywood and Thousand Oaks. The average day is about 12 hours long, including transportation, said Thompsen, with actual snowboarding from about 9 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.

Blizzard Ski Club, based in Malibu, offers a program similar in content but structured differently. Students pay an $80 fee to join the club, then can opt to attend Saturday ski trips to Bear Mountain through March 30. Each trip costs $55 to $65 a day, including a 1 1/2- to two-hour lesson, an all-day lift ticket and round-trip transportation. The club membership averages about 500 kids, ages 8 to 18, said marketing director Kurt Holst.

While Blizzard participants aren’t teamed up with a regular group of students, they get a scheduled lesson geared to their ski level and there are instructors and supervisors available all day for the participants, said Holst. In addition to the teaching, Blizzard holds six races a season and a competition for participants.

Speaking of Snow

A quick guide to snowboarding lingo, according to Lee Crane, managing editor of Transworld Snowboarding Magazine:

Fakie: riding backward

Tweak: to twist or contort

Bonk: jump over something, smack nose or tail of the board on a log as you go over it

Ollie: jump in the air, off the snow

Poke: do a jump and stiffen front and back legs to look more stylish

Jib: to ride on anything that’s not snow (log, handrail, dirt patch

Jibbers: snowboarding kids, as in: “the little jibbers are out”

WHERE AND WHEN

What: Snowboarding trips with the Blue Angels, 2620 Highland Ave., Suite D, Manhattan Beach, 90266.

Times: Six Saturdays beginning Dec. 6.

Price: $399 includes round-trip transportation to Bear Mountain Ski Resort, coaching and all-day lift tickets.

Call: (310) 546-6668.

What: Ski and snowboarding trips with Blizzard Ski Club, P.O. Box 4186, Malibu, 90265.

Times: Saturdays through March 30.

Price: $80 to join club; each trip to Bear Mountain is $55-$65 a day, and includes a lesson, all-day lift ticket and round-trip transportation.

Call: (310) 457-2541.