Skiing is immensely rewarding, but never more so when you are doing something wrong, and an instructor (or fellow skier) tells you something that just works. Solves a little niggle.
"Bend ze knees" is I guess the first one you may hear in your career on the mountain. Years ago someone told me to flex my ankles more. Someone later told me that pressuring your big toe could help you initiate that carve.
It's easy to be nerdy about skiing: lots of discussions about biomechanics etc. A lot to remember. To make instinctive.
So post stuff that has helped you - but it has to be really simple, like my first two examples.
This comes because I have skiied with my feet to close together for ages - there are situations when this helps, but much of the time, whilst looking elegant, it hamstrings you. Notably when angling your edges over on carved turns. I have consciously tried to get my legs apart, but always found myself drifting back to my preferred (and incorrect) stance (unless on fat skis, where self preservation seems to keep my feet apart). Phrases like "keep your feet x width apart" have never helped - they are instructions, not a physical trick to execute on those instructions.
I was skiing recently with a friend who is an excellent skier, but full of advice without solutions, and his friend who someone very good indeed. The latter said something very useful.
"Push your uphill knee up the hill. That'll sort you out".
And it did. Feet apart, extreme angulation without even having to think about stance, and both edges gripping beautifully. Took fast carved turns up to a different level of stability, instantly.
Basic, and I'm sure any instructor would have told me the same. And it just worked
It's been a few years since I had a tune-up with a private instructor. Time to change that.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Ok here's mine. I'm not a great skier, I can get down most things but I wouldn't always call it skiing! like most intermediates I had a tendency, especially in tricky conditions to look at the tips of my skis concentrating on what i'm about to ski on. A good friend and excellent skier told me, "just look 30 yards ahead and don't worry what your about to ski over, you will stay far more relaxed and ski straight through that choppy bit you're worried about".
A simple thing and made a huge difference to my skiing. It also helped with my posture, standing up a bit straighter, rather than crouched over.
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Funnily enough I was going to post the same advice as @gazzaredcruiser a bit earlier but got distracted. The person who told me phrased it 'you have paid for the view so you may as well enjoy it'
Having spent ages alternating between the 'bathroom' and the 'bedroom' position it clicked when an instructor said to me 'engage your core muscles and your hips will roll into the right position'. He achieved more in that one moment than weeks of instructors telling me not to stick my bum out or not to push my hips forward.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
2 from some time ago,
Easy: I'd started to get lazy re angulation (modern skis, eh?, wouldn't have got away with that on long skinny sticks) and a fine tip was to make sure that the outside pole tip was dragging on the snow through the turn, forcing a better position (all else being equal).
Harder: but my favourite, I asked a very good teacher, "how do I ski bumps?",
"Well, do you know how to turn on just one?" he responded, "as if you can turn on one, you just link into the next one, then you can turn on many". Leading to some time spent turning on just one bump...
After all it is free
After all it is free
While struggling down bumps in Breckenridge a few years ago, the advice from the instructor was to, "Hunker down on them Mothers!"
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@Harry Flashman, Engaging your core (tightening your stomach muscles as if about to perform perform a sit up), works for me when I need to be quick edge to edge.
The best instructor I ever had a lesson with, instead of trying to get me to ski like them, started off the first couple of runs skiing behind me, trying to ski like me to understand what I was doing. Since I have a mild club left foot that results in me skiing with my left leg rotated about 15 degree (so my foot is parallel), and having practically zero left ankle flex, I was impressed. This resulted in them working out what I could do, rather than, what I should be doing.
The other 'trick' is to push beyond your limit occasionally (or outside your comfort zone). The tricky run or section you find difficult will 'disappear' after you have skied something more difficult. The most basic example is the massive steep, bumpy, icy slope you were faced with on your first day as a beginner, isn't even noticed now as it is flat and smooth compared to what you ski now.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
The simple bit of advice that resonated most with me was when a certain Scottish instructor in LDA told me when thinking about weight distribution in a carve turn to imagine that you are carrying a suitcase in each hand. When steering left imagine the suitcase on your left side suddenly becomes much heavier and angulates your upperbody downwards toward the mountain. Not sure if 100% technically correct but it certainly helped me.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Shorten your poles and use your elbows like chicken wings in the bumps.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
On steep/bumpy a tip for pole planting "stab the midget in the foot, punch him in the face'. Haven't had much opportunity to try it out but it stuck in the memory!
Another one for learning to edge was to get into a tuck position (on a flatish blue run with a bit of space). If you do it properly then it forces you to roll onto the edge, rather than push with hips or knees. I found it good to get used to being on edge, so that it felt more natural when I was in a normal skiing position.
And when I'm not sure about doing something then I'm a sucker for "I bet you can't...", find it's a good way to face up to things that I might be a bit scared of and would ski around if I was on my own. As a lot of my skiing is derived from confidence
More specifically, I ski badly when I'm not confident about something.
it can help to have that little mental push to give me some determination and focus my mind.
Finally, when suffering from sore feet in poor/foggy conditions, simply to relax my toes. Despite wasting a lot of time with boot faff during the day I realised that actually the pain had come from clenching my feet. Sadly I only had this moment of clarity when my feet were already too shagged to enjoy the rest of the day.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
@debtors#2, you have, I think, mixed up your left and left
@Dave of the Marmottes, i would disagree re poles. Correct length and stand tall. I would confess I am not even sure I know what you mean re chicken wings.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
'Look to the gaps when skiing trees ' - simple and to the point.
Basically look where you want to go, folks who focus on the tree often hit em. One reason why there's so many collisions on pistes. Folks tend to focus too much on the person, then wonder why they hit them.
One of the best tips I've been shown is how to put skis on in deep powder, once shown never forgotten and easy too, even with Markers, which someone here said were really difficult
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Chicken wings means keep elbows out with a solid plant not opening the door which leaves you off balance and back seat in the bumps. Correct length usually is shorter than their existing poles for most people IMV but you really notice having a too long pole in the bumps.
Take this highly decorated skier as an example of what not to do
When on ice, suck the knee into the body (instead of applying endless pressure by pushing on leg) to get the ski to edge / grip.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Two tips really stick out from various teachers:
For carving: Just because your ankles are strapped into big boots doesn't mean they aren't important (this just came up on another thread).
And then once I became too obsessed with using my edges "there is a lot more to the ski than just the edge, you need to use all of it at different times".
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Don't worry about getting your weight forward, just move your hands six inches forward.
Your board goes where you look. So look where you want to go.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
@Dave of the Marmottes, are you sure you aren't confusing "opening the door" with "anticipation"? You sort of want to anticipate the turn by extending your arm diagonally out and down...?
Head the ball. not all the time but the action of it was used to help getting round slightly steeper turns as you are coming out of them. Turn left head the ball left ad so on. It is a training thought as the danger is that you will straighten up too much as you exit but it works as a mind set. Hope this is clear??
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
If you were fitter you would ski better....
And they were right I ski better now I am fitter.
After all it is free
After all it is free
Keep your hands in a reading-the-newspaper position.
It feels stupid at first but it doesn't look stupid, and it works wonders for balance as you are automatically wider and leaning forward.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
Having learnt to ski 20+ years ago on 210cm long straight skis ... my technique was apparently deemed rather "bouncy" when unweighting the skis to initiate a turn on a recent trip after starting skiing again 4 years ago (apparently quite unnecessary on modern short parabolic skis).
My sons instructor said rather than standing up so much as you begin to flatten the skis , you need to move your hips & shoulders forward down the hill , and to do this , "imagine sliding your feet backwards on the skis"...then roll the skis from the edge to flat and then to the other edge.
Another tip was to imagine you have headlights on your shoulders , and try to keep them illuminating the valley...[/b]
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Jodiug wrote:
Keep your hands in a reading-the-newspaper position.
It feels stupid at first but it doesn't look stupid, and it works wonders for balance as you are automatically wider and leaning forward.
foxtrotzulu wrote:
Don't worry about getting your weight forward, just move your hands six inches forward.
I was also told this!
This with "flex your ankles" and "stand up, don't sit down" and "thrust your hips" pretty much sorts out your basic stance and avoids being backseat, and is pretty easy to remember.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
My two lightbulb moments with Inside Out Skiing were:
1) engage little toe edge early (I'd never given my little toes much thought before, and therefore mis-timed almost all transitions, tending either to sweep the tails of my skis round or to park-and-ride); and
2) ankle flex (too much emphasis on knees previously, leading to being in the back seat).
There's still plenty of room for improvement in both respects - and others! - but these are the two tips which have most transformed my skiing, I think. Thank you skimottaret and rob@rar!
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Bones wrote:
......Basically look where you want to go, folks who focus on the tree often hit em. One reason why there's so many collisions on pistes. Folks tend to focus too much on the person, then wonder why they hit them.....
On a thread a few years ago where I was describing my fear of obstacles, drops etc, someone put it as 'you'll go where you're looking, you'll hit what you're looking at'. Haven't forgotten that light bulb moment.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Hurtle wrote:
There's still plenty of room for improvement in both respects - and others! - but these are the two tips which have most transformed my skiing, I think. Thank you skimottaret and rob@rar!
Always a pleasure! I would add two to your list: end of the turn; cake.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
the toes tip took me a fair few practises to get my head around it (along the lines of my foot is in a chuffing stiff boot attached to a 178cm plank how on earth can a little toe help) but makes absolute sense now!
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
@rob@rar, oh, CAKE! How could I forget?!
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
@kitenski,
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Hurtle wrote:
@rob@rar, oh, CAKE! How could I forget?!
You'll have to remind me what it means, as all I can remember is that it makes me giggle.
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
@rob@rar, isn't it slang for poo oh no that cack, my bad!
The mushette went tree hugging earlier. She learnt all she knows from her brother
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
gazzaredcruiser wrote:
@rob@rar, isn't it slang for poo oh no that cack, my bad!
No, it's a bit of an in joke, I just can't remember how I started it. Occasionally I have paired up people I'm teaching and asked them to give one-word feedback to their skiing partner to improve their performance, so 'cake' comes from that exercise. I think it also stems from a very fine cake shop in the Brenta Dolomites, but beyond that my memory is a bit hazy
I love the in-jokes you end up learning along with the skiing. For the rest of my life I'm not going to be able to think of 'calm upper body' without laughing at @SnowPenguin...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Jodiug wrote:
Keep your hands in a reading-the-newspaper position.
Similar one to this I had was "Keep your hands where you can see them" - followed by a string of "Can you see your hands...?" reminders as the day went on
After all it is free
After all it is free
I keep bending at the waist more than my knees so my backside is really quite out there (does my bum look big in this turn?....oh yes!). So an instructor told me to imagine someone had just punched me in the stomach which made me draw in my stomach. He also said to "hug the bear" - in other words, imagine I was about to hug a huge bear so my arms and hands would be more in front of me rather than hanging down or somewhere to the side.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
under a new name wrote:
@Dave of the Marmottes, are you sure you aren't confusing "opening the door" with "anticipation"? You sort of want to anticipate the turn by extending your arm diagonally out and down...?
No I'm sure - look at the Picabo Street vid her poleplants aren't close and precise. Anyway we're verging on a non concise discussion which is kinda opposite to the thread's intent I guess it's fine if it doesn't work for you - it sorta works for me (if you accept that my bag o' spanners approach to a mogul field is as good as I'm gonna get). I've had 2 professional appraisals of my bumps skiing from people with real credentials, one being nice said it wasn't too bad, the other said, in nicer words, I should stop being such a pussy and straightline them like him.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
I was told by an old experienced skier at Glenshee to `pick a turning point and stick to it`or words to that effect. I kept avoiding doing turns and ending up running out of piste.
I also told an experienced instructor that i didn`t like going down narrow steep runs. Don`t mind if they`re steep but i don`t like the narrow ones, even though i`m probably using the same width anyway. His words....`that`s tactical, not technical`
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