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Indoor skiing

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Okay so recently I just decided to go skiing with a friend of mine at my indoor slope without a lesson my very first time. I was going from the halfway mark and was learning to snow plough turn after only 5 minutes and no one said anything. After my second session after only 3 hours of skiing I was moving onto putting my skis parallel towards the end of the turn and was going from the top. I am wondering should I be geting lessons or not or just carry on learning my own way with a friend as I seem to be learning quickly on my own? I can go from the top after only 3 hours with no lesson however I will occasionally fall or slip up atleast. I was also thinking about going to a dry slope and getting lessons as a cheaper alternative is it worth it?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Welcome to Snowheads!

Many will recommend a lesson. Personally, I didn’t - and my advice is to get some! It’s a painful cost especially with the current success you’re having but your progress will plataeu and may cause you to get frustrated. Plus, an instructor will avoid you learning any bad habits!
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 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?
I was a self-taught skier and have since spent quite a lot of time and money with instructors trying to remodel my bad technique. I'd get some instruction at the beginning if i were you.
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
Maybe if in a lesson you'd have been coming down from the top on your 1st effort in the dome. dry slopes offer better value for money in my opinion. But not all uk instructors offer the same level of tuition
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Practice make permanent (not necessarily perfect). Teaching yourself means you have a very high probability of not learning the right techniques, you're just learning how to get down a limited slope.

You could quite easily reach a point where your ingrained techniques and habits will limit you from progressing, and you'll have to unlearn most of what you know before relearning it all.

Long story short, get lessons to get you to a decent level, and talk to your instructor about when they think you've reached a level where it's beneficial to practice by yourself
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
Bennisboy wrote:
Practice make permanent (not necessarily perfect). Teaching yourself means you have a very high probability of not learning the right techniques, you're just learning how to get down a limited slope.

You could quite easily reach a point where your ingrained techniques and habits will limit you from progressing, and you'll have to unlearn most of what you know before relearning it all.

Long story short, get lessons to get you to a decent level, and talk to your instructor about when they think you've reached a level where it's beneficial to practice by yourself


+1
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Just to play devil’s advocate: one thing that I don’t think beginners lessons do well is to move you on from snow ploughing. I did 9 hours of lessons at Hemel and that got me to a certain level of competence but it was still based on snow plough turns. I taught myself from there - by spending more time at Hemel going up and down until I started getting my skis parallel.

Maybe I was a slow learner (I wasn’t compared to others there) maybe I should have carried on with more lessons. My point is that when you’re skiing for real you don’t do much snowploughing. It’s an essential skill to have but there is so much more.

Like i said I’m just playing devils advocate: I don’t regret my lessons at all but maybe would recommend a private lesson (£££) so that you can learn at your own pace and move on from snowploughs quickly.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Brownpack wrote:
Just to play devil’s advocate: one thing that I don’t think beginners lessons do well is to move you on from snow ploughing. I did 9 hours of lessons at Hemel and that got me to a certain level of competence but it was still based on snow plough turns. I taught myself from there - by spending more time at Hemel going up and down until I started getting my skis parallel.

Maybe I was a slow learner (I wasn’t compared to others there) maybe I should have carried on with more lessons. My point is that when you’re skiing for real you don’t do much snowploughing. It’s an essential skill to have but there is so much more.

Like i said I’m just playing devils advocate: I don’t regret my lessons at all but maybe would recommend a private lesson (£££) so that you can learn at your own pace and move on from snowploughs quickly.
Yes this was the reason I didnt get lessons to start with I am only a teenager and dont have much fear I have also done lots of sports based on balance etc, I looked at what the lessons actually teach you I found out that about 6 lessons are all snowplough before you move on however I learnt it in 5 minutes on my own and was moving on to parallel on my own. I think this is a good thing to do at first and I will get a lesson now to check I am using the right technique and they can fix if I am doing it wrong and then help me to progress.
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 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.
I think it would probably be worth getting one short beginner lesson to make sure you've nailed that, and you find they aren't moving quick enough for you just move up to the intermediate group
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Quote:

ne thing that I don’t think beginners lessons do well is to move you on from snow ploughing.

That all depends on the method of snowplough being taught. The BASI and SSE preferred methods are aimed at precisely this problem and help get rid of the plough quickly. If you are using a weight method (weighting or unweighting by sagging and raising the upper body) to turn you will struggle to come out of a plough. If using a Strength Method, by rotating the feet and extending the legs, you will come out of a plough quickly. Skis when pointed downhill will naturally become parallel, so the only thing stopping this is the resistance given by the user.

To the OP, please get lessons. The benefit will out weigh the costs, and if you're as good as you say, you won't need to pay for many Wink
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
I'd say get some lessons now before any bad technique get engrained. Once it does it'll cost you a lot more later to unlearn. You might get away with it for while and improve but eventually you'll hit a plateau that you can't get beyond with bad technique.

Out of interest, were you just allowed to go on the main slope with no experience at hemel? At Castleford and chill-factore you have to sign to say you can link turns and control speed. They're pretty quick to eject anyone who clearly can't ski IME.
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 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.
adithorp wrote:
Out of interest, were you just allowed to go on the main slope with no experience at hemel? At Castleford and chill-factore you have to sign to say you can link turns and control speed. They're pretty quick to eject anyone who clearly can't ski IME.


It's meant to be the same at Hemel for the main slope, although they do have a smaller beginners slope on one side that I think you can go on
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 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
Another vote for lessons, but you can also take in a lot of information from instructional videos (consider it background reading). The videos will show you what you are supposed to be doing and a one-to-one instructor will make sure you actually do those things and stop you from forming bad habits along the way. As a total beginner you will not be able to analyse your own skiing in any meaningful way as you go, even if you actually knew what a good skier looked like.

It's not a race to move from snowplough to parallel. It's more a matter of learning solid basic technique and putting down foundations that will support you for the rest of your skiing life. There are millions of intermediates who can do parallel turns (with very poor technique) who will never progress any further unless they basically start again from scratch. If you go it alone at this very early stage then you are almost guaranteed to ski very badly, skis parallel or not! However, take a few lessons now as a teenager, get hooked and you could end up at ski instructor level or decent club racer within a few short years.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
I continually get ribbed by friends for still taking lessons after 5 skiing holidays but personally I cant see when I'll stop. I agree totally with @Bennisboy and its by having lessons that I'm seeing a marked improvement in my skiing and also understanding how there is so much further to go. I can get down a hill fine, now I want to do it well.

Having said that it depends what your goals are, if its to get down anything you wouldn't need much but to get down in control, no risk to yourself or others and look like you're a skier then lessons is where its at. ITs a worthy investment.

As a teenager those lessons will set you up for life, and if you can get to Hemel to practice in the summer you'll be leaving your friends for dust
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Quote:

There are millions of intermediates who can do parallel turns (with very poor technique) who will never progress any further unless they basically start again from scratch.


That's probably me then!!

I still like going to Hemel and practising finer control and technique - forcing myself to plan a route down the slope, etc.

In terms of videos I learnt a lot from the mechanicsofsport website - I found the theory and graphics suited my learning style.
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