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Book suggestions please...

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
And, before the usual razor sharp responses suggest "Jack and Jill", I was thinking more about skiing ones... (although there was a hill involved)

I'm getting Bob Barnes' Encyclopedia of Skiing but wondered if there are any other suggestions?

I'm looking to learn about skiing generally, technique, equipment etc. rather than fiction.
I'm not conviced I want a particular 'this is how to learn to ski in 21 days' book - something that attempts to explain as well as describe would probably be more my style.

As an FYI, this isn't intended to replace lessons etc - but it is intended to let me have a more informed discussion with instructors.

Thanks

David
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
"Waxing and Care of Skis and Snowboards", by Michael Brady it's a Paperback as suggested earlier by Ise is very good, I've recently been given a copy as a late birthday present, not really skiing per see, but useful none the less.
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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?
<grin> for a second there I thought you were taking the proverbial Smile

Then I realised what a strange world skiers (actually, sliders in general) inhabit rolling eyes

Thanks
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
Try and get a secondhand copy of the Sunday Times book 'We Learned to Ski', published in the 1970s. A landmark book, obviously very dated now but a brilliant piece of work and very informative.

The Bob Barnes book disappointed me.

'The Avalanche Enigma' by Colin Fraser is my favourite ski/snow/mountain book of all time. Amazing stories of avalanches and survival from them. Read about the massive snows of 1950/1 in the Alps and what happened. It's also long out of print (it reappeared with a different name in a second edition).

I'll have a look in my little ski library and see if there some other good ones.

The Complete Skier, which was produced by the BBC, by Michael Leibreich (check spelling) is a good book.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Milke and Allens (I think) 101 Telemark Tips !

There were two books written by John Shedden, 'Skilful Skiing' and another that I can't remember - well worth the money of you can find them. And I can remember the name. Puzzled
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
The only decent one I've found is "The All-Mountain Skier" (2nd ed) by R Mark Elling (2003, Ragged Mountain Press). It's American and I think I got it through Amazon. It's relatively dense and theoretical (ie 'explain as well as describe') and particularly good on equipment set-up, if you like that sort of thing.

Fred Foxon's "Skiing: technique, tactics, training" is more the pictorial guide, but not bad. It was published in 1991, so it's not so hot on carving, etc. But it is a scream for the dated ski-wear on display. What was it with iridescent green a few years ago?
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Denise Mcluggage's 'The Centered Skier' more inspirational than analytical, if you don't care for Stevo's suggestion as too gear-oriented.

David Goldsmith, what did you miss in Bob Barnes' book?
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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!
Stevo, I have "The All-Mountain Skier", not a bad a book at all.

I'm a bit surprised no one mentioned Off Piste by Wayne Watson, I thought it was one of the classic ski books. Obviously focused at off piste rather than learning to ski but an essential part of your bookshelf I'd think.
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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.
comprex, I'll come to that in a moment, but first an American book which - to my mind - is superior and highly original: 'Skiing Right' by Horst Abraham. This masterly piece of work covers many key aspects of skiing, its history (a very good section), its technique and other dimensions to the sport.

The publisher of Skiing Right is Boulder Books ISBN 0-933472-74-9.

Bob Barnes' book is OK if what you want is essentially a glossary of terms used in skiing, with explanations, but it doesn't really capture the essence and rudiments of the sport. It's an A to Z, and not well illustrated or designed. I'm not saying it's not useful as a reference, but it's not a 'bible'. I have to say his section on the monoski (at least in the 3rd edition I have) is inaccurate. The monoski gets a typical 'elite ski instructor' critique, without acknowledging that in a big wide open powder field it is the most powerful and effective ski ever created. It's also an American invention, which Bob surprisingly does not note - he blames it on the French!!

OK, that's a niggle, and I wouldn't want to put down any author who's obviously put graft into a worthwhile book, but Horst Abraham's work is a real product of intellect (but also very accessible).
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Second the "All-Mountain Skier" (2nd ed) by R Mark Elling.

"The Skier's Edge" by Ron Lemaster

Not read it but heard people give positive comments about this book ....
http://www.breakthroughonskis.com/Pages/new-book.html


My second week of skiing was with an Austrian group over Christmas (wife's friends). 12 months later we met up again and as usual spent the week in a hotel on top of the mountain (just like "The Shinning" Wink). Evenings were spent either drinking copious amounts, playing board/card games and/or reading books. I was reading a skiing instructional book one night and the Austrians who learn skiing by doing (normally at some young age) were very amused at the fact that anyone would try to learn skiing from a book. For them it was like somebody reading an instructional book on how to walk. I had skied around 30 days since first meeting the group with a few lessons so my skiing had improved. The following evening one of the Austrians came up to me and asked very quietly if he could just take a look at the book, you know because it was unusual not because he could learn anything from it, and then read it for hours. snowHead


Having said that a friend of mine read a skiing book before ever skiing and thought he would be able to ski without any lessons. So much for theory, spent most of his time on his rear end.
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
"Ski the Whole Mountain", by the DesLauriers brothers (Rob & Eric)

I skied with Eric and talked ski technique with him in a bar (i.e. he talked and I listened). He's a great guy - modest, friendly. I'm yet to buy the book myself, but I will. Some great offpiste photos, too.
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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.
I know that I'm the fourth person to say this, but The All Mountain Skier is an extremely good book. Mark Elling has achieved what I used to think was impossible: an instructional book that's good enough to read thousands of miles and several months away from the slopes.

I found the chapter on powder skiing incredibly helpful when we had that huge dump in Europe last January - not a substitute for good instruction, but something helped me understand the theoretical basis of my lessons and served to reinforce and consolidate my knowledge.

Excellent.
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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
David Goldsmith, you may be interested in a little clip of Horst Abrahams skiing with a friend (although I expect you already have it rolling eyes )

Warning! 7Mb windows media file

I would add "The Athletic Skier" by Warren Witherell and David Evrard

For historical interest "The Handbook of Skiing" by Karl Gamma

and the fascinating "Skiing - An Art...A Technique" by Georges Joubert

( ski - John Shedden's other? book was "Skiing - Developing your Skill")


Last edited by 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 on Tue 22-02-05 22:21; edited 4 times in total
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Another vote for "The Skier's Edge" by Ron LeMaster
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I'm with Stevo and "The All Mountain Skier". It is very American. They should put out an international edition and rewrite the spastic skier references. It also seems to illustrate all the problems and errors with female examples and the right technique with men. I'm not the most PC of people but I was surprised by the style.

All said the content is still the best I've read.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hey rich,
1st post - Welcome to Snowheads Smile

And thanks for making it a reply to my question - looks like I'm getting books for xmas this year!!!

I see you're another Reading skier - maybe we'll c u at John Nike sometime Smile

David
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Hi rich, welcome indeed. I think you'll find that Ellings has correctly used the word "spastic" in its US dictionary definition - a pity that publishers don't check for international usage Puzzled An unusual choice of word though - I wonder if any of our US contributors can advise if it's common parlance over there?
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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?
Alan Craggs, that word was in very common usage in the early '80s, partly due to Billy Joel's line 'and we were tameless, like spastic horses' that was used in the 'Eddie and the Cruisers' soundtrack. It seemed to die with the tape cassette era.
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
Its not the dictionary definition of the word spactic that matters, its the common usage, which was why the spastic society changed its name way back.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Well that's maybe right Rich, which is why I wondered if it was a common word in American speak. From comprex' reply though, it seems not, which makes you wonder why the author used it.

Good book nonetheless, I have the first edition - is the second significantly different? anyone know?
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