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Which Equipment choices or adjustments REALLY matter to your skiing?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
StickyDicky, .. Sorry ..... I am unworthy Embarassed
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
It's a plant ya numptyhttp://snowheads.com/ski-forum/images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif
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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?
Jeraff wrote:
and you wear clothing that keeps them body temperature on the slope, how much warmer/colder/bigger/smaller are we really talking?


Which article of clothing am I supposed to wear to keep my boots at body temperature?
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StickyWillie, well, thats kinda what I'm saying? Tightening/loosening the buckles will compensate for volume size or liner packing so why buy boots that are initially 'too small'? If they are the correct length, then by definition that means they are the correct size to begin with? Boot 'size' normally refers to the length but the width and fit vary according to type or style?
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
StickyWillie, Axshully we always called the stuff 'Friendship' Shocked
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Jeraff, you forgot to explain which body temperature. There is a lot of shrinkage at Girls'BumsInBed°C
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
StickyWillie wrote:
DB, looks like you know a bit about farms then.


I'm no expert but was thinking that maybe a Farm and a Zoo both have animals. Isn't axemister carpet a bit thick for that sort of thing? and does it go under the foot or just between the top/side of the foot and the shell?
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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!
comprex, I was talking feet, not boots. But if the boots contract in the cold, then surely you need to get bigger ones in the warm shop to allow for the shrinkage?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
And don't misquote me on shrinkage wink
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Ski the Net with snowHeads
Agenterre, you're right. All of my friends are numpties. Where would we be without numptydom? http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/images/smiles/icon_snowHead.gif
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
http://www.wiltoncarpets.com/index_commercial.htm


Last edited by snowHeads are a friendly bunch. on Thu 6-11-08 17:16; edited 1 time in total
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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.
Now you're talking balls wink
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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
Jeraff, unless the liner contracts quicker than the shell.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Wha' happened there, were did comprexs balls disappear to?
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
DB, your 'animal link' observation was specific to 'on the farm'. I'll check with the zoo but I think you'll be right about it having animals. Then there's Westminster...

As for where does the Axeminster go? Once your boots get to that stage you have to use your own judgement. Mouse mat material is a fine and amore modern alternative to carpet. Less absorbent too.

One of the most pressing reasons for a boot upgrade can be the smell. I mean, after five seasons it can get a bit ripe down there.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Jeraff wrote:
Wha' happened there, were did comprexs balls disappear to?


Comprex took his balls away so I took my bit away and you were left standing there with your bit all disconnected.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
By the way, for comfort and good edge control, a good footbed is well worth the investment and this: http://www.hotronic.com/products/sd/index.html is something I got in Park City last year when I lost me wellie warmers. Warm dry boots in the morning. The just rickle faintly warm air inot your boot over night. Fantastic!
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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?
and it was all going so well.......Jeraff, nobody is talking about boots too small, just most people buy them too big, if the boot is the correct volume and size for the foot then the packing out of the liner will happen but it will take a lot longer

rob you can measure your own binding stand height, put boot in binding and measure from the sole fo teh boot to the base of the ski at the toe and the heel, see what the diference is?
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CEM, I know you explained this once before but i still dont really get how changing ramp angle inside the boot with heel lifters is fundamentally any different to adding heel height through shimming bindings. Is it to do with being constrained inside the boot and having a fairly fixed forward lean?

Rob asked the question that with 6mm heel lifts should he shim his toe piece by 6mm, I said no but as i dont really understand this fully perhaps i was giving out bad advice...
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
skimottaret, maybe this is bad advice too, but at least it's simple?

The strong reflex of your body is to stay upright.

There is no way for you to flex the spine of the ski boot backwards.

Therefore an underboot shim closes off the range of motion available for the lower leg to be upright and that reflex will out in other parts of the body.

An in-boot shim makes -more- range of motion available for the lower leg to be upright.
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skimottaret, ok, if the forward lean is 17degrees and the ramp is 5 degres then the net forward lean is 12 degrees, if you increase the ramp to 7 degrees then the nett forward lean is 10 degrees, this is great for someone with limited flexion at the ankle or needing an increase in available rangle of motion mas it changes the relationship between the foot and the ankle, changing thins outside the boot works the whole boot and the leg, if you raise the toe you do not change the net forward lean but you start hte available range of motion from a more upright position, changes under the toe flatten out the binding delta which can allow the skier to apply pressure to the front of the ski too uch height under the heel of the binding causes the skier to compensate for being tipped forward by ending up in the back seat

does that mek sense Toofy Grin
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
CEM, comprex, thanks for the explanations and yes they make sense... I thought it must be down to the forward lean and flex of the boot but wasnt 100% clear in my head.

my dorsiflexion has definately reduced in the last few years, this was diagnosed by Jimmy at profeet who did my original beds and then a pair for my tele boots. Then yourself and Andi prescribe heel lifts. So again i am a believer and can actually feel a difference.

I dont want to over egg the differences but for me it has been very marked post alignment/balancing and shimming... drills i struggled to do before are now achievable and i feel much taller and relaxed on the skis...
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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!
skimottaret, have you changed the width of your skiing stance over the years and how has that affected your cuff tilt?
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comprex, i guess i probably have widened my stance a bit but to be honest until 2 years ago never looked at cuff adjustment. the boot fitter did it for me and i havent played with it. It was rechecked by Andi and i think i am fairly normal and dont require any adjustments.

I am speculating here but i think cuff adjustment is more to do with compensating for any bow you may have in your lower leg and getting the ankle joint in a good stacked position similar to internal heel lifts. Less to do with stance width but with a wider stance most people would (i think) is about getting the knee joint in the right position, with knees further apart you would need more canting..

Can you be kind when grading this quiz professor wink
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skimottaret, Superb post.......you're obviously bored. wink
You forgot the most important one rolling eyes........Having the 'Right' Jacket. Laughing

Seriously Boots are to me the most important, closely followed by skis.
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
skimottaret, excellent post, should be a sticky.

Here's my list in order of importance:
Footbeds & Boot fit
Boot alignment/delta angle check
Campbell Balancer (with shims under sole to mimic delta if required)
Mount/re-position bindings, shimmed to adjust delta
Tune skis
Go ski!
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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'm not going to make a comment on angles/alignment as my internal jury is still out. BUt I would submit that for most folks properly fitting (and comfortable) boots is most important. Skis secondly.
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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
CEM, skimottaret, thanks for that explanation on forward lean. Looks to me like there should be another definition in the glossary: "Net Forward Lean" angle between the sole of the foot and the shin, also from base-board to cuff within the boot." Is that right? Should probably have a cross-reference from "Forward Lean" to highlight the distinction. And from what you say, if you're having trouble pressuring the front of the boot, you should have either a heel-piece shim if you're just too upright, or a combination of a heel-lift and toepiece shim if the boot forward lean is too great?

No real comments on the balancing/alignment thing as I've not had it done. When I changed my boots a couple of years ago, I did notice a big difference on the race course. I'm not sure I noticed such a difference in general skiing, although I didn't have sudden a/b comparison there (I'd been using some touring boots for most of my snow skiing). They were a size smaller, and much more precise - but also very much more painful (took too long before getting them fettled by CEM). I suspect though that the difference was primarily of of fit, rather than any essential difference in the boot itself. Get boots that fit and are of an appropriate stiffness. I do think it's actually quite difficult to see how much difference a boot will make though, as many of us will not be able to demo and compare reasonably fitting boots without committing to a purchase up front.

I have seen major differences between skis though, based largely on their stiffness. Going from Dynamic 1.2s to Head iSLs tis summer was a quite disturbing change. The Heads are waaaay stiffer than the Dynamics, and so require a completely different way of skiing. The Dynamics you just put on edge and they turn, but they need gentle skiing as they break away if you pressure them too hard. Ski the Heads in the same way and you just go straight - they need active driving to make them bend, but when they do you get way more grip and energy out of the turn. The difficulty switching between them, which took me quite a time to work out, as they are very similar sidecut, is that the minimum energy required to drive the Heads is not that different from the maximum that the Dynamics will stand. I also did a 4-way test the other day adding in a couple of pairs of Salamon Race 3Vs (not LABs), one with a standard rental binding and one with a race plate. The one with the standard binding just washed out at the first hint of aggression, but was extremely rapid to switch edges and hook into a turn - but overall it felt almost completely useless as a advanced ski. Adding the plate transformed it: much more solid in the centre of the turn, and was very smooth on the transitions, not nearly as lively as the Heads, but took much less driving.

So please don't dismiss ski differences. It's really important to get a ski that matches the way you ski.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
GrahamN, Watching you free ski in Tignes last autumn I thought that you would benefit from making some alignment changes.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
rjs, you're probably right. I really ought to get checked out before long.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
skimottaret wrote:
comprex, i guess i probably have widened my stance a bit but to be honest until 2 years ago never looked at cuff adjustment. the boot fitter did it for me and i havent played with it. It was rechecked by Andi and i think i am fairly normal and dont require any adjustments.


When it was done, they prolly had you stand 'about as wide as you usually ski'?


I went through an exploration phase about 4-5 years ago where I almost doubled my stance width.

I really can't ski any of my boots from then without bringing the cuffs back in, which of course makes for goofy fit changes at the ankle pocket and navicular.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Without wishing to wade through the whole thread, and getting straight to the point of the question...

At the end of the season, when I did my CSCF course, I couldn't believe the difference that using different pairs of skis made to my skiing (not necessarily better, but different). I skied on four different pairs of skis over that week, and all were very different, and allowed me to do very different things with my carving (so I'm not even talking about the different possibilites that a fat ski provides compared to a SL ski). I then bought a lovely pair of GS skis off kiwi1 which are completely different again.

Now all I need is a decent pair of boots, given that I'm still skiing the same, horrible, cheap, soft as hell boots I got for my second week skiing. Then I might really appreciate some of my new skis. Madeye-Smiley snowHead
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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?
skisimon wrote:
I skied on four different pairs of skis over that week, and all were very different, and allowed me to do very different things with my carving

Were all four pair of skis the same type, eg all slalom skis or all GS skis? Or were they a mixture of piste, all mountain, etc?
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rob@rar, they were all 'carvers' for want of a better description. However the waists varied from about 60mm to 76mm and the radii from 11m to 23m.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
skisimon, OK. I've never been able to notice much of a difference between different skis of the same type, eg two different slalom skis, but differences between types such as a race ski and a fat ski are huge.
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rob@rar, every slalom ski I've had has skied totally differently, either because of sidecut, stiffness, or balance between tip and tail (and if I wanted to include the SL11s in that comparison above, they're an even more extreme version of what I feel about the Heads). Not necessarily better or worse, but certainly different.
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
GrahamN, the only ones which felt different to me (although I've not skied many different types) was the Vist slalom ski which has a very stiff tail. I rather liked that so bought a pair.
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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!
Quote:

Skimottaret: I was never shown how to fasten them correctly and I always had them cranked up too tight.


Can you enlighten me as I do tend to crank my boots to the max.
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Great posting guys, this is why i love snowheads! Really interesting views here, I've never had my aligment checked, although thinking about it now! As a self-confessed gear-head I've allways taken the "buy cheap buy twice" view and found a HUGE difference in the quality of skis on offer, not only in flex etc but in the quality of construction but without a doubt getting some quality boots and good tuition is vital!

As for sharpening your edges, I focus on rounding all mine off under the binding area to a smoooooth curve, get some strange looks in the shops I can tell you!
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Quote:

As for sharpening your edges, I focus on rounding all mine off under the binding area to a smoooooth curve, get some strange looks in the shops I can tell you!


why???

are you trying to make life difficult Toofy Grin
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