 Poster: A snowHead
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absolute (poorly measured) speed is meaningless as there are so many variables.
It's slightly less meaningless when its measured on the same slope with the same speed gun.
There's one with a short slope over in Verbier between Attelas and the snow park and another in Chalet-Neuf on a longer flatter pitch behind Super Chatel.
So if you do this at the same time as your mates, then there is a valid comparison, but as conditions vary so much from one day to another then other comparison is meaningless.
I also find I am slowed down by my huge appendage swinging around and dragging in the snow in this type on contest 
What would be more meaningful for recreational skiers is the coefficient they achieved against the opener in the weekly Fleche.
I don't think many people realise that for 8-10 euros you can enter a timed GS (Fleche) most weeks in most resorts where there is an ESF.
Some also do a Chamois, which is more technical. A lot of people think that these are just for kids, but anyone can do them.
Don't also assume that the opener is just some old washed out instructor. The opener at St Jean previously competed for Slovenia in WC events.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You've never, ever left a bar or a pub with an unfinished drink though ?
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Well, I've occasionally left an unfinished drink IN a bar. But never taken one out with me, or been with anyone who has.
@zikomo said
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I really can't stand it when I hear people bragging about this stuff, which seems to happen whoever middle-aged holiday skiers congregate.
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I think it's some men, rather than "people". Regardless of age. Perhaps the same ones who brag about "Calais to Val Thorens in 9 hours"
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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?
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| zikomo wrote: |
| ... I really can't stand it when I hear people bragging about this stuff, which seems to happen whoever middle-aged holiday skiers congregate. ... |
I've only come across such bragging on the internet though. Boasts about top speed are like the "I done black runs" boast - not something people who can actually ski would say. I do have a GPS watch, which is handy for looking where I went at the end of the day and it counts the vertical. The top speed is a useless metric, obviously almost always wrong.
To be fair the OP wasn't bragging:
| Ryunis wrote: |
| I'm not bothered about top speeds, just typical speeds |
Typical speeds at public resorts are a bit like cycle speeds - up to about 30km/h. Backcountry snow.. pretty much the same.
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@phil_w, When I did measure my skiing speed I did notice it was much higher than my cycling speeds - even when going downhill. I must just be a scardy cat. Even on the road the dangers cycling just seem a lot higher: pot holes, overbanding, junctions, blind bends, stone walls - cars etc.
I suspect most cyclists are going about half the speed skiers go.
I've done some mountain biking in the resort I ski in. On one occaision coming down a blue piste (Cascade in Arc2000) I hit a drainage ditch and went over the handlebars. The impact was such that the spokes punctured the tyre. Though not injured it took be a long time to get up and repair the punctures. I was going a lot slower than I would have been on skis. On another occaison I tried cycling down a red piste (Reche in Arc1800) I had to get off and walk. I hadn't realised just how steep red pistes are.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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There was once some confusion as to the next bar we were going to. I was ready to move on so just went, got myself a drink and grabbed a table. After 10 minutes no one came so rang someone who told me they were next door. So I just took my drink with me. As it was the last drink of the night and as it was a nice wheat beer glass and as I'd sort of already stolen it - I took it home. IIRC that is the only time I have taken a glass from a bar/pub.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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According to my ski tracks, my average is anywhere between 18 and 25mph.
It's not accurate though, as it starts recording the "downhill" as soon as you stop ascending (ie get off the lift)*, so doesn't account for any faff time, nor waiting time in the next lift queue.
* I realised this a couple of years ago, when I waited for someone to go to the bottom of a relatively short black run to take some video.
I gave them 5 minutes, then had to wait until the route was clear. The run took less than a couple of minutes, top speed over 40mph, but average of only 8mph 
I just looked up one from this year, from the top of the Portavescovo cable car, heading up to Pordio pass.
Averaged over 10 minutes, but only 5 actual skiing.
Edit. Just to say, I don't look at the fastest speeds. Invariably, they are only for a matter of seconds anyway, usually on the run off from steeper sections. I use the tracker as a guide to total distance skied. and record of routes. Very useful as a guide when someone asks for approximate timings from A to B etc.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Fri 14-04-23 12:14; edited 1 time in total
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| ansta1 wrote: |
| (In my defense in terms of the speed I did still have my ski boots on). |
That's hardcore!
Best I've managed is driving with a pair of Sportiva Nepal Top boots on; they're stiff but nowhere near as clunky as ski boots. Next time, I wore more sensible driving shoes...
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| johnE wrote: |
| @phil_w, On another occaison I tried cycling down a red piste (Reche in Arc1800) I had to get off and walk. I hadn't realised just how steep red pistes are. |
I more or less did the same, after a few turns that felt like a very nervous skier on a red (sliding the back of the bike to keep speed down as it was too steep to even think about the front brake) I came across a fortunately placed escape route used for forestry work at the side of the piste.
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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.
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| Quote: |
Averaged over 10 minutes, but only 5 actual skiing.
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@brianatab, i think it's doing better than you suggest. By the look of the picture, you skied just under 2 miles, so if that was a 10 minute average, it would be under 12 mph. But it's actually calculated approx 20 mph which is close to your 5 minutes of ski time.
Of course, the actual distance measured is fairly inaccurate and the elevation change more so, so the numbers are very approximate - but they are taking into account the time you stopped for.
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| Chris_n wrote: |
| johnE wrote: |
| @phil_w, On another occaison I tried cycling down a red piste (Reche in Arc1800) I had to get off and walk. I hadn't realised just how steep red pistes are. |
I more or less did the same, after a few turns that felt like a very nervous skier on a red (sliding the back of the bike to keep speed down as it was too steep to even think about the front brake) I came across a fortunately placed escape route used for forestry work at the side of the piste. |
Exactly my experience - mountain biking down a red piste in Summer. The forest track at the side (normally covered in snow in winter) was verging on terrifying. The actual piste would have been murder….troughs, holes, ridges and gulleys. It certainly made me wonder about the terrain one skis over 
There’s no way I’d bike as fast as skiing…lethal!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I once skied with a young French bloke on borrowed, very long, skis, and my son. In Les Contamines. Both good skiers but the Frenchman did those little bum wiggling things all the way down the slopes whereas my son did big, edge to edge, carving turns. The French lad usually reached the bottom first but my son (who is not remotely competitive) had covered at least twice the distance, I just pottered slowly down behind them both, in a dignified fashion, of course.
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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.
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| johnE wrote: |
@phil_w, When I did measure my skiing speed I did notice it was much higher than my cycling speeds - even when going downhill. I must just be a scardy cat. Even on the road the dangers cycling just seem a lot higher: pot holes, overbanding, junctions, blind bends, stone walls - cars etc.
I suspect most cyclists are going about half the speed skiers go.
I've done some mountain biking in the resort I ski in. On one occaision coming down a blue piste (Cascade in Arc2000) I hit a drainage ditch and went over the handlebars. The impact was such that the spokes punctured the tyre. Though not injured it took be a long time to get up and repair the punctures. I was going a lot slower than I would have been on skis. On another occaison I tried cycling down a red piste (Reche in Arc1800) I had to get off and walk. I hadn't realised just how steep red pistes are. |
That's quite a step, downhill at those gradient on a bike.
In comparison to skis, relatively clumsy and nothing like the braking performance at those angles, the ski being positively balletic given gradient parity.
Downhill bike at any serious pace is more a sequence of looking where not to crash, or the least resistance way out of the predicament you're in.
In family we run full on downhill bikes, even with them you have to put the seat right down and get your bum cheeks as far over the rear axle as possible to stand any chance in severe courses.
I don't measure the speed in anything I do like this, makes no difference to me. Will have a go at dedicated speed ski trap for fun, but no reason to collate any stats in my view too.
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| johnE wrote: |
| @phil_w, When I did measure my skiing speed I did notice it was much higher than my cycling speeds - even when going downhill. I must just be a scardy cat. |
or sensible.
Cycling crashes (having done a few) are generally much more serious than ski crashes at a similar speed. Motorcyclists think cyclists - in their thin lycra - are mad descending at 80 to 90 km/h.
I'm still suffering from a bike crash 18 months ago that was just at normal, flat speeds.
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You know it makes sense.
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I'm sat here reading this in my armoured motorbike gear, about to go to work, I probably won't exceed my max ski speed, usually done in no more than jacket, trousers and sunnies 
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I have found comparing max speed a useful indicator of whether you could spend a day skiing with someone. My normal max is 50kmph and I struggle with someone who has a normal max of 60. I can hit 60+ but it's not normal for me. These were skiing the same area on the same days / conditions and we'd have covered a lot of the same pistes so about as comparable as you could get when not skiing together. I haven't got any more involved than that but I'd now like to look at averages as well.
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Poster: A snowHead
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FWiW, a segment from yesterday, 42km/h average. I wasn't hooning it down the slope just usual short turns.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| OuatteDePhoque wrote: |
Don't also assume that the opener is just some old washed out instructor. The opener at St Jean previously competed for Slovenia in WC events. |
The coefficent is correlated to the opener's current times in races so, in theory, the results are meaningful across courses and openers. You do need a bit of technique whereas a freefalling skier with no technique can probably get up to 180kph as someone tried to prove on Friday in Tignes.
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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?
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| tangowaggon wrote: |
| I'm sat here reading this in my armoured motorbike gear, about to go to work, I probably won't exceed my max ski speed, usually done in no more than jacket, trousers and sunnies |
And on it goes
Someone please make it stop
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| davidof wrote: |
FWiW, a segment from yesterday, 42km/h average. I wasn't hooning it down the slope just usual short turns.
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Aww he's even drawn a little circle around his time to show us he's KoM
How cool
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Whitegoldsbrother wrote: |
| davidof wrote: |
FWiW, a segment from yesterday, 42km/h average. I wasn't hooning it down the slope just usual short turns.
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Aww he's even drawn a little circle around his time to show us he's KoM
How cool |
Who are you writing this for? I am OP and am interested to hear people's experiences. No d!ck measuring goin on here..
If you aren't interested then why comment? If you overhear people having a conversation about something you don't care about, do you interrupt them to tell them? Sounds like a sad existence.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Ryunis, take no notice, he's just a tiresome troll.
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| Hurtle wrote: |
| @Ryunis, take no notice, he's just a tiresome troll. |
Fancy spending your Saturday night spraying such pointless poison
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On an empty piste (don't want to be antisocial) I have managed up to 90 KPH according to my GPS, but that was in the past. At 75 yrs I have to be much more careful with my bones. Three breakages over the years. Also reaction times must be disappearing.
I don't know what my average speeds might be. By average, do you mean from the moment you start moving, or for the average time to get down the piste with stops for a breather or for the overall time skiing?
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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.
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| TCSC47 wrote: |
I don't know what my average speeds might be. By average, do you mean from the moment you start moving, or for the average time to get down the piste with stops for a breather or for the overall time skiing? |
and does it include the uplift?
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| TCSC47 wrote: |
On an empty piste (don't want to be antisocial) I have managed up to 90 KPH according to my GPS, but that was in the past. At 75 yrs I have to be much more careful with my bones. Three breakages over the years. Also reaction times must be disappearing.
I don't know what my average speeds might be. By average, do you mean from the moment you start moving, or for the average time to get down the piste with stops for a breather or for the overall time skiing? |
I meant average moving speed in the beginning but people are sharing all sorts of interesting insights
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| davidof wrote: |
| TCSC47 wrote: |
I don't know what my average speeds might be. By average, do you mean from the moment you start moving, or for the average time to get down the piste with stops for a breather or for the overall time skiing? |
and does it include the uplift? |
Apologies -- off topic!
A couple of years ago, my wife was doing the 1000miles walk in a year promoted by Walking magazine (I think). I was doing it with her until I came back from skiing and wanted to incorporate some of my ski mileage. My wife who abhors skiing (it is the only thing we don't agree on) would not let me do it because "half the time you are going uphill in a chair and the other half you are sliding down, not walking". I did not want to incorporate the whole distance I had travelled, but at least some notion of it. However, this not being allowed (!) I had a sulk and packed in my walk a 1000 miles altogether.
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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.
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I haven't done enough to really comment this year and certainly none in "normal" fitness. But e.g. when my bro was out last year his Garmin watch was showing average speeds around 30kph and peaking around 55-60kph.
My personal measured best was an odd 100kph on DH skis and with a catsuit albeit on a fairly short slope but with proper race timing gear.
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You know it makes sense.
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and for comparison on cross country skis - 50km/h on cross country skis on a mixed use trail is a bit hairy but the fast guys exceed 70km/h
Fastest woman Maya Cloetens (who's that?) in 5m15s
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@davidof, good lord. That’s amazing.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| under a new name wrote: |
| @davidof, good lord. That’s amazing. |
I had a crash at similar speeds a couple of weeks after that, slightly less amazing.
Jimmy Clugnet, about 5th on the list, told me that at 70km/h it is really, really hairy as you can come around a bend and find a troop of snowshoers stretched across the trail not leaving any gap at all - he's had to go "off piste" at times and have an underpants change.
So yes, the message probably is: Speed Kills, Kids, Don't do it.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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?
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| Ryunis wrote: |
| Hurtle wrote: |
| @Ryunis, take no notice, he's just a tiresome troll. |
Fancy spending your Saturday night spraying such pointless poison |
I agree, @Hurtle should be ashamed of himself
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Took a while but the big (s)hitters have turned up[/quote]
The thread is just a bit of fun. I assume everyone on it is self aware enough to know that a pro or club skier would leave them for dust.
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@davidof,
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The thread is just a bit of fun
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I think his idea of fun could be a tad warped.
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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.
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Dunno if anyone else saw this, but on Saturday there was some kind of duffers GS on the comp piste at Prolays, and in the roped off bit next to that there was an ESF managed speed-ski piste where lycra clad kids were giving it the beans. Unfortunately its not uber steep (blue run) and there was 20 cm of fresh snow, so the kids were all looking a little disappointed by their efforts.
Still, something to watch from the chair-lift.
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@davidof,
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I assume everyone on it is self aware enough to know that a pro or club skier would leave them for dust.
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You would like to think so but apparently not
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FAQ
laughing uncontrolled at their own wit and delivery.
