Pole plants

A snowHead

Cos its a bit dead and because it seemed to be a useful tangent on tother thread (Note Megamum you should absolutely not be reading any junk written here).

What are the modern theories on pole planting?

All and any cod, orthodox, central theme, national system theories welcome.

My own bag of biases:

Essential in bumps
Essential in certain initialisations on steeps
Very useful for feeling out terrain in pow ( in shorter radius turns).
Essential for poling
Good for timing of turns on piste providing they aren't happening too quickly but far from essential (but not an excuse to not hold arms in a functional position.
Double pole plants - an aesthetic no no, notwithstanding the few extreme situations in which they are justified.
Most people have poles that are too long for effective alpine skiing.

A snowHead

Ok, *almost* genuine question - Why do you need them at all?

No other mountain users use them (apart from nordics and they're not really using the mountain now are they). Beginners don't use them, racers dont use them once they're out the gate (as far as I can see they just wave them about the place) so are they just an aide for the intermediate? Half the time you see people in lessons doing drills they're using poles as balance bars or to concentrate their bodyweight rather than for poking... You don't REALLY need them on the flats either as you can skate. So apart from pointing at billboard piste maps, and countering poor technique, what do you use them for?

I suspect that they are just vestigial left overs from the Alpenstock days and nobody can bare to part with them.

This question comes from a position of never having used skis, and in the spirit of Snowheads silly-season.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

Richard_Sideways, sl racers still very much use them.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Brilliant for timing and movement. I try to make a pole plant of some kind on every turn I make, even if it is only a little twist of the wrist that doesn't actually make the pole tap the snow. Important thing to remember is that the pole plant changes depending on the situation. A plant when you are doing high speed, long radius turns is going to be significantly different from a pole plant when skking a very sttep piste with skiddy, short radius turns.

When conditions get tricky (bumps, difficult snow, steep terrain) they become more important. Those are the times when you want to be able to rely on your pole plant, not have it as one extra thing to focus on. Try skiing bumps without your poles...

Richard_Sideways, racers do use a pole plant. Maybe not a neat one, and not on every turn, but they do use their poles. Obviously it varies from discipline to discipline.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Fatbob the latter is best acomplished by carrying a 2 foot length of electrical flex, bike chain or frayed garden hose... plus without poles you wouldn't have to tow anyone any more.

Win, Win, Problem Solved, You're Welcome.

C'MON SKIERS! NIX THE STICKS!

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

After all it is free

Richard_Sideways, they are good for balance for one thing and if you're not going particularly quickly they can offer a bit of support.

Also as fatbob notes using them properly just looks nicer than some random arms out. There's definitely a speed and turn size where my pole plant does disappear but it's pretty consistently there otherwise.

They also help reduce fatigue when hiking, skinning and skating.

rob@rar, on the not skiing bumps without poles I recently had to ski 1000m of what can best be described as frozen waves with only one pole as my mate had forgotten to put his in the car. It was not a fun time. Sad

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

meh, I once ripped a basket off a pole in some particularly chunky "pow" and found I had to swap hands every turn with the functional one.

Next bias - racer baskets might look neat but are gash in the circumstances when you REALLy need poles.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

What would you tap together to warn other learner skiers that you are about to come past them? {In the spirit of SH silly season}

snow reports

fatbob, i've had to do that on the 2 occasions i have snapped a pole piste. it's amazing how much you miss them when you don't have them

that said, what happened to the trend for jibbers to do without?

You know it makes sense.

and for neatly clicking down the brakes of your skis to take them off if you haven't mastered treading on them with the opposite ski (which I tend to think could have a tendency to scratch the bases anyway).

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Had my poles nicked from outside the bel air restaurant in courchevel 1650 one lunchtime. had to ski back to meribel without any....felt like someone had stolen my arms.

A snowHead

They really come into their own when waving to other members of your group or pointing at things in the distance.

A snowHead

I use them to vet fellow chair passengers on their gnar factor. If they effortlessly slip them under their bum while sitting down they score higher than someone who looks like they are wrestling a jellyfish.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

Lift lines

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

They sound indispensible!

You'll need to Register first of course.

TBH I dropped one at the start of a drag lift once and it felt so odd trying to ski with just one. I ended up holding it out in front between both hands like the kids in ski school, but it still didn't feel right.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

fatbob, see also; the gaper tuck.

After all it is free

The only time I don't pole plant is when high speed/large radius carving on piste. Pretty sure I still use them for high speed/large radius offpiste turns. I tried the gopro on a pole thing last season, bloody horrible not being able to plant. My gf, who's technique is miles better than mine, can ski quite happily (and perfectly) pretty much everywhere without poles, makes me jealous.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

I thought they were leaning on when looking down a mogul field or any tricky blue?

And that tricky back of boot binding.( if that's what it's called)

snow reports

under a new name, it obviously has a special name then, but I think you know what I meant rolling eyes

. The lever part of the binding at the rear which also seems to engage and disengage the brakes when it is moved.

You know it makes sense.

Megamum, heel throw?

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

Are pole plants anything like pot plants?

A snowHead

Pole Pot?

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Murderous...

You need to Login to know who's really who.

musher, You can't smoke pole plants

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Megamum, while I may have known what you meant, you said "brakes" which are obviously (surely?) something else entirely.

The brakes are dis/engaged by the boot heel entering/departing the heel. I can't believe you haven't paid attention to this Shocked

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

So summary time...

After all it is free

Richard_Sideways, I think you should consider some kind of crutch for your summary work. Wink

Richard_Sideways,

Only one way to settle it ski/board off to include brief climb to a lift, lift maze, departure , 1 minutes resting, pointing at a lift map, moguls, funky crud, flat cat track, demounting equipment and aesthethic score.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

fatbobYour race concept is interesting, but flawed. Snowboarders don't come into it... You should really compare a selection of skiers of similar ability from noob to ski-god and compare times over a set course with and without poles.

I suspect that once you abandon poles your senses become sharper as you have to be more aware - much like the blind man becomes more aware of sound or the man who loses his sense of humour compensates with an increased sense of self importance.

Help!!

Pole plants

snowHeads Forum Index >>> Bend ze Knees