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Ski instructors/coaches wanted for skiing technique research
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead

Hi Snowheads,

I'm from a team of students at Imperial College London researching skiing technique. We have developed a prototype that measures the ski position and boot pressure at different places underfoot. Our hope is that one day our research will be used to create a more powerful coaching tool than the current standard of video analysis.

Earlier this year we took our prototypes to the Alps (thank you to @Zero_G and @Idris for helping us organise this trip) to collect skiing telemetry data with racing skiers at the British Ski Academy in Chamonix. During the trip we collected data and accompanying footage for a large number of turns and we are now looking for experienced instructors and coaches to rate clips of turns so that we can differentiate aspects of skiing technique.

Would any one be interested in helping us out? Please write here if you'd like me to explain the research in more detail.

Thanks!
Jamie
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person

All ears
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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?

Cannot wait to be enlightened Very Happy Very Happy
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You need to Login to know who's really who.

I'm happy to help out.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Great. Here's a little more detail on the device. We’ve developed a prototype that measures the pressure at various points underneath the foot and measures the motion of the skis in three dimensions. The units look similar to boot warmers, with a thin layer placed between the inner and outboot underneath the foot, connected to a unit on the back that contains all the brains. The data from the units is sent to your smartphone then analysis can be viewed on smartphone or using our web based platform. The equipment is similar to that used by the US and French Olympic teams, but we’ve developed it for a fraction of the cost (Admittedly our units have slightly reduced accuracy resulting from the cheaper sensors we use) . Using data analysis the equipment allows us to measure:

1. The pressure profile through the turn. Where the skier placed the greatest pressure.
2. The left/right pressure distribution (i.e. is the skier on their inside ski)
3. Whether the skier is leaning forwards or backwards
4. The smoothness of the turn
5. Whether the turn is carving/skidding
6. The speed of transition
7. The maximum edge angle
8. We also measure all the standard stuff you’d expect from a ski app (Location, speed, distance)

We take all the data to try and estimate skiing ability. To give us a reference 'grade' for different turns, we'd like to ask instructors/coaches to the rate a set of turns we've recorded data and footage for. We have a google survey that shows you one turn after another where you are asked to rate each one. I'd rather not send the survey out into the ether, but post here if you are interested and I'll PM you a link.
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You'll need to Register first of course.

@jamiegrant, Very interested. Do you fancy doing some testing/demos on a dryslope ? The consistency of the surface may be of benefit ?
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Hi @ski, thanks for your interest. Have sent you the survey. We did a bit of dry slope testing last year, but nothing this year. You're right the consistency does help with estimating the angle of the slope (necessary to properly calculate edge angle). We used to test at Brentwood in Essex. It wasn't too bad, but we found it difficult to get good GPS reception as there's quite a lot of trees. It's also quite expensive to get there from central London. Do you have an alternative dryslope in mind for a demo/test?
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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!

Hi Jamie. I'm more than happy to help.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.

@jamiegrant, I'm interested.
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Thanks for all the replies. We've got about 20 now and although there's obviously a difference of opinion, we can see a statistically significant difference in the assessment of turns.

I'm going to keep the survey open for another week, then we'll close it and send out the results.
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