Hi all, I'm really struggling to get my skis to carve, I'm very happy parallel turning but I just don't seem to get carving. I've watched a few videos and will get back to a proper coach when time and money allows but in the meantime any recommendations on what to watch would be great, especially if it's called "carving epiphany".
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Get on a gentle slope and move your knees until the skis are on their edges and then go round a corner. That's carving. Nothing more to learn.
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?
^ This.
Carving doesn't need to be super fast, it is just getting the skis to do the work of turning for you. Best practised on easy slopes to do the whole ankle/knee rolling thing.
@RoboJ, try doing some garlands. get on a nice wide piste and traverse across allowing your skis to flatten out on the snow. you will start to slide down the hill. now roll your ankles and knees into the slope, and keep that edge angle and the skis will start to turn up hill (that's carving) then release them to flat again and repeat. Darren Turner does show some garlands in one of his vids. it's a great way of getting a feel of how to engage the edges and then release them.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Ok, this is where I'm a bit confused... there's talk of rolling your ankle, now I can see why that'd work, gets your skis on edge... but my ankles really only move rotational in the same plane as my knees, even if they did roll then I'm not sure they'd move much in my boots.
Is it really subtle and I'm not sensitive enough? Am I taking it too literally?
@RoboJ, yep too literal, your knees and ankle will remain in the same plane (because of your boots). it's all about getting the a simple tip that puts you in the right position. how about push your uphill knee, up hill! that will also put the skis on edge and thus initiate the carve.
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@RoboJ, yes simply roll your ankles as you say to get both skis onto edge. If you do this on a gentle slope that will be sufficient to carve. You can easily self check, if you have two nice tram lines in the snow behind you then you have carved that part of the turn. It's about 1m 27 secs into that video @Pynch posted with a nice "after" shot of two clean lines.
On steeper slopes and with more speed you need to do more than just roll your ankles but see if you can ski on a GENTLE SLOPE ie a green like the end of the video as step one. DO NOT GO STEEPER at this stage, you will end up skidding.
After all it is free
After all it is free
RoboJ wrote:
Ok, this is where I'm a bit confused... there's talk of rolling your ankle, now I can see why that'd work, gets your skis on edge... but my ankles really only move rotational in the same plane as my knees, even if they did roll then I'm not sure they'd move much in my boots.
Is it really subtle and I'm not sensitive enough? Am I taking it too literally?
Caveat that I'm only a learning idiot myself - but what seems to be missing from the explanations (and forgive me please if it's not entirely right) is that it's about the whole body moving and flexing, opening, bending etc all together. If you just rolled your ankles, even your ankles and knees together, then you'd end up very angled over into the hillside. This is good to a degree, but there's angulation and there's inclination, and you have to use your upper body to counter and balance. This requires your hips to be doing things, and a certain separation of upper and lower body (though probably differently to other types of technique and turns in skiing). So it's not just about rolling the edges via the feet/ankles.
If this makes sense it might help - I had a lesson once where I was traversing the hill and had to put my ski poles, clutched in both hands, beside me right down on the snow (parallel to the surface and pointing in the direction of the traverse) on the downhill side of the traverse, and hold them there for the entire traverse. Then relax, make the turn and repeat the other way (ad infinitum). Fundamentaly, if you try this at home you'll see that it forces your knees into the upill side of the slope, forces your ankles and feet to roll into the ill and forces your upper body to turn a bit down the hill and to counter balance and do hippy things.
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@Grizzler, step one you can "simply" roll your ankles, hence having to do it on a very shallow easy slope, introducing whole body moving, flexing, hips etc etc just confuses issues and gets away from the core outcome of 2 clean lines in the snow.....look about 1m 27 secs into that video @Pynch to see how easy it should be (once you've nailed it!!). Takes practise and also "trust" in the skis not to try and turn them.
Your drill will make very nice traverses but do sod all to help carved turns IMHO
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We tend to use a lot of technical terms about our knees and ankles and stuff.
I try and get a sensation for carving and to put it in a different language think "motorcycle" with really grippy tyres going around a curve.
When you get it right or nearly right you get a feeling similar to hitting a golf ball with the "sweet spot" and it makes a great noise.
As mentioned above by James the Last get on a gentle slope and just experiment with it.
A video that I like to watch ...its not technical and the music works well ... with it is this one
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.
@DrLawn, There is definitely a sweet spot! (which the guy in the vid seems to be enjoying...)
...but does anyone else think he's doing something weird with his arm/upper body at the end of each turn? It sort of breaks up his rhythm / poise in my mind.
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
@Pynch, it's just a post-modern pole plant
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
kitenski wrote:
Your drill will make very nice traverses but do sod all to help carved turns IMHO
Quite possibly... I'm not an instructor (and you may or may not be be), the person giving the lesson was (Polish, in Austrian school), and apparently it was to help me carve better (or at all...???). Very keen on getting on edges, clean tramlines, getting bum & knees right over into the hill and lots of other things, she was. I just paid my Euros and tried to work out what was going on
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Pynch wrote:
...but does anyone else think he's doing something weird with his arm/upper body at the end of each turn? It sort of breaks up his rhythm / poise in my mind.
Looks like he is using his pole swing to move forward slightly along the length of his skis in the second half of the turn. Makes sure he's well balanced at the start of the next turn. I think for a few turns he gets a little bit back and a little bit inside, which coincides w with times when he doesn't move forward along has skis. Nice skiing - he looks joyful
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Grizzler wrote:
kitenski wrote:
Your drill will make very nice traverses but do sod all to help carved turns IMHO
Quite possibly... I'm not an instructor (and you may or may not be be), the person giving the lesson was (Polish, in Austrian school), and apparently it was to help me carve better (or at all...???). Very keen on getting on edges, clean tramlines, getting bum & knees right over into the hill and lots of other things, she was. I just paid my Euros and tried to work out what was going on
There is a clue in my sig
SO yes that drill will help getting you to understand what getting on an edge feels like, and is a good stepping stone. I'd trust/hope she also did other drils around the "turning" phase
I could traverse on rails, couldn't start a carve turn properly for years but could finish it carved!
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
kitenski wrote:
I could traverse on rails, couldn't start a carve turn properly for years but could finish it carved!
That's the key. If you can't make a clean transition it doesn't matter what you do in the rest of the turn, it's not carving.
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?
I sense the OP may not necessarily be after the perfect BASI demo carve in which case keeping it simple would seem to be easier than filling one's head with too much complexity - how about get nice and stacked in the traverse, tip the skis on edge and point the inside knee inside the curve.
Hi all, I'm really struggling to get my skis to carve, I'm very happy parallel turning but I just don't seem to get carving. I've watched a few videos and will get back to a proper coach when time and money allows but in the meantime any recommendations on what to watch would be great, especially if it's called "carving epiphany".
It's great to see people wanting to learn to carve and improve their technique. Carving will be one of the best skills you learn and your enjoyment will go through the roof......you'll look super cool too....which is a bonus!
Yep I know you've been keeping it simple and I think BASI admirably do - the difficulty seems to arise when keen learners look to get a jumpstart by absorbing as much as possible on the internet and end up in a miasma of stuff, where it is hard to separate the pearls from the muck and drills designed to teach you how to feel/focus on one isolated thing from "this is how you do it"
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@Dave of the Marmottes, +1. Makes my head spin sometimes.
After all it is free
After all it is free
@RoboJ, I would not worry too much about getting it perfect.
Its only a fad at the moment and we'll have a new style of skiing as soon as you have mastered this one.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
@DrLawn, not convinced about it being a "fad" the ability to use your edges when needed is a core skill IMHO. Carving perfect tram lines certainly isn't an essential skill but it's a great feeling!
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Ski the Net with snowHeads
@kitenski it is only a passing fad we will back to "Wedeling and Yodeling" in no time.
@kitenski it is only a passing fad we will back to "Wedeling and Yodeling" in no time.
Brilliant!
For some of us (Me), that wasn't a passing fad!!
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.
Then of course there is the mono ski ... we don't see many of them around but ... if they were made a bit more parabolic.
They would come back into fashion.
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
DrLawn wrote:
Then of course there is the mono ski ... we don't see many of them around but ... if they were made a bit more parabolic.
now you are talking
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
He's wearing my pants!!!
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Hey@RoboJ are you sure your skis are these new fangled carvy ones?
If the edges come in sections that are screwed on with tiny screws, you'll have to get some newer ones.
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
@DrLawn, he's me a 'few' years ago!
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
@DrLawn, I agree this film is cringeworthy but don't forget he was a multiple World Cup winner and none of us on this forum could even deserve to carry his skis!
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?
He lost his right to respect when he chose to be a Schlager star.
@kitenski So you've done the monoski then?
In the recent past I notice.
Looks like a slushy afternoon.
So keep my pants dry.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@Pynch, Which video wowed you?
After all it is free
After all it is free
@DrLawn, Mr Hinterseer. His impressive skiing managed to get me to watch the whole video, despite wanting to rip my ears off.
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.
@DrLawn, yup a 'few' years ago, was fun in Easter slush or Easter powder, not so much on icy pistes!
I've since learnt to ski properly
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Love the way these discussions digress! I also have a new favourite YouTube video to play at parties I'll have all my mates yodeling in no time. Out of interest is that the sort of block rocking beats one can expect at the bashes?
So, by way a short update... I skied Milton Keynes last week and tried a few exercises but didn't get anywhere by myself. Went to a coaching session there this week and was given a few drills and some feedback which really made a difference. We did smilies which is where you carve across the hill and end up go uphill at the end. Also uphill hand out in front and downhill hand touching outside of DH knee. Very useful, got me carving some of the turn (until I bottled it) and a platform to build on.
Key learns for me; separation allows maintenance of balance, don't be scared of the skis running, get more forward. Also keep a skiing diary with things you learn and do.
Thanks for everyone's help and some awesome videos.
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
I'm not an instructor (and you may or may not be be), the person giving the lesson was (Polish, in Austrian school), and apparently it was to help me carve better (or at all...???). Very keen on getting on edges, clean tramlines, getting bum & knees right over into the hill and lots of other things, she was. I just paid my Euros and tried to work out what was going on 
