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Rate my skiing

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Have a look at these two videos and rate my skiing. Please don't be too harsh, my confidence is very fragile Laughing



http://youtube.com/v/J-8lTN2e8Rg



http://youtube.com/v/wXKN27_dApM
snow conditions
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Peter Ross, IMHO you look in perfect control, finishing your turns quite nicely, and having fun.
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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?
Frosty the Snowman, It all sounds good! I think I'll have to get some shots of me in moguls to really have a discussion! Madeye-Smiley
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
Nice controlled fluid skiing, turning where you want to, rather than where the slope dictates. You look like you're enjoying yourself.

Area for improvement, more ankle flex to get your weight more forward over your skis.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Kramer, Thanks, good advice.
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
Very brave of you to let this lot (us...) loose on your skiing technique!!

Pretty good actually. If we were being hypercritical I would tell you to pay more attention to not paying so much attention to your hand position (!). The first film shows me that someone has told you to keep your hands in sight and they are too high and therefore too stiff. Maintain a relaxed posture with the hands held at 10 to 2 and moving slightly fore and aft in order to initiate the turn. In the second clip they are not so stiff but may be guilty of returning to too near the hip area.

As Kramer said, not enough ankle flex, which is causing you to ski with your heels instead of the middle of your foot - knee flex is good but more drive from the front of the boot, which in turn will prevent you from snatching the turn, which could be slightly more rounded and with a more progressive arc described. To do this you need to emphasise the up movement at the start of the turn but slow down the compression into the turn - use the skis' natural radii to assist.

Nonetheless, you are enjoying yourself and therefore who cares??! Keep up the good work...

snowHead
ski holidays
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Nice turns Peter Ross. It's always difficult to "perform" for the camera - or so I've heard Wink

To elaborate on what Powderhound and Kramer have said, have look at these two frames:

and

Which shows you dropping your bum to pole plant and forcing your weight back.

You're also stemming your turns a little. If you look at this:

You'll "see" that your right leg is travelling at a different angle to the left leg. In the next frame or two you step your leg around - though it's too hard to frame grab accurately from YouTube for me to have got the frame with your foot off the ground.

(You're also banking to initiate your turns.)

Anyway, I'd suggest working on two things:
- pressure on the front of the boots
- slow down the front half of the turn a little and let the skis run - that way you won't need to step them around or bank.

But as I say, nice turns...
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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!
look out, in the first clip good turns but you looked like you had a line picked and nothing was going to stop you getting it on camera, about 7 seconds in you cut right in front of another skiier and then across a narrowing gap.
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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.
Powderhound, I will work on the ankle flex and boot pressure. In the second clip the run is quite moguled (not apparent on the clip) so I think that's why there is more pressure early in the turn to knock off speed. Am I right to do this?

PhillipStanton, those freeze frames are really good to explain your point, what does (You're also banking to initiate your turns.) mean? thanks

daehwons, fair point, don't want to hit someone, although I'm always looking around me, comes from cycling in traffic everyday where pedestrians, car doors and buses are just waiting to get you. snowHead

This is better than a lesson! Thanks all


Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Fri 24-11-06 18:57; edited 2 times in total
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
I have found consciously standing taller and pushing my bum forwards helps to get a more dynamic, relaxed and neutral position. This means less bending at the waist to plant your poles and helps to get your shins pushing against the front of your boots - it may be worth loosening the top clip if you find them a bit too stiff.

But that's just being picky - the main criticism was I couldn't see your grin!!
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Glad you find the grabs useful Peter Ross.

Ok, first off, I've caught the frame with you lifting your foot:

Looking at your posture really reinforces that you're on your tails.

Ok, the banking. Look at these frames:

You can see that you're stood up straight - almost "swooping" around the corner. What's wrong with that? At one level, nothing - you're obviously getting down the hill wink But it's stopping you making the most of your edges.

You really want your hips and shoulders parallel to the hill and pointing down it. I've drawn it onto this frame:


...but you are occassionally doing it:



Cool
ski holidays
 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.
Peter Ross, Out of curiosity, prior to posting the pics(!), what would you have said you would like to change in your skiing, and what would that change allow you to do on the hill that you may struggle to do at the moment ?
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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
You certainly demonstrate good control on moderate pitches in both vids. Those short turns look nice and relaxed and flowing Very Happy. You've also got your skis pretty consistently the right distance apart!

You're stemming a bit in the first vid but much less in the second, where you're definitely committing more to the outside ski. However, you could be getting earlier edge and pressure onto that outside ski, which might then give your tails less of a tendency to wash round.

But generally nicely skied! Very Happy snowHead
ski holidays
 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
A good way to stop your bum sitting back is to imagine you are clenching a £50 note between your buttocks. If you let go of the note, you lose your £50!
snow conditions
 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
You are sitting back at the end of the turn and in the second video really on the back of the skis at the end of the turn and skidding out.

I have a similar tendancy and have had several suggestions for mental tips. Try to keep your "Thighs high" this raises your hips over your feet and gets you in a more upright position. your hand position is a little too static and i believe is promoting the lean others talked about. to initiate the turn and get your thighs high reach a bit with your pole to help extend your body upwards slightly.

another way of thinking about this is to as the French say crudely "fornicate instead of Deficate"
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Peter Ross wrote:
Have a look at these two videos and rate my skiing. Please don't be too harsh, my confidence is very fragile Laughing


ski holidays
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
PhillipStanton, thanks, I'll work on this. I see what banking means now. Again thanks for the freeze frames, great! snowHead

david@mediacopy, re what I'd like to improve, I think I want to be more in controlled and fluent on more difficult terrain e.g. moguled runs, steep pistes and I suppose this is down to engaging my edges more to carve as much as possible.

zammo, scottp, slikedges, thanks,

bh1, nice one! Laughing
snow conditions
 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?
PhillipStanton wrote:
You really want your hips and shoulders parallel to the hill and pointing down it.

There are definitely different views on that mantra. That's what I've worked fairly hard to ingrain into my skiing, and the week before last the coach was berating me continually to STOP doing that. When I could get myself to a) face along the skis rather than down the hill and b) bank rather than angulate through the turn, the turn completed much more naturally and I went a LOT faster. This was in a race context, but applies to fluid general-purpose skiing too. The "face down the hill" thing is now quite old-fashioned and probably really relevant only for (competition?) bumps skiing. Whether you angulate or not to keep the body upright is essentially speed related. You want the net force (combination of centripetal force and reaction to weight) from the COM to be acting through the skis. The faster you go the more centripetal force so the more you will need to get your COM inside the turn and bank for a given turn radius. Wide turns at higher speed will need more banking and less angulation. Tight turns at slow speed will need more angulation and less banking.
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Peter Ross wrote:
I think I want to be more in controlled and fluent on more difficult terrain e.g. moguled runs, steep pistes


Good things to aim for Very Happy


Peter Ross wrote:
I suppose this is down to engaging my edges more to carve as much as possible.


But this may not help you at this stage with that. Carved turns are likely to result an increase in speed which may not be what you are after on steep terrain or in the bumps.

However developing your skiing on from the video, as per the comments by the other snowheads will help. An instruction session or two covering carving will also be fun ! Very Happy
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
david@mediacopy, I think I can carve pretty well on nice smooth pistes and get that real locked in railway track feel but I suppose it's modifying my technique to deal with more difficult conditions where as you say I want to knock off speed. My most recent lessons have been one to one sessions so that helped iron out some small things that make a big difference. I think the biggest issue is staying centred on more difficult terrain, I'll be thinking of €50 notes from now on!
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
€50 notes certainly concentrate my mind !
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Peter Ross, check out this link for some Bumps and Ice tips
http://youtube.com/v/4qH5Cpr3Kc0
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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!
My 2p worth. You sit too far back on your backside and compensate with an unnatural forward lean. Flex at the knees/ankles rather than at the hips in this instance. On both slides the edges are banged in to slow the speed too drastically, the turns should be wider and more fluid on this terrain to give you more all round control. If it were steeper and narrower you would need to keep that kind of technique, ie fast edge sets IMV.
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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.
david@mediacopy, although £50 notes are worth more. Laughing

JT, so I am kind of folding at the waist rather than pushing foward at the ankles to get my shins pressing against the front of the boots.

scottp I looked at that Bode stuff before but when your faults are highlighted you pay more attention!
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Peter Ross,

Yes, I would say so. Personally a more upright stance in this case with the knees positioned over the top of your boots would be what I would be aiming at. It may well be that your knees would protrude further in order for you to be balanced on the ball of your feets. This is a stance or posture that your body would have to recocile to have the weight and balance where you need it, but broadly speaking if you have the knees in that area you are on the right lines.

Note: I am not an instructor but I would expect one to put you in that sort of position.
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