 Poster: A snowHead
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I've just had a fab afternoon and I hope Newskier feels the same. The idea was for Newskier to practice and get a bit of confidence, and to book up a surprise for her sister, and for me to play around on the Volkl Racetiger SL Race skis I bought in Austria, as I'd only had a couple of hours to ski on them before we had to go home.
The day started well, with lunch  I always need industrial quantities of food when exercising (not that you'd know it by my size) and I'd just done an aerobics class. Then we headed out onto the slope which was fairly well populated with children and teenagers, but actually not busy.
I was very impressed with Newskier - she made lovely controlled and linked snowplough turns even on her first run. She gradually worked her way up the rope tow to half way, and made a couple of good runs from there, and had a good look at the top third of the slope. Having been persuaded it was no steeper than the bottom (at least on one side), we went up the travelator, and she did a fabulous, controlled, linked run of turns. During the hour she was gaining confidence, as evidenced by her body language and also the fact that she was clearly getting faster - I'd go off and do a run, and then go up the rope tow and try and pick her up and follow her down and make any comments I could - I was having to get off the rope tow earlier and earlier as she was getting faster and faster! She is naturally bringing her inside ski more parallel and it wouldn't take much to have her doing parallel turns - just a bit of confidence, as she is almost there. She also has very good balance. I think she did really well!
After Newskier left, I tried to give the Racetigers a bit of a test, but it was almost impossible at the Snowdome - they are so fast and stable and four turns and you are having to slow down again because you are nearly at the bottom, and because you are going much faster having done those four turns than you would have been going making the same four turns on my old skis. Nevertheless I managed a couple of runs with more aggressive turns and they are superb skis - easy to initiate the turn - you only need to think about it and they turn, lots of life if you are doing slalom like turns (they ping you out of the turn and into the next one), very stable if you deliberately head for the one or two bumps on the slope at Tamworth, and just feel like they want to go really fast. Definitely more of a handful than my previous skis, but also more rewarding. The double tramlines in the snow looked good too!
I am hoping Newskier didn't get a picture of my wobble, but I suspect she did.
Thanks for a great afternoon! I'm looking forward to nervous and novice group do Milton Keynes in June now.
Oh yes, and I gave Newskier a voucher to get her skiing at members' prices and she managed to book her special treat at members' prices too!
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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 made me blush bigtime there docsquid! I'm now all on my tod in my sister's house overnight - really glad the welcome note said feel free to use the internet!
Thanks for the kind comments and the most welcome voucher - I thoroughly enjoyed the visit and the fact that I gained confidence from it. Thanks also for not mentioning the rather undignified way I got on/off the travelator a few times - takes a bit of getting used to!
I honestly don't know what 'wobble' Docsquid's referring to, cos I didn't notice anything except some very professional looking skiing! When I get home I'll stick the photos on my PC and have a look at them!
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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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Glad you both had such a good time. Well done NewSkier,
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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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Way..hey way to go girls, glad you had a good time - bring on Milton Keynes in June (P.S. I'm just the tiny bit envious too!!  ) P.P.S. Please describe the 'travelator' - one of these moving carpet devices like in the hypermarket in Calais?
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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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Megamum, exactly that - like the moving carpets in the airports. Only it goes up. You have to get off two thirds of the way there, and shuffle onto another one because of the bend at Tamworth. An interesting experience when doing it for the first time.
NewSkier, I shall leave the collective wisdom that is Snowheads to decide if I was skiing OK or not - I didn't feel I'd really got to grips with those skis today and my inside leg was not functioning as it should. I had a big wobble when I caught the inside edge, but these skis also make it a lot easier to recover from this problem - which is a good job as I seem to catch an edge more often on them.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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The difficulty I had with the travelator was working out how fast I needed to move when getting off in order to really keep my balance, but with docsquid's advice I got there!
I'm away for a week now, and unlikely to get on a computer all week! See you all when I get back!
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docsquid, You said 'shuffle' which confirms my initial suspicion that you use this travelator with your skis on  I find these contraptions sufficiently awkward as you suddenly go from motion under your own control to your feet suddenly being janked forward by the device, let alone doing it on planks nearly a long as I am high. How on earth do you manage getting on and off on skis? Maybe make a little sideways jump on from the edge lifting both skis in the air at the same time?
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Megamum, you don't have to go sideways, just forward. You shuffle forward more or less at the same speed as the travelator, and then hold onto the handrails like on an escalator, and your skis just get moved forwards by the travelator and you start going up. Getting off is more tricky as you have to judge the right moment to start shuffling forward and you need to do this at the same speed as the travelator or your skis stop and you keep moving. You are getting off onto a mat, not onto snow, so you don't get projected forwards at great speed. The whole thing moves at shuffling speed anyway.
You can take your skis off if you like - boarders usually go up without a foot clipped in. It is just more convenient to keep the skis on and allows a quick getaway at the top.
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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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She is naturally bringing her inside ski more parallel
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please forgive if wrong interpretion but to me this implies a "bringing together" of the skis in some way. In fact the movement is a "steering away" of the inside ski tip from the outside ski, not a "pulling in" of the tail. May seem pedantic but not I assure you. megamum - you take your skis OFF to ride the travelator? That is scary
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Yoda, quite a lot of people do take their skis off to ride the travelator.
I meant her skis are coming more parallel naturally - she isn't doing anything active, it is just happening, I think because she is relaxing a bit more. There isn't any active movement at all at the moment although I'm sure that will come. I've never thought of, or be taught, that action as being a steering away of the tip or a moving together of the tail - I've been taught it as a rotation round a nail through the instep/big toe. I guess different people use different explanations for the same actual thing and I guess it doesn't matter so long as it works and results in your weight and ski being in the right place.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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docsquid, adductors vs. abductors 
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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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Megamum, It is actually very much easier than it sounds.
The travelator doesn't move very fast, and there is snow leading to it and after getting off, so you just shuffle forwards until your skis are picked up by it to get on, and just give a quick push with your poles as you come off at the top to make sure you are moving fast enough to be out of the way of people behind you.
The middle at the bend is a little more awkward, but not much.
Don't they have any chair lifts with this type of arrangement at the loading area at your resort?
The lifts shown under "conveyor lift" on that site are very similar to the Tamworth travelator.
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alex_heney, No none like that. I believe our chair lift is one of those which changes from the fast cable onto a slower moving loop for the loading stage and then reloads onto the faster loop for the journey up or down.
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FAQ
