 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm sure theres been posts on this before but i couldn't find them. Apart from not using the straps at all, what is the "correct way" of holding poles. I can see pros and cons to both ways of using straps to be honest but i know some people definitely seem to believe that one way is better than the other.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Wed 15-04-09 14:58; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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straps are there so that you dont loose them down the mountain
and the correct way is poles vertical straps hanging down put hand through the strap and hold the
handle of the pole and hey presto
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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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| Quote: |
the correct way is poles vertical straps hanging down put hand through the strap and hold the
handle of the pole and hey presto
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Hmm. Personally I don't use straps, as I'm afraid of injuring my hand in a fall but the "correct" way to hold them (as demo'd by various instructors over the years) is to put the hand through the strap, letting the pole dangle from the lower hand/wrist, then bring the hand down around the strap and hold the handle (so the two parts of the strap are under your hand.
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For most piste type applications, go up through the loop and then down on the grip, with the straps then running from the top of the pole, between your palm and the grip and around your wrist. That way you get much more purchase when you're poling and the weight transfers to your skeleton at the wrist rather than just pushing on the grip. This is a much more effiencent and effective transfer of power.
If you're off piste in the trees, then don't use the loops at all, especially not in the way described above, as you can dislocate (or worse) shoulders if the pole gets caught in the trees.
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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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Troll post? Maybe not. I must remember that I am a cynic.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Hollers, yes, that's what I meant, but your description is more coherent than mine. 
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| grivas wrote: |
straps are there so that you dont loose them down the mountain
and the correct way is poles vertical straps hanging down put hand through the strap and hold the
handle of the pole and hey presto |
I'm not sure if I understood this right, but if I did, then you are definitely wrong 
Hmm... how to explain this with my knowledge of English? You should actually put strap horizontal way, go with hand through it from bottom up, and then you grab pole. So basically strap should go from pole between thumb and index finger to palm and then around your wrist (ok not that far up but you get idea ) on top side of hand, back to palm and up between thumb and index finger to pole.
Does this make any sense?
PS: Using strap or not using strap? I guess strap is there with reason  Without it, you can't really push with poles, you can lose them way too easy and there could be few more pros for this. Cons? I don't see any. If you fall, poles fly off pretty easy, sometimes even too easy. If you are still worried about this, then there are straps like Leki Trigger straps, which makes this even easier.
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| Quote: |
If you fall, poles fly off pretty easy,
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Not necessarily. I know that serious off piste skiers tend not to use their straps but a friend I was with fell on piste, a few weeks ago. Minor sort of fall but his strap wrenched his thumb really badly. that's why I never wear mine unless I am doing specific exercises where I need to be able to support my weight to some extent on my poles. I have sore thumbs already - arthritic - and would much rather lose a pole than hurt my thumb. Anyway, I'm useless with poles - I spent a whole day without them last week, because I was wielding a video camera, and I really didn't miss them at all.
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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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| Quote: |
If you fall, poles fly off pretty easy,
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Not necessarily. I know that serious off piste skiers tend not to use their straps but a friend I was with fell on piste, a few weeks ago. Minor sort of fall but his strap wrenched his thumb really badly. that's why I never wear mine unless I am doing specific exercises where I need to be able to support my weight to some extent on my poles. I have sore thumbs already - arthritic - and would much rather lose a pole than hurt my thumb. Anyway, I'm useless with poles - I spent a whole day without them last week, because I was wielding a video camera, and I really didn't miss them at all.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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el nombre, youre taking the micky.please tell me youre taking the micky. for those that dont use their straps for any reason, WISE UP. pam w,i have been skiing off piste for a good number of years in many countries/continents and have NEVER seen any good skier ski without using straps,especially off piste.why?beause hiking back up in waist deep fresh after leaving your pole behind is a no no.ps.if you are strapped in to your poles properly you will not get injured
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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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Plus a tight strap means you can use the pole to support a lot of weight.
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Very steep moguls and trees are the only times when it may be beneficial to miss out the straps. IMHO 
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You know it makes sense.
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Snowpatrol I agree... I spent majority of my life on skis, and never got hurt because of straps. Sure I did fall, countless time really bad, but never had problems with poles... including xc skiing poles which are really strapped so, that you can't lose them.
Anyway... anyone decides on his/her own what is good for them. Personally I can't imagine skiing without strap. Even if it looks you don't need them sometimes, they still make things easier, and you always support yourself quite lot with poles. Without straps this is just not possible no matter what someone says.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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If you are entering avalanche prone terrain then straps are a big no no 
Last edited by Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name: on Sat 11-04-09 22:15; edited 1 time in total
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Poster: A snowHead
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Lean back on your skis, stick your back bottom out, tilt your upper body forward, tuck your hands under your arms, and hold the poles with the basket ends pointing straight up to the sky.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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the consensus of opinion on the thread usefully linked by Elizabeth B was that most people off piste don't use straps and that many people have been counselled by guides not to use them. Obviously that isn't universal, judging from the posts above, but it sounds like good sense to me.
I've been skiing this week with two near-beginners. their ski instructor tried very hard to wrest their poles from them, but wasn't quite assertive enough to succeed. They were really hampered by their poles. I failed to wrest them from them too, though being a bit more assertive I did persuade them just to hold them in the middle when we had a hilarious attempt at "John Travolta turns". God knows what they thought their poles were doing for them.
I'd make a bold assertion that for the majority of piste skiers you see from a chairlift poles are a positive liability, doing absolutely nothing for their skiing, no matter how they hold them. And they're lethal waving around in lift queues. Leave them behind for a day.
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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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pam w, Off piste... the only time I don't use pole straps is if I think that I may be caught in a slide. On piste... poles are bloody handy to turn around... especially on the bumps.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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LOL! I can't believe there's a thread about this! My immediate answer would be "in your hands"!!
For what it's worth I'm not a strap-using kinda gal...
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| Quote: |
poles are bloody handy to turn around... especially on the bumps.
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I'm sure you're right (about the bumps), but the fact remains that the majority of people you see from the chairlift are not capable of doing that and might just as well leave their poles at home rather than wave them around aimlessly as they bimble down the piste or stab their fellow man in the eye in the lift queues. They're good for some exercises though - like the one where you have them behind your neck with your arms hanging over them.
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Surely, everyone knows that the only reason we have poles is to use as "ears" on top of our heads when trying to show the rest of the group where you have stopped
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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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easiski, i said ive never seen a good skier ski without having his poles strapped.if you are a good skier and you dont use your straps then i just mustn't have seen you ski,thats all.dont be so paranoid.
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| Quote: |
| easiski, i said ive never seen a good skier ski without having his poles strapped |
easiski, looks like you weren't included in that
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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stevo_the_saddler, 
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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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You know it makes sense.
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Perhaps because of that business of putting them upside down and having your hand below the basket, to check length, people think they need to hold them below the handle. I am unrepentant in my belief that for many skiers, a day without their poles would do them the world of good.
One of the best skiers I have seen in a while had no poles. He was an ESF instructor, with a vast bundle of slalom poles in his arms, skating very strongly uphill.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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If I stick my poles in my boot bag will I be able to take them on an Easyryan flight as hand luggage ?
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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A lot !!! If you have ever been heliskiing you will find that the poles provided by all the companies do not have straps - this is a safety precaution.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Sweet Jesus - how to hold poles, complete with photos!  Is this one is series - 2. Nose Blowing, 3. Bottom Wiping?
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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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| Hollers wrote: |
| If you're off piste in the trees, then don't use the loops at all, especially not in the way described above, as you can dislocate (or worse) shoulders if the pole gets caught in the trees. |
I'm no expert, so I've several times asked my kids' instructors for advice on this when they've had lessons in the trees. The score so far is 2-1 in favour of using the straps on the grounds that you can't easily retrieve a dropped pole in deep powder on a steep slope. All three instructors were Canadian and from the same ski school, and each seemed to hold their view quite strongly. It seems there's no clear consesus even amongst those who ought to know!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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hyweljenkins,  awesome!
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| Jonny Jones wrote: |
| Hollers wrote: |
| If you're off piste in the trees, then don't use the loops at all, especially not in the way described above, as you can dislocate (or worse) shoulders if the pole gets caught in the trees. |
I'm no expert, so I've several times asked my kids' instructors for advice on this when they've had lessons in the trees. The score so far is 2-1 in favour of using the straps on the grounds that you can't easily retrieve a dropped pole in deep powder on a steep slope. All three instructors were Canadian and from the same ski school, and each seemed to hold their view quite strongly. It seems there's no clear consesus even amongst those who ought to know! |
Not being funny but very many instructors can't ski off-piste to save their lives and don't do it very much. So don't ask an instructor, ask a guide.
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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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| Hollers wrote: |
Not being funny but very many instructors can't ski off-piste to save their lives and don't do it very much. So don't ask an instructor, ask a guide. |
Maybe. But the instructors that I asked were all giving lessons in ungroomed terrain through the trees. This was in Canada where that type of terrain isn't off-piste - it was on named, marked, patrolled runs, abeit double-diamond blacks, so no guide was needed. Easyski's personal experience suggests that straps might not be a great idea, though; I'd prefer ski with no pole than a broken limb.
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| snowpatrol wrote: |
| i have been skiing off piste for a good number of years in many countries/continents and have NEVER seen any good skier ski without using straps,especially off piste. |
I'm surprised by that snowpatrol. I've only ever skied off-piste with six or seven guides in Europe and yet every single one of them has discouraged the use of straps off-piste.
If that's your personal experience then I'd suggest that it's atypical.
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