Hi guys, im getting back into skiing having snapped my ACL in Feb this year in Chamonix while speedriding. Im 7 months post opp and doing well. I had my last meeting with my surgeon today who said i will be fine to get back to skiing in Feb with a knee brace having done a lot of physio and with a lot more specific training between now and then. All good!
My question is this, im considering buying shorter skis than i used to use. Im 1167 cm tall and used to use 170cm skis. Im also 82k with about 20% body fat. I consider myself an intermediate skier and have no problems on any marked runs at all. In powder though i used to find it hard going on the legs and hard to control the skis. This was a contributing factor to the ACL snapping. Im considering getting wide 150cm to make them easier to control on piste but how much of a problem off piste will i have? Am i going to find that the longer skis were more stable in powder?
Cheers
Dan
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
I don't think equipment is likely to be the issue. I have been through ACL rehab and would suggest:
1. keep doing physio or get a personal trainer with a brief to build up your leg muscles and take the strain away from the ACL
2. get some off piste lessons. there is no reason why off piste should be much more stressful on the knees if you are doing it right. if you are sitting back and trying to steer the skis with lots of violent rotational movements, that is an ACL injury waiting to happen!
fat skis will help with flotation and might let you get away with more dodgy technique* but i certainly wouldn't go short if you are looking to take stress off your knees. IMV you want something which is going to be stable and not prone to diving or hooking you into a turn you don't want to do -> this suggests longer is better
*they also allow you to have lots of fun but that is for another thread
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?
UKspeedfly, I had a meniscus resection and these are my thoughts for you to pick n mix ;o)
Potentially wider skis >85/90mm wide could increase the pressure on your knee/ACL etc and whilst shorter ski's can aid manoeuvrability, too short can reduce flex and some of the forgiving features you require, especially as you need your edges to stop!
I’d also suggest you talk to someone like spyderjon for roberts(?) balancing. The closer you are to your “natural” balance point on your skis the more chance you have of reducing knee trauma and maximising your natural skiing potential.
If the bumps are an issue you may also consider boots- getting fitted properly by the resident expert at Solutions4feet etc will help a great deal. Many skiers have boots that are too big and critically also have too high a flex resistance (the old rule better skiers have firmer flex boots etc) and this can give your knees hell, especially through bumps, off-piste, variables etc. Potentially a softer flexing boot might help you although at 82Kg/170 you should be well grounded in your boots! (175/78 ish for me) I had my carbon flex cut last year (not uncommon if you go on a Warren Smith course) and it made a hell of a difference to my off piste skiing which made it a lot easier for me to soak up the bumps.
I also fitted an intermediate booster strap –it’s an improvement and makes the boots more responsive but I’m still getting used to them: http://www.boosterstrap.eu/english/booster.asp for more info. They flex better and care must be taken not to do up too tight...better to tighten gradually.
Interesting stuff guys. Im an intermediate skier for sure, been away almost most years of my life since i was 10, now 31, but perhaps didn't understand some of the implications of my gear. First off the main cause was going off piste on the first run on the first day of the holiday with cold legs in sticky wet snow. Also i had very stiff boots on, perhaps for advance rider. They had been fine for the holiday the year before but i stayed mostly on piste that year on packed snow. All this coupled with the bump that kicked my leg out to the side was just to much and i went snap. Then again even with the most perfect gear set up that bump could have still snapped me so who knows.
Tacking on board what you have said i will stick with regular size skis for my height, something around a 160cm will be fine, and will be getting soft boots this time round. I like skiing but flying is my thing, the skis allow me to get airborne at altitude on very small wings. I am far more aware of my limitations this time around so will be taking it very easy on the ground and tearing it up in the skies!
This is my fun, but imagine launching on skis and you have it:
i'd agree with Jivebaby that fat skis can put more stress through your knees if you are using them on hard snow. in soft snow it doesn't make much difference IMO
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Poster: A snowHead
