 Poster: A snowHead
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When the snow is very good i.e. nicely groomed piste.
I'm actually not a really good skier otherwise it wouldn't matter how good the snow was. 
My problem is that when on good snow I feel like a good skier so sort of feel like I don't really need to work hard at anything? Last month I went down the Face at Val D'Isere, pretty fast, using my edges and running the skis with some steering and not much skidding. Obviously not carving though.
So what is wrong with my technique that means I can't ski well on chopped up and hard packed snow?
Mike
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Mike3000, you and thousands of intermediates 'on the plateau', including me. You will only find out if you have some lessons.
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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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Obviously not carving though
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well no, there can't be many skiers in the world who could carve down there.
Even the instructors who post regularly on snowheads won't be able to tell you what might be wrong with your skiing in response to your post. However, I find that if one of them sees me ski, it takes him/her about 17 seconds to make a diagnosis. 
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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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pam w,
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won't be able to tell you what might be wrong with your skiing in response to your post. However, I find that if one of them sees me ski, it takes him/her about 17 seconds to make a diagnosis.
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Indeed, that's what I meant, really.
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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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Mike3000, Lessons!
But all that will happen is that you find your still a really good skier until;
ice then
waist deep powder then
slope of 45 degrees then
etc etc
but crust will get you until you are some sort of ski God.
there is always more to learn
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Instructors can even tell looking back over their shoulders after about 17 seconds too (either that or they have x-ray reverse vision). At least my instructor in Les Arcs did so. I got on really well him actually and felt like I make good progress he must have been a good chap - reckoned he had taught in the area over 20 years!!
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Megamum, one instructor I skied with didn't even have to look over his shoulder. He instructed me to stick two metres behind him and could then tell from the sound my skis were making that I was A-framing. 
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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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ed123, nicely put!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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I suppose the question is how do you know if you are a really good skier
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| Megamum wrote: |
| I suppose the question is how do you know if you are a really good skier |
If you're a god skier you normally know that you're not. I used to be a good skier until I started having a lot of good quality instruction. Then I understood how bad I was.
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You know it makes sense.
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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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Hurtle,
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Megamum wrote: |
| I suppose the question is how do you know if you are a really good skier |
People come up to you and say "I can't believe you're a pro, I'm so much better than you!"
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I used to be a good skier until I started having a lot of good quality instruction. Then I understood how bad I was.
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One of my sons, hugely better than the rest of the family, used to think he was a good skier till he shared a flat with a top instructor and went out with instructors on their days off. Then, he said, he realised just how completely cr@p he really was! It was just that skiing with the likes of me had given him an over-inflated idea of his ability.
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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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Mike3000, same thing is wrong with your technique on both surfaces except that on the forgiving gentle slope with nice snow, the slope generously makes allowances for you and lets you get away with moiduh, whilst on the unforgiving shiny looking vertical slope, it's looking for any excuse to hold a yard sale with you and your gear lying in a heap at its feet!
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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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No it can't be any of that, it must be my skis
Great replies guys, thanks. Looks like lessons then.
ed123,
I like the sound of that. Like you say there is always something to learn
david@mediacopy,
I wish I had some video. Next time out I'll do my best to get some
slikedges,
My technique holds up, in my mind anyway, on steepish slopes (The Face) but it has to be bump and hard pack free. Its not so good snow that makes me feel like I'm not a good skier anymore.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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So you think you are a really good skier eh?
Let me tell you all:
I am the Best Skier on The Mountain.
.....and that will be 500 points please!
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Mike3000, focus on a strong core (eg tense your abs) and let your legs make the adjustments for uneven snow, also be determined about staying on your intended line and don't let the snow surface push your weight back
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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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Go skiing in February half term with the one-ski-holiday-per-year Brits and you think you are a good skier.
Go skiing in November with the French ski club racers on a glacier and you realise you are (and always will be) completely pants  .
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Unless you are at the top of a universally accepted objective ranking of exponents, for most of us mere mortals in every activity we engage in, there's a high likelihood that there are people who are far better than us (true for me anyway). Should we then say that we are not good at anything? I think it's reasonable to measure ourselves against our peers or in the context implied by the questioner rather than always feeling like we have to acknowledge our complete crapness when compared against an unrealistic standard like a top instructor or competitor.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| slikedges wrote: |
| Unless you are at the top of a universally accepted objective ranking of exponents, for most of us mere mortals in every activity we engage in, there's a high likelihood that there are people who are far better than us (true for me anyway). Should we then say that we are not good at anything? I think it's reasonable to measure ourselves against our peers or in the context implied by the questioner rather than always feeling like we have to acknowledge our complete crapness when compared against an unrealistic standard like a top instructor or competitor. |
Having multiple scales to measure the same thing doesn't work though, 'cos you never have a true answer. We just have to suck it up and live with it.
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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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clarky999, better engrave "WARNING: don't forget how crap you really are" in big letters on every trophy or medal in every junior competition and every adult competition below world championship level then
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| clarky999 wrote: |
| We just have to suck it up and live with it. |
Which is exactly what I did this morning. Ed Drake was skiing at Hemel earlier today, when I was teaching, and was there to test a recovering ankle. So even though he's injured and was skiing very steadily for a few runs his performance was at a level that I can only dream of. Sigh.
Last edited by 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  on Sat 5-03-11 20:04; edited 1 time in total
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You know it makes sense.
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for most of us mere mortals in every activity we engage in, there's a high likelihood that there are people who are far better than us (true for me anyway). Should we then say that we are not good at anything? I think it's reasonable to measure ourselves against our peers or in the context implied by the questioner rather than always feeling like we have to acknowledge our complete crapness when compared against an unrealistic standard like a top instructor or competitor.
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No, I don't think we should say we're no good at anything, but we should be measuring our own performance and progress. So I am very happy to be a much better skier than I was 10 years ago, and if I ski a difficult run, I'm pleased if I do it better than last time, or if I cope with more difficult snow. Lots of other people might do it worse, or better, but frankly I'm not very bothered about that.
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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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| pam w wrote: |
| I don't think we should say we're no good at anything, but we should be measuring our own performance and progress. So I am very happy to be a much better skier than I was 10 years ago, and if I ski a difficult run, I'm pleased if I do it better than last time, or if I cope with more difficult snow. Lots of other people might do it worse, or better, but frankly I'm not very bothered about that. |
Perfect, pam!
Gauge where you are on a scale based not on where others are, but rather on where you were. Looking at how others ski, and comparing against that, can lead to a distracted focus and fruitless emotion that provides no real plan for changing your current skill level. If you want to get better there's really only one proven consistent way of doing it. You have to get in the game. Forget about sizing up against others, and switch your focus to you. Find a skill building program you believe in, and devote yourself to it. Measure you progress by the improvements you make in mastering the skills the program teaches you, and in your ability to take those new skills to more difficult terrain. A good program will include multiple micro steps that allow you to see your progress take place in fine detail, and experience regular successes. It keeps your motivation level high, and your mind wanting for more.
For people who have not immersed themselves into such a training program, contemplating it can generate visions of hard work, mundane hours of tedious drilling, and wasted time that could have been spent having fun. The reality is that for many who do bite the bullet and give it a go, it actually becomes a new source of fun. It doesn't infringe on ones time enjoying the mountain, it enhances it. Iski sums it up quite succinctly;
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| it becomes quite addictive! |
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Poster: A snowHead
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It's particularly positive if (like me) you spend a lot of time in one area. You don't need to ski different runs all the time, just ski them differently.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Outside of the prophesied haven of self-contained fulfilment that is apparently snowHeads everyone else compares everything they can all the time (sooo crass). Without external comparison you can realise improvement but you'll never know whether you are actually any good at anything though there is the mahoosive advantage of getting to rate yourself as anything you like!
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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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slikedges, but there are heaps of ways to compare yourself anytime you want to dip a toe in the water, FIS points, NASTAR rankings, etc etc... You just have to give it a go and there it is a really objective measure - the clock does not lie
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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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little tiger, no use as measuring tools for those of us for whom speed is not a goal.
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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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slikedges, agreed. You need to look around you, compare and learn from others.
little tiger, I'm with the big H. Those are really very limited ways of measuring the huge breadth of skiing experience. The minute I see those measures looking at deep powder, off-piste or high mountain experience I might take them seriously - but for most of us they are sterile and irrelevant indices of achievement, gained in an unrepresentative and far from enjoyable setting. I am not saying that they cannot then lead to great skiing elsewhere. But just because something can be measured - does not make it worth measuring.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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stoatsbrother,
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I'm with the big H.
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Are you referring to me? Hahaha, if so! 
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| Mike3000 wrote: |
| Looks like lessons then. |
Lessons are queen. Practice is king.
The more continuous days you ski, the better you'll get.
An elite adult racer will have skied tens of thousands of near-continuous hours.
An intermediate vacationer will have skied hundreds of disjointed hours at best.
If you wanna get good, ski atleast 5 weeks a season, with 2 of them being two-weekers.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
| If you wanna get good, ski atleast 5 weeks a season, with 2 of them being two-weekers. |
Later today, I might see one of the best skiers I know, a lad of 13 who, weather permitting wil ski both days of the weekend all winter and as many days as he can during school holidays.
I'll be sure and remember he'll never really get good compared to those who follow the formula above though.
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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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| stoatsbrother wrote: |
little tiger, I'm with the big H. Those are really very limited ways of measuring the huge breadth of skiing experience. The minute I see those measures looking at deep powder, off-piste or high mountain experience I might take them seriously - but for most of us they are sterile and irrelevant indices of achievement, gained in an unrepresentative and far from enjoyable setting. I am not saying that they cannot then lead to great skiing elsewhere. But just because something can be measured - does not make it worth measuring. |
Powder 8's, Freestyle, freeride, Moguls, Aerials, Ski Jumping, XC comps, telemark racing etc etc... there are plenty of different styles if you want a real comparison...
Then there is
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| oh I really don't want to compete in competitions(because I'd suck) but I still want to be able to compare myself to other people but only people I suck less than |
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FAQ
The problem is, it becomes quite addictive!