stevesmoothie wrote:To me the key to skiing seems to be about keeping the rhythm of your movements smooth and the pole plant helps beat time to that rhythm.
Exactly. When people first start skiing they tend to put turns in as and when they can and not always when the should. Getting some sort of rhythm going where you turn at set intervals can really help. This can be achieved by thinking about planting your poles rythmically, or as my girlfriend does, just counting - 1,2,3 turn 1,2,3 turn. She does this out loud which can seem a bit odd but it works for her
I think it does also help to get you more forward if you tend to ski a bit in the back seat.
Conversely, I now can't ski without poles. I just wouldn't know what to do with my hands