Carving mindset for Mike

Just occurred to me. Given these pics, and previous pictures, together with your videos, such high quality. Who is the photographer?

....... now to put it into practice!!!!

Dave Mac wrote:Just occurred to me. Given these pics, and previous pictures, together with your videos, such high quality. Who is the photographer?

Anyone I can give a camera to Although among the informal group of people I carve with, there is alot of photo and video taking. Mostly though it employs the bucket meathod. That is, if you take a bucket load of photos, a few will be good. Expensive in the days of film, but highly effective in the digital age with huge storage and no extra cost. Digital quality is now so good that it is possible to crop a good picture out a bad one, for forum quality anyway.

There is a ski instructor, David, who sometimes snaps a few of me when he is taking pics for his ski school.He took this one which realy illustrates edge pressure. It is very cold day and the snow is rock hard. See there is hardly a wisp of snow comming up from the edge, and yet is possible to apply enough pressure to cut into the hard surface.



Trencher

WOW

So here's the bit that's missing, the transition. "Transition" because this is the link between turns where we transion from one turn to another. The transition hinges around changing from one set of ski edges to the other. Ideally we want to minimise the time on a flat ski. In a good transition, the lines left in the snow will show that it was achieved in less the the length of a ski. At the moment of transition we need the opposite forces at work compared to the turn where we need the edge press downwards. In other words, we need no pressure on the edges.

Remembering the bathroom scale again, when we straightened our legs and appeared to weigh more until we reached full extension. As our legs fully extended, there was a brief moment when we appeared to become very light. It is this moment of being very light that is needed for the transition and it is achieved the same way as on the bathroom scales.

Now remember that we are rising and falling in the turns by inclining our legs, not flexing and straightening our legs. A lot of energy is released from the decambered ski at this moment which can lift you into the air a little.

Here's a gif of the transition. Notice that the skis leave the ground a little.



Also notice that the body crosses over the skis during the transition, hence the term "cross over turn"

Trencher

Hi Trencher, another great demo.

However, when I examine, it is clear that I have misunderstood your first demo pics/explanation. In the video, you are not downward unweighting, which is what I understood from the first explanation.

This is upward unweighting, pushing the legs away to de-weight, (as per bathroom scales demo), set the edges, and absorb during the turn.

As to the down unweight, which I had interpreted your first pics to be, I mean where you sink rapidly to de-weight, set the edges, and push away during the turn.

You have great leg flex and balance.

Oh and thanks again for the assistance on the "Testing" thread. After the help you gave, I did manage to upload another picture, wrong size, but I will get to that.

Dave Mac wrote:Hi Trencher, another great demo.

However, when I examine, it is clear that I have misunderstood your first demo pics/explanation. In the video, you are not downward unweighting, which is what I understood from the first explanation.

I hope that's due to your preconception rather than my poor explanation

Dave Mac wrote:

This is upward unweighting, pushing the legs away to de-weight, (as per bathroom scales demo), set the edges, and absorb during the turn.

Yes, but The old idea of "pushing the legs away" (to unweight)is where it gets confusing for people learning to carve. Most of the vertical motion is achieved by inclining the legs not flexing them.

Dave Mac wrote:
As to the down unweight, which I had interpreted your first pics to be, I mean where you sink rapidly to de-weight, set the edges, and push away during the turn.

Actually not so much pushing during the turn in this very basic cross over turn. There is a turn which has an extension element within the cross over turn that is called a "cross through turn", but that requires the skills from the "cross under turn" first. I wanted to start with simple. Again, one the problems with trying to see what a carving skier is doing is that not only are many of the movements subtle but often turns are a blend of the three types of turn mentioned above. In order to be able to blend these turns together, each may need to be learned separately.

Trencher

Double WOW !

Bring on the snow !!!

Thanks for sharing Trencher

Mike