Latest posts for the topic "Ski vocabulary question"

Ski vocabulary question

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 15:20:50 GMT

Hi guys, I'm trying to translate stuff for a website, and there's one thing that bothers me. Can you say that a ski is accessible ? Meaning it's pretty easy to ride, for most skiers out there. Is that correct ? (I'm not a native speaker)
Thanks a lot !

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 16:33:14 GMT

That works. Do share article when complete.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 21:26:33 GMT

A place is accessible. (Or not accessible).

Hence Hochgurgl used to be accessible from Obergurgl, only by ski bus. But now in is accessible by direct Gondela.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 08:59:02 GMT

So for Ranchero it works, and for Dave it doesn't...hmmm, what would you say instead ?

Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:16:52 GMT

matr wrote:Hi guys, I'm trying to translate stuff for a website, and there's one thing that bothers me. Can you say that a ski is accessible ? Meaning it's pretty easy to ride, for most skiers out there. Is that correct ? (I'm not a native speaker)
Thanks a lot !

No a ski can not be "Accessible" in the term " Easy to ride"..... well not in my launguage :wink:

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:21:56 GMT

As I understand it an "accessible" ski would be one where the nature of the ski meant that it was suitable for a wide range of skiers - possibly with particular reference to the less experienced/able.

So ...
matr is using correct enough English for his translation.

I had a look at an online dictionary and thesaurus (bored - raining, can't get on with things) and the use of accessible in this context seems reasonable.

I couldn't see a "single" word that could replace it. Using a short phrase would be another way.

Such as ...
well behaved
suitable for many skiers

or possibly undemanding?

Personally I would go with accessible.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:31:23 GMT

Yes I was thinking along lines, of. Although the Volkl skis were loved by the heavier members of the test team. Less aggressive and lighter skiers will find them un-accessible, struggling to flex the skis when carving.

Yes I hate Volkl skis, definitely not the ones for me :-), even though I believe they are actually great brand.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 09:40:22 GMT

Interesting. So in a way, it is correct and understandable, but it's still not quite right. Basically I'm translating a whole website, including skis presentations. We have like criteria on each ski with scales, e.g. Versatility from 1 to 5, Reactivity from 1 to 5, and "Accessibilite" in french, which I would translate by Accessibility without being too sure it's right. I've asked some friends of mine from UK, but they said the same. They could understand, but I can feel it's not perfect. They couldn't come up with anything better though. So I thought I'd ask real skiers.
And yes OldAndy,you understood it well, accessible would mean suitable for skiers. Like a ski with an accessibility of 1/5 is difficult to ride, recommended to advanced level skiers. A ski with an accessibility of 5/5 is very accessible, anyone can ride it.
Do I make sense ? If you see that on a website, would you immediately think "Oh, this d*** site isn't english !"
Thanks for your help anyways.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 10:21:47 GMT

I'm with old Andy, I do not think that there is one word that would describe what you need to convey ,,try "ease of use" and a rating

best I can come up with ...its a long time since I left school lol

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 10:46:44 GMT

I don't think accessible is the right word.

How does the whole sentence read in French? I think it would be easier to translate it correctly if we had the context.

Accessible is not a word used very often in English, apart from in the formal sense, as in 'the house is not accessible to lorries' (meaning the driveway is too narrow) etc.

If I read that skis were not accessible I would think that there was some problem obtaining them, like no British shops were selling them, and ditto in reverse.

I think Daved's expression 'ease of use' is pretty good, with a rating, like he said.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:03:15 GMT

Are we talking about which level of skier would be suited to a particular ski? Isn't that what they normally use the coloured bar for, ranging from beginner to expert (or hotshot)?

(Like this one which I borrowed from the ski club of GB's ski reviews)

Maybe they use a picture because it's easier to understand?

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:31:03 GMT

AllyG wrote:
Maybe they use a picture because it's easier to understand?

Like it - good idea.

Any chance you could use something like this?

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:36:12 GMT

How about "useability"?

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:45:56 GMT

In my part of the ski world this term is never used in the context given.

A "easy to ski" is called forgiving, entry level ski, or beginner ski. Never accessible.

A ski center can be accessible by car, boat or plane.

A office can be accessible via green door.

A airport can be accessible via route 56.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:55:02 GMT

I agree with Pavel

The way I understand Accessibility is literally how easy something is to access i.e. how easy it is to obtain. The dictionary definition also says this means how easy it is to use, so it is the correct word in this context, although it is not often used in this way in the English language, in my experience.

Whereas Useability is defined as how you use something, or how you employ it for a purpose. This would seem to be a more common word to use (pardon the pun) for this purpose.

But Ally's idea of using a diagram is an excellent one. I guess all you are trying to achieve is to make the categorising as simple and as easy to understand as possible?

Good Luck.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 12:44:14 GMT

OldAndy wrote:Any chance you could use something like this?

:lol:

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 13:21:55 GMT

Admin wrote:

OldAndy wrote:Any chance you could use something like this?

:lol:

What ?????

I meant like Ally's borrowed graphic?

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 14:42:57 GMT

Forgive me if this has already been suggested but I think the phrase we are all searching for is.....

'suitable for a wide range of abilities', and in one word

versatility

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 15:11:46 GMT

Brucie wrote: and in one word

versatility

Yes!!

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 16:16:24 GMT

matr wrote:Interesting. So in a way, it is correct and understandable, but it's still not quite right. Basically I'm translating a whole website, including skis presentations. We have like criteria on each ski with scales, e.g. Versatility from 1 to 5, Reactivity from 1 to 5, and "Accessibilite" in french, which I would translate by Accessibility without being too sure it's right. I've asked some friends of mine from UK, but they said the same. They could understand, but I can feel it's not perfect. They couldn't come up with anything better though. So I thought I'd ask real skiers.
And yes OldAndy,you understood it well, accessible would mean suitable for skiers. Like a ski with an accessibility of 1/5 is difficult to ride, recommended to advanced level skiers. A ski with an accessibility of 5/5 is very accessible, anyone can ride it.
.

I think he's using versatility already. He's trying to express something else, but I'm not entirely clear what.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 16:22:48 GMT

A versatile ski is normally described as a polyvalent ski in French.

I have heard the word accessible used in relation to skis. The contact length of a fully cambered ski remains constant no matter what the edge angle is.

Whereas the full contact length of a 'rockered' ski is only available at a high edge angle.

Many skiers don't have the ability to tip a 'rockered' ski to the angle required for the ski's edge to be in full contact with the snow, so the full contact length is not accessible.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 12:12:57 GMT

Even that I am not a native speaker, but I've never heard the word "accessible" used in this context. The term often used is "forgiving" or for the opposite - "demanding", though it's not exactly the same. "Accessible" to me is very close in meaning to "available", "accessibility" - ease of access, ability to access, not ease of use. Could the word you are looking for be "usability"? At least when I search for user-friendly wiki redirects to "usability". Or maybe a more general term "handling"? With "1" being very demanding and "5" - least demanding? In ski reviews the most common characteristics that I met are: turn initiation, forgiveness, edge hold, short turns performance, long turn performance, performance in moguls.

BTW, I love Volkl skis:) They are on a stiffer side and little bit demanding but I find they reward a good effort while not being totally unforgiving.

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 12:16:19 GMT

While I like "versatility" but I often saw this term describing suitability for a range of conditions, and different terrain, not skiers. But it still seems closer to the idea than "accessibility".

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Tue, 26 Jun 2012 11:14:13 GMT

User-friendly ?

Re:Ski vocabulary question

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 08:44:32 GMT

Accessible seems to have crept in, perhap from wine tasting, where perhaps a literal translation of a word which perhaps has multiple meanings in one language yet the same word doesn't share all of the meanings in another.

Think of the example - "The black run is easily accessible by a chair lift number 3 as is the blue."

Accessible means it's easy to get to and not a term that most native English speakers would describle how easy it is to ski.

If you want to describe the difficulty of a piste then stick with simple terms like easy, moderate or hard or describe the skier that would be expected to have the ability to ski it enjoyably so beginner, intemediate or advanced.