Lesson 10 : The Vertical Edge ****

Excellent question and one that again must be answered by what you ski on and what you want from your skis to do!

First to answer your specific question about the very tip!

You are right in noting that the very tip,,,the apex of the ski rarely in recreational skiing gets to start the turn.

Rare is the typical skier that can get his/her skis on such an angle that the very tip bits!

My reference for my skis is the initial upward curve of the ski. Another way to determine this is place your skis ON EDGE on a level surface such as a work bench. You will note two contact points!
Note where they are!

You have now marked the zone where the skis will start to "carve"! Did you notice that I no longer spoke of A POINT by rather a ZONE!

A ski is not a static instrument! There are many many forces that act on it as it "skis" thus depending on slope surface, pressure you place on skis, angle of attack of edges relative to slope,,,,the ski edge will not always "bit" at same spot! That is why a smart tuner thinks of "initial carve zone"! This zone is very personal!

I my case many skiers who have tried my skis, find them too sharp, too "squirelly" to nervous since I place my de-tune zone 2 cm from that curve and I de-tune just 3 cm.

Mind you I ski in such places in eastern USA and Canada where blue ice is common! The skis must be sharp!

You must use the old trial and error technique for you! The general rule of thumb is the longer the de-tune zone the less "nervous" is the ski! The more forgiving the ski will be on your initial edge sets!

Also remember if you are skiing in soft well groomed lots of snow ski areas ,,you do not need such small de-tuned zone!

You have to decide what is right for you!


As a side bar discussion, last year I was with the Rossignol racing technician producing a DVD on racing tuning and I was very surprised to see him file off the top vertical edge going to tip! Seems the young racers now with the new ski designs are placing the skis on such "extreme" angles that the top angle of the ski ( at the tip) interferes during the turning! They want a ROUND edge from tip to about 10 cm from tip!

Imagine! That is radical tuning!!!!

In your trial and error process, try to de-tune the edges softly, so that once you have found YOUR zone you can sharpen edges outside this zone!


Hope this helps you!

What edge tools do you carry in your pocket when skiing?

I have two tools that I always carry while I ski. I have a small medium diamond stick for those dings. During lunch or coffee break I check my edges and do a small "touch up"

I also have a gummy block in order to dull my edges since I tend to sharpen my skis to the very tip! If the slope conditions are "softer" I will use this gummy block to de-tune edges.