Becoming an effective Skier - Five Essential Points

:shock: . I shall be printing this off and putting it in a place that I frequent. It's always good to start the season off with insightful advice

JamesA wrote:
Relax with one beer (only one) to relax yourself so you don't be too self critical. I once went skiing with a friend and she was horrible before lunch taking 40 minutes on one run. She was terrified of the unknown terrain and unsure of her skills. We stopped for lunch and she and I wanted to call it quits. We had some lunch and a beer and talked about how she was feeling. After her repast she felt better about herself and we went out to ski the same hill again. Night and day! She would ski to speed letting the skis run and do what they were designed to do turn at speed. She was a skier not a timid afraid sno-bunny. A rewarding instructional experience for me.

I don't know about the beer (I'd be looking for somewhere to take a nap), but taking a break is a good idea if you are a little uptight and can't get in the groove.

Trencher

JamesA wrote:One good post deserves another.... here goes,

Ski with some people that ski better than you. Emulate what they do and you too will improve. Call it cheap lessons if you want to.

If you ski with an "expert" try the following:
- follow them down a hill and keep up
- follow in their tracks carve big and little turns as they do
- ski the terrain that they choose follow their "line" down
- copy their posture and hand position see how balance is achieved
- ski short pitches together turn for turn - try "figure eighting" their turns
- tap your poles in time with them to feel the rhythms of the sport
- ski up to their speed, to go a bit faster - to let the ski work
- try new stuff arms high, low, wide, close and feel the difference
- watch how they ski holistically and let your brain and eyes follow

Good suggestion James. While I agree with you, in principle, I would have reservations about suggesting that a fairly inexperienced intermediate should try to follow an expert. IMO, it might be better to suggest that you should target somebody who skies well at a level a little bit above your own. In this way, you will push yourself but not be beyond your capabilities.

Also a word of advice: don't try this with an instructor giving a private lesson - if he sees what you are doing, you are likely to get a right earful :evil:

Wanderer,

The following "expert" has its limitations depending where he/she is skiing.

Often (if not always) expert skier will do one or two warm up runs with boots all undone and jacket still not zipped up for serious skiing. Then is a great time to do "follow the leader"

If you can follow thos two tracks ( as seen in Jan's pictures) from top to bottom,,you are doing something right!

If you can also "interprete" ski lines,,those marks left once a good skier as "cut the hill",,then you can use these lines which look like railroad tracks on snow.

The idea , if you want to improve, is never accept how you ski now! Strive to improve at all times! Not to look great for others but for yourself!

That is how you become an expert!

You see you can not buy the "title" like you can a car, suit, house, latest Ipod or 60" flat screen TV. You must work at it!

I am a big supporter of mixed capability group sking. This isn't always a pecking order. As the group moves through different types of slopes/ types of snow/conditions, each has his/her own strengths.

When you follow a more experienced skier, the learning is perhaps not just the speed/confidence element. It is also the terrain recognition and understanding element.

So, if we are with a group, and there is an individual that wants to improve, I often suggest that they follow my wife, who reads terrain very well. I tend to ski more steeply down the fall line and sort out issues en-route, not very clever skiing, but that is what I do.

Following terrain well, adds so much to our learning. But following a skier, just because they are quicker in is not in itself, necessarily the right move.

I sometimes have to apologise to my ski compadres, because I have left the group to follow a fast Austrian down a pitch, where I follow their speed, terrain and technique.

As long as they are not carvers. :twisted:

Dave Mac,
As always you bring up an excellent point which I forgot to mention!

Reading the run or slope!

Very often beginner and intermediate skiers are so "overwhelmed" with so much input information as they ski that brain says, " does not compute" and goes into survival mode!

Too much information = stress = stiff (afraid mode)!

Your suggestion is an excellent one! Let the more experienced skier be the "seeing dog" picking the best most effective path!

I am always amazed at beginner skiers who have a very, very wide ski run,,yet seem to ski like deer caught in bright lights,,following a narrow 2 meter path where all other skiers have pasted! I always say, "you have paid for ALL the ski runs,,thus take advantage of all the runs!

For you lucky skiers who will "visit" Jan's place,,I am preparing for him a DVD with many such skiing errors via pictures and videos! Not so much to be negative but to learn from other skiers mistakes! It will make your holiday happier and you will become better skiers!

Yes reading the course is a competence that all expert skiers (and ski racers) must have!

Thanks for comment!

Now Dave Mac,,tell me how do you "read a women skier" to determine if she is an expert ( of course in the bar not on slope)!

To make it easy on all others you are allowed ONE question!
NOT ,,"are you an expert"!!!!
Dave Mac has much more experience. He is not allowed a question! Just a look! A peek! Perhaps a stare!

Merry Christmas all!

"humble feelings about mountain, ski runs, nature "

I think this is so important and really draws the distinction from just someone who skis. A lot of people seem to ski and for them it's "just another holiday". They may even be technically very good skiers, but for me, I think there is more to the activity than simply doing good parallel turns or carving, I think there is something about skiing which is more thoughtful and pure. Which is about the place we ski in as much as the equipment we use, the techniques we adobt and the apres ski.

Dave Mac wrote:

I sometimes have to apologise to my ski compadres, because I have left the group to follow a fast Austrian down a pitch, where I follow their speed, terrain and technique.

As long as they are not carvers. :twisted:

Why not carvers? Just curious.