J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by cem

not read the books, but the different views seem to stem from his fall out with PSIA a few years back....why he fell out i do not know but ever since it has been his way or the highway

i have encountered a coupel of what are best descibed as disciples of harb with boots needing work, the quality of the work that had previously been done by his staff was variable from very good to far from it.

i don't think his methods are that far out there, they are just descibed in different terms and words....afterall skiing is skiing and there are only so many ways to make a ski turn but many different ways to describe those ways

:D

i posted this in a thread about claves but it applys to thighs as well

here's a thought

what is the circumference of the calf at the top of the boot cuff?..... a ski boot with a 14degree forward lean is designed to work optimately with a calf of 13 to 14 inches in circumference. for every 1" more than this you get pushed 1/3" forward, if this is happening then the calf and the quads will feel the burn.... the solution is to flare the top of the boot back to allow a slightly more upright stance [not the same as straightening the cuff] it is just ot take pressure off the calf muscle...beleive me this works, i always suffered a little with the calves in my own race boots [17degree forward lean] i flared the cuff back by 12mm and skiied 9800vertical meters before lunch on only the second days skiing since last march.... no thigh or calf burn at all

alternatively if your calf muscle is not greater than 14" then lots of stretching is the normal solution

other things can be the delta angle of the binding, if the skier is pitched too far forward then the compensation is to sit back or hang on the quads.... lifting the toe of the boot can make a massive difference to this position, but the whole thing needs to be assessed by a boot fitter who understands ankle joint range of motion and boot set up

great helmet though...... i was lucky enough to get gven the older version a few years ago, nothing i had tried came close to the comfort/low profile....although some of the new POC helmets are pretty neat

here's a thought

what is the circumference of the calf at the top of the boot cuff?..... a ski boot with a 14degree forward lean is designed to work optimately with a calf of 13 to 14 inches in circumference. for every 1" more than this you get pushed 1/3" forward, if this is happening then the calf and the quads will feel the burn.... the solution is to flare the top of the boot back to allow a slightly more upright stance [not the same as straightening the cuff] it is just ot take pressure off the calf muscle...beleive me this works, i always suffered a little with the calves in my own race boots [17degree forward lean] i flared the cuff back by 12mm and skiied 9800vertical meters before lunch on only the second days skiing since last march.... no thigh or calf burn at all :D :D

alternatively if your calf muscle is not greater than 14" then lots of stretching is the normal solution

the problem is not getting weight forward, it is the availability of range of motion at the ankle or at least the entrapment of a nerve at the ankle when the ankle is flexed forward, in this kind of case the solutions are to raise the heel a little to increase the available range of motion at the ankle, making the cuff of the boot more vertical will further increase this available range, stiffening the cuff will give resistance when the skier bends the ankle, the resitance allows pressure transmission to the ski before the range of motion that is available is used up

heel lift is an interesting thing, most people assume that it will get weight forward, often times it will induce the opposite effect, if the ramp angle inside the boot, combinded with the binding delta angle is too great for the available range of motion at the ankle, the skier will drop the hip back to comensate....lifting the toe of the boot either by adding a race plate to the boot sole or a lifter under the toe piece of the binding can aften have a much more dramatic effect at getting the weight forward......or at least allowing the skier to pressurise the front of the ski, it opens all the joints in the lower kinetic chain and allows a much more progressive and dynamic flex....on a side note rental bindings tend to have a massive amout of delta angle with exasserbates the problem

people may have already guessed that the key to this is AVAILABLE range of motion and overall set up

where is the pain??? there are a few biomechanical things that are probably going on to cause most pains.... ski boots only serve to exagerate these problems especially if they do not match your foot shape closely

my money is on pain under the ball of the foot and down the outside edge of the foot, caused by either a badly fitting boot or a lack for flexion at the ankle joint due to either tight calf muscles or a boney blockade at the ankle.... the solutions are fairly simple if you can get to a boot fitter who understands ankle joint range of motion..... you will be supprised how many don't

if you haven't decided yet, you need to get a move on....a little time to wear boots around before you go skiing is the ideal so that you can have any glitches sorted before you hit the slopes