J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by steverandomno

Whilst Banff is a great destination. Sunshine village is not so great for intermediate and advanced boarders. There are too many flat sections in the regular terrain.

Whoever suggested doing a combination of Fernie and Kicking Horse and possibly Revelstoke was on the right track in my view. Possibly with a few days in Banff at either end.

Whistler Blackcombe is obviously a good choice also but is generally more expensive. I would aim for Feb for W/B rather than March as the west coast is generally warmer and wetter than the interior.

Iceman wrote:Just got text back.....

It's snowed like I have never seen. No skiing today, bit shit. Rupy(his wife) has eaten my left leg and the Don Perignon has run out. Last day tomorrow then will worry about getting home!

Sounds like times are hard....

I'm glad that the only emergency appointment he needs is with his bank manager. I wouldn't want to have an unscheduled stay in Zermatt without an emergency supply of cash.

I second Dgou's recommendation of Granville Island in Vancouver. It has a great market. Also, check out Granville island brewing.

I have an offer of free accomodation in both ~ forever!

Wow - what did you have to do to get that?

P.S. I would recommend Vail for Kids. They have a lot of activities to cater for families. I don't think the same can be said for Beaver Creek.

Also, remember that the town (Vail) is very high at 8,000 ft. Take it easy on the food and drink, especially for the first couple of days. I was very surprised at how much difference the extra couple of thousand feet make.

Beaver creek has great skiing when there is good snow. There are some very nice long steep runs in the Birds of Prey area.

We stayed in Vail for a couple of weeks over Christmas a few years back and we did a day trip to Beaver Creek. Everything is very expensive, especially eating out. (this was also when the exchange rate was about 1.8 dollars to the pound)

If you go and want to keep an eye on the pennies, I highly recommend getting a condo so you can cater for yourself.

Dave gives some good advice above.

Yes the escalators in the street are a bit odd!

If you hire a car and stay in Vail or Beaver Creek, it is possible to ski Vail, Beaver Creek, Aspen (a long day trip, but doable), Breckenridge and A-Basin.

Do check out Aspen (we did Snowmass) for a day trip (or two). It is a very nice town, surprisingly different from my preconceptions.

You still need to remain centred on your skis. The leaning back thing works to get you moving but you will be guaranteed to spin around at some point if you remain 'in the back seat'. The principles of powder skiing are exactly the same as skiing on piste, it's just that a lot of people have problems that become more pronounced when they begin to ski powder. The key is often movement. Powder exposes this common flaw in technique. Most people don't move enough when they ski (me too), which does not have major consequences when on-piste, but when you move to the powder you will not be able to turn properly. Powder puts much more importance into the 'up and down' movement. Timing and co-ordination go hand in hand with this more pronounced movement.

Begin on the piste and make short radius turns moving up and down much more that you would usually. Find a rhythm and get used to the feeling of smooth pressure control through each rounded turn. Think of the increases and decreases in pressure as a wave; the variation should be even and smooth like a sine wave, not jagged like a saw. To achieve this, you will need to move a lot more than you probably do normally.

A good way to practice this drill is to find a very steep section of piste (in a safe, unexposed area) and try to ski down it as slowly as possible within about a 4-5 meter imaginary corridor. You will be amazed at how much extra control you attain by moving up and down much more on each turn and thinking about pressure control (assuming you are centred on your skis).

Once you have got used to this, move into some powder and get used to the feeling of 'bouncing' up and down in the snow between each turn. It is an extension of the pressure variation you apply on piste, but it is more noticeable in the powder. start with short bouncy turns and then vary it and experiment with speed. Don't get too frustrated if you don't get it the first time. It is not as easy as the ski DVD's make it look.

Most of all, have fun.

Ian Wickham wrote:

Then for me the way round that one would be ski all days but ski less during the day .... 8)

I find that I don't enjoy more than 4 days in a row and need a break. I have tried the half day, but it never ends up being just half a day... :D