J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Dshenberger

bandit wrote:

it's a PITA.

Haha! That's the key. :) Yes, I ski with poles. Last year, I stopped to help a girl get her skis back, and she had no poles. I loaned her one of mine because she couldn't get up, and get her ski on. It was her first time skiing, and her boyfriend told her it would be easier without poles. I thought that was kind of ridiculous. Skating through a lift line when you have no experience is kind of a pain. . .

I think all babies should be sent to school so they can learn to walk "properly", and without learning "bad habits." We can't have individuality!

OK. All sarcasm aside: There are many ways to get to the same point. Human bodies (and minds) are ALL different. Some people learn to ride a bike without training wheels. Some need the wheels. Why is the self-initiated route looked down on? Maybe it is in the creative mind to find a better, or at least different way?

I, personally, don't find pole planting to be a benefit, but I don't condemn those who do. And, I certainly don't try to tell them why they have to, or why they are a bad skier because they don't pole plant. I do find it interesting that no other sport requires the use of an apparatus to know how to change body posture. . .

I know that here they used to use this stuff called SnowMax. It was added to the water to give something for the atomized particles of water to cling to. The idea was it would freeze easier that way. Don't know how much difference it really made. . .

Hmm. Seems we are the rarity, Trencher.

Don't be hating my artificial snow!! There is a reason that East coast US skiers are most able to deal with "poor" conditions. ;) We might get a little dusting of snow every now and about all we ever ski on is man-made. It's actually pretty good sometimes. As for climate change - we are open earlier than we have been in years.

Are these the '09s? (red) I just got them for my brother. It has the metal bar with the boot scale on it right? Front binding gets set to the closest length of the boot. Same with the rear. Although, with some boots you won't be able to get the arrow in the center. Their pictoral instructions show one type of binding with an additional screw for the front binding. Mine were the type that did not have that. It seems to be a pretty neat setup - especially if you want to play with fore and aft binding position.

As for which side of the centerline to be on with boots that won't center, I like to err on the side of less pressure.

I usually have to special order my pants in long. Arc'teryx, North Face, and Spyder all make mens long. Not sure about womens. Moosejaw.com is great about special orders in the US.

Very good, Trencher! Now you can move on to explain "cross under." :) I think Jonny Moseley is the perfect example in his mogul skiing!