Mistakes 80% of men do while skiing!!!!!!

Well men this is now your time to face up to the music! The women took my comments about their "skiing strategies" very well! In fact via PM they gave me many more issues to deal with!

We all agree that men do think differently than women and thus also behave differently! Sometimes it is positive and many times it is counter-productive! Here are some behaviors many men demonstrate in a skiing context! You decide if you are one of them!

1. Rare is the male skier that comes out and says , "I am a beginner"! That word "beginner" has a bad taste as men say it! Most men will admit having social "problems" with opposite sex before ever mentioning that terrible word "beginner"! It seems to make men think of; grade one, first day at job, first time in a standard transmission car,first date,,etc...
So men "over-compensate" and 90% say they are "experts"! The second this word comes out,,,,it is then justified with, "well I ski the bumps"! As skiers all around look with doubt, then the next level of confirmation is blurred out, "well I was at XYZ ski resort" (the place where all experts go),,,, Still getting divergent looks,,the last line of attack is to casually say,
"I ski on, the new XSN skis that Carl XYZ used this season"
Men need to be "recognized" by peers as being in top 10%! Many ski for "social recognition" rather than for the inner beauty of skiing!


2.Men will use muscle/power to force turn! They will battle with skis to do what they think they want! If it does not happen,,then the skis or boots are blamed! Rare is the man skier who will go on "easy" run ( note I did not say beginner run) to try those new skis! No no the best place to learn is the steepest icyst runs! It is just a question of "will power" and domination! Technique,,that will come later!

3.Many social psychologist have related skiing and car driving! Marketing in skiing often relates the two. Why? because many men skiers think that the faster you go the better you are! Women know better! While women enjoy every turn, every carve, men have one thought....how many runs can I get into the day! How fast can I go before my ticket is taken away! How steep can I go before my heart bursts! It is that "speed fix" which man speak of! You see it on the road and you see it in the ski runs!

4.Learning to ski from another person is ,,,,well admitting that you are "unmentionable"! Just watch the others! Just tuck and close eyes! Just turn body and ski will turn,,,( if you pray enough)!!
Seems men will pay thousands of dollars or Euros for skis but why waste money on lessons! I still still read messages on net about, is it worth taking lessons? As if skiing is a primale instinctual activity like eating and ,,,,,,,!!!!


5.This final mistake that men often do is they get confused with how ability level is defined! For many the darker the sign post, the more skulls on sign at top the better!
Their reasoning is, "if I went down this super super black run",,,I am super super great skier! I survived!
Just listen the conversations at the bar at the end of the day!

Too close to home!

Now the debate begins!

There's more than a few competitive women who would meet the description above.

A female friend of mine had been strugling to carve well, although she could ski in the old feet together style , fast and furious. She bought some great carving skis that should have made it easy. The main problem was that she was just too aggressive and fast. She could not handle going to a slower run and and was skiing faster than the radius of the skis could handle. The answer was to go to a larger radius ski. So the ski matched her agressive style. Now she knows what a carved turn feels like, I think next season she'll be able to carve on the shorter radius skis.

Whilst I agree to the generality of Pav's subject, I do think there are an increasing number of new men. New men are able to control thier egos and laugh at themselves. They are the ones who have taken up different sports as adults and have learned that there are no short cuts. You have to go through the process to learn anything.

Trencher

Trencher,
Again right on the mark about the "new" men! That is why the title is 80% men!
I have met many "older" men who have pick up skiing once they have discovered that making money is not the only real goal in life!
They are more patient, more open to advice, and more aware of the pitfalls of "pushing" body to extreme situations!

Yes again for the comment that there are some women who could fit the "male" profile! May I make a personal comment about this issue which I am sure will again create much discussion! Skiing is very much a reflection of our society in the way we deal with each other! Some women in the belief that being "equal" or better than men must "act" like them! It leads to a emotional dead-end since you deny your uniqueness and try use another "standard" of what is success and happiness!
I try to tell my girls to be true to oneself and strive to be happy in whatever they do! Yes they ski fast and yes they love the "carve" but not to do it like a man!
Let us enjoy each other's special qualities!

Love your video!

Just for the record, I was absolutely shite when I first learned, my first week learning I hated.
I then had 3 days away with Skidaddle, and was even worse, although the conditions were partly responsible, along with a bar owner called Werner in BKK.
However, I have found that by being persistent, taking advice from others, and trying to improve each time I go, I have become competent and comfortable on almost anything now. However, I will be the first to admit that my style is far from perfect, but its getting a hell of a lot better.
You do however have to be able to laugh at yourself, and also be determined. I used to get annoyed and give up easily when I couldnt do something, but not with skiing. I have a real drive inside me to be as good as I possibly can at it.
It does mean however that I can sit in the bar and laugh at those people who talk like Pav says, making out they are now experts, having made it somehow down a difficult black without breaking their own or anyone elses neck!!!!

Tony_H wrote: I have become competent and comfortable on almost anything now.

Thats great :D

You really must pop over to my bit of the Valais sometime :twisted:

If I'm not there then ise could perhaps show you around :D

Your bit? Are you royalty and own part of a country?

Aah yes, the self-appointed champion skier(s) holding court in the bar after a day on the slopes.

The times I've listened to these guys explaining how they conquered the steepest blacks/deepest powder after two weeks on skis and just a couple of lessons...

Not possible and they should fool no-one. There are no short cuts to being able to class yourself an expert or advanced skier. Nothing can substitute weeks on the snow and some good tuition, but sadly many beleive they don't need either before they can say "I am a good skier." I've skied for about 30 years and am only steady through the bumps and cannot ski powder very well at all and I accept both points.


It is the humility that is lacking with these chaps, but it can make for some very entertaining "ear-wigging."

Tony_H wrote:Your bit? Are you royalty and own part of a country?

Might be...not telling 8)

I do own a little bit of the Valais, but it's not in the bit you've visited.
Totally different from Verbier and it's satellite resorts.