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How can I improve my skiing?
- Thread starter Bostonian
- Start date
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hammer
Active member
I was curious and checked...race fee is OK but you still need to buy a lift ticket. Might get a bit pricey for the OP since he usually doesn't buy a Wa pass.
I liked the deal at Pats Peak where the race fee included the night lift ticket. Pats isn't all that convenient however...
jack97
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haha.... this is hinting at going on hijack. Over at NV, I have talked to the racers in the beer league while I lapped the bumps. Not sure what the $ situation is but what they do is dual gates, four to six member teams. You race the course twice and they time you on each run. They try to match you with someone at the same level so that nether racer is getting blown away. After all the racing is done, they go up to the restaurant have dinner and beer and go over video analysis of each racer.
IMO, that is great stuff for ski techniques focused on racing however bump techniques are so different that it may not translate in a bump run.
IMO, that is great stuff for ski techniques focused on racing however bump techniques are so different that it may not translate in a bump run.
ThinkSnow
Member
Become a Ranger at Wa-Wa-Wachusett. Its a 6-hour/week commitment, and you get a free season pass. You're then committed to at least one day on snow every week. You'll be surrounded by others who can teach you a lot, and being on snow that often, you'll definitely strengthen your skiing.
dlague
Active member
I did the Pats Peak race program and it was pretty cool! For me it is about 20 minutes away so it was convenient. I am not much of a racer, raced on mid fats wearing loose clothing. Someone approached me in the lodge after a couple of runs and asked if I would like to join their team so figured what the hell! It was fun in the beginning but it became a commitment rather than fun towards the end.
dlague
Active member
In all seriousness, become a ski instructor. You start of with the little kids so that is easy enough and they have clinics for the ski instructors all the time and you get a season pass to get out there more. Some resorts have ambassadors and you can volunteer for that and get a season pass which will also get you out more. In fact, I have a friend that is an ambassador at WV and he is constantly skiing with ski instructors and ski patrol and learns a lot.
jack97
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I was talking to someone from this forum about that several seasons ago. The commit level is still high, tho I forgot the number of hours you have to put in.
KevinF
Member
I'm assuming NV is Nashoba Valley. That's where I do my race league each year... You can sign up through the Boston Ski & Sports Club; they put you on a team with like-minded individuals (i.e., from "we're here to win the season championship" to "we're here for the beer"). BSSC always races at Nashoba on Tuesday nights.
Nashoba is a fun excuse to get out on snow (ice...) once a week, but you get so little time in the gates there (you're not allowed to "run" the course beforehand) that I'm skeptical of how much, if any, "improvement" would be gained from racing there. i.e., it's seven weeks of two thirty-second runs a week.
Savemeasammy
New member
This is not a bad idea for some, however the OP has a 9-5 and a wife and child. If he were to pick up instructing, there wouldn't be much time for pleasure skiing after teaching hordes of children how to snowplow.
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dlague
Active member
This is true, at Pats Peak they wanted 1 weekend per month, some night sessions and some vacation weeks commitment to hours as a ski instructor - plus training in November. And possibly you could be there the entire day and not get paid since they pay only during the lesson, but then again - not there for the pay (minimum wage). I bagged prior to opening weekend realiazing that i was going to have to ski Pats Peak a lot and my family would have to pay - no deal!
mattchuck2
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Impossible to help without knowing what you ski like. Post a video of yourself, and I'll give you some ideas and some drills to practice.
Even though I'm a ski instructor (a pretty good one), I don't really give the people I'm skiing with any advice unless they ask. I'd be pissed if someone started shouting out Golf tips when I was playing golf with them, so I try not to do the skiing version of that. But if you want to get better and are prepared for an honest assessment, post up a vid and we'll see what we can do.
MadMadWorld
Active member
There is time to ski. You just don't want to after picking up 4 yr olds off the snow all day.
Bostonian
Well-known member
I appreciate the offer, I will certainly try to grab some video of myself skiing this season. I am hell bent on trying to improve! So I will take any help I can get
There is the non-skiing wife, soon to be 4 year old of my own, work, and "stone cutters" which I belong to and am very involved with... So I have limited time, but I do try to carve out enough for skiing. More importantly, when I was in college, why didn't I just ski every weekend? I could have done all the drinking then too plus, skiing! I guess better late than never!
vtskiandsport
New member
New skis and tons of trips to the mountains.
Once you start getting serious, core training has helped with me.
Just my 2 cents.
Once you start getting serious, core training has helped with me.
Just my 2 cents.
Last edited by a moderator:
dlague
Active member
Ski with Highway Star!
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MadMadWorld
Active member
I've been trying to organize a lesson for awhile now
steamboat1
New member
Wa Wa's the ticket.
Bostonian, your situation sounds remarkably like my own. Non-skier wife kids just getting back into skiing. This will be my 3rd full season back on snow in 20+ years.
The best thing(s) I ever did was get the kids in lessons as soon as my youngest was able to. Last year they did Wawa DEV team every Sunday and I did a breakthrough clinic. We are doing the same routine again this year and I will definitely be taking the clinic again, with a focus on bumps this year. I am looking forward to trying to ski with people other than my kids this year as well.
The best thing(s) I ever did was get the kids in lessons as soon as my youngest was able to. Last year they did Wawa DEV team every Sunday and I did a breakthrough clinic. We are doing the same routine again this year and I will definitely be taking the clinic again, with a focus on bumps this year. I am looking forward to trying to ski with people other than my kids this year as well.
dlague
Active member
I was in the same boat after 12 years due to non skiing ex. Once my son turned 3 I got him out there. Best move I ever made back in 97. Divorced the ex 2 years later and remarried a few years later to a non skier that wanted to learn and now loves skiing black trails and will at least try anything. Getting back to skiing was like riding a bike. However as I get older I get more tentative but I am having a lot of fun! I think the best approach is to challenge yourself and not get caught up in meeting challenges posed by others.
BTW the divorce was not because of skiing!
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