Are you satisifed with your progression so far this season?

[Greg]

I know some of you guys don't concern yourself with technique or anything, but I know several members that do and strive to improve each season. Personally, I'm satisifed with my progression so far this season. I'm getting out pretty often (given I have two little ones at home) which plays a big part in how I acheive my skiing technique goals. It's all about the miles...

Specifically, I am very happy with my hand position this season and as we know it all starts there. When you first try to get into using good hand position, it often feels awkward and you sometimes have to force your hands up. I'm at the point now where good hand position (I've seen the analogy of carrying a lunch tray which I think is accurate) comes totally natural to me now. In fact, dropping hands feels uncomfortable and I don't need to think much to correct it; it sort of just happens.

Other goals for me this season include a more balanced fore/aft stance which I am pretty happy with so far. This is probably a product of good hands. I'm also working on a bit more knee bend without crouching and I'm coming along there. Finally, I've been trying to tighten up the stance quite a bit. The point here is a better platform for skiing bumps which is where I prefer to spend most of my time. I feel as though (and have been told) I'm improving there. So, all in all, I'm happy as far as technique progression goes this season.

Anyway, how are you progressing, skill-wise this season? Or is it not important to you? Or are you so rad that the discussion is moot?

 

[2knees]

Or are you so rad that the discussion is moot?

this made me laugh so loud, the people in the hallway just poked their heads in my office.

 

[Goblin84]

im getting out a lot more this season which is great. last few years i have been training heavily for another sport (till i blew out my shoulder, minor nerve damage and what not).

so i feel very sloppy and I am no where close to where I want to be. I keep trying to ski with friends who are better then me but I just moved here so finding skiing buddies can be a bit tough. I have lived with alpine skiers for a while and that is really the area I want to improve on. Will hopefully start up with some NASTAR races soon too which should be a lot of fun.

working on my balance, using my outside edge, forward lean, body alignment....all that good stuff.

 

[bvibert]

My main objective this year was to be able to make it down a bump line. I've successfully done that, even if it's a relatively low pitch, so I'm happy thus far. I've also been working on some of things like Greg mentioned, like hands and not bending at the back. Getting out of the back seat is a big one for me too. I think I've been doing well on all accounts, which has helped lead into the bumps. One of the other things I'm trying to work on is keeping the upper body still. Someone pointed out that I'm twisting my upper body to initiate my turns in the technique thread. Now that I'm aware of it's really irritating.

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

I know I've improved, that's enough for me. Each time I head out, I look forward to it more that the last time. And thanks to all the tips from everyone here.

 

[ski_resort_observer]

I'm actually going the other direction but as I better accept my geezerhood, not a problem, just have diferent priorities when I hit the hill or in this case, the hill hitting back...lol

 

[hammer]

Not getting as much mileage as I'd like, but I'm working on it...

New boots this year...last pair was 2 sizes too big and I didn't have custom footbeds so it's been an adjustment. I think the new boots are helping...I still have back seat issues but I feel like I'm more forward than I used to be and I have better control of the skis now.

One thing I'm doing different this season is that I'm focusing more on how I'm skiing and less on what terrain I'm trying to get to. I know I can make it down steeper stuff if I had to but it's not all that satisfying if I'm in survival mode.

 

[mattchuck2]

Or are you so rad that the discussion is moot?

Yes.

Although I have managed to correct a little bit of an upper body twisting that seems to be a common problem for a lot of (especially male) skiers. Overuse of the upper body muscles to compensate for underuse of the lower body muscles . . .

Now that I've corrected that however, I'm perfect ;-)

 

[2knees]

I dont feel as if i've made any real progression this year. I simply dont ski enough to improve or correct my flaws. By the time i get out, i just want to ski and not worry about things. But inevitably, on the ride home or the next day i start running through things i could've or should've done better.

 

[YardSaleDad]

I took a lesson my second day out. It was another infamous Belleayre group of one lesson. We focused on small items, but it was a major turning point for me. I stopped thinking about what I was doing, and just felt it. Every day out has been just honing the skills from that lesson. Being tall. Rolling my edges. Weight shift at the hips....

 

[midweeker]

I always seem to ski the best the last day of the previous season. With a late start this year due to weather, I know I am somewhat behind the 8 ball. I really need to quit my job and become the middle aged ski bum I want to be.

 

[MarkC]

It's totally in the moot bro.



In all seriousness I have not spent enough time on challenging terrain to improve that much. I need to further improve in the bumps and get my nerve back in the air. In till we get some natural snow I am going to spend some time in the park getting my confidence back so when the snow flies I can have fun off of the natural or semi natural features that some of us like to play on.

 

[jack97]

With me, there's always room for improvement.

In the bumps, worked on pole planting during the offseason and I have better poling in the bumps now. The A&E is going fine, I just need more reps.

While going to the mogul field, in the flats, plenty of stuff were I see progression; more ankle flex and knee rolling. Movements that help with the short turns.


BTW, now that the Patriots have been eliminated, I found more time to watch vids that I have bookmarked. Some ski tips from Miller and McNichols, its free and has some good stuff on some fundamentals. http://www.sportskool.com/home.jsp Point on 'sport' menu and then click on 'skiing'.

 

[millerm277]

Well, this year I finally have a pair of boots that fit me properly, although they are probably close to 20-something years old (Nordica NR981's), and I'm getting out more to ski, so I'm pretty happy.

 

[hammer]

This year, after visiting Jeff Bokum. we have some boots that are attached to our feet, and we can ski thru the crud in control.

Did you have a period of adjustment where it seemed things were worse than before?

Just wondering if it was just me...I know that my boots fit better and I believe that my stance is more correct, but the change has thrown me off a bit.

 

[Greg]

Did you have a period of adjustment where it seemed things were worse than before?

Just wondering if it was just me...I know that my boots fit better and I believe that my stance is more correct, but the change has thrown me off a bit.

I had a brief period of readjusting to being properly fitted and aligned. The biggest thing I noticed was the canting. I had many issues with grabbing edges before and I think I was still trying to compensate for it. By Day Two in the new boots all was right with the world. In the past year, my skiing has improved significantly and I attribute a great deal of it to the boot fit.

 

[Grassi21]

Despite having a long way to go, I'm happy with my progress this season. I'm on track to easily surpass my 20 day goal. I was hoping to try moguls towards the end of the season and I started giving it a try last week. I've been an athlete all of my life so the main catalyst for my progression this year was confidence. That confidence has made it possible for me to increase my speed which has made it possible to make and link parallel turns. My upper body has been quieter and my hands are almost always out in front. I do notice at times that they are a little tighter to my body than they should be. My growth can be attributed to three factors. First, I've been racking up the mileage. Second, skiing with MUCH better skiers. Third, the Skier's Edge. The combination of days skied and the Skier's Edge has done wonders for my conditioning, leg and core strength, and balance.

I can't wait to see what the rest of the season has in store!

 

[bigbog]

mileage!

Nice thread Greg,
In short...I am satisfied, but I can really use mo' mileage, particularly due to the ol' thumb injury taking out these last 2 weeks. A better bootfit has helped a ton with eliminating tension through better circulation(which is definitely Good:lol: ), and thus helping my balance 100%. I'm surprised at how it is helping to fix many issues easily..that were leading to fore/aft inbalance and less offensive skiing. As the hard cast is now on the hand/forearm I can get back outdoors once again...and attacking that Dr.Jekyll/Mr.Hyde mode as the pitch drops off......need more mileage.

 

[goldsbar]

So far, so good. I'm a bit of a technique junky and I've been studying a lot of Harb's books over the last couple of years. I've been attempting to elevate my ability to carve turns on difficult terrain (i.e. towards the steep and/or "icy" side of things). I've also been working on trying to tighten my turn radius while still fully carving my turns. What can I say - it's not like I can go tree skiing this year! Still a long way to go to perfection.

 

[Brettski]

Considering I got out for the 1st time yesterday...I'm very happy (and sore)