Word! I started doing this lately. Skiing very familiar terrain and sampling the bumps has made this possible. At times I do find myself peaking down at my skis, but the times I find myself looking 5+ feet down the hill are really smooth.
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Best Tips for Adv. Intermediate moving from Blue to Black
- Thread starter spresso81
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Word! I started doing this lately. Skiing very familiar terrain and sampling the bumps has made this possible. At times I do find myself peaking down at my skis, but the times I find myself looking 5+ feet down the hill are really smooth.
Paul
New member
One of the worst things that can probably be done is to overthink things. That's why I like Kevin's advice. Learn how to "feel" the things that are going right/wrong.
tekweezle
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speed control....even on ice-because ice and moguls are what differentiate blue terrain from black and beyond. control yourself by using your pole planting and making short turns. practice on easier terrain and don;t get lazy. it;s easy to fall into bad habits "just cruising" on flat terrain like totally getting into the back seat and power sliding. stay forward on your down hill ski.
just my opinon but what sets a "black" skier apart from a "blue" skier is merely confidence in your skills and knowing when to use what technique to navigate the terrain.
goodluck!
just my opinon but what sets a "black" skier apart from a "blue" skier is merely confidence in your skills and knowing when to use what technique to navigate the terrain.
goodluck!
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I agree to a point. I do think it's valuable to focus on honing a particular technique. The key is working on one thing at a time. Don't hit the hill with a laundry list of things to try. I still say it all starts with the hands. Also, remember to keep turning, even if the surface seems sketchy. Skipping a turn will get you going to quickly and that results in dropped hands, back seat, etc., and we all know that never ends well...
Paul
New member
Absolutely, however, I think in anything you get to the point where you start to overthink. If that's the case, you need to get back to just letting "feel" take-over for a bit. Your unconsious mind has learned all these techniques, and hasn't forgotten any of them. Sometimes its beneficial to let that lead you to one of those "Ah-Ha" moments.
DEVO
New member
take a lesson.........seriously.
Back in the day, to become a ski instructor, we had to take a four day clinic that would determine who among us would be hired. I would say about 50% of the clinc was teaching us how to ski better and the other 50% teaching us how to teach. At the time I considered my self to be a pretty good skier who could handle most any terrain. I can honestly say that those four days COMPLETELY changed how I skied.
Too many people think lessons are for beginners. Get yourself a private lesson with a really good instructor (maybe some others can chime in as to someone they have had experience with?) before you form too many bad habits. Considering how much money you have probably spent on gear and how much you are probably going to spend on lift tickets, etc, etc, it's a good investment.
Back in the day, to become a ski instructor, we had to take a four day clinic that would determine who among us would be hired. I would say about 50% of the clinc was teaching us how to ski better and the other 50% teaching us how to teach. At the time I considered my self to be a pretty good skier who could handle most any terrain. I can honestly say that those four days COMPLETELY changed how I skied.
Too many people think lessons are for beginners. Get yourself a private lesson with a really good instructor (maybe some others can chime in as to someone they have had experience with?) before you form too many bad habits. Considering how much money you have probably spent on gear and how much you are probably going to spend on lift tickets, etc, etc, it's a good investment.
DEVO
New member
I also want to disagree with this somewhat. One of the best things I have learned over the years (especially with the newer shaped, wider skis) is to pressure BOTH skis.
Start the turn on the downhill ski, then shift your weight so that you are balanced on both skis through the turn (pressure on both uphill edges), your weight then shifts to uphill ski/uphill edge at the very end of the turn, then roll the skis over from edge to edge. As the skis come around, the uphill ski/uphill edge now becomes the downhill ski and you repeat the process. I should also say that part of this is keeping a nice somewhat wide stance. Meaning, get away from the old "keep your knees glued together" days of old.
As you start skiing steeper more technical terrain, you will find it much better to stay balanced over both skis and to able to work both uphill edges through the turn.
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I was serious here. Don't overlook night skiing. If time is an issue due to family/work/other obligations, night skiing at a local hill can open up opportunities for some on slope time. Even 2 or 3 hours a night once or twice a week will help a lot.
This is definitely true. Most of my skiing the past few years has been short sessions at night, it helps a lot to get the mileage in.
jack97
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Totally agree for most terrain. Exception is moguls, find a freestyle coach if you want to ski a zipperline. The other tip is you could probally sign up for a non private session, given very few advance skiers go for lessons, it could turn out to be semi private.
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Great post. Actually there are a ton of great posts.
To answer, my hand position is pretty much like carrying a lunch tray.
It is exciting moving up. I remember my first trip skiing in which I was hopping not to fall too much and to simply get down the bunny hill. That turned out fine so I was pupmed to try harder stuff. First, non-bunny hill green than first blue, than first double blue at Camelback - it is all about improving and having fun.
Also, maybe the best stuff about doing harder stuff (in which many of you probably will agree) is that it is so much less crowded. It is so much more fun carving down a blue than avoiding falling skiers or green terrain.
To answer, my hand position is pretty much like carrying a lunch tray.
It is exciting moving up. I remember my first trip skiing in which I was hopping not to fall too much and to simply get down the bunny hill. That turned out fine so I was pupmed to try harder stuff. First, non-bunny hill green than first blue, than first double blue at Camelback - it is all about improving and having fun.
Also, maybe the best stuff about doing harder stuff (in which many of you probably will agree) is that it is so much less crowded. It is so much more fun carving down a blue than avoiding falling skiers or green terrain.
Work on your turn size...you should be able to move from long radius to short radius to medium radius turns at will regardless of terrain. ALSO TRUE IN BUMPS because no matter how good you are in them, someone is going to cut you off one day and you'll need to gather your speed and keep things under control unless you want to wipe.
Work on turn shape...your turns should be well rounded with as little traverse between them as possible. Turn shape is a determinant of speed control, more so than most folks realize.
Embrace the ice...make it your friend. Start on some low angle ice, learn to turn and feather your edges so you skid as little as possible, then move up progressively to steeper terrain. Learn to keep your feet moving and making turns no matter what.
After ice is your buddy, make all other conditions familiar. POW, crud, hardpack, slush. Learn to handle whatever the hill throws at you.
Work on turn shape...your turns should be well rounded with as little traverse between them as possible. Turn shape is a determinant of speed control, more so than most folks realize.
Embrace the ice...make it your friend. Start on some low angle ice, learn to turn and feather your edges so you skid as little as possible, then move up progressively to steeper terrain. Learn to keep your feet moving and making turns no matter what.
After ice is your buddy, make all other conditions familiar. POW, crud, hardpack, slush. Learn to handle whatever the hill throws at you.
YardSaleDad
Member
I googled that term and I am still confused by what you mean exactly. Could you elaborate on how to feather your edges?
DEVO
New member
"Feathering your edges" means you vary the degree to which you angle your skis while you are turning, so you are edging more or less.
Laying the ski more flat = less edging/more sliding
Getting the ski more up on edge = more edging/less sliding
Laying the ski more flat = less edging/more sliding
Getting the ski more up on edge = more edging/less sliding
Thanks Devo...that's it.
YSD, on ice you have to constantly monitor your edge angles. It's a constant dance between being aggressive and making big hip and edge angles and backing off and using less hip and edge. Too much of either and you're skidding out of control.
This is why you must keep your feet moving and turning...you cannot hold onto your last turn for dear life because you will break loose. Making that move into the next turn is something most intermediates fear. They think they are better off holding the last turn. That is a bad move.
YardSaleDad
Member
I understand the edge to edge roll/weight shift/vary angle for terrain and conditions.
I just don't understand which part is "feathering".
DEVO
New member
OK, imagine you are traversing a trail from skiers left to right. You are up on both the downhill (left) ski/uphill edge and the uphill (right) ski/uphill edge. As you are going along if you were to slightly roll both ankles to the left (downhill), flattening the skis more, they would tend to start sliding sideways more than cutting across the trail. If you roll your ankles to the right (uphill) putting them more up on edge, they will resume cutting into the snow and you again be traversing across.
So, as you are skiing, making turns, you vary how much you angle the skis depending on how steep the terrain is and/or how sharp you want to turn. Doing it AS you are turning as the terrain changes. This is feathering.
So, as you are skiing, making turns, you vary how much you angle the skis depending on how steep the terrain is and/or how sharp you want to turn. Doing it AS you are turning as the terrain changes. This is feathering.
YardSaleDad
Member
Yes, you've got it.
Sort of like feathering the throttle (more or less gas) in a race car going through a turn. The idea is to be on the edge of control and go as fast as possible without breaking loose and skidding.
DEVO
New member
yeah like I said, You are skiing along making a turn up on your egdes when the terrain becomes more steep or more icy, whatever, so you bring the skis up on edge more to get them to "bite" better. Or the the terrain gets softer or you run into some bumps, so you flatten the skii more so you can slide a little more.
Try that exercise sometime that I talked about above. Traverse across the slope up on your edges and while going across the slope vary how much you are angleing the skis. Flatten them, edge them, flatten them, edge them, to see how much you can affect how they are cutting into the snow and how that affects how the ski turns. That way next time you find yourself suddenly in icy conditions you are not tempted to slide, you have the confidence to keep the skis up on edge and cut into the ice/hardpack instead of standing up and suddenly flattening the skis.
Try that exercise sometime that I talked about above. Traverse across the slope up on your edges and while going across the slope vary how much you are angleing the skis. Flatten them, edge them, flatten them, edge them, to see how much you can affect how they are cutting into the snow and how that affects how the ski turns. That way next time you find yourself suddenly in icy conditions you are not tempted to slide, you have the confidence to keep the skis up on edge and cut into the ice/hardpack instead of standing up and suddenly flattening the skis.
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