going backwards

[gmcunni]

and i don't mean skiing switch....

not sure what my problem is but i feel like my skiing has gotten worse lately not better.

hopefully it is a mid-season slump that i can shake off. it is frustrating!!

 

[severine]

Sometimes you have to take a step backward to go forward. I'm sure you'll shake it off. But yes, it's incredibly frustrating. You have my sympathies.

 

[mondeo]

It happens. It took me probably 5 days at Killington to get back to the point of skiing steep bumps as adequately as I did last year. But once you get past that point, you'll be better for it, and it's a satisfying feeling.

I've gotten to the point where if I'm having a tough time on something, I'll work on it until it comes back to me. If you don't battle through it, it'll be the same thing the next time you try and you basically start off at square one again. Plus the best cure for frustration is renewed determination. Don't let your troubles get the better of you, show them who the boss is.

 

[poconovfr]

and i don't mean skiing switch....

not sure what my problem is but i feel like my skiing has gotten worse lately not better.

hopefully it is a mid-season slump that i can shake off. it is frustrating!!

Change mountains for a day,ski with some folks who will push you abit harder than your norm. Ski thru it. It happens.................................not to me but it happens.:roll:

 

[powhunter]

Gary...happens to me all the time...Usually the result of overthinking when im skiing the bumps...just try to relax..not think..and have fun..hope this helps

steveo

 

[2knees]

is there something specific, something you can put your finger on?

like any sport, you have good days and bad days. they do tend to come in bunches, or grouped together, but overall i'd bet you're skiing alot better then you think. most of us are our own worst critics when it comes to this kind of thing.

and i agree with the pocono guy. try skiing outside your comfort zone a bit. push it further. crash. go too fast.

and conditions could have something to do with it also. not sure where you've been skiing but the bumps at sundown don't seem particularly skiable yet. so you cant really blame yourself if you've had a rough go on gunny. everyone is gonna hack their way around that till it gets skied in nicely. well, everyone except for Mike "Mosely" Mondeo. :razz:

 

[Warp Daddy]

..just try to relax..not think..and have fun..hope this helps

steveo

Great advice ! I use a mantra: ------------------- no THINKING -- JUST skiing !!

Our heads can take us out of the game - we often are our own worst enemy by fearing the worst
. As i told my wife the other day she had been struggling since her surgery -- TRUST your body's innate instincts via repetitive practice you acquire muscle memory BUT you need to be relaxed or your Brain short circuits performance

Work thru it, ----you HAVE the KSA's ( Knowledge, Skills and Attitude) just do IT

 

[gmcunni]

pushing myself with others (better) skiers is probably part of it. except for one day this month @ Magic my days have been limited to solo or "family" skiing. but i usually "kill it" on the groomers with my kids (is that worth bragging about??) and even there i feel lackluster lately. my feet have been hurting where they haven't for the past two seasons. i'm skiing sloppy in and out of the bumps. i actually "gave up" at Crystal, i still had time left but called it a day cause i was sick of skiing crappy.

hopefully we'll get some good snow this weekend/week and i'll get back in the swing of things.

 

[mondeo]

Gary...happens to me all the time...Usually the result of overthinking when im skiing the bumps...just try to relax..not think..and have fun..hope this helps

steveo

On the flip side of overthinking is needing to realize what you're actually doing that's throwing you off. Going back to my example (as it always comes back to me,) the problem I was having at Killington was that I wasn't keeping my hips and shoulders square to the fall line. The breakthrough was the run where I just tried to figure out what I was actually doing, instead of focusing on just trying to "ski better." Did a few hack turns, figured out my lapse, then was able to start working on correcting it. If it's an issue in the bumps, there's a decent chance it's being backseat, which tends to be a vicous cycle. Start going backseat for a day, get frustrated, then go backseat even more as you tense up and try to muscle through turns to compensate. Frustration itself can throw a few things off by quite a bit.

Skiing with someone could probably help you out here. I'd offer but I really don't know what your skiing style was like before you started going backwards. I might be able to help with generalities, but wouldn't be able to pinpoint what's changed that would get you back, essentially immediately, to where you were.

 

[mondeo]

my feet have been hurting where they haven't for the past two seasons.

Start going backseat for a day, get frustrated, then go backseat even more as you tense up and try to muscle through turns to compensate. Frustration itself can throw a few things off by quite a bit.

I think we may have a winner (not necessarily backseat)! Hurting feet can be a sign of working too hard, using muscles instead of technique. Have a couple beers before you go out next time, loosen up, just have fun, whatever works. Methinks your frustration is largely to blame for any slide here.

 

[deadheadskier]

Can't help you on this one.....I can't say that I ski any better or worse than normal for the past fifteen years.

 

[hardline]

i riding has got to the point that i really dont think about my tech. i just ride.

 

[Eski]

in addition to all of the above advice, I'll throw this one at you -

you may have reached the wall on your equipment and it may be time to step up and into a more aggressive ride ...

 

[riverc0il]

pushing myself with others (better) skiers is probably part of it. except for one day this month @ Magic my days have been limited to solo or "family" skiing. but i usually "kill it" on the groomers with my kids (is that worth bragging about??)

There is you problem. If you don't ski challenging stuff regularly, your skills will not be as sharp as they should be. I have never had a technical set back due to anything except lack of regularly skiing challenging terrain. I don't buy temporary set backs. I do see plateaus as being an issue for most skiers, especially as they get back. But unless you ski too often and are tired or ski not enough, you really shouldn't get substantially worse technically unless you are not skiing challenging enough terrain on a regular basis. I know I was a better skier technically two or three years ago before I was skiing powder 50% of my days and meadow skipping low angle glades at Jay instead of cutting my teeth on bark at a place like Cannon. The mountain makes you sometimes but a lack of mountain can also unmake you.

 

[crank]

Rivercoil's post hits home with me. I skied a very icy day at Jay last year and gave up halfway through. Couldn't hold an edge and carve a decent turn even after sharpening my edges. This season, I took a day by myself at Kmart just after the Xmas break freeze to strictly work on technique on icy steeps. It really helped. I disagree with those that say just ski and don't think about it. (And I'm no perfect turn, perfect form wanker.) Sure it's good to let yourself go, but how do you know what you're doing wrong if you don't know what you're doing.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

i riding has got to the point that i really dont think about my tech. i just ride.

times two

 

[SIKSKIER]

I always find that when I'm in that situation a detour into the woods to tune up snaps me right out of it.

 

[snoseek]

Is it possible that your level of fitness and muscle tone could be slipping a little?

 

[gmcunni]

Is it possible that your level of fitness and muscle tone could be slipping a little?

yup :-(


got out tonight with a group of skiers who challenge me, in conditions that were excellent and i felt better. pushed myself a bit and did pretty well. not sure i'm out of the funk but felt better about my skiing. out of control at times but i was pushing it so i don't mind.

i think i might need some boot work, my heels are really coming up which had me tightening the buckles. that has been a pattern the past few times out.

 

[gladerider]

and i don't mean skiing switch....

not sure what my problem is but i feel like my skiing has gotten worse lately not better.

hopefully it is a mid-season slump that i can shake off. it is frustrating!!

have you tried snowboarding