From Low Intermediate to Confident Intermediate: Tips and Resources

[Trailside Trixie]

@Peppermint and I are signed up for the Magic women's clinic this year. I skied there for the first time last season, on greens and blues. Most mountains, I'm a solid blue skier, but Magic is something else! I'm really excited for the mental aspect of the clinic.

Awesome. Looking forward to seeing you. Yeah people are usually surprised by our trails. Even the greens are next level.

 

[diymom]

@Peppermint and I are signed up for the Magic women's clinic this year. I skied there for the first time last season, on greens and blues. Most mountains, I'm a solid blue skier, but Magic is something else! I'm really excited for the mental aspect of the clinic.

Which one are you doing? The blue to black? And first or second session?

 

[Trailside Trixie]

Which one are you doing? The blue to black? And first or second session?

They are thr same session each time. Groups will be be broken down by who wants to work on what. No more green to blue or blue to black.

 

[diymom]

Ah, got it. From what I saw on the site it looked like it was still the two different groups, but that they would both be offered on both dates. But it also looks like you don't have to select the level when purchasing, so that would make it more flexible. I'd like to take one of these early in the season, but unfortunately that date conflicts with Diva East. I'm waffling on taking the later one.

 

[Trailside Trixie]

Ah, got it. From what I saw on the site it looked like it was still the two different groups, but that they would both be offered on both dates. But it also looks like you don't have to select the level when purchasing, so that would make it more flexible. I'd like to take one of these early in the season, but unfortunately that date conflicts with Diva East. I'm waffling on taking the later one.

They are both the same. Dr Chrissy is a friend and she's said this to me. I've taken a few of her classes now. They used to be broken down that way but are now all levels in each class. This way you don't have to decide ahead of time. I'm planning on taking the 2nd class also. Hope to see you.

 

[Jilly]

I've been busy this week with the CSIA Procamp and now the World Cup races all here at Tremblant. Some ideas.

I hockey stop to stop, and I usually do longer turns to slow down.

No, unless it's an emergency stop.

@Taryn shorter turns will slow you down more. The longer a turn is, the more time we spend going downhill and accelerating. Playing around with the shape more than the size can help. I find that really finishing a turn, aka making a full C shape in a shorter arc rather that a big Z shape across the whole hill will help scrub speed at the end of each turn. Many short turns will give me more opportunities to scrub speed. This is definitely oversimplifying it for the sake of this thread. A great example in real life is the competitive sport of alpine ski racing. Slalom skiing has the most gates, as in turns, and is the slowest, while downhill is the fastest and has almost no turns across the slope. Friction against the snow is another major speed control tactic and can be used for all size turns, versus a carved turned that has very little ski to snow friction and thus does little for speed reduction.

This. Turn shape and using the terrain to slow down.

I just dig my edges in and go slow. I dig those edges in, bend my knees, get over my skis and just take it slow.

If it works, for you, but turn shape and steering uphill would be less exhausting.

 

[Trailside Trixie]

If it works, for you, but turn shape and steering uphill would be less exhausting.

I don't find it exhausting at all. If it's really steep and or icy and I'm spooked, turning is much scarier and takes more effort. I will pivot slip my way down sometimes but will often side slip. Pivot and side slipping are super easy and takes very little effort for me.

 

[liquidfeet]

I don't find it exhausting at all. If it's really steep and or icy and I'm spooked, turning is much scarier and takes more effort. I will pivot slip my way down sometimes but will often side slip. Pivot and side slipping are super easy and takes very little effort for me.

Sideslipping and pivot slipping are great skills to use on difficult terrain. Especially when uncertain about one's ability to make a solid short turn.

 

[diymom]

They are both the same. Dr Chrissy is a friend and she's said this to me. I've taken a few of her classes now. They used to be broken down that way but are now all levels in each class. This way you don't have to decide ahead of time. I'm planning on taking the 2nd class also. Hope to see you.

Booked and Indy days reserved!
Now I just need to figure out where to stay.

 

[SkiBam]

I may have said this before, but I've heard that sideslipping can be referred to as "losing altitude gracefully."

 

[GirlfriendJustGo]

I may have said this before, but I've heard that sideslipping can be referred to as "losing altitude gracefully."

Im so going to use this one.

 

[Taryn]

OK, so that says a lot. Thanks for answering. I'm putting on my instructor hat now.

1. Hockey stops with upper body/low body separation.
@Taryn, are you at all familiar with a 60s dance called the Twist?
Here's a bit of nostalgia that probably predates your birth.

Those people are having a blast twisting their bodies in all kinds of ways, with feet and legs pointing to the right while chest and shoulders point to the left.

A hockey stop should involve you doing some version of the twist.
There's no need to get all anal about how to do it right at first.

The thing to do, instead of turning your whole body to get a hockey stop happening, is to turn your feet/skis/legs/thighs to the right while turning your upper body to the left.
Or you can think of this movement as twisting your feet while holding your torso/shoulders stable.
Or you can think of "Doing the Twist" with Chubby Checker.

Try that. Instructors will want you to twist your skis with a specific pivot point, but for starters just try to get your feet/skis to turn while getting your chest to point in the other direction.
The way ski instructors describe rotating the skis without rotating the torso is "upper body-lower body separation."

Once you can get your hockey stops working this way, they will be more precise and strong.
You'll feel this change and enjoy the effect.

2. Linking turns with upper body/lower body separation.
Once you get this separation starting in your hockey stops, start using it in your actual turns.

Your goal will be to turn your skis (and your legs attached to the skis) while NOT turning your torso and shoulders. When you can do this, your skis will grip better. It's magic. Work on turning them all the way, all the way, to the left, then all the way to the right, for your linked turns.

Being able to do this will enable you to more effectively make short turns with less drama and with less leg stress. You'll be able to complete your turns and slow down with each turn. Completed turns will enable you to stay slow on increasingly steepish pitches.

Learning to ski with separation is a process. It doesn't happen in one or two runs, nor in one or two days dedicated to getting it to work. Keep at it. The results will offer a huge benefit and you'll be able to feel the increase in control you'll have.

3. Skiing slow; controlling your speed with skill, and growing your confidence
Skiing with upper body/lower body separation will enable you to use short turns to stay slow on pitches where you now go too fast, feel out of control, and experience caution and fear.

......................
Linked hockey stops, with the whole body turning along with the skis, is going to tire your legs out and lead to unintended skidding downhill and unintended left-right travel after the skis rotate. There's not much control with that kind of hockey stop. Add separation to your hockey stops, and add separation to your linked turns, and your speed control will grow along with your confidence.

Update! I finally got the chance to try out these tips yesterday and today and WOW! They helped me A LOT. I even imagined "doing the twist" (and the song even played in my head lol) and this helped me so much with separating my legs and upper body. I feel like I improved a lot with just these tips alone. THANK YOU!!! Also, my legs are thanking you because they're not sore and I did about 15 runs without feeling like my legs were dying lol I am giving you a virtual hug because I feel like I made somewhat of a breakthrough with my skiing this weekend. I appreciate these tips more than you know

 

[liquidfeet]

Update! I finally got the chance to try out these tips yesterday and today and WOW! They helped me A LOT. I even imagined "doing the twist" (and the song even played in my head lol) and this helped me so much with separating my legs and upper body. I feel like I improved a lot with just these tips alone. THANK YOU!!! Also, my legs are thanking you because they're not sore and I did about 15 runs without feeling like my legs were dying lol I am giving you a virtual hug because I feel like I made somewhat of a breakthrough with my skiing this weekend. I appreciate these tips more than you know

Congrats! You made a breakthrough.
Not me, I'm not responsible. YOU are!
Something YOU did made your turns work well today.

There are so many interpretations possible when an instructor gives verbal instructions. You hit the jackpot in your body's interpretation of what new movements you thought might work. Give yourself a great big pat on the back.