Getting hit by othe skiers and tips. Also how turn style amd shape may impact this.

[kiki]

Well, it happened again this weekend that I got hit by another skier. It's happened twice this Season. No big injuries either time, just a feeling of whiplash.

I find myself spending a lot of time looking behind me amd pulling to the edge to let groups of people go by as it scares me. I want to just ski without doing that.

I do ski only on weekends when it is very crowded and mainly on greens where there are a lot of newer skiiers

Most classes i have taken, they focus on big wide s turns even though i ask for small turns, i want to use as little of the field as possible and want to do that swoosh swoosh type thing like here

1. In general any tips to help me be less of a target
2. How often do you get hit???? Is this a normal statistic?
3. For the video link i put above, for the swoosh swoosh ski style, how do i explain that to the teacher mext time i take a class. Will they teach it? They seem extremely fixated on s turns.... i am tired of s turns!!!

 

[JO-ski]

@kiki I totally know how you feel. I get scared when the little tykes just zoom directly down without turning. I always let the big groups go first too. I was mentioning this on another thread, but I personally like going night skiing mainly to avoid crowds. I was practicing on a bunny hill doing some drills by myself last night and I had the whole thing to myself! Also, my favourite green runs were totally empty too.

Another benefit is that lift tickets are cheaper! Also, the night air is colder but it makes for a bit better snow condition in this late season climate. I don't like all the soft slush in the daytime this time of the year because of all hidden divets in the snow that I'm not experienced enough to maneuver yet.

 

[SallyCat]

I've never/not yet been it, and I ski in the Poconos. I've had a number of VERY close calls, though.

Kiki, where do you ski?

Those kids are skiing in powder, btw. If you're on a regular groomer, you want to practice making short, tight turns, which means turning with your feet while keeping your torso facing downslope. Others will chime in with more practical advice on how to do that.

If you are a slower skier (like me) you'll find that even when you make sure the slope is clear above you, it doesn't stay clear for long because speedier skiers will always catch up to you. I pull over to the side of the trail a lot. And I only make big wide turns when crowds are light and I KNOW there is nobody around me. There are definitely different turn shapes and sizes, so you 're right to ask your instructor for guidance. Those guys in Warren Miller films going down narrow chutes, for example, are not making big turns. they are using a version of what you need to learn to do to "stay in your lane" on crowded trails.

If you're going to ski on the weekends, try to be as close to first chair as possible. Even in the Poconos, 8 to 10 am is usually uncrowded skiing, as is Monday night.

 

[kiki]

Thank you for the tips @JO-ski and @SallyCat !

Yes, I try to be early in the line and on the hill before the crowd! It is the best time on the hill!!!! I ski Whistler so daytime only. We do have some local hills with night skiing but that is usually busier and more crowded.

Iam working on going faster to keep pace/outrun but there are a lot of very fast skiers amd snowboarders out there!!

I see people doing this type of thing and they manage to stay in a very narrow lane:

Is that hard to learn?

 

[SallyCat]

Is that hard to learn?

It's basically a hockey stop, but instead of completely stopping , you round it out a bit into a very short turn. Easy to learn, easy to practice in my experience. But also kind of tiring to turn that much. If you look at the more advanced skiers on crowded hills, you'll see that they can do that same technique but with far fewer turns. They're staying in the same narrow lane, just moving downslope more in between turns.

 

[Cyprissa]

Short radius turns with a C shape to control speed will definitely help you stay in a narrower lane. They aren’t difficult to learn in my experience but I think lessons are always helpful.

Another thing that you can do that will help is working on your predictability. Try making your turns at more predictable intervals so that skiers above you have clues about your next move. This doesn’t mean that you are at fault, it’s just another way to ski defensively.

I’m really sorry you’ve been hit twice. Skiing with my littles always makes me worry about this.

 

[Cyprissa]

I like this tutorial for short turns, I think the drill is helpful:

 

[kiki]

Thank you @Cyprissa !

Yes, i have to work on predictability

I'll check out this video.

 

[newboots]

I try to be both narrow and predictable. I try to be especially predictable when I know someone's coming. I have the advantage of skiing on a weekday, often, and the less crowded trails are definitely a plus! At Killington, which is large, there are a few places where people rarely seem to go. Ramshead base lodge has some lessons, and a really easy "practice" trail, where I am finally getting comfortable with speed. Often very few people there, even on a Sunday afternoon. My better skier friends talk about steeper trails on different parts of the mountain that are often uncrowded. 8:30 - 10 am and 2:30 - 4:30 pm (the latter sometimes) are the least crowded. If it's raining in town but not up on the mountain, those are good days to avoid the crowds, too!

 

[Fluffy Kitty]

One suggestion I have is to remember is that it is not your fault if someone (almost) hits you from behind. There are things you can do to minimize the chance, but ultimately there is no defense against utter recklessness.

I think Whistler is developing a reputation for accident-prone-ness, too. I noticed how many "skiers fight/collide..." videos on YouTube are from Whistler.

 

[Jilly]

Short radius turns is what you're looking for. Basically it's a long turn, but everything happens faster in the movements. It takes time to learn. It's also more dynamic. It take more energy. Sorry I didn't look at the first video since I saw the word powder. The second video is the first step toward a narrower corridor. The third video is good too. We teach the longer turns first, so you can get all the movements in and learn to steer the skis. In the shorter turn, you will need to move everything faster and really steer the skis back up hill to avoid gaining speed.

I practice by using the groomer track width. So use the little brushes as a visual.

I've only been hit once. Right after I finished my CSIA 1 course years ago.

 

[liquidfeet]

@kiki
I'm so sad skiing is turning into a contact sport, and the irresponsibles seem to be winning.

Learning to ski down the hill in a narrow corridor, making short radius turns, is a great idea. That makes you less of a target, and it means that if someone approaching faster from uphill takes the time to watch you, they will notice that you are predictable.

So take a lesson, and ask for short radius turns along a narrow corridor.

In the meantime, can you do a hockey stop that slides straight down the hill to a stop, without swerving off to one side? When your skis bring you to a stop, are your shoulders facing downhill or towards the side of the trail?

If the answers are that you swerve, and you end with shoulders facing the side of the trail, you can practice fixing that before the lesson. Face your upper body downhill, and turn your skis to come to a stop.

Linked hockey stops should not be what your instructor teaches you. Good short radius turns are somewhat different. But learning to do the hockey stop correctly will speed your progress in learning the good version of short radius turns.

Learning to hockey stop will teach you to keep your upper body facing downhill while your skis turn to the side. It's called different things, but the favored term these days is "separation." You separate what the upper body and lower body are doing, and work them independently of each other. Having separation is an important part of those turns you want to learn. Your teacher will work with you on the separation, but it will be great if you already have that started.

Best of luck. It's not your fault that there are irresponsible crazies on the hill.

 

[Powgirl]

Sorry you got hit...glad you are ok!

I went thru this, too...one year, I got slammed into from the back 4 times.

My SO pointed out to me that I wasn't really turning across the hill...I was traversing, zig zagging and my movement was rather erratic...I then decided to make, quick shorter turns, constantly looking above, pulling over, etc...I began not finishing my turns, and losing my rhythm by waiting for others to pass me...and it started to make me mad!

Now, I keep more focused on what's in front of me (and a bit peripherally)...and finish my turns, no matter short, medium, long...I try to follow a smooth, predictable line...I don't pull over unless I really need to...I almost ran into someone yesterday...they pulled right out in front of me...I was glad I was paying attention to what was going on in front of me versus behind...

 

[Jilly]

I have a friend that insists on wearing a bright coat! She says it's because she gets hit. Now she is skiing the small Ontario hills, where it seems to be a contact sport.

 

[MrsPlow]

I'm sorry to hear you got hit. I think you're right though, being able to do controlled short radius turns will be a big help.

Blue and green runs seem to have the largest proportion of yahoos on them - I used to wonder why all these folks bombing around weren't on the black runs if they wanted to ski so damn fast, but then it was pointed out to me that you need to ski with more control and can't just let it rip so much on a steeper, more technical run. One of the quietest runs where I ski is a black run next to a blue run - no idea why one is blue and one's black, but that diamond seems to dissuade people from skiing it.

Not to make light of it, but I've only been hit by another skier and that was when my husband and I managed to slowly crash face first into each other in front of a ski patroller on an otherwise completely empty slope. Ski patroller managed to stop laughing long enough to ask us if we were ok.

 

[kiki]

Thanks for the tips and also for sharing your experiences!

And I see we have managed to enable clothing gear enabling yet again lol! I will explain to DH the meed for yet another coat for safety reasons

 

[kiki]

@Jilly i looked up short radius turns on utube.

It is beautiful! I want to ski like that! I wish I can get there one day.

 

[SallyCat]

Ugh! I had a close call on the chairlift last night because of a new skier who didn't know what he was doing. It was actually the worst accident I've had since I started skiing.

I was lined up next to the lifty at an old, fixed-grip double chair. I turned around to look at the arriving chair and there is Some Dude on rental equipment flailing his arms and legs and cursing as he sprawled across the entire chair. He must have not been paying attention to where he was standing and the chair hit him when it came around.

The liftie didn't slow or stop the chair right away. I couldn't sit on the chair because terrified, shouting, cursing Dude was taking up both seats and waving his skis around crazily. I tried to step to the side and let the chair pass, but I didn't make it in time and the chair hit me in the back, knocked me down, and dragged me and Dude forward, off the wooden platform and into the grass under the lift (yeah, grass, sadly. Our poor melty ski season!). FINALLY the lift stopped moving and the liftie helped me up and back on the loading deck. Dude was screaming and cursing and throwing his skis around, telling his friends he was "done" for the day. I tweaked one of my knees and strained my back a bit, but otherwise nothing serious, but if a ski had become stuck or something, there could have been real damage. I'm very annoyed at the liftie for not stopping the chair sooner.

 

[ski diva]

Ugh. Glad it wasn't anything serious. But man, oh man.

I was hit getting on the chair a few weeks ago, too.

Picture this: I'm standing where I'm supposed to stand -- as you do -- waiting for the next chair. Behind me are two racer kids with parent/coach/whatever, horsing around and not really paying attention to what's going on. I move up to where you're supposed to wait for the chair to come around. And seconds before it does, parent/coach/whatever guy slides into the same exact spot as me, sort of forcing me onto this lap but not really. The chair continues to move, pushing me forward and off the edge of the lift platform, which is about a foot off the ground. Meanwhile, everyone is shouting for the liftie to stop the lift, which he finally does, but not before I drop the foot to the ground. Luckily, I land fine -- upright on my skis -- and no one is hurt. Parent/coach/whatever apologizes profusely, but still, I could've ended up on his lap while the lift kept going, then maybe falling off. Or I could've been injured just from dropping off the platform.

PAY ATTENTION, FOLKS!

 

[newboots]

Aaak! So glad you both are (mostly) not injured! The Dude sounds drunk, which bothers me a lot. Especially if you’re not an accomplished skier, getting out there under the influence puts other people at risk on the lift and on the hill! Not to mention on the drive home.

And the guy with the racing kids! Is he loading the lift with his eyes closed?

Grrr. It’s a risky sport already without having to share the mountain with these yahoos.