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Need Technique Advice...My best and worst days

jnmcarroll

Certified Ski Diva
Last week I had my best ski day ever, immediately followed by my worst ever..... ugh, any advice?

Last Monday I hit our local hill with three girlfriends --hopefully future ski divas! (I was a little nervous because I haven't skiied much with anyone but my dh and family.) There was 4 inches of new powder and the resort was pretty much deserted so it didn't get tracked up quickly. It was AWESOME!!! We skiied hard on black diamonds all day and had a blast. Our skiing levels were close enough that we stayed together and kept challenging each other. Everyone kept giving me complements on my form. I skiied harder than I have in a long time--it was just a fabulous day! By the time I got home I was so excited and encouraged! I couldn't wait to get out with my dh and show him my "mad skills".:laugh:

So Wednesday dh and I hit the mountain (same resort). It had snowed an additional 9 inches the night before, so I thought I would have an even better day, boy was I wrong. I am not sure if it was the extra snow, or the fact that this snow was more wet and heavy than the previous trip....my form fell apart. I couldn't make my usual carving turns in this deep heavy snow. Dh said I shouldn't try to use my usual carving turns, that I needed to just let my skiis fall into an effortless rhythm. (Telling someone who is working their guts out to get down the hill, that it should feel effortless is NOT the right thing to say:mad2: ) I tried to keep a good attitude and not get frustrated, but it was definately the worst day I have had in a long time. I watched my dh's powder skiing form and try to ask him questions about what he is doing to get into that quick light effortless rhythm (Are you moving hips or knees or toes?????etc..) He just couldn't describe it to me.

I plan on taking a powder skiing lesson on the next big dump day, but in the mean time I was wondering if you ladies have any advice. I know some of you are ski instructors. Any tips that you give to your students that I could try out until I can get a lesson?

ANY advice would be great!!!!
 

Jilly

Moderator
Staff member
Been there too. One day great, next day I want to fire the skis into the car and go home. So, what was different. Conditions for one. Double the new snow at a depth that's covering the boots no problem. DH is right, keep it light, don't try to carve, you need to float on the snow. Weight equal on both skis, less edging. Gravity will make the downhill ski heavier/pressured. Carving can be highly overrated in the wrong conditions. This sounds like one.
Light, visibility - anything different there. If I can't see, I'm useless and the form to to H double hockey sticks.
By the way - next trip out will be better. Sometimes its like golf!
 

tcarey

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Hey there!
Great to hear that you are out tackling the powder! Here are some key tips
Bring your feet closer together creating a nice platform to float on
Try not to be so edgy making more shallow turns in the falline
Maybe start with some bouncing to help you get a bit of a rythm going.
Both skis need to be guided,meaning steering of the inside foot or the right foot on a right turn and the left foot on a left turn.(As well as the outside foot or downhill foot)
Try not to overturn your skis across the hill.

Hope this helps!

Terry
 

altagirl

Moderator
Staff member
Powder skiing is not different in what you're doing than carving railroad tracks on a groomer. It's just like you're doing it in 3D because you can now go up and down too - you're in the snow rather than on the snow. I still think about the same turn initiation things I would on a groomer (if I'm thinking about it), the big difference is that you CAN NOT SKID. Don't try to skid, don't try to muscle the turn. You have to be patient. Start by pointing your skis downhill and let them run and then start your turn. Just realize that when you tip your outside toe or your knee or whatever it is that you think about when you make a turn on a groomer - it's going to take longer to happen in powder. Do that motion and then wait for it to happen. Don't panic because nothing happened instantly - if you do that, you end up trying to muscle the turns and that's why it's exhausting. I hate to say it, but your husband is right - if you're doing it right it IS effortless. Hopefully the above will help you understand how and why it should feel effortless, at least! The only things I do differently in powder is to add a little up and down into it, and to really push my hands forward (because the snow will drag your poles back so it takes more effort to keep them forward in powder).

And don't sweat it. The other day, my first run was awful. Like - I should just find a new sport because I SUCK, awful. My second run was absolute perfection. I felt so light on my feet and rhythmic - it was like I was floating and dancing all the way down the mountain. Amazing, amazing, amazing... Don't let the bad days (or runs) get you down. All you can do is to try and identify what it was you did right on the good days and try to repeat it in the future!
 

jnmcarroll

Certified Ski Diva
Light, visibility - anything different there. If I can't see, I'm useless and the form to to H double hockey sticks.
By the way - next trip out will be better. Sometimes its like golf!

I'm glad you mentioned this. The visibility was horrible the day dh and I went out. All of the wet fog seemed to make a crusty wet top layer to the powder. Some places it was so bad it was like skiing blindfolded through wet cement.
 

jnmcarroll

Certified Ski Diva
Thanks for the encouragement! After reading your posts I recognize a few things I was doing wrong:

tcarey mentioned steering with the inside foot: I know that I was putting too much weight on the outside foot because there were a few times I actually did a summersault down the hill (not graceful ones either!)

altagirl- You nailed it-- I was trying to force each turn and getting exhausted in the process. The way you describe skiing powder properly, is exactly what my dh does when he skis powder. I want to do that so bad--it looks so graceful. When you say you add up and down to it, do you jump each turn and change direction by rotating your ski slightly with the inside foot like tcarey mentioned?

It is how to get that rhythm started that is alluding me.

I am not going to give up. I promised myself this would be the year I would learn to ski powder and I will keep trying!:thumbsup:
 

altagirl

Moderator
Staff member
Thanks for the encouragement! After reading your posts I recognize a few things I was doing wrong:

tcarey mentioned steering with the inside foot: I know that I was putting too much weight on the outside foot because there were a few times I actually did a summersault down the hill (not graceful ones either!)

altagirl- You nailed it-- I was trying to force each turn and getting exhausted in the process. The way you describe skiing powder properly, is exactly what my dh does when he skis powder. I want to do that so bad--it looks so graceful. When you say you add up and down to it, do you jump each turn and change direction by rotating your ski slightly with the inside foot like tcarey mentioned?

It is how to get that rhythm started that is alluding me.

I am not going to give up. I promised myself this would be the year I would learn to ski powder and I will keep trying!:thumbsup:

The key to get started is to pick up speed. Going too slow in deep powder is really, really difficult - you're very likely to get stuck. Pick a slope (or powder off the side of a groomer) where you have a good runout. Like - "If I never manage to pull off one single turn here, I'll pop back out on the groomed and it'll be okay). Then point them straight down the fall line, and once you're moving pretty quickly, THEN initiate your turn. When you're in the arc part of the turn you're pushing down, when you're crossing in between turns, you're coming back up. It's an exaggerated version of what happens in a turn on a groomer - your upper body ends up coming up taller in between turns as your feet come back under you. I'm thinking that I start by pushing down into the turn as I lead with my outside little toe and like to drive the tips of the skis. How hard you're pushing though is that fine touch that you get with experience - you learn to read the feedback you get from the snow and react to it.

Keep in mind if you're on a really shallow slope - you're not going to be able to make many turns. Or they're going to have to be more of a wiggly line than S's, if that makes sense. Keep in mind that a slope that you could, say make nice tight slalom turns on and stay going fast when it's groomed is going to probably be something you'd be doing GS turns (or unfinished slalom turns - like you're not rounding them out back across the fall line) on when it's got 6" of powder on it, and if it's got a couple feet of powder, you may not be able to make a single turn on it at all because it's not steep enough - you're just arcing down it in basically a straight line to keep your speed up and not get stuck.

I think that's the biggest problem for people getting used to powder. You think "I don't know what I'm doing so I want to go slow until I figure it out". The problem is that it will never work right if you're going too slow and you'll just exhaust yourself trying to do it. So try to find a powder slope that's not too scary (no cliffs/trees/etc. in the way) and let your skis run.
 

jnmcarroll

Certified Ski Diva
Thanks so much for the advice altagirl. I think next time I just need to throw my caution aside and get the speed going. I do fine going through the powder at the edge of the groomers-- I just whip right down. I think I just got too cautious in the deep, steep stuff with no bailout like a groomer would have. I was trying to take a few slow turns at a time. :nono: Doing the opposite of what I should have been!

I am excited to go give it another try now!
 

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