The powder got me.....

[hoodgirl]

Hi - so yesterday was opening day at Meadows here in Oregon. I went into it feeling pretty good - had an awesome summer of skiing at Timberline on the palmer, ended last season on a high note with doing my first black diamond closing day - then the powder got me.
It was an unreal opening day with TONS of light fluffy powder. I was so psyched - my chance to get face shots, feel that awesome floaty feeling finally......
...nope! I kept getting stuck, going too slow, turning too much. Decided to go on a steeper pitch and got clobbered by this stuff and throughly frustrated at myself. I was on powder skis (Pandoras) this should be easy!
My friends and DH were telling me to lean back more or just go straight and don't turn (which I was too frightened to do) I totally gave into my nag yesterday and it destroyed my confidence.
So - what can I do? Any tips for powder that is "bottomless" - I've skied on packed powder or a bit of fluff over a nice packed base but this was totally new - any drills? Any tips on building confidence in this stuff?
I still had some awesome fun runs on groom but I wants to ski the pow so so bad!! :p
Thanks ladies.

 

[SkiNana]

Forget you're an adult: ski like a kid. Put your arms out like an airplane and make big, wide, slow "airplane" turns. As you get used to the feel, you'll know how to reduce the exaggeration and ski more like "you".

Weight absolutely has to be on both skis, and don't sit back! (And don't remind me that I told you how to do it when I fall on MY face!)

 

[hoodgirl]

Ski like a kid, huh? I think I can do it. =) Thanks for the tips.
Hopefully I'll get the chance to try them out when I head up tomorrow - if there are still nice stashes of powder to be found. Missing out on today due to work. (boo!)
I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[altagirl]

Agreed - NO LEANING BACK. Yes the weighting of your feet might feel more centered to even the back half of your foot (especially if you tend to normally drive your skis by having more weight on the ball of your foot). So yeah, that part is going to shift your weight back very slightly, but most people who say "lean back" are literally leaning back from the shoulders and hips and that's a recipe for disaster. You want your skiing stance to be generally the same as it would be on a groomer.

The most important thing is getting up to speed. You can't force slow turns in powder or you get that feeling that you're stuck (and eventually you will be stuck!). Realize that most of it's in your head - when you're not used to powder, you have this set point in your head that you only want to point your skis for a very short period of time before you pick up more speed than you want. Realize that the deeper the powder, the longer it's going to take you to get up to speed, so you need to override that part of your brain that's yelling that you're going too fast. So point your skis downhill pick up some speed and then put your skis on edge and turn. REALIZE that the whole thing feels like it's in slow motion compared to being on a groomer. You will initially feel a bit like "oh no, nothing's happening", but don't panic, keep making your turning movements and let it happen. Sometimes just the knowledge that it's going to feel like there is a time lag there can help you relax and let it happen - kind of keeps you from panicking and trying to force turns (which is virtually impossible in heavy, deep snow).

Hope that helps!

 

[volklgirl]

AG - that's a GREAT description!!

 

[hoodgirl]

Thank you so much!!! What wonderful tips - I can't wait to get up there and try them out. From AltaGirl's discription it sounds like I was basically doing everything wrong. =) I'll let you all know how it goes when I ski in some powder again. I also went through the forums and searched for other powder threads (there are a few!) - more great info.
I am at the point in my skiing where the only thing holding me back from a lot of things I want to try/perfect is my confidence level and the head games I play with myself - that can get a little frustrating. Glad I can come here and get some sound advice.

 

[Jilly]

VG - that is the ultimate!!

One note to add. Pull up on the toes, not the whole foot. That should raise the shovel just enough. DON'T ski back!

 

[Pequenita]

I totally empathize with you because I cannot – for the life of me – ski real powder, which is sort of tragic!

I think the other thing to keep in mind, in addition to AG's description, is that when you do turn, there is still weight on both skis, as SkiNana wrote. You can cheat on groomers by picking up the uphill ski on a turn, but it'll catch up with you in powder, in the form of a significantly dragging ski + fall.

 

[SkiRunYoga]

I suddenly have the song "Rumour has it" in my head by Adele...however replace the words (same tune) with "Powder got me".

Sorry...had to get it in someone else's head too :p

 

[BackCountryGirl]

I also find that retracting my skis a bit (using the core to pull needs toward the chest) works at turn initiation. The goal isn't to move the skis upward really, but just to lighten pressure so as to make it easier to guide the skis in the new direction ('cause you can't tip and rip).

 

[SnowHot]

Ski like a kid, huh? I think I can do it. =) Thanks for the tips.
Hopefully I'll get the chance to try them out when I head up tomorrow - if there are still nice stashes of powder to be found. Missing out on today due to work. (boo!)
I'll let you know how it goes.

When powder gets the best of me, I sing the Tigger song from Winnie the Pooh, and I bounce like Tigger........
or should I say T - I - Double Guh - ER
I'm Flouncy Trouncy Bouncy Fun Fun Fun Fun Fun!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJFyz73MRcg

 

[hoodgirl]

Ladies! Thanks to your sage advice and my DH coaching. I was able to finally ski the pow.
A week ago we had quite the dump on Hood and I finally got the chance to try out all of your tips. The things that finally sealed it were: keeping my speed up, concentrating on lightly pressuring my downhill ski rather than trying to turn it and being more fluid and bouncy.
What a lovely floaty feeling it was. Hopefully we'll get more soon.
Just had to share! Thanks again lovely women!

 

[bounceswoosh]

I think I'm going to print out AG's advice and have it tattooed somewhere prominent so that I can see it all the time. That "oh god I think I'm going too fast!" thing gets me every time.

 

[snow addict]

I think I'm going to print out AG's advice and have it tattooed somewhere prominent so that I can see it all the time. That "oh god I think I'm going too fast!" thing gets me every time.

+1

 

[hoodgirl]

Seconded! AG is a wealth of wonderful information! =)

 

[SkiNana]

I told the inestimable Ursula about a light bulb moment I had watching a skier go by in powder and wondering how something that looked so effortless could be so *^%#* much work! I realized he was coming up on each turn - like we used to with staight skis. She pointed out that only works in a little powder. In "bottomless" powder, there's nothing to push against, and you could, I suppose, spend the night right there!
Even a ride in the lift with that woman is a mini lesson!