Are you centered?

[cj]

is it more critical for bumpers to be on the balls of their feet more of the time than racers? and then, tying this to jeff's post, does being on bump skis with shovels under say 95cm and less side cut make unbuckled boots a relatively more effectivel drill than if one is on modern gs type skis ?

Joegm,

I could not agree with you more! I always start with my boots loose and do the unbuckled boots as a drill along with javelins, window frames, wedges, etc. to get good and stacked. That way when I get in the bumps, I try to feel the same sensation. This year at camp I asked Chuck Martin how much time I should spend on the flats and he said 50%... I was pretty surprised. The Fins spend 70%! I know that when I was up at Whistler this summer, all of the ski team people (including Bloom) skied flats 90% of the time, with maybe 2-5 bump runs per day. Once a person actaully becomes comfortable with skiing bumps, it is more and more critical that they spend time doing drills. I also asked Chuck if there was one common thing that he saw in his best adult campers (which REALLY rip), thinking that his answer would be that they are great athletes, or that they ski 100+ days a year... but his answer was that they all do the drills. The guy that won Bear Mountain 2 years ago is one of his campers and him and his buddies all go out and do drills together, so it works for every bump skiers at every level.

Jeff, I see you are in Rockville... are you a bump skier? I chase the bumps around at the local resorts and me and my buddy Sam (he beats me in all of the local contests because his airs are way better than mine... plus he is 10 years younger) are always on the lookout for good bumpers to ski with. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be many zipper line bump skiers around these parts (accept for the few guys up at 7 Springs).

Maybe we can hook up and rip some bumps, now that they are starting to form.

cj

 

[JimG.]

Funny how bumpers all use the same drills...I too start out the day with my boots unbuckled, then lightly buckled. I think the thing folks need to realize is that modern ski boots provide alot of support and allow for some "cheating" when it comes to being centered. I unbuckle the boots to ensure that I'm the one keeping myself centered, not my boots.

If you find you have trouble staying centered with your boots unbuckled, you need to spend more time with them unbuckled, not less.

 

[cj]

Funny how bumpers all use the same drills...I too start out the day with my boots unbuckled, then lightly buckled. I think the thing folks need to realize is that modern ski boots provide alot of support and allow for some "cheating" when it comes to being centered. I unbuckle the boots to ensure that I'm the one keeping myself centered, not my boots.

If you find you have trouble staying centered with your boots unbuckled, you need to spend more time with them unbuckled, not less.

Amen brother!

cj

 

[joegm]

i'm really starting to be happy about the fact that there are a few people out there who know where it's at and are into technical bump skiing and who are not 15 years old :roll: . my buddies and i were really ready to throw in the towel as of pretty recently.
my 2 buddies and i are planning on going to K mart the third week of march for the us championships. the schedule looks like training on tues wed and thurs with comps on friday and sat. our plan is to be there tuesday through friday. is anyone who may abe able to get the mid week days off interested in trying to put together some solid hook up times/ dates?. should be a sick week of skiing

 

[joegm]

i'm really starting to be happy about the fact that there are a few people out there who know where it's at and are into technical bump skiing and who are not 15 years old :roll: . my buddies and i were really ready to throw in the towel as of pretty recently.
my 2 buddies and i are planning on going to K mart the third week of march for the us championships. the schedule looks like training on tues wed and thurs with comps on friday and sat. our plan is to be there tuesday through friday. is anyone who may abe able to get the mid week days off interested in trying to put together some solid hook up times/ dates?. should be a sick week of skiing

 

[JimG.]

I'll have to check my travel schedule...that's the middle of trade show season for me. Should be able to get away for a few days regardless.

More later.

 

[joegm]

Jimg wrote:

If you find you have trouble staying centered with your boots unbuckled, you need to spend more time with them unbuckled, not less.

jimmy, u r a wise man indeed!!!!!

 

[lookn4powder]

I don't start my days with unbuckled boots, but they are really loose for the first 3-5 runs. In addition, during a day, I'll often unbuckle completely for a few runs. Sometimes, I'll forget that I'm unbuckled and ski something hairy. My big toe nails usually fall off 3 months later... For teaching centered skiing, I am not certain that unbuckled boot drills work well for everyone. Probably, it's just one of several drills that one should try.

Jeff- expand on the sl within the gs.. I?m not following

Here?s a way to envision the SL-GS drill. Take a clean sheet of paper and draw a couple wide GS S?s down the page. For the next step, subdivide complete each full GS turn into 7-9 sections. Then, draw loops (forming short S?s) that connect the subdivisions. When you envision this construct as a ski exercise, you would be executing a series of short-radius SL turns that trace a large radius GS turn. When you perform this pattern on the hill, you should try to maintain the same speed throughout the entire exercise. You will find that you will be initiating turns at many gradients and that you can only turn when you are centered.

I did not come up with this exercise. It is a drill that some local patrollers use to find their center.

Jeff, I see you are in Rockville... are you a bump skier? I chase the bumps around at the local resorts and me and my buddy Sam (he beats me in all of the local contests because his airs are way better than mine... plus he is 10 years younger) are always on the lookout for good bumpers to ski with. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be many zipper line bump skiers around these parts (accept for the few guys up at 7 Springs).
cj

It?s hard to call me a ?bump skier?. I don't ski contests--too much organization for it to be fun for me. I?m too old, too heavy, and started too late to ever be really good. But, I?m probably not chopped liver either. I prefer skiing steeps, deeps (powder), and trees when I can. For bumps I prefer spring slop and powder snow. But since I live in M.A.S.H.*, I mostly ski ice/hardpack bumps at night. I am not a zipper-line bump skier since I rarely see bumps around M.A.S.H. that can support them.

So, I am just a skier, who isn?t lost in most situations. I really have no clue as to how good I am except that I don?t slow down for much during a season.

Perhaps, we can ski a few turns.

Jeff

* M.A.S.H. = Mid-Atlantic Ski Hell.

 

[joegm]

jeff writes:
"when encountering a skier, turn"
this sums up why bumps skiers destroy all others on the hill... and i'm not saying this to start a war or anything cause that's been done to death and it's over with. i respect racers to a point....but good bumpers strive to be able to turn anywhere , any terrain, any conditions, anytime on a dime... no excuses, snow's too hard :roll: , too soft :roll: :roll: , too heavy :roll: :roll: :roll: , too wet :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: .... watching racers this preseason has show me how un-versitile race technique really is.... i am not saying it does not take talent...but moguls skiers are better all around skiers....numerous times this year we have seen race teams- very irresponsibly i might add- doing some foolish mini gs simulated race drill on a stretch of public lane. my buddies and i will be anywhere sandwiched in between these packs practicing our turns, occasionally varying the radius... and that right there, any deviation at all from a line, is enough to send a fast approaching " racer " into stiff panic. and it sucks cause you can see them freeze right up and more often than not they seem to lock up and head right for you :roll: that's it i'm done.. i just think the quotes funny

 

[joegm]

i should have added, as i have said before, that good telemark skiers, to me , are on the same plane as bumpers.. forward, on their toes and always turning...

 

[cj]

It?s hard to call me a ?bump skier?. I don't ski contests--too much organization for it to be fun for me. I?m too old, too heavy, and started too late to ever be really good. But, I?m probably not chopped liver either. I prefer skiing steeps, deeps (powder), and trees when I can. For bumps I prefer spring slop and powder snow. But since I live in M.A.S.H.*, I mostly ski ice/hardpack bumps at night. I am not a zipper-line bump skier since I rarely see bumps around M.A.S.H. that can support them.

So, I am just a skier, who isn?t lost in most situations. I really have no clue as to how good I am except that I don?t slow down for much during a season.

Perhaps, we can ski a few turns.

Jeff

* M.A.S.H. = Mid-Atlantic Ski Hell.[/quote]

MASH, that's funny... I hear ya! There are good zipperline bumps at the local 3, it's just about timing. I have a small network of people that live right near the resorts and can tell me when the lines are getting good. For example, Whitetail rarely has good lines except for a few select days in the spring. Liberty usually has good lines once it bumps up. At Lib, we will ski the lines in tight, especially on upper Eastwind, and then manicure them with a shovel. When Roundtop puts in there man made bumps on lower Gun Barrel, there are now better, tighter zipperline bumps around, period! That place just absolutely rocks for bumps in the late winter and spring. On opening weekend at WT, we built a sweet line of bumps below the race shack and other people helped us ski them in and it was nice, but they groomed them the next day.

I usually ski up at Liberty Wed or Thurs night and am almost always on Eastwind with my other bumper friend who is a liftie there. On the weekends I go to where ever the good bumps are for that week. If you see 2 guys on narrow bumps skis and pants with patches on the knees, come over and say hi and we can make some turns together.

BTW, if there are no bumps, I spend my time on the flats doing nothing but drills. The flats are so boring around here that it is the only thing to do. Speaking of local steeps, do you ever ski Upper Gunbarrel at RT? My buddy who lives up there said it is really nice right now with the soft snow.

Later,

cj

 

[joegm]

BTW, if there are no bumps, I spend my time on the flats doing nothing but drills. The flats are so boring around here that it is the only thing to do. Speaking of local steeps, do you ever ski Upper Gunbarrel at RT? My buddy who lives up there said it is really nice right now with the soft snow.

Later,

cj

i hear that .. and amen

 

[lookn4powder]

...Speaking of local steeps, do you ever ski Upper Gunbarrel at RT? My buddy who lives up there said it is really nice right now with the soft snow.

Later,

cj

I haven't skied Roundtop in a decade. As I remember, Gunbarrel is short but decent. Most of my local skiing involves nights at Liberty and Whitetail--usually bumps. I spend an occasional weekend in the trees at Timberline, powerline skiing off Canaan, and cruising with my wife at Seven Springs. My wife and I ski a lot in the west each year.

Cheers,
Jeff

 

[cj]

I haven't skied Roundtop in a decade. As I remember, Gunbarrel is short but decent. Most of my local skiing involves nights at Liberty and Whitetail--usually bumps. I spend an occasional weekend in the trees at Timberline, powerline skiing off Canaan, and cruising with my wife at Seven Springs. My wife and I ski a lot in the west each year.

Cheers,
Jeff[/quote]

Cool. I try to get out west a couple of times a year as well. I have a friend that lives in MD that skies out west about 50 days a year... he doesn't even ski local anymore.

BTW, I think you may be thinking of Ramrod... as it's steep section is not nearly as steep and shorter than GB. It usually gets bumps on it. Upper GB is ungroomable and too steep for bump lines. It can be bombed since it has a wide, clear runout, but hop turns is what it is really all about. It is steep enough that sometimes the entire headwall slides when the snow gets soft. Imagine that... an avalanche in PA! If you get a chance, check it out in the spring... you won't be disappointed. It is the steepest thing in our area by far.

Later and have fun,

cj