Using in-line skates is a fabulous way to train for skiing during the off-season. n Slalom course Match turn rhythm and placement to terrain features Gentle hill Use tennis ball halves, crushed aluminum cans, cones, or chalk as markers Course setting: w ~ 8-12 ft., h ~ 12-15 ft. (flatter hills need larger h to … Continue reading Get Ready to Ski with an Inline Slalom Course
Whistler (BC), Canada – Summer skiing on a glacier in Whistler. Just saying the words out loud made my friends jealous and my primary care physician cringe. Why? Because it’s a strange, exotic, dangerous, adventure that is just plain cool. That’s why. After all, how many people do you know who get to work on … Continue reading Smart Mogul Skiing
Mammoth Lakes, CA – I am a New Englander. I was raised to love cold and snowy winters, with weather that could turn on a dime. I relish the small town vistas scattered amongst the ancient hills that here, we call mountains. I am used to relatively short drives to my local hill, or perhaps … Continue reading For Lack of a Better Word, Mammoth
This lesson will help you to carve more and to achieve better edge hold by using the Phantom Move assisted by shortening of the free leg. This will increase edge angle and therefore carving. In ski turns, each of your feet plays a different role. One foot is the stance foot – you balance primarily … Continue reading Carve More and Hold Better
My brother John and I experienced a bit of spring followed by a whole lot of winter during a backcountry ski trip to the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia, June 7-12, 2000. The corn snow yielded superb turning and the powder was even better, despite the determined efforts of the strong June sun to turn … Continue reading Selkirk Backcountry: Spring Back Into Winter
This lesson will help you learn to make short turns using low-effort, simple movements. n In ski turns, each of your feet plays a different role. One foot is the stance foot – you balance primarily on this foot, and it supports most of your weight. The other foot is the free foot – it … Continue reading Make Short Turns Using Low-Effort, Simple Movements
It’s a rite of spring for skiers everywhere. Long after the lifts have shut down for the season, even as the valleys fill with summer haze, we look for sheltered fingers of sun-cupped snow high up near some shady crag. We hike, sometimes for hours, for one last run. n Finally, atop a remote ridgeline … Continue reading The Perfect Last Run