Bode Photos
The photos of Bode were selected to create a sensation. He does not make all turns like the one in the article, fortunately for him, as he usually crashes after a series like that one. They did the same thing with Killy back in the sixties and called it the ?Jet Turn?. Killy himself announced later that he make a mistake. The magazines took the picture and made a technique out of Killy?s mistake.
Ron like most writers who know little about skiing at that level is making up the descriptions based on viewing photos. Bode is out of balance in transition and pulled off the turn. There are plenty of others on the World Cup who beat Bode regularly and are actually ahead of Bode in slalom technique development.
Notice how Ron says keep you feet shoulder width, that?s where he?s wrong again. Bode?s stance is actually narrow in transition, much narrower than his shoulders, especially at the pressure part of the turn near the gate. Also to pick Aamodt as a comparison to Bode technique is ridiculous. Aamodt hasn?t been in the top ten in slalom rankings for a few years (didn?t race last year) and hasn?t won one in some time. Amoadt was a speed skier in his last few years, he concentrated on GS, SG Downhill in his last year on the World Cup, with a combined thrown in here and there.
You will see if you want to look at Palander and others that consistently beat Bode in slalom that they do not use the back seat position Ron is sensationalizing. They stay in balance and that is why they beat Bode. Bode may have flair, but he isn?t the dominant slalom skier, at least not in the last two years. Rocca, Palander Riach and Schoenfelder are all ranked ahead of him. Bode?s technique is actually sloppy and the US coaches are constantly trying to get him to ski more in balance, but Bode is very stubborn. Now that he no longer wins with his approach, he may want to change, which would probably make him a consistent winner, but probably would not stop Ron from misleading skiers.
I used to coach Bode?s uncle Mike Kenny at the Stratton School in Vermont. Mike was Bode?s coach when he had his most consistent year. Mike tried to get him more settled and it worked for a year. (that was three years ago when he was on Fischers).
To tell skiers to get shaped skis pressured and on edge by offering a Bode mistake as an example is just outrageous and not helpful, just another Magazine attempt to sell their poor instructional information. And you know many ski instructors will latch on to this type of exaggeration to justify, their also poor, instructional advice.