PMTS Forum Needs an Alignment Session!

PMTS Forum

PMTS Forum Needs an Alignment Session!

Postby jbotti » Mon Jan 10, 2005 4:12 pm

This post is in response to a direction the forum has taken which I view as essentially negative. My recollection is that in the past, the predominance of activity on this site was about specific issues in skiing. Unfortunately it appears that more and more the site is degenerating into an US versus Them theme with little true content being discssed. For me, one of the great things about the forum has been hearing a skiing concept explained in a few different ways so that at times the light bulb goes off and I grasp something new. This happend for me a couple of months a go when Jay was talking extensively about counter balancing movements in PMTS.
So I would like to encourage everyone who knows that rotary movements and steering don't help our skiing (regardless of whether someone else thinks it helps his/hers/its skiing) to stop responding to this chatter and BS. In my opinion it just clogs up space on the site. Ultimately if those that are intent on knocking Harald and PMTS get no response they will go away. And... for those that want to convince us that we need to steer more, don't bother. Perhaps more importantly, none of us really care if Harald invented PMTS or copied it from Bob Barnes (whoever he is). All any of us really care about is becoming better skiers. To do this we have all had to become better students. In the end, to learn one must surrender, and do what the teacher asks. So again, the name of the forum is the PMTS Forum. It is an exploration of the teachings and philosophy of PMTS, and that is why I come here to read.

Most importantly, so that we can move this thing in a constructive direction I would like to talk about a move that I have been working on. In a recent lesson with Diana, we workd almost exclusively on what she has referred to as the Piggy move (as in don't slay the Piggy between ones legs, and I'm sure Piggyslayer knows what I'm talking about). Essentially, in this move one ends up simultaneoulsy on both little toe edges for a split second. When I do this properly, the engagement of the new stance leg by defintion has to occur after the release and tipping of the other leg. To consistently produce this result I have to consciously ride the LTE of the free foot from the previous turn and then think of producing a bowlegged moment. Hopefully it is becoming second nature. Does anyone have any further thoughts on how to further engrain this into my skiing?
Balance: Essential in skiing and in life!
User avatar
jbotti
 
Posts: 2184
Joined: Fri Nov 28, 2003 10:05 am

jdb

Postby John Mason » Mon Jan 10, 2005 4:31 pm

I like to encourage this "don't kill the piggy" by playing with the Super Phantom. You get off your downhill leg early and ride the LTE of the inside ski well before it's the outside ski. While flexing and tipping the old downhill ski you'll get a momentary "0" frame. This forces engagement of your new outside ski only after the body has crossed over the skis. You feel like you fall into your turns this way.

The super phantom drill for this would be traverse on the uphill LTE while holding the downhill ski off the snow, then tip that downhill ski to create the turn. This gets you used to the feeling of supporting weight on that weaker LTE and of "falling" into the turn.

This same drill is also in the book "Ski the Whole Mountain" with a good picture sequence of it.

Once you have that feeling down, then you can do the same whatever the turn style (weighted release etc). The key for me is feeling the new inside leg tipping first and letting the other leg follow passively. (before it's the new inside leg of course)

The oppisite of this is to stem the turn, A frame, and kill the piggy with active steering. If the top of your turns are this way currently, then to learn the new way super exagerate and go real O frame. A sage once told me you have to present yourself with something really new to make it your own. Super exageration helps that process in learning a completly new movement pattern.

The first HH book has illustrations of the Super Phantom. HH's sequence on pages 110 and 111 are excellent. (though I don't think the actual term super phantom is described till book 2)
John Mason
 
Posts: 1050
Joined: Wed Feb 18, 2004 10:52 pm
Location: Lafayette, Indiana, USA


Return to Primary Movements Teaching System

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 39 guests