If skiing was this instantly available.

[h.harb]

Back woods toilet dumping is not exclusive, look at the US PSIA demo Team skiing in the post I commented on. The dumpster is always ready for a collection.

[Ihamilton]

Agreed Harald. Does the demo skier see himself skiing in a manner that even slightly resembles Grandi? Why would he line himself up on YouTube in a video comparing himself to Thomas? In fairness none of the skiers on the Canadian demo team try to use pmts movements as Thomas does.

[h.harb]

I guess things have changed in PSIA, we used to call this a wedge entry, with an extension, now it's a Level 3 parallel skiing standard.

[skijim13]

I think a new video and book on movement analysis would be great to help us train using PMTS. I am lucky to have a spouse to work together with, who is also learning PMTS, last night we were rollerblade training and she picked up that my right leg was always under my hips, but did not do the same with my left one. Also we could train better if we could find the music used it the free skiing video to put onto our ipods, great to take out on the slopes while training.

[CO_Steve]

http://www.thewaylowdown.com/

[geoffda]

Agreed Harald. Does the demo skier see himself skiing in a manner that even slightly resembles Grandi? Why would he line himself up on YouTube in a video comparing himself to Thomas?

That is the truly amazing thing right there. Those guys actually don't see the difference between what they are doing and what real elite skiers are doing. How this can be I don't know. Maybe it is the old, "well I know I don't look like that, but I can ski double black diamonds so I must be really, really close..." theory. Apologies in advance Irwin, but another great example of this was the Canadian demo team coach in the Interski video talking about how his guys "look like World Cuppers." Right....

[skijim13]

Many PSIA people will tell you the reason it is so hard to acheive level III certification is because you need to ski as good as a world cup skier. However, the sad true is they teach dead end movements and it will never be true. However, their high ego blocks them from seeing the truth about themselves. I always say in the land of the blind the man with one eye is king. I know it may not feel good but the only way to learn something is realize you have something to learn. Since we started learning PMTS we realized we really were not good skiers and have a great deal to learn. However, learning makes skiing more exciting since it is a challenge to keep improving.

[h.harb]

Many PSIA people will tell you the reason it is so hard to acheive level III certification is because you need to ski as good as a world cup skier.

This is delusional!

Delusion
A delusion is a belief held with strong conviction despite superior evidence to the contrary. As a pathology, it is distinct from a belief based on false or incomplete information, confabulation, dogma, illusion, or other effects of perception. The dictionary forgot BS!

[emakarios]

And another bit of wisdom is appropriate to PSIA: "the beatings continue until the lesson is learned".

[Ihamilton]

Geoffda wrote:

Apologies in advance Irwin, but another great example of this was the Canadian demo team coach in the Interski video talking about how his guys "look like World Cuppers." Right....

No apologies necessary Geoff, I just wanted to point out that a ski instructor in the out house pose does not necessarily make them Canadian.

As to the Canadian demo team, I think we had 4-5 from WB on that team. Last November after we had our green pmts certification camp, a L4 not on the demo team sat down beside me and asked me why I would want to have HH to WB when we had the best skiers in the world here with our large representation on the demo team. I had been told to watch my tongue so I said the best skiers in the world are in the WC, not here, and HH models his teaching after watching such skiers as Herscher. I thought that I was on pretty safe ground making that statement and no offence would be taken, but I was mistaken. He said "you can't ski like Herscher". I said of course not, no one else in the world can, but we can study him and try to make the same movements. I added that is why we follow HH, he leads us and uses the worlds best as an example to follow. The response I got was "your full of s...."

Not only are they delusional, they are arrogant as well. There is a bright side to this. Do I want these arrogant guys to be able to ski like all of the skiers at a pmts tech camp can? HH and Diana are coming to do a tech camp at WB at the end of November. It will be fun. I guarantee that by the end when we campers are skiing the CSIA instructors wil turn around and watch us and wonder how we do it. The arrogant ones I won't pay any attention to, but if some one asks for help to learn pmts, I will coach them as best I can.

[geoffda]

No apologies necessary Geoff, I just wanted to point out that a ski instructor in the out house pose does not necessarily make them Canadian.

Yeah, actually I was referring to a spate of recent videos posted on the forum showing back seat skiing & most of them happened to be Canadian. I wasn't trying to indict an entire country . On the positive side, they are in the back seat because they are flexing and just haven't figured out how to pull their feet back, so they are at least doing something right. That puts them well ahead of doings this side of the border.

[h.harb]

However, they are flexing in or during the arc, which puts them in the back seat, reduces pressure and actually contributes to their back seat at turn ending. We teach that you don't flex until you are ready to release, at least we don't flex to move back. If we flex in the arc it's to increase ski angle.

[h.harb]

I just want to make clear that PMTS and Harb Ski systems is not out to beat PSIA or CSIA or it's demo Team members or examiners. . We offer a different system and we don't want it to be universally used by every ski school or instructor. In other words we don't want to be like, head toward or conquer or replace PSIA or CSIA methodology. They are fighting not to change, and we don't want to interfere in this.

We are specialized, a unique, boutique teaching system that serves our customer, who is looking for something different. We also offer training and our system to ski schools and ski resorts either as a complete system or an alternative one. We do this infrequently, because we want to be selective with whom we work. We don't want to be bigger, we couldn't be bigger, we are already at capacity now.

As a ski coach and trainer, I have the right to point out how skiing is done, and describe how different skiers from different applications use the tools, in varies ways. Just as Car Magazines, describe and critic car models and manufacturers, I analyze and critic skiing from different genres. Car magazines and web sites will point out flaws in manufacturing application and weak components, handling and motor performance. We point out how different movements hinder learning and top level skiing.

You don't see General Motors or Ford going after the magazines publicly for their reviews of their cars and they have had plenty of very bad reviews. . Skiers for some reason think their skiing and teaching systems are biblical in proportion. Causing a very protective and limiting attitude toward new ideas.

In Irwin's post the attitude of the L4 instructor is childish and primitive, arrogant at best. Although I wasn't treated that way when I was on the Demo Team. I saw this attitude from varies examiners around the country. It's funny, how it was always the ones who skied the worst that had the attitudes toward their lesser "Leveled", supposed fellow instructors. In Irwin's example, the response is really interesting, they think they ski like the World Cup skiers, yet when someone has the goods to show them what world cup skiers ski like; they don't want to have any part of it. Might burst their bubble.

[Kiwi]

Basilj I was a little cavalier with my comment on the knee movements in the video. I should have said that using the knee to initiate turns and then trying to dig the edges into the snow causes different rotations of the femur in the hip socket, and at the ankle, compared to the PMTS flexing, flatening and tipping movements. Harald is very precise about the mechanics of joint rotation etc and the way correct movements develope good skiing. There are post on the forum about this and I have found thinking about these mechanics helps MA.

[Kiwi]

And finally,

In my opinion, Harald please correct me if I'm wrong, the knee drive initiates the ITB before anything else which limits gluteal muscel activation and the ability to lock the hip back in the socket. These deficiencies all limit CA MOVEMENTS. Tipping with the feet first engages the the gluteal muscles first and properly allows the hip to go back, this creates proper stacking of the joints, more CA and bigger tipping angles.

People with a knee flaw in their squat pattern develope a corkscrew type movement around the knee and lower leg, this is very weak under any load as the gluteal muscels and pelvis are not properly engaged. I think this is the same as what results from foot steering and knee drive movements in skiing. In skiing you want the glut fired up, hip back and pelvis CAed.

If you get excessively sore IT bands consider how well you are CAing.

I can feel these muscle engagements at home when standing by putting my fingers on the areas of the glut or lower ITB and tipping properly then comparing this to wrongly moving the knee, as in the video.