skijim13 wrote:... one of my problems pointed out to me at camp was that I would then extend the new outside leg at the start of the turn (old PSIA move). Did you look at your video and check to make sure that you were not using any time of extension in the start of your next turn.
Unfortunately, I don't have video of these runs. If I did, I'd post it and let qualified eyes MA.
FWIW, I was intently focused on
not actively extending. After quickly retracting the old stance ski right off the snow to release, I very consciously kept flexing both legs even more (a tiny amount) throughout the transition. KEY: I was still flexing even as the new stance ski was rolling from LTE to BTE... my legs were bent more at the end of transition than at the start.
On a flat slope, it's only the stance ski's divergence away from your CoM that necessitates lengthening the stance leg. The tactile clue is maintaining ski/snow contact. You allow the leg to lengthen just enough to do that - no need to push. Besides, pushing feels so gormless. Did Fred Astaire ever push? Does Harald?
Like you, I skied for decades pushing my BTE. Like you, I thought a dominant BTE improved edgehold and shortened arcs. It doesn't. I've never skied cleaner, rounder, tighter or better controlled arcs on ice than the ones I made in those exercises.
Another clue that I wasn't extending (or not much): my quads never worked hard. I could have skied 50 runs like this without tiring my legs. They simply weren't doing any work beyond resisting natural centripetal forces - which were minimal because this was not a steep trail and I was not skiing fast. Skiing this way is like flying. Skiing with BTE pushing is just schlepping.
Of course video or trained PMTS eyes will tell the truth. I only know what I think I did, and I've been wrong before!