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Postby Janikest » Tue Feb 28, 2017 8:52 am

Hello fellow skiers,

29 Years old French skier here. I have been skiing since i am a little child, one to two weeks a year, except these last two years. I am comitted to spend at least one month a year on the snow to improve my skiing.

I have been told to be a very good skier, and i took lessons in so called "expert" groups, but i feel like despite great comments on my skills, my level is stagnating. I decided to ask a friend to film me while carving down a slope in rough conditions and i didn't like what i saw. You can always put it on the weather, but in my opinion it just revealed all my flaws, and i was so disappointed that i questionned why people would make all that great comments about how i ski.

I then searched for online methods that works instead of picking a random teacher (i did it to improve my skills as a singer and it worked quite well so i figured out it could work for skiing as well). After searching on Youtube i stumbled on Harb's channel and i liked the way he skies, and i watched his students as well, and i liked the way they ski.I bought the two books titled "Anyone can be an expert skier", but i wanted to register on this forum as well to make sure i understand it correctly, and learn and be inspired by more seasoned skiers.

So hello to everyone!
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Re: New to the forum

Postby DougD » Tue Feb 28, 2017 11:24 am

Hi and welcome!

Janikest wrote:...
I have been told to be a very good skier, and i took lessons in so called "expert" groups, but i feel like despite great comments on my skills, my level is stagnating. I decided to ask a friend to film me while carving down a slope in rough conditions and i didn't like what i saw. You can always put it on the weather, but in my opinion it just revealed all my flaws, and i was so disappointed...

Video doesnt lie, but you should be happy. Now you know the truth, which is the first step toward real progress.

Many people on this forum (including me) had the same experience. Skied for years or decades. Took "expert" level lessons. Thought they were pretty good. Then took a PMTS clinic or got videoed and compared to Harald or other PMTS coaches... and discovered that our skiing was actually very bad.

When I began PMTS, the PSIA said I was a very advanced skier. Yet in PMTS terms, I was barely above novice. Quite a shock after 35 years of skiing.

The good news is, Harald has described a clear path to genuine expert skiing. Follow that path, work at it, and your skiing will truly improve.

i questionned why people would make all that great comments about how i ski.

Partly to be nice, partly because they have no understanding of expert skiing. Since they don't know what movements expert skiers use, they have no tools to evaluate your skiing accurately.

That will not happen on this forum. If you post video for Movement Analysis (MA), which you should, you will receive honest feedback. It will describe what you're doing wrong and suggest specific movements to work on. No ego stroking... just good, hard lessons.

***
Try to forget everything you ever learned in other ski lessons. Much of it was probably wrong. PMTS is a complete learning package. Trying to combine it with other methods will only cause confusion and delay your progress.

Welcome to the forum!
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Re: New to the forum

Postby Janikest » Tue Feb 28, 2017 2:08 pm

Thanks for the reply!

I am glad other people got the same feel, so i am not alone discovering i am actually not that good at skiing. But i am willing to progress!

I have gone through the two ACBAES books, and i have now several questions:

- What kind of progress can i expect from skiing 4 weeks a year (8 hours a day)? Is it worth relearning movements from scratch? I know it varies from individuals but you got the idea... Will it take me like 10 years to start becoming good at PMTS skiing?
- Does slantboard exercices work? I have started dryland training. Has any of you reaped the benefits from it? I am ok with looking farily stupid with my skiboots in my apt, but i hope it is worth it.
- Do i have to relearn everything and start with the basic movements? The beginning of the book start with making turns while avoiding snowplow. I am not an expert skier but i definitely am not a snowplow skier. For those of you who were "experienced" before PMTS, how did you start?

Keep on skiing!
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby ToddW » Tue Feb 28, 2017 4:32 pm

Janikest,

Welcome to PMTS.

Simply trying to do the phantom move will increase your level of skiing. For some people this is enough.

But it sounds like you're serious about trying to ski quite well. To get there, you'll need to rebuild your skiing from the ground up. This means spending time on blue (North American green) and easier red slopes skiing slowly to find balance and learn movements.

You have the Expert Skier 1 and 2 books. In Harald's next book ("Essentials") he makes a plea to skiers not to ignore the section on hinging / tipping as being too simple in their hurry to get to the core substance. That's because the seemingly simple things that start at the feet are the main substance. In one of his videos, Harald calls the basic things that happen down near the feet the "engine" of skiing and the other movements higher in the body the "turbo charger." Don't skip building a good engine in your rush to get turbo charged ... or you may not go anywhere :)

Learning curves vary, but you'll definitely notice big improvements in your skiing. In 10 years, you'll still be trying to improve, but that's because your standards and ambitions will have become much higher.
.
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby milesb » Tue Feb 28, 2017 5:00 pm

The slant board works great, just don't make it too steep. It allows you to focus on the movements with no momentum to help with h balance. Which means that all the balancing has to come from movements. Also, you can do the movements very slowly and deliberately in front of a mirror.
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Re: New to the forum

Postby jbotti » Tue Feb 28, 2017 5:26 pm

Janikest wrote:Hello fellow skiers,

29 Years old French skier here. I have been skiing since i am a little child, one to two weeks a year, except these last two years. I am comitted to spend at least one month a year on the snow to improve my skiing.



The progress one can make at age 29 using PMTS and hard work and dedication will find you and your friends astonished. But it requires true work, grit and a willingness, actually a desire to eliminate movements that appear to have served you well for new movements that are much harder to grasp and master.
Balance: Essential in skiing and in life!
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby Janikest » Wed Mar 01, 2017 3:49 am

Thanks everyone for the replies. There seem to be an active community here dedicated to ski improvement!

I am really commited not just to become a good skier, but to look and feel like these people you rarely spot on the slopes because they are playing in their own league. I am the kind of person who sometimes bores his friends because of asking them for feedback while they just want to have a good time. But as some people pointed out on this forum, having better technique just makes skiing way funnier than the average tourist whose skiing is a series of boring and tiring hockey stops.

I am going to spend two to three weeks in April and May (already skied four weeks this season) on the slopes practising phantom moves and turns until i feel they feel comfy on blues slopes (green US).

I have discovered tipping action on my own one year ago, and although i am not totally familliar with it, i intuitively knew that it was a key element in skiing. When i discovered Harbs videos it kind of clicked with this intuition, and i am quite enthusiastic that someone created a whole system around tipping movements, and carving not being a specific technique, but a primary component of skiing.
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Re: New to the forum

Postby DougD » Wed Mar 01, 2017 6:35 am

Janikest wrote:Thanks for the reply!I have gone through the two ACBAES books, and i have now several questions:

- What kind of progress can i expect from skiing 4 weeks a year (8 hours a day)? Is it worth relearning movements from scratch? I know it varies from individuals but you got the idea... Will it take me like 10 years to start becoming good at PMTS skiing?

You can progress a lot with that amount of skiing. I have progressed with much less (not as much as I'd like, lol). It won't take 10 years to develop a lot in PMTS skiing if you work at it (though you'll always be learning of course).

Relearning movements from scratch is important. Its likely that many movements you're making now are incompatible with PMTS. Those movements need to be replaced.

- Does slantboard exercices work? I have started dryland training. Has any of you reaped the benefits from it? I am ok with looking farily stupid with my skiboots in my apt, but i hope it is worth it.

They are useful for me.

- Do i have to relearn everything and start with the basic movements? The beginning of the book start with making turns while avoiding snowplow. I am not an expert skier but i definitely am not a snowplow skier. For those of you who were "experienced" before PMTS, how did you start?

Until you post video of your skiing for MA by a qualified PMTS skier, we don't know if you have a wedge (aka snowplow) turn entry or not. You probably do, but don't realize it.

The large majority of experienced skiers have a wedge entry, even advanced skiers with decades of experience and lessons. Traditional ski teaching emphasizes up-unweighting and stance ski pressure. Those movements cause a wedge entry. You probably don't see it or feel it. It may only show up in challenging conditions. But it's probably there.

If you want to know for sure, post video.

...having better technique just makes skiing way funnier than the average tourist whose skiing is a series of boring and tiring hockey stops.

So true!
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Re: New to the forum

Postby nickia » Wed Mar 01, 2017 12:27 pm

Janikest wrote:Hello fellow skiers,

29 Years old French skier here. I have been skiing since i am a little child, one to two weeks a year, except these last two years. I am comitted to spend at least one month a year on the snow to improve my skiing.

I have been told to be a very good skier, and i took lessons in so called "expert" groups, but i feel like despite great comments on my skills, my level is stagnating. I decided to ask a friend to film me while carving down a slope in rough conditions and i didn't like what i saw. You can always put it on the weather, but in my opinion it just revealed all my flaws, and i was so disappointed that i questionned why people would make all that great comments about how i ski.

I then searched for online methods that works instead of picking a random teacher (i did it to improve my skills as a singer and it worked quite well so i figured out it could work for skiing as well). After searching on Youtube i stumbled on Harb's channel and i liked the way he skies, and i watched his students as well, and i liked the way they ski.I bought the two books titled "Anyone can be an expert skier", but i wanted to register on this forum as well to make sure i understand it correctly, and learn and be inspired by more seasoned skiers.

So hello to everyone!



Welcome! I'm similar age as you. Like others mentioned, videos don't lie. I have been through the same video reality checks. I always get disappointed on how crappy I ski even though I felt like a Marcel Hirscher when I was doing it. :lol:

I think skiing is one of the unique sports that has a huge disconnect between internal "feeling" and external reality. I struggle to improve without coaching and external feedback.

The fastest way to improve without a coach is to ski with another PMTS skier. At worst you guys can film MA and do instant, on-snow correction on faulty movements. (calling any GTA skiers!!!)
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby Ken » Fri Mar 03, 2017 9:14 pm

Jani, would you like to ski with the same fundamental movements Alexis Pinturault uses? You can. Follow Harald's books and videos step by step. Yes, in some cases it is a new way to ski. New things to learn to replace the movements you already know, and replacing a movement is hard work. Stick with it. PMTS works! Works very well. I'll never ski as well as Pinturault, and likely you won't either. Both of us can ski like him, however, and our skiing will be improved forever.
Rooster today
Feather duster tomorrow

VIDEO OF NOT ME
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby Janikest » Sat Mar 04, 2017 3:40 pm

If i could ski like him it would be great, as my goal is more recreational than racing.

All these posts seem really inspiring. I won't take any "expert course" this year. I am going alone on the slopes in April so i can dedicate to the drills and see how it goes.
I will try to find someone to film me as well.
I am also building my slantboard :-)

Can't wait to be on the snow!
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Re: New to the Forum

Postby DougD » Sun Mar 05, 2017 11:35 am

Janikest wrote:If i could ski like him it would be great, as my goal is more recreational than racing.

Most of us are recreational skiers, not racers. The point is that racers like Pinterault and others at his level employ only the most effective and efficient skiing movements. To win consistently on the WC demands nothing less, nothing more.

Ineffective movements lead to missed gates and crashes into nets. Not good, whether you're flying down a race course at 100kph or a mogul field.

Inefficient movements require excessive muscle use and/or adaptive positions and techniques. These lead to exhaustion and/or injuries.

What Harald has done is organize the essential movements used by the best skiers into a system that can be learned by recreational skiers. That is what PMTS is about!
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