Pole Length

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Pole Length

Postby go_large_or_go_home » Tue Feb 20, 2018 4:13 am

Just been rewatching some of the Brushed Carving videos etc with DR skiing...and it struck me that she is using 'unusually' long poles..is this the norm for PMTS? It would certainly explain the distinctive 'outrigger' pole position used by HH, DR et al...

I am 5'10 and use 125cm poles...i always measured pole length by turning the pole upside down and grabbing the pole underneath the basket - then looking for a 90deg bend at the elbow..is this a hangup from TTS??
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Re: Pole Length

Postby HeluvaSkier » Tue Feb 20, 2018 7:46 am

I'm unsure what HH and DR are using in terms of length but I am 5' 7" and using 113-120cm poles depending on what skis I'm skiing. My GS poles are 120cm. My SL poles are the shortest at 113cm. Everything else is around 115cm (I have 5 sets of poles). I've had a conversation with Reilly about this and a lot of guys are now skiing with adjustable poles, with some going very short for short turn and mogul demos. I think it comes down to personal preference and body geometry in the end - within reason of course. Too far in either direction is going to cause issues.
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Re: Pole Length

Postby Bun-chan » Sun Apr 15, 2018 1:20 pm

Interesting discussion. I just purchased and watched a video called "Project Kitz" by JF Beaulieu, Paul Lorenz and Reilly McGlashan. I know that HH has skied with Reilly and made some very positive comments on his skiing. I personally think those three are great technical skiers.

Now, in the video, I posed a segment where all three are standing on a gentle slope to see how long their ski poles are.

Paul is standing relaxed, but pretty upright. His uphill side pole is planted and his hand position is around his waist height. So, if her were on a flat surface, his hand position could be even lower than the typically used 90-degreen elbow position.

JF 's pole length seems to be the same. His uphill pole is around his waist while his downhill pole is slightly lower relative to his body (almost his hip height).

Reilly's poles look even shorter. His arms are in front of him and bent about 90-degree angle. He seems to be posing for the video and holding the poles a little bit below the grips, but the pole baskets are slightly below his knees. In my eyes, Reilly's poles are much shorter than the other two. If he plant the poles on the snow, his hand position may be around his hip or even lower.

I'm 5' 8" = 172.5cm now (used to be 5' 9" = 175cm, but got shorter as I age. :D) and have used 125cm poles. Pole planting is one of the things that I have been working on. I have been wondering if the length of my poles might not be helping me improve my pole planting.

Also, I feel HH and those three skiers seem to keep their center of mass low. If so, perhaps poles shorter than 90-degree at elbow length guide line work better?

Any thoughts?/////
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Re: Pole Length

Postby HeluvaSkier » Sun Apr 15, 2018 5:45 pm

Paul skis with adjustable poles (has been for a few seasons I think). Reilly's poles are quite short... ~110cm or less if I recall correctly.
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Re: Pole Length

Postby Max_501 » Sun Apr 15, 2018 5:55 pm

I prefer adjustable poles. Shorter for bumps and longer for deep pow. Groomers somewhere between those extremes.
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Re: Pole Length

Postby Bun-chan » Mon Apr 16, 2018 10:27 am

Thank you for your comments. Just FYI: Reilly just answered my question. He is 170cm in height and uses 100cm poles mostly. I, 172.5cm or 5'8") will try shorter ones next season -- maybe 110cm, what my wife used to use, to start.
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Re: Pole Length

Postby go_large_or_go_home » Tue Jan 16, 2024 2:28 am

As a way of an update - I have been thinking about this topic for some time and decided to invest in adjustable poles in order to experiment. I do a fair amount of backcountry boot hiking etc so I have always wanted adjustable poles anyway..

My usual pole length has always been 125cm….after re-reading this thread I decided to compromise and go for 115cm - based on Reilly’s measurements, I actually wanted to try 110…

Straight off the bat - it didn’t feel odd at all..it even felt quite natural…disclaimer - this was the start of the season and I probably could have had my boots on the wrong feet and it would have felt ok….

By day 3 - I could definitely feel an improvement in my overall skiing. It’s difficult to quantify, but it felt like I was able to move my CofG more efficiently/ easily and therefore improve my balance/ counteracting. It was as if the longer poles were somehow blocking the amount I was able to move.

As the week progressed, I also felt an improvement in my tendency to drop my hips behind - as per hh blog here:

http://harbskisysems.blogspot.com/2023/08/skiing-dynamically-means-limit-folding.html

Despite charging around the mountain seeking out the deep and steep, I never got distracted from practicing the essentials whenever I could. Super phantoms, 2 footed releases, no swing pole plants, angry mother etc etc all seemed just that little bit easier. By the end of the week - for the first time in a long time, I felt a real improvement in my skiing. I am all for marginal gains, and in a sport like this, even a 5% improvement is a big gain.

The only time I felt that the poles were too long was in big bumps - and too short in the long flat ski outs…otherwise the 10cm reduction seemed to work wonders..

This video was quite interesting to watch - Tom Gellie interviewing Paul Lorentz - part of the Reilly McGlashan ski gang….

https://youtu.be/zKN2oD6g4Yg?si=InPNWbf084HR62U2
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