Foot speed in bumps

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Foot speed in bumps

Postby Jeff Markham » Sun Apr 25, 2004 6:59 pm

In ACBAES2 (pg. 143), Harald mentions the importance of foot speed when skiing bumps, but doesn't go into much detail.

Is foot speed something that just occurs with more experience or can foot speed be developed via specific exercises?

Please note that I'm just a beginning bump skier. Before the B-S A-M camp, I avoided bumps like the plague. Now, I've got a perverse interest in bumps, but the ski season is over for me. So, any foot speed development will have to happen via dryland exercises.
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Postby milesb » Sun Apr 25, 2004 8:02 pm

That is a great question. When I am using my fat skis in the bumps, there is a limit to how quickly I can make turns using just tipping, and to make them any quicker, I have to add a pivoting motion. But I have to be zipperlining really fast to reach that limit, it shouldn't affect a less aggresive bump skier. Anyways, it seems to me that the limiting factor in PMTS turns is the width of the skis, as I have no trouble making ultra quick turns on my slalom skis with just tipping (indeed, any pivoting just makes it awkward). In TTS, you would develop "quick feet" by doing flat ski exercises like rapid pivot slips, but obviously this doesn't fit with PMTS.
Given normal width skis, I suspect that working on proper pole use would help more than anything else, especially exercises that focus on hand /foot coordination. Believe it or not, your skis can make turns quicker than you can plant your poles.
But all this really only comes into play as you ski bumps more aggresively. For now, just focus on the bump basics, there is some great stuff in the PMTS media for this.
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Postby *SCSA » Mon Apr 26, 2004 6:23 am

Definitely matters.

Skills and technique matter and are really important. But there's times in the bumps, particularly big and narly ones, when you get by (read: not falling) on pure athletiscm, nothing else.

I try to limit said times because I'm too old for that. :wink:
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Postby *SCSA » Wed Apr 28, 2004 6:51 am

Good morning,

Reading this again... :wink:

This is no secret. To ski bumps well, it's all about practice. A he/she/it must simply spend a lot of time in the bumps to get to a point where you feel like you can ski them well.

Note: The day I started working on my bumps is the day I skied with Pinhed and did the double ejecto. It was f'ing embarassing. :roll: I have much higher standards than that.

Technique? For sure! Foot speed? I'd go one further and just say you have to be quick. Quick with your hands, quick with flexion and your feet. I probably throw my tails around more than I should (Oh no, rotary! :) :wink: ), but then again I go for aggressive lines. Tourist bumps just don't interest me. For me, getting to where I am now with bumps was simply all about doing laps on Grouse Mountain. Practice, practice, practice.

I'll also add that looking way down the hill is way key in bumps. You don't "plan your line", just as HH says in "2". But keeping your head up and looking way ahead, it's really important. Otherwise, you end sideways into a snowboarder bump. Splat!

Be cool,
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Postby Jeff Markham » Wed Apr 28, 2004 7:40 am

Thanks to all for their replies.

Yeah, I know that some hard work and "time in the bumps" is required and I'm looking forward to both. I was just curious about the foot speed issue and whether it's something to be considered even in the initial stages of learning.

Anyone have any ideas for dryland exercises to practice bump sking? We don't have very many "asphalt moguls" around here...

I do own a Skier's Edge and intend to practice with the Powder/Mogul Master attachment during the off season.
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Postby milesb » Wed Apr 28, 2004 11:47 am

Jeff, this is the best time of the year to ski bumps. Don't miss out if you want to learn bumps.
Funny thing aboot bumps. I find that most of my improvement each year comes not from refinement of technique (although I certainly could benefit from better technique!), but in the choice of where my skis go. I'm talking about a matter of a few inches making a big difference in how easy the line is to ski. This makes flawless technique less critical. Jaun Pierre says he relaxes in the bumps, this is because his line makes abrubt movements unnecessary. Even if you don't want to ski his line, you can use this principal. But you will still need some tricks for dealing with the really tough and wierd bumps that you will occasionally be unable to avoid. My favorite on is to start the absorption just before you get to the bump. I think I learned this one from Harb's online free lesson thing. Do it well, and you can come to a complete stop on top of the bump, even from a pretty good clip.
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Postby Harald » Thu Apr 29, 2004 2:13 pm

Again, interesting questions. Foot speed is a catch all for good edging, edge holding ability and therefore rebound. If you can achieve ground reaction, you can be quick with your feet. If you are skidding (as per Milesb?s comment, TTS pivot slips) or sliding, you can never be quick off your feet. Skiing with my son, Harrison, this week brought this to the forefront. He can carve on groomed, but not in super short turns on super steeps yet. He has a similar flat pivot at the edge change in the bumps. This causes him to be slower than what he wants to be in the very steep bumps like Avalanche Bowl at Loveland. He has perfect control, but is not dynamic. Now, for many we may be splitting hairs because skiing Avalanche Bowl in control maybe considered expert skiing by many. I consider an ?Exceptional Expert? someone who can make any turn on and in any situation. Harrison is not there yet, but he is working on it.
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Postby Harald » Thu Apr 29, 2004 2:17 pm

About the Skier's Edge simulator: the device does not produce or teach you to be quick on your feet as the feet move to the side on the simulator. In quick feet skiing the skis and therefore the feet do not move to the side, you CG moves in.
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