by Harald » Sun Jan 28, 2007 2:13 pm
Why am I responding to Paul, who is a friend, in the following way? Because it?s reality and if anything I?ve always been real, and honest from the heart and no afraid to hide it. Paul, have you forgotten who I ski with and have skied with? Are you telling me who great skiers are and what they do? You are very easily impressed. I have to agree with Sidecut and Idaho Rob on this one.
Do I need to remind you I ski with some of the best in the world every season, and they are not the skiers you are talking about. I never said I ski as well or can keep up with the best, or even the group you ski with, I have never said that, I leave that to the observers, yet you use me as a standard to compare to your skier friends. So you think you found someone who can smoke me, great, thanks for mentioning it, that makes you great.
You have never seen me ski when I ski for myself, yet you are now the expert on all skiers. You have never skied with me on a real mountain and I?m not talking about Vail or A-Basin, I?m talking sick lines at places like Kicking Horse or Alyeska where you wouldn?t go.
I know where I stand and I know what I can do, I?m very comfortable with that. I have nothing to prove, I did all the proving I needed to do in my athletic career, when I was a skiing athlete, now I am a professional skier, and businessman, not a skiing athlete. So smoke away on me.
Paul, unfortunately you made this a public issue, so I will respond to your comments in public, You still don?t get it! You don?t have the skiing eye or technical knowledge to tell the difference between average, good and great skiers. You have yet to know how to judge or evaluate where your own skiing fits.
Paul, you ski well, you have learned a lot, but now you are projecting and portraying yourself beyond your capabilities. You don?t get it. You are missing the point. You have come a long way, but you are not there. Many skiers that we coach, in much shorter time frames have pasted you, not because they ski more, I can assure you of that, but because they are more dedicated and focused then you are.
Read the beginning introduction to Essentials again, there?s a message there, maybe you missed it. It?s about Stenmark?s approach to skiing. Which is the same approach as all the Masters in their sports. Phil Mahre just said the other day, ? I don?t rank as a skier, there is only one skier who was dominant and that is Stenmark?.
Watch Federer and watch Tiger. They are never sloppy, even when under pressure. Stenmark can make perfect turns, Federer perfect strokes and Tiger, perfect swings every time. Do they do it in competition, not always, but ninety nine percent of the time.
Why am I explaining this? Because I?m trying to guide you to the next level of knowing yourself. There?s a long way to go still, but that?s the challenge and the enjoyment of knowing there?s a path, to personal perfection and personal satisfaction. Will we ever achieve it, maybe not, most likely not, but there are days where we can feel it. I?m still looking for it.
So go ahead, look for it your way, you can be a hero with the PSIA group, maybe you have found what you want out of skiing at that level, and you are satisfied with yourself, ( you go through this every year), now you again find yourself content, good for you, but it won?t make you a real skier, in my eyes. But if you don?t care then it?s OK, be satisfied and I?ll be happy for you, but don?t bring that level of interpretation of skiing to the forum, because you begin to sound like an Epic poster.
You don?t know yourself, and you hide from the reality of yourself, I mean in skiing, I am not using this as a metaphor for life, if you want to, that?s your prerogative. Your present state of skiing knowledge is good, but it?s only a little better than most. There are many PMTS campers that ski far beyond your ability and technical development. If you are so easily satisfied then I say go for it, be happy, but don?t tell me or others here, who the great skiers are.
Please stop defending PMTS it doesn't need it from anyone. If you need to defend PMTS, you're not skiing PMTS, I have yet to have to defend my skiing on any slope to any skier, it's usually the other way around. They want to know how to ski the way I do.
"Maximum Skiing information, Minimum BS