MA request First time Poster

[bev]

Spent a great week last December with Harald, Diana and the PMTS faithful. This is a link to the last day of my season at Mammoth. Just looking for some observations that might help me tune up for the next camp in December. Let me have it. I know I've got a lot to work on. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lNP3zczf5s
Thanks,
Bev.

[MonsterMan]

Like me, some of your turns to the right have limited counter balance. (ie leaning/inclining into the hill through the low C). I'd also like to see what your skiing looks like with exaggerated counter acting movements increasing as your tipping increases through the turn so that just before release your outside hand is low and your inside hand is high and forward.

Some terrific train tracks trenches in the snow on those shots from behind.

[A.L.E]

Nice carving!

I'm on the same page as MM. I think you need to strengthen your upper body counteracting and counter balance movements.

I would like to see your elbows bent more and brought in a little closer to your body with your hands pointing more forward. At present you have what I call the "flying bird" look, I have the same trouble.

I now drop the elbows and bend my arms so my hands are easily in my peripheral vision rather than way out to the side. This stronger arm and hand position gives me an external cue to focus on and helps me to crunch my side muscles when counter balancing. Once you have that stronger home base position a slight lift of the inside elbow/hand and a slight drop of the outside together with the side crunch is the right combination for good counter balance.

[A.L.E]

This article is worth reading as well. http://www.harbskisystems.com/harald/061028.htm
It discusses the use of the pelvis in counter balance movements.

[bev]

Thanks so much MM and ALE. I can really see what you're talking about. Thank God for OZ. AussyAussyAussy...ahhh that's good.

[milesb]

I see it differently. On most turns, you are on the stance ski in the high C and have a really nice early CB and CA. About the middle of the turn you seem to let your balance fall between the skis, which eliminates the CB. This could be a symptom of not keeping the feet pulled back enough through the high C- you get too far back on the stance ski so you use the inside ski to recover. The pullback needs to be just as aggressive as the deep flexing and the great tipping you are doing there.
Stay balanced on the stance ski through the lower C and the CB should be just fine.

[Mac]

Yes, I agree about the hand and upper body positioning needing some work, but that's some pretty nice skiing. I think that the upper body and hands stuff may just be a case of trying too hard, it looks like it's staged for the camera. In all of Harald's clips, it's actually difficult to see any intentional upper body movement at all, it just seems to flow from one turn to the next. Maybe instead of trying to make it happen, you should just go with the flow and let it come to you. I think the Arch and Pole Lift drill from the Expert Skier 2 book with the hands in the Home Base position would do a world of good here. I know it did for me.

[jclayton]

G'day Bev ,
I can see you have been working since last December ( Art been keeping and eye on you ? ) . The woodeness is inevitable as you go through the phases of iniciation and grooving of techniques , it takes a while to relax into fluidity . You seem to be a bit late setting up the counter , especially on the turns to the right and leaning in is a result .
Nice round turns and tipping but perhaps try to change edges ( and counter ) while pointing directly across the slope and in just a couple of ski lengths . The initial counter is subtle but then should increase until it is exaggerated just before release .
Also Harald always says your best turn should be your last . When you do a hockey stop carry all the counter,tipping etc right to the end . We all tend to relax at the stop and get a bit sloppy . Concentrating right to the end grooves the moves that extra little bit ( which always makes the difference ) .
Ciao
( Aussies seem to be proliferating lately I wonder how the season is going this year )

[MonsterMan]

This could be a symptom of not keeping the feet pulled back enough through the high C- you get too far back on the stance ski so you use the inside ski to recover.

Look at t=12 seconds and t=29 seconds on the video. Are the feet under the hips?

I think the skiing is nicely centered when we observe from side on in this video.

I see big edge angles, (but I don't know what to look for to confirm increasing of tipping through the turn, any hints from more experienced observers?)

As milesb also says,

About the middle of the turn you seem to let your balance fall between the skis

This happens more often than not on the turns to the right, probably your more comfortable turn pre Harald, thus more ingrained and harder to change?

The question is, what is the single most important movement to work on first?

Can anyone find that list that Max501 posted many months ago to help us with movement analysis?

[MonsterMan]

Things to consider for MA -

1 Does the release start by flexing the outside leg?
2 Does LTE tipping lead engagement to the new turn?
3 Are the feet pulled back at transition?
4 Is the inside foot held back throughout the turn?
5 Is there enough CB and CA and is the timing right?
6 Strong inside arm?
7 Is the pelvis included in the CB/CA movement?
8 Is the inside leg flexed as the turn progresses?
9 Is the outside leg extended as the turn progresses?
10 Does LTE tipping continue throughout the turn?
11 Is there a pole touch and how is the movement and timing?

[bev]

Jeremy and Miles, thanks so much for the advice. Hope we can find some turns together this season. Art has been a big inspiration. Hope we see you at the A in December. - Bev.

[Max_501]

Everything said so far is good stuff.

Lets take another look. Is Bev riding the radius of the skis or bending them into a tighter radius?

[BigE]

Bev is riding the ski -- not bending it into tight arcs.

[jbotti]

Yeah that was my first thought as I watched the video, not enough forward pressure on the skis. There are a whole host of drills and exercises that will help get you forward and keep you forward throughout the turn. Some are discussed in detail on this forum, others are in the fore/aft section of Essentials. If you spend 10 ski days working on this intently you will be a very different (and vastly improved) skier.

It's the end of August. My daughter is already back to school. It won't be long now!!!

[MonsterMan]

Bev is riding the ski -- not bending it into tight arcs.

ok, so on the list,

more of point 8, 9 and 10 should help with this?

What exercises could be used for this?

Is this the single most important change at this stage?

I still would like to see more counter balance added first.

Thanks for letting us work with this Bev.

Geoff