http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMYwIxCTKP8
I would like to open this up for discussion as I figured out slow motion on vidio uploads. I can give everyone my intentions when making this video and my take on what I am doing. I have loaded the full URL so you can blow it up to full screen. The original vid is much better quality than the youtube version.
My intentions were to make a video that clearly shows the slows line fast approach plus shows the versatility and choices available. Versatility is the reason for the multiple line changes. My intention was to mix and match. Once I passed the camera my intentions changed to a tactic of much more zipperline than what I was skiing above the camera. I think this video does capture my intentions so I can use it in teaching.
Threre is some evidence of functional missalignment but that does not detract from what I was trying to show. The misalignment shows up as head tipping, shoulder rotation and A framing on right turns and a bit of banking on left turns. The little burbles at the feet are caused by the garbage under the skis or trying to miss rocks.
I am not skiing here with some secret different technique than I use on the groomers. My intention are to ski the slow line fast with very minimal braking action from the skis. I am absolutely trying to minimize braking as a means of speed control here.
There is some discussion of World Cup techniques in another thread. I am not doing things different than most WC skiers however I am conciously making one exception. In WC mogul skiing there is a judging rule about keeping the knees together and in unison. This precludes anything but a very narrow stance at the feet.
As recreational skiers we are not bound by rules and we don't ski with this rule on the groomers for obvious reasons. Very narrow stance limits the ability to use some fulcum effect between the feet and limits our ability to have independent leg action in flexion and extention. Keeping the knees in unison limits our movements so that when taken to bumps you need to carry a certain speed to be able to make things work right. Although reasonably slow this speed is still above the comfort level and fexibility requirements of many skiers.
I would like you to notice that I am skiing with my skis about shoulder width apart. Also notice that my legs flex and extend at different rates instead of in unison. One foot can be up on the bump while the other is in the trough. This gives a stable platform without the up and down in unison flexion and extention. The difference is like jumping on a trampoline or stomping one foot at a time on the same trampoline. Cars went to independent suspension and so did I.
If you take this small change of breaking a WC judging rule elegantly meant to preserve the look of a sport then much slower speeds are possible.
With the change in stance width and the change in flexion and extension patterns, we can make a tactical change in line selection and run a much rounder line that is shifted further up the slopes. I would like you to notice that many of my pole touches are on the front face of the bump right where the normal edge set would go. This tactical line change and pole patten increases the size of the turn around any given bump.
With the change in stance and tactics, speed can be almost solely controlled by turn shape, timing and intensity the same way we control speed on the groomers. This is the reason I can ski and love bumps after a freezing rain. With ice, the friction goes to zero and so does the work yet the senses go into overdrive because of the risks involved with a mistake.
Kneale asked a question as to what I do in the steep undercut bumps typical in the Midwest. The tactics I use work great because I am touching the pole on the spot everyone else has undercut. I evolved this tactic to handle exactly the kind of bumps we frequently encounter in the East and Midwest. I needed a method that virtually guaranteed I would never jar my back or bang my knees. There are no big secret unknown skiing that I use. It's more of a mind change than anything else.
What do others see or think?
I would like to open this up for discussion as I figured out slow motion on vidio uploads. I can give everyone my intentions when making this video and my take on what I am doing. I have loaded the full URL so you can blow it up to full screen. The original vid is much better quality than the youtube version.
My intentions were to make a video that clearly shows the slows line fast approach plus shows the versatility and choices available. Versatility is the reason for the multiple line changes. My intention was to mix and match. Once I passed the camera my intentions changed to a tactic of much more zipperline than what I was skiing above the camera. I think this video does capture my intentions so I can use it in teaching.
Threre is some evidence of functional missalignment but that does not detract from what I was trying to show. The misalignment shows up as head tipping, shoulder rotation and A framing on right turns and a bit of banking on left turns. The little burbles at the feet are caused by the garbage under the skis or trying to miss rocks.
I am not skiing here with some secret different technique than I use on the groomers. My intention are to ski the slow line fast with very minimal braking action from the skis. I am absolutely trying to minimize braking as a means of speed control here.
There is some discussion of World Cup techniques in another thread. I am not doing things different than most WC skiers however I am conciously making one exception. In WC mogul skiing there is a judging rule about keeping the knees together and in unison. This precludes anything but a very narrow stance at the feet.
As recreational skiers we are not bound by rules and we don't ski with this rule on the groomers for obvious reasons. Very narrow stance limits the ability to use some fulcum effect between the feet and limits our ability to have independent leg action in flexion and extention. Keeping the knees in unison limits our movements so that when taken to bumps you need to carry a certain speed to be able to make things work right. Although reasonably slow this speed is still above the comfort level and fexibility requirements of many skiers.
I would like you to notice that I am skiing with my skis about shoulder width apart. Also notice that my legs flex and extend at different rates instead of in unison. One foot can be up on the bump while the other is in the trough. This gives a stable platform without the up and down in unison flexion and extention. The difference is like jumping on a trampoline or stomping one foot at a time on the same trampoline. Cars went to independent suspension and so did I.
If you take this small change of breaking a WC judging rule elegantly meant to preserve the look of a sport then much slower speeds are possible.
With the change in stance width and the change in flexion and extension patterns, we can make a tactical change in line selection and run a much rounder line that is shifted further up the slopes. I would like you to notice that many of my pole touches are on the front face of the bump right where the normal edge set would go. This tactical line change and pole patten increases the size of the turn around any given bump.
With the change in stance and tactics, speed can be almost solely controlled by turn shape, timing and intensity the same way we control speed on the groomers. This is the reason I can ski and love bumps after a freezing rain. With ice, the friction goes to zero and so does the work yet the senses go into overdrive because of the risks involved with a mistake.
Kneale asked a question as to what I do in the steep undercut bumps typical in the Midwest. The tactics I use work great because I am touching the pole on the spot everyone else has undercut. I evolved this tactic to handle exactly the kind of bumps we frequently encounter in the East and Midwest. I needed a method that virtually guaranteed I would never jar my back or bang my knees. There are no big secret unknown skiing that I use. It's more of a mind change than anything else.
What do others see or think?
