To ski better Watching these videos activates mirror neurons that promote learning and imitation. The skills apply to both beginner and advanced skiers.
See you on the hill.
Inside Leg Steering
Dancing down the hill comes from good inside leg steering. Inside leg steering became prominent during the transition from the great Ingemar Stemark to skiers like Alberto Tomba and Marc Girardelli, who started beating the “Step Turn Master” Stemark by steering their inside leg more strongly into the turn. Changes in ski construction made this possible. Steering your inside leg helps the ski you are standing on turn more efficiently. Get with me on the hill and we’ll explore how inside leg-steering can be used effectively in a variety of terrain and conditions.
Clock Doesn’t Lie
3 racers, progressively better technique, Bassio good foot to foot but she uses weaker passive pressure – sinking on the turning ski to bend it, Goggia uses active pressure – standing against – pressing on the turning ski to bend it – which shows a visible increase her acceleration out of the turn, her foot to foot transfer not as smooth as Bassio’s though. Brignone effectively combines both active pressure and smooth early transfer to the new ski to win the race. Let’s discuss how blending skills will increase your turn performance so you feel less tired at the end of the day.
Power Stance
Real strength of Marcel Hirscher (despite his enormous muscle power) is that he is Austrian, it seems like Austrians know how to stand on their skis at birth. As he gets deeper into the turn he bends at the belly over his turning leg which allows him to use the best muscles for balancing against the forces of the turn and he maintains long leg/active pressure over the turning ski which gives him maximum bone support on the turning leg. A side note – he uses a stivot/pivot to quickly redirect of both skis at turn beginning on this very steep and demanding World Cup GS course set. Let’s explore how proper stance at your skiing level pays big dividends when moving down the hill.
Passion
Body Awareness
Working together with Jonny for several years on the hill with more advanced Corporate Groups, the thing that stood out was his discipline toward Body Awareness. Jonny spent time stretching his different muscle groups while we were conversing with guests as they came out of the posh hotel. When on the hill with Jonny his main coaching points were “early commitment” to the new ski and “quick transfer” between skis, foot-to-foot. His skill level is so advanced and it happens so fast in the video above that you can barely see it! Let’s get together on the hill to improve foot-to-foot quickness and increase body awareness when skiing the bumps.
Upper And Lower Body
Jonny was committed to developing Gold Medal movement patterns even without snow. We see here his stable upper body and everything happening from below the hips. This video also shows us a better view of his quick commitment to the outside foot/ski, than in the Gold Medal clip above. Let’s get together and explore Upper and Lower Body Separation which helps us move into the new turn faster in the bumps. Increasing the speed of your foot-to-foot movements can be done in the gym or on the stairs in a high-rise building in Chicago.
Balance Replaces Fear
Takeaway from working with Keion on his skiing was his lack of negativity aka Fear in learning the proper moves. Great thing about skiing is that if things don’t work out in one turn you can correct them right away into your next turn. Even if Keion made a mistake while skiing, he was always ready for the next play (turn) just like in the NFL. Let’s understand the different ways we can recover balance and reduce fear to maintain our winning game on the hill.
Learning From A Legend
Working with Marc on a corporate booking was a real treat. You could see his athletic depth of understanding in the sport by the way he moved down the hill. He shared with me that his dad was his coach and in World Cup Slalom, their plan was to never pre-inspect the course, so Marc could develop his “natural instincts”.
When I asked him if he was going to celebrate with Austrian Great Marcel Hirscher, (see other video) when he got back to Europe, he said to me in a steady tone, “Marcel has just won 6 World Cup titles skiing only Slalom and Giant Slalom, when I won my 5 World Cup titles I skied Slalom, Giant Slalom, Super G and Downhill”. Marc won the Hahnenkamm downhill in Kitzbuhel and the Wegen downhill in the same year, a very significant accomplishment in skiing! Let’s explore “instincts” and “versatility” in a variety of snow conditions so we can become more well-rounded skiers.
Light Feet Big Heart
Flowing down the mountain and following the fall line is what makes Lindsey a great downhiller. She moves with the mountain. Listen to her skis, this is the sound of “clean” precision skiing. Her first World Cup downhill podium came at Cortina, the same course on this clip. At age 37, Lindsey won Olympic bronze. Her message for a 6 year-old I had been working with is below, just before her final Olympics. Thanks Lindsey!
Skiing with flow and heart, in my opinion there will never be another female downhiller like her. Let’s explore different ways of “Moving With the Mountain” in various terrain so we feel more like Lindsey, and ski with more heart in this great sport.
Building Connections
Coached Stacy Peralta (producer of this movie) and his Austrian Ski Instructor Buddy in an all-day Mountain Masters session. It snowed a foot and a half over night so we went right to the back, finding fresh lines and the right pitch. As we were riding up chair five, Stacy’s buddy asked, “Do you know who Stacy is?’ my joking reply, “No, all I know is he has a funny name for a guy”. He replied, “Stacy is the 3-time World Skate Board Champion”. So I said to Stacy, “Why aren’t you on a snowboard?”. He replied modestly, “Because I wanted to ski with my friend”. Let’s connect on the hill.