Steep vs Deep – Turn Shape
Snow tends to sluff off steeper slopes and they often become wind scoured, so although there is some loose snow on top, it tends to be much shallower than the deep stuff blown into in …
Skiing Goals & Objectives
Loading, Deflection & Angular Momentum to Maximize Ski Performance
Loading & Deflection Loading of a ski could simply refer to the snow pushing against it. Maximum forces typically build towards the bottom of an arc when the ski grips and steers out of the fall …
Short Turns – Rhythmically Linked
When I think about short turns, rhythm is an objective that immediately comes to mind. But linking turns rhythmically isn’t just about aesthetics… there are some functional spin offs to be had by skiing to …
Shoot for the Moon… And Ski A Round Turn Shape To Get There
There’s nothing like fresh corduroy first thing in the morning. Not only does the silky consistency feel great to slice through with your skis, it can also help to make your skiing objectives much less …
Patience For Powder – Tips & Tactics for Skiing Fresh Snow
Everybody loves skiing powder. Okay, everybody loves the idea of skiing powder, but many actually find it a struggle. Here are a few tips and tactics to make life easier: Pivot with PrecisionOnly twist your skis …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Basic Mobility And The First Moves On Snow.
Okay, so we’ve got most of our gear on and made our way over to the bunny Slope. Once you attach these giant planks to your feet it’s going to feel a little like wearing …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Situational Stem Turns
Objective:Situational Stem Turns can be used as part of a progression for novice skiers to move towards parallel turns, or used as a tactic for new parallel skiers to mange steeper terrain.What To Do?Use a …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Wide Track Parallel
Objectives:Wide Track parrallel can be a good option for novice skiers to progress from a wedge towards their first parallel turns. Provided shallow enough terrain is available it can often be a shortcut, eliminating the …
Carving Clean Tracks
Carving clean tracks is an easily measured objective. You can simply look back at the marks left by your skis in the snow. The skis sidecut will create a steering angle when the skis are tipped …
Intermediate Plus… Short Radius
Advancing beyond the intermediate plateau requires the confidence to increase speed and difficulty of terrain. At this point many people have the desire to get off the groomers and into small bumps or off-piste. One of …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Linked Wedge Turns
Now that a skier can turn both ways… it’s time to start linking turns together and exploring the mountain. Most skiers prefer the added stability of a wedge initially, but if parallel magically happens… go …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Isolated Wedge Turns
It’s often easiest for a skiers first turns on snow to be done one at a time… typically in a wedge for added stability, although can be done with skis parralellel as well if the …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Braking Plow
The ‘Braking Plow’ (AKA. a Snowplow / Wedge / Stem / Pizza / Pie… or any other triangle analogy) is often used to help the new skier balance, manage speed and stop on gentle terrain. Although …
Beginner Skiing Progression – The Gliding Straight Run
It’s your first day on skis! You’ve figured out how to get your gear on and shuffle around on the flats… now it’s time to start sliding. Where’s the Bunny Hill!Objective: To balance on a gliding …
Beginner Skiing Progression – Getting Out On Snow & Getting Used To The Gear
A first time skier often feels like they’ve just stepped off their space ship onto an alien planet. Ski boots even look like space boots, and I’m pretty sure that’s what attracted me to the …
Slushy Bumps – Various Turn Shapes
This old Piste to Peak Volume 2 teaser shows some seriously slushy spring bump skiing filmed one May day on Whistler mountain. The demonstrations include a variety of tactical lines and turn shapes including ultra …
Carving – Various Turn Shapes
This demonstration video may appear to be a shameless promotion for Piste to Peak Volume #3. That’s because this is the teaser video for it… so I guess it is! We’ll document some more specific …
There’s nothing wrong with your ski technique…
…unless of course you want something else to happen! Technique isn’t about looking pretty or trying to match some technical model set out by [INSERT YOUR FAVORITE SKI INSTRUCTOR ASSOCIATION HERE]. Technique will allow you to …
Basic Parallel
Referred to by many “Medium Parallel” or “Intermediate Parallel” this is a good goal for anyone wishing to cruise a variety of slopes from easy green runs to steeper blue runs… and even groomed black …