I apologise that it’s been awhile since my last post. Other commitments get in the way and some things get neglected as a result. Regardless, I’m writing today about one of my pet peeves that I’ve been noticing recently: ski drills. Let me start by saying that I’m not totally against all drills. There is a time…
A special post for all Australian Snowsports instructors.It’s that time of the season again; instructors all around Australia are heading off to different resorts to take their examinations. Unless the premise of the examination is your home resort, you will likely be on unfamiliar terrain. Australian ski instructor exams follow the format of one terrain…
Skiing is made up of a series of simple movements performed in repeated succession. That just means we move parts of our bodies in certain ways and we do it over and over again. More importantly, almost all the movements in a snowplough turn are fundamentally the same to the movements performed in the moguls,…
Continuing on from the last post, while I’m an advocate of intermediate/ advanced skiers not teaching beginners how to ski, there are experiences you can share with them regarding equipment. Skiing is a fairly equipment intensive sport and all of it can seem rather daunting to a novice. Guide them with the use and care…
This post is inspired by a friend who will soon be going skiing for the first time. We’ve all been there and for those of us who can remember our first time on skis, we tend to remember it with a certain fondness. May she join the rest of us on a lifelong journey of…
It took me almost 5 years to learn how to ski. From never ever to acquiring the skills and confidence to ski any natural terrain on a mountain and more importantly having fun doing it. This include steeps, ice, bumps, powder, crud, trees and any of those combined. So here’s the thought. Knowing what I…
In skiing there is talk of a ‘Basic Position’. It is essentially a basic athletic stance + angulation and is referred to as a strong desirable position. The basic athletic stance is flexed ankles, knees and hips. Angulation is creating angles with our body by moving our knees and hips. When you’re traversing, you’re pretty much…
“My short turns feel like shit. I’m heel pushing to slow down cos I can’t turn my legs to finish my turn because I’m not crossing over because steeps terrify me.” That was part of a recent conversation I had with a fellow instructor who was preparing for an exam. In that sentence, she…
Put any fool on two planks and they’ll be able to head straight down a hill. Gravity ensures it. Skiing is all about turns though. And we should make turns for two reasons only; “We turn to change direction or to manage our speed via turn shape.” A huge bonus is that those turns start…
In my first few seasons of instructing, I had the good fortune of teaching an honest-to-god rocket scientist (who shared with me that rocket science is actually a lot simpler than a whole lot of other sciences out there). He was an inquisitive student that was learning the snowplough turn. I remember one of…
turnshape 