Snow Skills

Maintaining good balance from turn to turn can create an excellent flow to your skiing and riding. This flow is the result of steady and continuous turning movements that rely on no hesitation on your part in redirecting from side to side. A hesitation between leaving the last turn and starting a new one will surely break up your good balance; be flowing in your skiing and riding by starting new turns by blending them with the old turn.

Find some groomed terrain and make comfortable turns. Now climb back up until you can see your tracks in the snow.

Do you see any section where your tracks go in a straight line? A flat spot between turns means you’re hesitating and applying a traverse. A traverse is a movement where you put a straight in between turns, usually across gravity. Traverses can have their place, but in most situations, you’ll ski and ride with more balance if you keep your gear tracking and turning from edge to edge in rhythym.

With shaped skis and snowboards, a traverse will block your flow between turns so focusing on moving toward a new turn as the old one is finishing. This moving toward the new turn can consist of early initiation of your weight change, prompter release of the old edge set, moving your torso across the gear in the direction you’re going, or a combination of all three. You are less balanced on your gear when going straight, so flow from turn to turn decisively and steadily.  In most situations, you don’t need to pick and choose what snow you’re going to use for a turn: balanced turns will get you through almost anything.

By focusing less on where you’re turning and more on the movements you’re using, you’ll create awesome flow in your skiing and riding!