|
Here’s a video shot by one of our guests ? in landscape orientation. Thank you very much!
And the key point of this video? That’s right ? “maintaining a consistent speed.”
Now then, a quick note about our telemark ski school.
You know, we almost never get people saying, “Please teach me the telemark turn!” (← Seriously. Surprising, right?)
Instead, we often get people asking, “So, what is a telemark turn?”
We also see folks who’ve been telemarking for over a decade but feel like they’ve hit a plateau and can’t get past it.
But to be honest, most of the people who come here just say,
“I want to ski in the mountains.”
And I get it ? after all, I’ve been skiing in the mountains myself for over 25 years.
(← And I share a lot of that on YouTube.)
Plus, I always say, “In the mountains, free heels are the way to go.”
(Though on groomers, yeah, alpine gear might be better ? I say that too.)
But before this gets too long, let’s get back to the idea of “consistent speed.”
Whenever I take someone into the mountains, there’s one thing I always say:
“You must not get injured.”
The mountains are far from the road. No ski patrol, no ambulances.
So don’t get injured.
From there, we break it down:
To avoid injury, we have to figure out the causes ? and eliminate them one by one.
That’s the logic behind what comes next.
What causes injuries?
One major cause is falling. You fall and get hurt. Simple as that.
We’ve all had that moment ? snap! Ow!
So, how do we avoid falling? Let’s identify what causes falls during downhill skiing.
There are two main culprits:
-
Speed differences
-
Range of motion in your joints
First, about joint mobility ? the more flexible you are, the more “fall-prone” you become.
To address that, I highly recommend taking our course called “Chu♪”.
(I’ve added a reference video below.)
Now let’s talk about speed differences.
Downhill skiing is governed by the physics of falling ? that is, gravity.
You’re basically falling the whole time.
And when your speed suddenly changes ? whether it’s a sudden burst or a sudden slowdown ? that’s when you fall.
Sound familiar?
You try to stop suddenly and crash.
You’re fine on groomed slopes but fall in powder.
Same with moguls.
Even smooth terrain can trip you up when your speed changes unexpectedly.
Bottom line:
In downhill skiing, it’s those sudden changes in speed ? up or down ? that cause falls.
So to reduce the risk, I always tell people:
“Learn to ski at a constant speed.”
So… how do you do that? What’s the technique?
When someone tells you to “maintain a consistent speed while going downhill,”
your first thought is probably:
“Use the brakes.” Right?
If you can brake properly, you can control your speed, right?
Gentle braking, stronger braking ? and on skis, how do we do that?
On hard-packed snow, it’s skidding.
On soft slopes, it’s pressing your skis down into the snow to increase resistance.
Either way, it’s all about creating friction.
And when you release that resistance ? boom ? you speed up.
So if you want to control your speed, what really matters is your braking technique.
It’s not about turning.
It’s not about turn shape either.
Now, back to the original point.
You want to ski in the mountains?
Great ? then let’s start by practicing braking.
That’s the kind of approach we take here.
June 14, 2025
|