When Schffrin skied her best!

Thanks to Ron LeMaster for posting this photo series

In my view Mikaela Saffron was a better skier 4 years ago then she is now. This is the 2013 season. Here she shows more upper body discipline, better foot control and balance in every sense. She was also skiing faster compared to her competition. Much of her trials and tribulations when is wasn't winning during short periods, is attributable to her boot design and set up over the last 3 seasons. She has had to fight harder with less ease, from her regular fluid, easy movements. Her legs have become stiff and spread due to the compensation needed to get edge hold.

Just compare this photo clip, from this year, 2018 to the montage above. This is dreadful, yet because of her natural ability, and strength, she overcomes really, really, bad boot set ups. As I have said many times; the women's slalom skiing and field right now, is horrendous. If Marlis Schild, Hosp and Zettle were in their prime, this would not be a winning set up for Shiffrin.

Riders of the Lost arc: Getting to the top of the "New Turn!"

This coaching should be read after the "Transition Posts" which are published 3 articles below this post. Study those posts first, to understand and achieve the full benefit of this one. 

After the release, increasing the flexing and tipping of the inside leg, moves the hip inside the turn, and closer to the surface.

As the skis tip to higher angles the upper body and hips turn toward the outside ski boot. Called counter-acting!

Keep relaxing the inside leg, and tipping it further. The outside ski and boot should be active to match the tipping of the inside ski. 

The inside ski pole tip should keep moving forward to help create a strong counter-balance and counter acting movement of the upper body.

 There is no pole swing in the PMTS Direct Parallel system. The pole is prepared and placed due to and with the counteracting of the upper body. This only leaves the pole tap straight down from the lower boot to be accomplished. A pole swing, is a negative movement, it squares up the hips, and shoulders, which destroys the energy in the body and ski. 

The "Key Movement" in skiing that 99.9 percent of skiers will never realize.

                          Releasing from the old turn!

This is how the best skiers in the world ski, not the experts that call themselves this, I'm referring to the best skiers in the world. The best world cup skiers and the best free skiers make and use these movements time and time again. If you always wondered why they are the best and you were never able to achieve these levels, here's why? It's because you were being coached incorrectly, with the wrong movements. You are being told to ski like a ski instructor, with a ski instructor's system. No experts ski like ski instructors. If you want to ski like the best skiers, follow this sequence, it's very short and simple.

Here, below, I'm still in the bottom of the turn, about to begin the release phase. 

 To release relax or bend the legs to let go of the hold on the edges. As you retract the old stance leg, (knee bending toward the chest) lift the tip of the ski to engage your core. Tip the old outside ski to the new edge, the "Little Toe Edge". 

Now look at the bottom of the skis and compare both of these frames.  The Edge change is happening. 

The tip is lifting, that transfers balance early. The balance has changed to the new outside ski, the free or lifted foot is tipping toward the little toe edge of the ski and foot. This is the action during the transition after a completed arc.

Most instruction and coaching will tell you to extend to get or hips forward. Many coaches won't like this position, however this isn't "Sitting Back" there is no need to extend, or make an up movement, this is perfect balance. It's perfect balance because the skis are not weighted, they are light as they go through this transition.

A complete edge change has occurred and the new arc is about to begin.

A Riders of the Lost Arc, A PMTS Transition!

A new look: "How Transitions and High Angles are Developed.

Leaving the last turn, which is ending in this 1st photo. I am looking for a release with a flexing and bending movement of the outside leg. For a faster release and transition, use a retraction or pulling up of the knees.

Looking at this from above the release has begun. The main function in the release is flexing/bending action of the outside leg.

The skis are going flat, because the angles are no longer held, relaxing of the stance leg lets the skis go flat, the legs are moving to the new angles, the movements are generated by tipping the ankles and feet toward the downhill ski or the new edges. The hips and upper body will follow.

The legs move from one set of angles to the other through flexing and tipping. The skis have little or no pressure on the surface during the release. In PMTS Skiing this is called, "The float!" In this phase I also use the PMTS Skiing inside foot pull-back movement of the inside foot.

Angles develop further using increased tipping and flexing of the inside leg. The hips are dropped to the inside following the actions of the tipping leg. This isn't done by pushing, it's done by relaxation/bending and torso counter balance.

The upper body increases counter acting, which means turning the hips toward the outside of the turn. Notice the forward movement of my inside hand and pole, this increases upper body counter acting.

The key to developing angles like this, is the bending/shortening and tipping of the inside ski, boot and leg, but not by pressuring or extending the outside leg. Relaxing at the hip allows the body to drop lower. Don't be concerned about pressuring the outside ski, with angles pressure will be developed, and pressure will come to you. Keep tipping the feet and C.A. the torso to stay balanced.

A few words about selecting and using the boots correctly!

A word about ski boot flex. Many coaches these days think they should cut down boots and advise racers to get boots that are too soft. Here, in this photo, you can see the forward angle of my shins. I weigh 140 lbs, these are Head RD, B2 150 flex boots. It's not the weight or the size of the skier that should determine the boot flex, it's the quality of the coaching. Coaches who don't understand how to get a skier into movements that create forward moving hips in the turn, will try to make up for it by cutting down boots. This approach, makes boots so ridiculously soft, that the kids no longer trust the boots. If you coach properly and teach the kids to pull the feet back in transition; (instead of extending) the boots have plenty of forward angle to accommodate tip pressure. It's the coaching not the boots! I don't bend plastic when I ski. I use the resistance in the plastic at the front of the boot; it gives more than enough tip pressure if my hips are in the correct position to pressure the tips. This, if taught correctly, by pulling the feet back, in turn moves the hips forward,  should be the way to achieve tip pressure, not by extending or by cutting down boots to make them bend.

Nature in action?

https://www.facebook.com/Wusaaa/videos/852186881625389/

Try this link, natural healing, very interesting!

Riding the Lost Arc! Dialing in the boots: closer to what I want, every time!

Do you want to ski like an athlete? Like this 69 year old athlete, the way he skis is the way we teach all skiers, at Harb Ski Systems.

Join a Harb "Ski Systems Camp" and you will end up skiing like this old guy!

December 7th, 2017

Different Phases of different turns!

 Not all the way there yet, but a few more tweaks and few more days, and it will be where I want it.

                                 Working on matching one side to the other!