Austrian Women after a few rough years, are currently dominating world cup races.

Fenninger, last year's World Champion in Combined, wins GS, Schild wins the last 4 slaloms. Lindsey preying for the Downhills.

Looks like Fenninger is well set up in Head boots, so it has to be the US Head boot techs that can't get it right for Lindsey, Ted and Bode.

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Counteracted upper body

                      Sometimes counter acting is better seen looking down the slope.

Inside hand leading, chest pointing toward the falline, skis headed toward the side of the slope.

Razzoli, Olympic champion finally comes through on World Cup

Podium at Alta Badia slalom!

Slightly undisciplined with his upper body compared to the Austrians, but very fast when he makes it.

Same characteristics for Ted compared to Hirscher, as you see below with Schild and Vonn .

Here you see Hirscher outside leg already straight, with strong edge angles at the skis. He has a bowlegged set up with his boots. The Bowlegged set up  is the most successful in Slalom with shaped skis. 

Knock Kneed Alignment

Here you see Ted Ligety, this is a weak position, his ski, edge angles that let the skis slip. Ted has to wait until the back of his skis hold, but with this set up, his knee has to drop in, which is weak, it makes him late and hold on to the turn too long. Hirscher is on and off the edges fast, Ted is skiing too round because he can't get the immediate pressure on his skis he needs to be quick.

Compare best slalom skier in the world to Vonn's set up.

                                               Knock Kneed Alignment
Vonn, twisted up! When the knee drops inside as shown here, the upper body follows with flexing at the waist, this loses power to the ski. Upper body rotation follows in this case, which helped to skid the tail of the stance ski. Notice how lindsey's outside boot doesn't have a strong angle it's slipping.

Schild, Straight leg, but still countered! Check out the great alignment on this girl. She just won her 30th World Cup slalom, amazing. Straight leg, upright upper body and skis headed where they are tipping. Strong angles on both skis, no knee drive, excellent!

                The next two photos show not an subtle difference, it's dramatic.

Collapsed at the waist, excessive hip drop and excessive twist of the hips.

Head ski boot technicians still don't have ski boots figured out.

Lindsey Vonn in slalom, over counteracted and knocked kneed.

Here you have the best skier in the world and she can't buy a slalom run on Head boots. When she skied on Rossingnol boots, she used to win 2 out of 3 slaloms.  Neither can Ted Ligety or Bode Miller score in slalom, they used to win on other products.

So what is up with Head boots?

All three US champions used to win slalom races and were almost a sure bet to be on the podium in slalom, when they were on Rossingnol Skis, Boots, and or Nordica and Fischer.

Head has yet to figure out slalom, they have great skis and even their boots are great, but setting the boots up for any of their athletes, to win a World Cup Slalom, is mystifying for them.

Here is a hint, your setup for slalom, is too soft or too knocked kneed. This doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out, even if you have one, which I do.

"World Cup", ski technique, by Harald Harb

Keys to focus on, inside hand lead, inside ski tipping and flexing. PMTS shows you how you achieve these movements. Skiing is not a position! You have to know how to move into these body angles and we can teach you how. www.harbskisystems.com

This is Deville a young Italian. Great skiing! The Austrians better watch out the other countries are producing some amazing skiers.

Svindal, If you thought when you were attending one of our ski camps, that inside leg flexing and tipping, was just for fun, you might be mistaken!

Cuche, Even the best skiers in the world, screw up, if they don't counter balance earlier in the turn.

This is Bode at his best, counter acting, and with strong counter balance, the inside ski has huge angle and the outside knee, is right up against the boot. His inside ski is too far forward, but that's Bode; he never follows established, proven skiing performance. But never, I say never, model yourself after Bode, there is only one Bode.

Exiting the turn by Dopfer

Here Dopfer, one of the new stars of the German Team, is in the releasing phase of a turn. He has relaxed his holding leg, which begins his transition to the new turn. He will change edges using a strong retraction move to get the ski light. 

The releasing movement result in flat skis and and  floating light skis in transition.

Ivcia Kostelic: Winner of Slalom

This is a much more efficient body transition and angulation. From here his release is easy relative to the winding and unwinding Ligety has to do. Ligety's boot set up is the main reason for his need for contortions and adjustments. (this is an update on the previous post, so read the previous post first.)

Ligety has had to adapt to his boot set up, rather than the other way around. Most racers don't even notice this unless their coaches or Boot Technicians bring it up. Such a minor change in the boots, can improve this situation,  but not changed can effect hundreds of world cup points through a season. 

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Casper Nolan, US slalom star, Perfect body alignment, strong turn exit.

 Ted Ligety, rotated, dropped hip, weaker knee angle. Minor differences like this in each turn result in differences of consistency and time over 50 or 60 gates.

Nolan Casper best of the Americans in slalom.

Ted Ligety

This is a really weak set up for Ted Ligety, if it's not fixed soon, it will not be a nice scene. The outside knee behind the inside boot is not a good sign, also notice his knees are crossed and his blocking is much too early. His upper body is already far to over-rotated.

Nolan Casper on the other hand looks really strong, great set up and his technique is much cleaner than Ted Ligety's.

Ligety's slalom not ready for the best yet!

Starting turns with leaning and rotation, doesn't set you up well for a hard, round, World Cup slalom turn. His hips are already back behind his boots. It means you have to save the turn late,  when you should be releasing. That makes for a hard edge set, which is slower.

Huge difference here, same turn, compared to Ligety, this is the winner, Kostelic. He is on the outside ski, already Counter balanced and countered. His hips are forward and over his boots.

Hirscher performances the seemingly impossible.

Photos by: Diana Rogers, Harb Ski Systems.

Another secret that coaches and instructors don't know. You can be forward on your skis without engaging the tips. Here the best skier in the world, Marcel Hirscher, he is forward with his body, but not loading his tips. His ski tips are off the snow. How do you explain this?

Follow this "Blog",  more to come!

The "O" frame release is prevalent on the  world cup!

For more information about "O" frame releases consult the Harb Ski Systems web site, for vidoes and books!

Release old stance ski with movement, to the little toe edge! PMTS!

Few in the world have equaled Mario Matt in Slalom, World Champion and Olympic Medialist.

PHOTOS BY HARB SKI SYSTEMS, DIANA ROGERS PHOTOGRAPHER.

Ted Ligety is still ahead until this mistake.

Ted Ligety: Reminiscent of a Bode Miller save! Ted had to recover from this mistake for the next three turns, that's what cost him the victory. 

                               Marcel Hirscher:  Perfect Balance wins every time. 

Hirscher at the gate compared to Ted Ligety

                                              Leaning

                                               Perfect Balance

Ligety Technical Comparison to Hirscher

You can already see what is going to happen here. Ted is still ahead at this on the course.

He loses counter balance, you can see it by where is head is and his upper torso angle relative to his hip. It's almost a straight line.

Hirscher is more upright with his torso. His inside hip is higher  as well.

Ted loses the race here, the next two turns; he is in saving mode, where Hirscher is attacking. A momentary lapse like this can be the difference between winning and coming second in a world cup race. These guys are the two best GS skiers in the world right now.

Proud to Say, another "Expert" skier and a PMTS product.

                                  Geoff Darst, Silverthorne Colorado