Description
As the season progresses and you quench your thirst for mountainous exploration you may find yourself at the top of a moderately steep mogul run. This abundant terrain is frightening to most, familiar to only some and comfortable to even less. Because of this, our first goal as aspiring bump skiers is spend as much time as we can in, around and on top of the bumps.
To ease into the bump world we should begin by traversing straight across the run, making a turn outside of the bumps and then traversing back across the other way. Your goal when traversing across bumps should be to keep your shoulders the same height above the snow by allowing your legs to lengthen and compress underneath you. Think of your legs as shocks and your upper body like the chaise of your car. As your car encounters bumps on the road your shocks work vertically to maintain contact with the road and to ensure that the passengers have a smooth ride. So as you slide over a bump let it push your feet up under you while staying balanced by keeping your shoulders over your toes. Then as you slide down the backside of the bump extend your legs and maintain this “tall” position until the next bump pushes your feet back up.
Varied terrain, like bumps, requires us to increase our range of motion in our legs in order to stay balanced. So give this a shot and don’t worry about the people watching you from the chair! Bumps can be very enjoyable once you allow yourself to get out of your comfort zone and make the commitment to ski them more often.
Tips on how to ski powder:
What a great start to the ski season! And fingers crossed, the long term forecast for this winter says we'll have lots of precipitation (ie. snow). Here are a few tips about how to ski IN the snow rather that just ON it.
- In powder, keep your feet a bit closer together than if you were skiing the groomed stuff.
- Stay closer to the fall line. Avoid big wide turns that take you across the hill. Go DOWN the hill instead.
- Flex and extend your legs a LOT. As you do so you will notice the snow acts like a mini trampoline. Get the timing right and it's super easy to start a new turn just as the snow gives you a little "lift."
- Stay centered. Don't believe anyone who tells you to sit back in powder!
So if Mother Nature continues to be on our side this season, I'll see you rippin' up the pow at Blue Mountain!