Got my first day in yesterday at loon. They had 5 trails, all manmade but we got about 3-4"of fresh during the day, so all in all not a bad first day. A couple of greens & long easy blues, so perfect for 1st day out. So I have studied both cds- EXP 1 & 2 and the EXp2 Book for the last 2 months. I have also been using a slant board and working on the Phantom move, 1 footed balance and counter rotation and counter balancing on ice skates and roller skates all summer. I did not know what to expect when I got on the snow.
I warmed up with some 2 footed releases and my ski buddy who I ski with every year was quite intrigued by my method of warming up. I wanted to establish good upper lower body separation from day 1and really slowly transition and focus on 3 basic areas yesterday: Edge Release with flexion and no/minimal extension-Edge transfer & smooth edging. All with a still upper body and really get a good measure of where I am.
Well my buddy was shocked. He said I looked completely different coming down the hill than last year. I was lifting my inside tail a bit on the steeper turns when starting the turn and then really working on pulling my inside leg back and up against my stance boot and letting the skis do the work. At first it was a bit unnerving trusting the side cut to do the work, but as the day went on I found a level of relaxed, yet solid on snow edging I have never, ever felt before. I was skiing very smoothly and by pulling my inside foot back instead of trying to get my hips forward(which I now know is impossible) I felt a level of balance and fluidity I have rarely felt on skis. I just felt solid and connected to the snow. And lower to the snow than usual, yet I wasn't bent over.
Needless to say I still have a lot of PMTS to learn, but as 45-50 day a year skier, for the last 20 years, I thought I had progressed as far as I was going to, and it boy it was like a light went off yesterday. I know I have a long way to go but the immediate difference in my skiing and my sense of being connected to the snow was quite cool. A couple of more on snow sessions and I will get to some filming.
I am going to really try to stay patient and master the Phantom move without lifting(light is expert ), edge releases, transfer , keeping a narrower stance , and good brushed turns. I never realized how 2 footed I skied until yesterday.