video to tear to shreds

[john heath]

I'd be grateful for any assistance pmts coaches and skiers could offer on the videos on the site below. one is slow motion from behind, in front and the side, the other is from in front at normal speed. the quality isn't great but i think it's good enough to see what's going on, and the files are quite small.

http://www.putfile.com/johnheath

I'll kick off with some observations of my own to test my own understanding and save anyone a post if i'm anywhere near the mark.

Upper body: there could be more counter acting (i feel the strong inside arm counter rotation is going on), but this wan't the focus of the runs. later in the week when it was filmed i focussed on this more, it's an area i feel ok with and at camp in may this was more or less the feedback i got.
lower body: my focus during the runs was what was prescribed at camp and in later posts on this site - FLEX FLEX FLEX to release and pull back the free foot to pressure the front of the ski. i find pull back easier when i'm lifting. i can't remember if i was prying or not, could well have been. the flex is markedly better than in may.

problem: despite the focus on flexing, and some attention to the weighted release drills, i'm still committing a massive error early on which ruins the whole turn right at the outset - the uphill ski is pushed away as it rolls to the BTE as soon as the downhill leg lightens. here i am lifting, but this premature edge change occurs as soon as i release the new free foot when simply lightening too. in these runs i'm not consciously trying to get the stance ski on edge, rather i'm trying to get upside down to the slope through free foot tipping. it's quite evident however that there is a wedge entry and the free foot matches the stance foot angles very late, and rather than get upside down there is a direction change well before both skis have changed edges. so it's a skid from the outset. this means steep even on a groomer is hard to handle because i can't get short turns going, and this is keeping me from my goal of skiing gates. i'm not even going near bumps and off piste with this going on.

alignment: after camp i can ski fine on the left foot only, the right foot didn't quite work out at a 1 degree shim, chris sent some more and now i have an extra 1.5 degrees on the heel of the boot. from traverse on both edges and straight run tests i feel i need a bit more but it's hard putting any more on without the boot sole leaving the railflex at the front of the binding. i mention this in case it's relevant but i suspect that what is happening with the stance ski isn't an alignment issue as it happens on both sides.

that's what i'm seeing, but i'd be very grateful for some expert analysis and advice on where to go from here.

[Ken]

John,
Make it easy on yourself. Buy the PMTS instructor manual and master each excersize. You can have someone look at copies of photos in the book and let you know if you look like the skier in the photo.

Any tips we give you here would be without foundation. You need to build that foundation by mastering the excersizes, then get into real skiing where those functions come automatically. Some of these functions must be performed in sequence, some at the same time. If you aren't doing the first right thing, you can't effectively do the second right thing.


Ken

[john heath]

i appreciate your thoughts ken but i don't agree. i skied with the books up to last may when i attended a camp, and without feedback you are limited to what you can do. as i usually train alone, i rely on this forum for feedback. as i only want to ski pmts, not other systems, the advice on this forum is THE source outside of the camps. furthermore, the naked eye perception of the people i occasionally ski with, even if they do have a look at a picture, is not reliable.
thanks anyway.

[Harald]

Sorry John,

My connection is so slow it won't load your video.

[john heath]

oh well, can?t be helped.
any pmts-ers who can be of assistance?
in further reply to ken, i agree with the chain reaction related comment, just not the premise that the books alone are the thing to use. in those clips i?m trying my arse off to ski with the primary movements as i have been since i first got the books. some of the drills work, but then it goes belly up when i try to reintegrate it into free skiing.

[Heyoka]

Maybe I can help.

The first video that's left justified, I watched just the first part of the clip. When you start your turn, your foot slips down hill -- stem. Big problem.

So you need to work on all the releasing moves. But before that, you need to learn to do the phantom move right. Can you? If so, let's see a vid. If you pass that test, then we can figure out why you're stemming.

I get the feeling Harald thinks I'm right (which is really unusual). PMTS is course you take, to learn how to balance on your edges. You can't move on until you've passed the prior test.

I think we could really help skiers here, on line. But the deal is, you have to follow the books. Hey man, I work on this stuff all the time. You can never get too good, at beginning PMTS moves. I do Garland shuffling every time I ski. It's fun!

So. Starting from the beginning, book 1.
1) Can you do the Garland shuffling right?
2) Can you do the Phantom move right?

We need to see this. Otherwise, we're putting the horse before the cart. Make two vids of you doing the Garland shuffle and the Phantom Move. When can you have them done? Do them the next time you ski. The patience you take now, will pay off big time. I promise you.

Don't get discouraged. Do you really want to ski good? If so, then you're at the right place. Skiing is a difficult sport -- it's not easy. If it was, it'd be called snowboarding.

You're not making a good turn to start. So we have to fix that.

10-4.

Now I'm off to Vail, I'll be doing some garland shuffling today! I'll also be on the look out for Gang events. The place is crawling with PSIA types. Those Weasels.

[rl1zczi]

post deleted.

[john heath]

thanks for the reply heyoka. this wedge or stem is what i'm concerned about too. the whole turn is screwed before it's started. i wasn't sure whether the lower ski moves down hill or the uphill ski moves uphill - at camp it tipped to the big toe edge first and then slid up the hill. but from the video i'd agree that it looks like the lower ski is sliding away.
will revisit the drills and be back in touch, although i won't have video.
thanks again.

[john heath]

just had another look - it is the bloody downhill ski that's moving downhill isn't it. weird as i'm trying to pull it in to the stance boot all the time. i must be pushing off this foot before i relax or lift it.

[Heyoka]

I can't say enough about the beginner moves. Yesterday I spent 3 runs at Arrowhead, doing drills.

In all the drills, I try to do them exactly the way HH does them. The only 1 I've modified is the shuffling. I have a slight variation to Garland shuffling.

1) Phantom move. Has anyone worked on this lately? It's not easy to do. Don't lift the tail but an inch or so, off the snow.

2) Phantom javelin exercise. This one really gets you to feel the edge angles. Don't start the next turn until you've set the Javelin foot down on its LTE.

3) Vongrunigen (sp?) turns. Make turns with your downhill foot. Collapse it, then roll it over to its LTE.

4) Garland shuffling. Make the smallest shuffles possible. Make sure you're setting the new inside ski down on its LTE, with each shuffle.

As you can see, I work on beginner moves all the time. My goal is not to push ahead, but to get better at the beginning PMTS moves. I wrote about going too fast. I progressed so fast, now I want to go back and work on the moves more. They're fun to do. I'm lucky. I can hang out at Arrowhead where it's empty, work on my skiing. Arrowhead has nice blue runs without all the yawhoos. It's fun. I've also noticed how much more I look around, when I'm training. Gawd it's beautiful here. Speaking of which, got to get to work now, pay for all this.

I also want to compliment those that post here. I learn from each and everyone. A few words here and there really add up. Way to go!

[Mr. T]

John,
While I am no expert, I would tell you what I do not like in the overall impression. Your upper body appears very stiff, for whatever reason, and in my experience a stiff upper body never helps looking good while skiing.
And, when I look at your turns (no in slow motion) it looks like you are just doing the final part of the turn. There is no sure way of telling, but I do not think that your edges are engaged before (or, actually, even at the fall line) but occasionally at best.

While you can always benefit from performing the drills in the books, I believe that you would benefit from learning to ride the edges of your skis a little bit longer. This would also help shaping your turns more. Sometimes it is the concept that is missing, sometimes it is the ability to ride the edges. However, I found teaching last year that riding an edge is not that hard to achieve, within reasonable limits at least.

There is, finally, definitely stemming going on, but probably it can be fixed in a few weeks if you can ski with a relative frequency.

What do I think is the best approach for you? Well, since looking at myself skiing a few years ago, your problems sound familiar: I would suggest:

- Ski behind someone who can really shape turns and try to copy him/her. Following Rich Messer 3 or 4 years ago was the best thing that ever happened to me. In fact, all the theoretical concepts I read about became alive in just one run. Rich took me down a blue run at Kicking Horse. We were flying and copying his moves I realised what it meant to ride an edge and how to shape a turn. Then, from that day on, I knew what to work on on my skiing. And knowing what you should expect to feel is a big step forward.

- One ski skiing. This is not an easy drill, but if you can ski on one ski, you cannot really stem turns, can you? And if you want to shed speed in between turns you have to use those edges you paid good $$'s for. It takes a lot of time to develop the ability to ski on one ski at a time. Ask if you do not have access to any progression. But I found it the most valuable drill I have ever worked on and the benefits in your skiing come even before you can ski on one ski with elegance.


- Flex, Stretch, Relax.

- If you never attended a camp, I strongly suggest you do that.

[Max_501]

As you can see, I work on beginner moves all the time. My goal is not to push ahead, but to get better at the beginning PMTS moves.

I'll echo Heyoka's comment here. I also practice PMTS drills every day on the slopes. Its a must to get better.