Photographing the Photographer
Did not refresh my Photo Friday feature photograph. Oh well, better late than never! Again this photo comes from Monarch Mountain near Salida Colorado.
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Photo Post—Friday
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Media, Photography, SkiingDid not refresh my Photo Friday feature photograph. Oh well, better late than never! Again this photo comes from Monarch Mountain near Salida Colorado.
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You Can Only Prepare So Much
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: The Sharp EdgeNot too long ago via Twitter I saw a tweet on a video of a tree well rescue.
Tree wells are formed in deep snow around trees where the snow does not pack tightly around the tree, and a rider can fall into that well and the kinetics of the crash often times cause the rider to sink into the well headfirst. Imagine, falling into a hole headfirst with your skis or board on your feet and have the snow reducing your mobility and air supply. Very dire situation and even if you have a buddy or friends on the scene immediately afterwards the outcome is not certain.
Isn’t this the way life works? You can practice and prepare all you want, but when the real thing happens Murphy comes along.
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Putting a Hit on Life!
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: The Last RideEnglish teachers try to teach their students the difference between passive and active voices. What voice is that?
Our English teachers tried to teach us the difference between passive and active voices. How about that one, what voice?
This is not a writing lesson though, this is an attempt to try to encourage you to do to life, instead of having life do to you! Do not worry about life doing to us, life will get its licks in, how about you, will you get your licks on life in?
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Skiing on the Edges Cures Many Ills
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Skiing, Technique
Recently I wrote about skiing on ice and how I barely notice when I ski on ice. I remember seeing ice and mentally freezing (pun intended) and putting on the brakes. Skidding on ice is something best avoided.
However, skiing in the opposite snow conditions can be equally challenging to the skidder. If you are not on edge, skidding through fluffencrud can be perilous, you feel every bump, every irregularity and they all work to throw you off balance.
However, the solution for both ski challenges is the same: be on edge. If it is fluffencrud, the edges cut right through it, and if it is ice edged skis can sink a good bite into it.
Think of a knife, move it across a pile of mashed potatoes and then move the knife through the potatoes edge first. Which way gets you to the solid of the plate much more easily? Then take that knife to butter, a flat knife does not give any direction control through the butter whereas a knife edge will engage the butter.
If you are comfortable on skis, but don’t think you have carving down yet here is a good video with some drills to give you a feel for what you need to do:
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Practice Skiing All Year Long
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Skiing
I can not recall where I read it and I can not find the story via Google. However, I recall a story about a concert pianist who was imprisoned in some Communist country. He was, of course, denied his love of playing the piano and his music.
He was in a bad situation and in one of those moving stories, it made no difference for him. What did he do, he pretended he had a piano in front of him and pretended to play that pretend piano.
The article noted he was eventually released from that prison and came out a better piano player than he was when he went in.
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Skivangalism
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Skiing
What do you do to promote skiing or snowboarding? Do you ask friends if they want to go? Do you sponsor that first lift ticket?
Just what do you do to promote snow sports?
I talk to my friends about skiing and I get some asking about it. Last weekend I took it a step further and assisted some friends to get setup at the rental center and skied along with my buddy’s daughter on the bunny hill.
I need to give a shout out to Ski Brule and the staff in the rental center. They were without exception, friendly, helpful, and eager to server! This counts for the guy tuning and waxing skis to the people circulating helping people gear up. Their’s was definitely a zeal born of skivanagalism!
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Ski Brule Carload Weekend
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Resorts, Skiing
For all you Packer’s fans .. no need to be sad that the Packers aren’t playing in the Super Bowl… because Ski… fb.me/YAiJlZO7
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Green, Gold, and Blue
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: The Sharp Edge
Sigh, the Packers lost on Sunday to the New York Giants. I am still convinced the better team lost, but there is no arguing who was playing better football on Sunday and that is what counts. Our receivers who through most of the season were catching everything thrown in Brown County could not hold onto anything and that also applies to the period after the catch.
However, there is one positive in this — I no longer have to plan ski trips around football games, even the Superbowl is going to have to fight hard to get my attention over skiing. However, no matter who is playing it is usually a cause to get together with family and friends. However, if it were up to me I would be coming home from a ski trip at about kick off time and watch with middling interest.
The key thing is though, for the vast majority of us, watching the NFL is a passive consumptive type of activity. We sit in our chairs and watch as others do. However, skiing is an active creative activity we do.
Now get out and DO!
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Laurenne Ross Back on the Boards!
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Competition, Skiing
Remember this wipeout from about one month ago? It was Laurenne Ross getting backseated and then flung into the fence at Lake Louise in Canada.
Well, Laurenne is back on her skis and participated in the women’s downhill race at Bad Kleinkirchheim in Austria. The crash did not look real nasty but it sounds like the damage done to Laurenne was fairly serious and there are a lot of reminders of that accident left with Laurenne (just saw an interview on Universal Sports).
The biggest problem, for her, fortunately is not the physical but the mental. That mental remnants of that crash can be very difficult to overcome. When I was a boy I was playing little league baseball and got beaned, it took me nearly a whole year to approach the plate without fear, unfortunately, that was as my little league career was ending (and I was really putting the wood on the ball), what happened to Larenne was a lot worse than what happened to myself.
Be not afraid.
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Vermont Ski Safety Institute’s Take on Exercise
By: The Wisconsin Skier In: Health and Fitness, SkiingOne of the things we hear about frequently is how exercising helps prevent injury on the snow. However, the Vermont Ski Safety Institute has an interesting statement on this:
4) Exercise – We are not aware of any proof that an exercise regimen will reduce the risk of the most common or the most serious injuries in skiing. But, in our opinion, you might help to avoid less serious (though none the less painful) muscle strains if you have prepared yourself with skiing-specific exercises. See early season copies of your favorite skiing magazine or talk to a professional trainer before you hit the slopes. You’ll also get in more skiing with less fatigue and you will be better prepared for the rare emergency requiring strength or endurance.
I suppose, if you wipe out in a certain no amount of exercise is going to save you from injury. However, I have a hard time disbelieving if you get on the slopes with well developed, strong, and enduring muscles your chances of any sort of injury is reduced.
A person who has been working out is probably going to be able to maintain and hold better snow form longer than if they did not work out. Maintaining that form is key and being in a position to fight off being backeseated by a surprise bump.
I guess I understand what they are saying, but I fear some may use that as an excuse not to exercise. Don’t you do that!
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