Most Important Move in Skiing (Part 1): Alltracks Academy

1 - More on-line ski training from Alltracks head coach and CSIA Level 4 examiner Guy Hetherington.
If you are interested in becoming a CSIA qualified ski instructor and receiving expert tuition from Guy, then take a look at our Ski Instructor Courses:
www.alltracksa...
For more information on Alltracks ski and snowboard courses visit:
www.alltrackacademy.com
You may also like some of our other videos:
Most Important Move in Skiing (Part 2): • Most Important Move in...
How To Ski Powder: • How to Ski Powder: All...
Improve your Free Skiing: • Improve your Freeskiin...

[@massimobalmelli1990]

To be onest, if you wanna really use your ski for curving you have to do the opposite movement: press the leg wenn you are in the max slope point and extend them between the two curv (sorry for my bad english, that's not my language)

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Hi Massimo - Actually, if you "press" your legs into an extended position at the top of the bump you will become very light and probably airborne when you pass over to the back side. Your suggestion is the exact wrong advice for developing sound pressure management skills. Please rethink your basic physical principles. Thanks! Guy

[@massimobalmelli1990]

Alltracks Academy I think i'm not explaning good, I'm speaking about the point around 2:00, obviously in the bump you have to cushion or you will jump and don't take extra speed

[@massimobalmelli1990]

If you wanna an example about what I'm saying search any giant slalom race of hirscher, ligety or other champions, you can clearly see that they extend their body when they will change the direction of their curv

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Hi Massimo - take a look at this sequence of Ligety and notice his position directly between one turn and the other: static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/2014/02/19/mens-giant-slalom/51d39f945d2812b1e39b1aee9b37dcd5168ce15e/1050/missillier-heat2-crop.jpg 1 - skis flat to the snow 2 - most compressed position 3 - turn transition This position illustrates perfectly the concept conveyed in my 2 part series "most important move in skiing" kzbin.info/www/bejne/rprYmZKVn8eHjqM kzbin.info/www/bejne/ol7TeJmjbbudhpI In particiular, take note of my position at 1:52 of the first video "Part 1" and then compare to same part of the turn in Ligety's turn. Not sure it could be any more clear....

[@sunnyjoys5794]

I might be wrong, but I think you are discussing two different skills to achieve the same goal - easy turn.

[@billarmatage5858]

This is an excellent video! It clearly describes and demonstrates the movements required to end one turn and start another (releasing the old edges to the new) through flexing (taught by PMTS) as opposed to extending to release (taught by CSIA). This movement can and should be normally used in all skiing, bumps, powder, groomers, high speed GS and salmon turns, etc. One other movement integral to the flexing movement which is also happening in this video is tipping. By tipping, I mean the rolling of the bottom of the feet and therefore the skis from one set of edges to the other. Therefore combine the tipping of the edges from the old edges to the new edges while flexing to release rather than extending to release. Those two movements will improve your skiing dramatically.

[@AlltracksAcademy]

+Bill Armatage Thanks for the feedback Bill - glad you like the video. Stay tuned for the next videos to be released in the next few weeks...Guy

[@MrDogonjon]

retraction is important pressure control but stance... ie boot cuff pressure..."warp the shell" is by far the most important. any retraction/ flexion move will drop your hips back so the recentering must work forward on the skis to reorient your reference frame to the new pitch, hips forward and to engage the tips of the skis upon passing the crest. this is where "olies" come in. Hard to explain but kids love it and adults can learn to ski bumps easily after practicing "Olies" aka porpising/ availment/ repliment(please pardon my French)... stomp landings.

[@dougjc2000]

I was an intermediate skier. All I know is I started using this technique & my turns & carving have greatly improved including much more control & power in my turns. The funny thing is its pretty simple to do. Thanks Guy!

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Thanks for the comment, glad to hear you found it useful. Happy skiing!

[@MrDogonjon]

Watch Mikaela Shiffrin. Her "secret move" is subtle and distinct at the start of every great turn she "crushes the boot" and then executes the "secret daddy" signaling weight transfer with the up hill hand pushing down as she pole plants. this gives her options, taking the " good girl " line maintaining rhythm and speed or when tactics allow the "bad girl" line where she breaks rhythm and cuts inside the gates...flushes.

[@paulydee1]

By far, the best ski training videos on the net. Superb content, excellent to the point explanation (love your enthusiasm) and brilliant production. I have used several of your drills to improve my skiing. Brilliant skier, powerful at the right time, yet super smooth. Thank-you***

[@AlltracksAcademy]

+Pauly Dee Thanks very much for the comment - really glad to hear you a getting something out of our video series. If you are ever in Whistler and looking for some tuition, don't hesitate to drop me a line. Cheers, Guy

[@tinyskier6250]

really like your thinking and instruction here, using terrain, knowing snow, .... many forget or even think about this. Good examples and terminology (highpoints) .... clear and concise

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Thanks for the comment - hope you have a great season, if you are ever in Whistler come and join us for some sessions! Cheers! Guy

[@SolaceEasy]

I like how your demo shows the late in the turn edge initiation expected of skiers at this level.

[@KenBeaconHill]

My new favorite channel

[@TheGpatters888]

Excellent 2 part video, Guy. It would be useful if some of the critical posters had watched part 2 as well. Good luck to anyone extending (ie lengthening) their legs as they hit a mogul with a bit of speed on steep terrain. Probably going to result in a low earth orbit. And a problematic re-entry. What Guy is doing in the vertical on the rollers and bumps (ie flexing on the upside and extending into the downside) is being replicated on the groomer turns with a key difference. In those groomer turns the leg extension is lateral (ie to the side) instead of vertical since the lower body is much more inclined. In both situations the upper body remains quite stable. Which is kind of the point. Again, good luck to anyone trying to retain balance and control in the bumps if their upper body is not stable. Yes, Guy does bend at the waist - I suspect he's a tall person and he's making good use of all joints (ankles, knees, waist) to maintain his center of mass over his feet. And probably emphasizing that flex in the rollers as is necessary for instructors doing demos. Go look at the bump skiing in part 2 - no issues there. All of the ski race videos confirm Guy's point. Watch their turns slowed down and we see plenty of flex (lots of bent joints) where their skis are flat between gates and then plenty of extension (much straighter joints) as the racer goes through the fall line on the apex of the turn around each gate. There are exceptions where the racer is making a recovery move or dealing with a course feature but in nearly every turn their most extended positions are around the fall line.

[@ThomasDavenport1]

Finally! a ski instructor that can actually ski!

[@eagsalazar]

50% of your absorption is coming from your lower back hinging forward. Keeping a more upright position will force you to absorb more with your knees and to flex more into your shins which will set you up in a better body position at the initiation of the next turn. Or you can go ahead and rock onto your heels at the end of the turn (the point of max absorption) which is also totally ok as long as you aggressively topple onto your shins at the initiation (more of a slalom skier style where there is a lot of fore and aft weight shifting). What you are doing probably perfectly ok. 90% of the time, but if you get into moguls going fast or other choppy terrain, that hinging approach will just be too disruptive to maintain balance. Guy, I *love* your videos and admire you as a skier, so this is just a nitpick which you and others may very well disagree with. Thanks for the great content!!

[@eagsalazar]

Oh, and I agree 100% that this is one of the most important moves in skiing!!

[@petermartin9494]

Thanks. The most important move in skiing is unweighting but I suppose that is what you are really saying.

[@The.Harsh.Truths]

Cool music choice. Makes your ski channel stand out from the other more boring channels.

[@lembergguy]

Bill wrote already this move is a key to PMTS skiing - nonetheless, glad you are making it so clear here!

[@Mulli123]

Looking good Guy! Nice videos, quality content and ski instructor course refreshers :) Hope you're keeping well.

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Hi Matt, thanks for the comment. I hope you are doing well, Will we be seeing you back in Whistler anytime soon?

[@Mulli123]

Unfortunately not this season. Myself to blame for that one. Applied for the IEC visa in March and missed out on the selection process. Will make sure to apply in Dec/Jan next time. Working in Zell am See, Austria for this winter though, so looking forward to getting the first season teaching under the belt!

[@jamesdunn9714]

I see retraction turns. Great skiing.

[@MrDogonjon]

That's the kind of skiing I was doing when I FAILED examiner try for PSIA-W. Finlay swears a lot. I had "Too Much Retraction". Words don't really matter it's feeling that counts.

[@jackfenton4713]

"most important move in skiing"...............the day you move to a ski town!

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Fair enough Jack - can't argue with that!

[@jackfenton4713]

Wishing you a great ski season from Park City Utah!

[@kenzeier2943]

LOL!! Good move!!

[@rockstarr9000]

So good...

[@Алекс3м]

Thanks!

[@ollysevern5912]

Great video!

[@tenewake8705]

You're a badass skier Guy!

[@ardenpowers7730]

In all regards . . . head up, looking down the hill at ALL times

[@charliekattau8587]

An interesting concept Guy. When doing our CSIA LV1 course, a tactic for beginners is to be ‘tall and small’ helping turn initiation. This being tall to start the turn (more range of movement whilst extended) and small within the turn (to gain balance). Should this concept be altered when teaching beginners? Or should we stick with it and later on tell clients this concept evolves to your video here, which seems like you are extended mid-turn and flexed to initiate the turn?

[@billmceachern7805]

I think you missed the key thing.....If you want to ski terrain you need to first and foremost to look up. You can't ski terrain looking at your ski tips as you will have zero timing. You need to look down range and the farther you look the better you are able to time your body to get this stuff done. Even in your video you are looking at your tips and then look up for the next one. Skip the look down and just look up. Keeping your head up all the time is the hardest thing in skiing, in my humble opinion.

[@4wazza]

This is not level 1 ... these comments are hillarious . Its a demo of the movement to cross over for any advanced turn . Anyone that says its not CSIA needs a few all tracks sessions.

[@darrenmassey435]

Flex to release while holding counter no pivot is needed.

[@Premierskis]

This skiing is showing a cross under move which looks a bit different than some of your other videos. Were you intentionally emphasizing this for this video?

[@rolfingyogaspace430]

Cool

[@JB91710]

This is One move in skiing but by far, not The Most Important Move. TMIM is balancing on one arch at a time. Doing this is the single most important thing you have to get comfortable with as everything else works off of that. The compression move is best used on steep trails and at high speed where you need to keep your skis on the snow and weighted at all times. No Up motion. Had this trail been steeper, the demonstration would have come off better without that upper body collapse. What this encompasses is this. At the outside of the turn, your legs are long and your body is in the fall line. As your skis come back under you, you shorten your legs and let your feet come up to you and then your legs will extend back out as the ski makes the next turn. If you don't let your legs collapse, your upper body will rise and you will get too light for your skis to grip for the next turn.

[@nickschneider4830]

Hey Guy, I love your channel. One question I have is in regards to bending at the waist vs bending at the knees. I have a very similar ski stance to you in the flexed position - a combination of hip and knee bending. However, my coach tells me not to bend at the hips to allow for more knee flexion, what are your thoughts on this?

[@MrDogonjon]

Parallelogram Law states the sum of the cross lengths of a parallelogram will be equal regardless of the angles. if knee flexion exceeds 90 degrees you violate this law and are at risk of injuring your ACL ligament via phantom foot forces. I prefer the femur point towards the feet and not towards the tips of the skis or sky. this keeps our bones stacked in a stable, predictable geometry countering mass/ energy density stress tensors (baryons) in equilibrium (dynamic counterbary). Oh yeah and don't forget to flex your ankles… "crush the boot' before attempting any skiing maneuver

[@vanillaglue]

Sick!!

[@morninboy]

Better watch some world cup giant slalom and see they do the opposite. It is a quick up after the end of a turn in the transition then move to the outside ski and extend the leg to stack the body. The skeleton is stronger than the muscles. The transition in slalom often brings the legs under the body after the turn as there is less time for up and down movement due to the quickness between the turns

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Incase you did not read the thread below I've cut and paste it for you here: Hi Massimo - take a look at this sequence of Ligety and notice his position directly between one turn and the other: static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/2014/02/19/mens-giant-slalom/51d39f945d2812b1e39b1aee9b37dcd5168ce15e/1050/missillier-heat2-crop.jpg 1 - skis flat to the snow 2 - most compressed position 3 - turn transition This position illustrates perfectly the concept conveyed in my 2 part series "most important move in skiing" kzbin.info/www/bejne/rprYmZKVn8eHjqM kzbin.info/www/bejne/ol7TeJmjbbudhpI In particiular, take note of my position at 1:52 of the first video "Part 1" and then compare to same part of the turn in Ligety's turn. Not sure it could be any more clear....

[@morninboy]

better examples kzbin.info/www/bejne/p6WpgJ19rcqSh5Y Watch the last women's GS from Kronplatz if you can find it. Mowinkle on the first run, gate 19, she is late and up tall at the end of the turn allowing her to stack her body and hammer the next turn so hard she rips into the snow like a water skier cuts into a still lake. Could not be done if she was squashed.

[@AlltracksAcademy]

morninboy Not totally clear what your point is as both of those examples emphasize my concept too......as they clearly show the racers legs are in their most flexed position during transition - which is once again what I advocate for.

[@AlltracksAcademy]

Here are yet more examples of world cup skiers applying the idea outlined in my series: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i2ezi5htYsyJmJo

[@conViction0000]

Hi Guy! First of all I do admire your infinite patience while explaining that gorgeous movement which is called flex to release. Well known for everyone who has ever had anything common with race courses. Secondly I want to thank for the great video, clearly presented, technically perfect, great quality and your skiing looks like million $$. Every factor an individual should look for is present in your skiing: upper/lower body separation, ankle flexion, inside leg tipped on edge, flex to release, early pressure etc. Great job Guy! Keep on pushing! I wish to have coaches like you here in Europe... Maciek

[@Emtful]

If i ski ilke this one day, i will quit skiing :)

[@fanboy-industries]

No you wont!

[@blackestjake]

If you ski like that one day you’ll have lots of room to improve.

[@naturegood515]

that is very nice, but whatever I do my inside leg refuses to turn.

[@michallasan3695]

This is why I think that the most important move is the initial pressure of the new outer ski while aligning the inner ski.

[@JB91710]

The BIGGEST problem in the Minds of skiers when thinking about making a turn is, they focus on the skis, feet and knees. Most instructors focus on the skis, feet and knees. What happens in your lower body is a result of the positioning of your Upper body. In all these runs, ignore your feet and watch what you do with your upper body. What happens below is the result of what you do above. 1:45 Play this in slow motion. Notice how your upper body is going to the right along with your skis. When you want to make a new turn to the left, you Stop the travel of your upper body across the slope and make it go Down The Hill while your skis continue across the slope. Watch the leg angle change from banking to the right to banking to the left. 1:47 When the legs are vertical, that's when you change your weight from your Left foot to your Right foot. Downhill foot to your Uphill foot. With the leg angle change, you will be balanced on the inside of your right foot and on the inside edge of the ski, allowing it to turn. 1:49 Imagine a cable running from the top of the hill to the bottom. The Fall Line. Imagine a bungy cord attached to the cable and to your belt buckle. As your skis go from side to side, the bungy cord keeps pulling your hips back to the cable. Your hips being pulled back to the fall line while your skis turn from side to side is what creates the new leg angles. 1:51 You are riding your skis to your left. Then you think, "I want to go straight down the hill." So you stop the travel of your upper body across the slope and head it Down The Hill. Back In The Fall Line. 1:52 This is where you get off your right foot and stand on your left foot. 1:55 Balanced on your left foot/arch. 1:56 Stop your upper body from crossing the slope and change your weight. Your skis shoot pout from under you and create the new leg angle. To put this in an EZY to understand package, "I want to go straight down the hill, get off my downhill foot." Point your upper body down the hill and change your weight to your uphill foot. You think about skiing from your Eyes Down, not from your Feet Up. What happens with your legs and feet is the result of what you do with your hips and upper body. When you rotate the steering wheel on your car, the car knows how to turn, you don't force it to turn or even think about the steering mechanism. You think about what you need to do to allow the piece of equipment to do what it was designed to do.

[@vanillaglue]

What's the soundtrack??

[@ericjensen1740]

Or in other words, stop skiing with your feet glued to the snow surface all stiff and scared shitless!

[@KristinaAdad]

This is an interesting teaching technique but I don't understand why you would entirely ignore pole planting. Proper pole planting form is essential for downhill, mogul and especially steep terrain skiing. Teaching an aggressive forward pole plant -- and getting people accustomed to not leaving their arms out at their sides or starting to plant late in the turn is an important component of proper ski form and I find it's one of the least mentioned in lessons.

[@John_Doe643]

Kristina Adad I totally agree, but it seems to be out of fashion these days. Either way, I think it looks far more elegant.

[@kenzeier2943]

He must know what he’s talking about because he sure looks good on the slope

[@rockinrollinntrollin616]

All actors have a great stand in ...

[@jonathanhalloran8807]

"Directly between one turn and the next" lacks descriptive power and is the most vague, meaningless and redundant utterance made in the history of mankind ever.

[@anthonysears871]

nope not it

[@31acruz]

I THINK THIS IS HORRIBLE ADVICE, here is why: if you do that, you are killing all the rebound energy from side to side, which will be exhausting. And you are reducing severely the 'small window" of opportunity you have to find footing and let it push/propel yourself to the otherside going back and forth, you are destroying angulation. Plus you are also thirdly killing your 'speed control', you can ski like that if you want, but it won't be as enjoyable or efficient. YOu'll be skiing FLAT instead of 3D.

[@blackestjake]

Wow! Way to much down unweighting!

[@MOWFWDU]

Very poor form. He is collapsing over his legs, bending at the hip. The pelvis should be rotated back, the flex should start at the ankles to keep weight forward and progress through the knees, this gives much larger range of motion while keeping the torso erect. Just watch any good bump or slalom skier. Why teach it wrong and then have to relearn later.

[@deesis4962]

he is teaching us how to scrub and absorb. is perfect and useful

[@mattweitz7615]

He is demonstrating a principle -- not teaching final form. His movements are somewhat exaggerated to make his point. Poor understanding of accurate absorption and extension, whether on groomed or variable terrain, is the most limiting factor for skiers stuck in the intermediate zone. Open your mind -- this is an essential tutorial.

[@AnonymouSRU]

ah another chair expert here

[@Dimedarrel33]

Bruh what

[@masonschlopy1670]

oh hellllll nah

[@laurad1873]

It looks more like a slalom race tecnique than carving...

[@nofreewill1]

This is a bizarre exercise, keep away. You wanna practice carving by doing the opposite of what you should do to learn suspension technique? No. You have to sink while in the turn to make the skis edges heavy (mainly the outer ski), then you rise to lighten the skis in the transition. Doing what this guy’s doing is exactly backwards, the physics make no sense, and it looks like shit.

[@mattweitz7615]

Wow, you need Remedial Physics 101. "Sinking" will not make your edges "heavy." Your edges will only receive more pressure AFTER you have "sunk." You can think of this in terms of going down in an elevator. As your descent accelerates, you become momentarily unweighted, when the elevator slows and stops, only then do you become momentarily heavier. Same thing in reverse going up. As the elevator rises, you become momentarily heavier. To put this back in a skiing context, as you round into the apex of your turn, you must tip your edges and extend your legs (yes, as you say, primarily the outside leg) to resist angular momentum, as you exit a well-shaped turn, your skis will rebound and recamber (the elevator rises), and you must absorb (flex) to negate the tendency of your skis to lose contact with the snow. The demo here is intended to show the application of theses principles in an easily recognizable, exaggerated manner -- if you watch his general free skiing, you'll see he's not demonstrating final form in this video.

[@mcmurph101]

Can’t stand instructor turns....Grip it and rip it!

[@jamesdunn9714]

There is no such thing as an "instructor turns".

[@rockinrollinntrollin616]

So STFU n ZIP IT !!!

[@rockinrollinntrollin616]

So STFU n ZIP IT !

[@apollomorris9920]

This is not the most important move is skiing . Your trying to accomplished something that is completely unnatural. Letting your hips fall downward into the hill. Then using that stored energy that you have applied to the skis to get yourself forward into the next turn by releasing the energy bringing up your knees and letting your hits hips fall nto the next turn. I was rated 5th in the us and have coached some of the best skiers in the world.

[@furlong337]

His legs are too close together

[@podcastbunker]

Bendz Ze Knees $10 please !

[@peterwhitson5332]

Ankles and knees, knees alone puts you in the back seat dufuss!