Behind The Tech: Carv 2 Podcast

[@Drwatcherman]

I’ve been using Carv for the last 3 seasons. I love the product and have improved significantly in that time. I was a bit skeptical of the changes to the device and loss of pressure metrics. After hearing the explanations from their team, I’m now optimistic. I’m a cardiologist, and when we evaulate echocardiograms (ultrasounds of the heart) we measure velocity and account for angle and use this to derive pressure. This turns out to be more accurate than direct invasive pressure measurements in a number of situations. To me it sounds like a very similar concept is being applied here. Looking forward to my Carve 2s arriving in a few weeks!

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Sounds quite similar….. fascinating. Amazing how problems can be solved with work arounds.

[@Orireiss]

Been using carv for over 2 seasons. Best thing I ever did for skiing. Not only improved my skiing, but just so much fun. Massive thumbs up! For those complaining about subscription…..I pay for 2 year subscription and it’s only £100 per year. Worth every penny.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Great to hear!

[@Studio42Brooklyn]

This was needed. I was on the fence with this... given the absence of pressure sensors... then I read all the science and watched this... ordered new version!

[@timblizzard4226]

I used carv the first time this season. I skied 17 days with it and my ski iq went from 132 to 144 in that time. I improved more this season than I have over the last 5 years, which included a few private lessons. I can’t imagine skiing without it now. And to be honest Tom, your videos on the Carv channel were a big part of convincing me to invest the money.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Awesome Thanks Tim. Appreciate the feedback. I love how it encourages skiers to become independent learners and want to dig deeper into what is happening with their skiing. From talking with the people at Carv, and seeing what is planned for the future, I only see it getting better.

[@chrismccracken]

I’ve used Carv for a couple years as a mere intermediate skier, and it has been a great tool to enable continuous improvement. However, the real strength is when you can use Carv to capture quantifiable data to enhance an instructor-led lesson with a pro that really understands it. I had the incredible opportunity to participate in the Carv Camp with Morgan last year at Whistler and improved more in 3 days than in the entire ready of the season. Please host a camp there again this year, I’ll sign up in a heartbeat!

[@erinb4919]

Very interesting podcast... I've been using carv since the product first launched... But I wouldn't ski with it all the time, because I knew if I skied off piste, my scores would be low... And I mostly ski off piste... Thus I'm excited to try the new carv off piste! Carv is definitely a useful tool, because it makes you aware of your skiing constantly while skiing and could pick up on subtle asymmetries in your skiing... I think for me what has limited its utility is a. Not being able to use it off piste and b. Lack of tips at the highest levels of carv that can help you progress to the very highest levels ....Thus, I also still get ski lessons, because for high end skiing, I think you need an instructor to figure out what you're doing wrong and then how to fix it...but now I'm excited to try the new carv and see how it performs! Very cool use of math and data for a ski application.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

It’s great to hear from someone who’s been using the product since the beginning. It is a great upgrade that it now registers all terrain.

[@johnklaus9111]

I'm always working on or thinking about my technique and I really enjoyed using carv at CB last year. This is an amazing improvement and I look forward to trying it again. To the point of those on the show, it didn't really work outside of groomers that were hard and flat (basically a race course) up until now. I am so excited to see what it says about my bumps and tree skiing moves. 😊

[@riotsupercarver7467]

Updated to the Nevado app today. I'm an alpine (hard boot) snowboarder using boot sole sensors for the NZ 2024 winter. All my numbers have been updated, and my Ski IQ has jumped up from 136 to 150. Intriguingly, when I carve high on edge my Parallel "ski" scores go through the floor! I have a run where I scored 0%. I figure it's to do with the way the board flexes and twists into a shape that is like a section of the wall of a cone, with the edge in the snow more tightly bent than the upper edge. Nevado thinks my ski tips converge/diverge depending on whether I'm on heelside or toeside. But it knows I CARV!

[@ThaiOclockJourney]

From a person who is still doing snow plough for 2 seasons now. I just got carv2 and absolutely excited to try to see if it works for beginner. Not just intermediate and advance skiers

[@ericrice120]

Tip for snowplow skier. A strong snowplow and good snowplow is ok. Don’t get too anxious to move to fast because what happens is that your snowplow will get smaller and smaller. The smaller it gets the closer you are to parallel skiing

[@ThaiOclockJourney]

@@ericrice120I will keep telling myself to get smaller❤❤

[@jerl.980]

My boot fit did not permit me to install the sole. I just bought the Carv2 and i am really curious to test them. I am an ex racer and instructor and for me i need a high level instructor( level 4) to really improve my skiing. I have a friend that is level 4 but i ski with him once a year. My expectations is that Carv2 can be that friend in my ear every time i ski if i want coaching. I will let you know how it goes. I found the video really informative on the changes made and how it translate to data that is used to guide the coaching.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

We will wait and hear what your experience is like. I think there are a lot of people in similar shoes to you.

[@jerl.980]

@@Bigpictureskiing I will let you know. I like your content it is very useful. I am trying your hip exercises to help me get more mobility after some injuries.

[@CarloBiondolillo]

Thank you Tom!

[@Bigpictureskiing]

You’re welcome

[@ameydav]

Another great discussion! I can’t wait for my CARV 2 to arrive, hopefully before my first trip in a few weeks. I have no doubt on the technical side that Ski:IQ accuracy will be as good as without the insoles. My one concern of lacking pressure sensors is on the human side - awareness of the feet. I grew up on straight skis. It was all about forward shin pressure. I never finished a ski week without bruised and scathed shins. On the other hand, I was oblivious to the fact that my feet have soles. It was only a combination of using the original CARV units together with your Big Picture Skiing body movement videos that changed my perception and my focus, allowing me to learn to carve on the flatter terrain (and to make the odd transition from steeps, bumps and powder to enjoying the groomers). I wonder how that awareness can be kept in focus with the new hardware. It’s something I will be looking at.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

I think that people who ski through their feet will show better skiing anyway. So it will be reflected in some way in the scoring of metrics.

[@ameydav]

@ I agree on that. But not everyone is aware that they *should* focus on the feet while skiing. My point was that the original CARV highlighted that by design, which brought me looking for your content. The new model will model the outputs correctly, but there needs to be some compensation, perhaps in the training tips in the app, to point this out.

[@marcogiardinastories]

Absolutely loving this deep dive into CARV 2! The real-time feedback tech is a game-changer for skiers at every level, from groomers to powder. I’ve been testing the beta version of CARV 2 myself, and despite some initial worries about the removal of the pressure sensor insole, the skiing community has really embraced it. The change to a more robust USB-C charging connector is also a welcome upgrade-thank you to the CARV team for listening to user feedback! I know some skiers are concerned that the new Ski IQ system could impact their hard-earned Ski IQ from last season, but I think it’s an exciting evolution. Soon, we’ll even be running Ski IQ competitions to challenge the community and see who can achieve the highest scores. Big thanks to Tom and the CARV team for pushing the boundaries of ski coaching! Can’t wait to see how this shapes the future of skiing. 🎿🔥

[@scarface548]

this is what we were looking for

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Can I ask what in particular you were waiting for? Thanks 🙏

[@scarface548]

@@Bigpictureskiing Tom I wanted to hear more information about how they made it work off-piste. Thats such an achievement for carv team.

[@hermannarminius7746]

Stomp It did a good job, but I was waiting for this lol

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Thanks. So you were really interested in the details of how they did it and why?

[@hermannarminius7746]

@@Bigpictureskiing I am working toward my Level 3 CSIA and I am working on my bump skiing. I found it was giving me weird feedback (based on balance/edge angles) vs when I would warm up on groomers and get "Mountain Master." I am excited and fascinated in how they're making the feedback specific to the task (ie groomer skiing down then start in the moguls, corduroy vs crude)

[@Benzknees]

What a refreshing podcast, with such clear, enthusiastic presentation & so few annoying verbal fillers. And the unit sounds like a huge improvement over the previous product, which was too flawed to interest me.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Thanks and glad you noticed the production side. Ive been working at it and will continue to make it easy listening

[@profdrlt]

@Tom: are you doing a review of the Carv v2 in addition to this interview? @Carv: is user data (sex, age, weight, height, humerus/tibia ratio, boot size, etc.) / ski data (length, radius, type, etc.) accounted for in Carv v2? Is snow condition, terrain and type of skiing set by the user, or determined automatically?

[@Bigpictureskiing]

I will be reviewing it after a lot more use. Some of the software updates are still being ironed out as we speak. Hardware wise I can confidently say I’m very happy with the change. Big step forward. Software: so far the changes are really positive in that it is closer to reflecting the view of an expert instructor watching you ski. It doesn’t penalize you for skiing on rougher snow or making different turn types. This was my main bug bear about the old software. Looking forward to seeing how this season goes using it

[@Jrlaney]

24:42 gamification sounds like a great way to encourage folks.

[@DD-xg4fe]

I have been undecided if to buy, until this very informational video. Unfortunately the promotion just ended yesterday 😢

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Oh no! I tried to get this podcast up as fast as I could. We only spoke last Thursday.

[@eugenek4493]

The trackers are still free with a yearly subscription. It is still a good deal. Ask Carv support and check if they give a discount with a referral and get someone to refer you if they do.

[@jacobuskooijman6256]

Now it's easy to change between boots. See how it works on tele gear😊

[@alex31481]

just one question. on the the carv2 for current carv owners. Aside from the boot fitting what exactly is going to be different between carv1 and carv2. I took the opportunity to buy the carv2 with the 50 dollar discount which comes with 1 year subscription fee. I play to give it to my daughter and I myself will keep using carv1. There were a lot of new features talked about here but it was not quite clear which new features was software only and which new features required the new hardware on the carv2. I am hoping the carve team can be a bit more transparent on this.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

From my understanding you can stick with the old hardware or choose the new. And the software works and is supported on both.

[@riotsupercarver7467]

John, now we need to get you carving on a snowboard as well! As a carving snowboarder CARV helped me this NZ winter. Higher edge angles (70+) and G's achieved. My understanding is the same as Tom's , Novado works seamlessly with CARV 1 devices and there is no absolute need to upgrade. Hoping my SkiIQ may improve as the geometry of my setup and the odd pressure patterns a snowboarder generate disappear. Peak edge angles in the 70-80s and 2+ G forces.....

[@CarvSki]

Carv 1 also has a motion sensor, so we were able to port our new, more powerful motion algorithms to work on Carv 1 - so the main benefits for upgrading to Carv 2 are the form factor, robustness and simplicity. The all terrain coaching applies to both units.

[@yoavrosenbach]

When Carv will give the ability to use the insta360 x family to self-shoot and synchronize with your Carv data?

[@CarvSki]

cool idea, probably not one for this year as we've got a lot still to do on improving coaching and simplifying the current experience. thanks for the suggestion, hopefully something for the future!

[@maxwerks]

@Bigpictureskiing any thoughts on using Carv 2 for race training and in gates?

[@DD-xg4fe]

Please reduce the subscription fees in Europe!

[@johnparchman753]

New Carv user here - Boy, I thought my IQ was going to be higher than it actually turned out. Humbling. Do you have a setting I could turn on for "Delusional".

[@Steph-iw3hr]

I prefer not to be the guinea pig and wait for most reviews to see pros and cons

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Totally. I can be like that with new products too. Lucky enough people are guinea pigs, and can then pave the way with constructive feedback making the product better.

[@foaly8]

you didn’t really ask about the biggest complaint everyone has. what’s up with outside ski pressure? does the movement stuff somehow capture that? when you did mention something similar, it sounded like they dodged that issue. talked about fore and aft etc. but outside ski pressure is something everyone really wants and needs to know, i presume? me at least.

[@Bigpictureskiing]

Interesting you say this. I actually don’t think that one really needs to be there. I know this will be controversial to say but that one you can do easily just feel. Plus it has so much more to do with turn shape, edging and speed the feeling on the outside skin. I used carv 2.0 all Aussie winter and didn’t need it. Focusing on many of the other metrics gets you there. And if you really want to just practice outside ski balance drills. and like I mention above, then play with turn shape, edging and timing. There is the use of the G force metric and this is quite cool to look at. It represents how the skier accelerates around a curve, or up the face of a bump. Charlie talks about the patterns he saw in good mogul skiing and the timing of g force rising up sharply was one of them. Hope this helps with your question about outside ski pressure.

[@foaly8]

@@Bigpictureskiingit was the reason I wanted Carv, but it’s possible that it’s not as valuable as I thought it would be. Anyways, I ordered Carv 2 and will see how well it works this winter 🥳 hopefully you’re right.

[@CarvSki]

Good question - outside ski pressure is no longer in the product. We made that decision for a few reasons - firstly, it was not the one of the more accurate metrics in the system owing to boot fit interference, but secondly, pressure can have many different requirements depending on the skier, ability and the terrain - which makes it hard to define what to score as 'good'. Even last year in Carv 1 we found it much more important to measure the 'transition' of pressure - early weight transfer. The new early forward movement, and transition weight release capture the transition with a greater degree of accuracy

[@bobdevine8391]

@@CarvSki When you developed it did you run both versions in parallel and if so could that option be made available in the app? I appreciate what you're saying about not needing the outside ski pressure but it might be interesting.

[@chandraramamoorthy871]

One has to wear earphones and carry a phone ?

[@jathompson37]

Carry a phone - yes. Earphones make it easier but not necessarily a requirement- the recommendations are also visible in the app.

[@anthonysears871]

Carv is hideous! Creating locked up contrived skiers!

[@joeystalloney5109]

Pay for equipment and a subscription?! $20/day?! No way.

[@ericrice120]

Stay average for you I guess

[@joeystalloney5109]

@@ericrice120 Skiers have risen to the top of the sport well before this was available, and continue to excel without it. Stay duped for you I guess.

[@chemystify]

My take: Most skiers are beginners and intermediates and, sensibly, that's who Carv is designed for. The key mechanics experts work on improving-counterbalancing (level hips), the timing and degree of counteracting, the timing of flexion and extension, and inside foot pullback-were not mentioned anywhere in this video, and aren't the sort of mechanics Carv is designed to assess. It's possible that, with suffiicient data collection and analysis, the Carv engineers would be able to see correlations between their measurements and these mechanics, and incorporate this into their algorithms. But this would be a significant undertaking, and it's not something they've done yet.

[@Alessandromarangoni123]

Can you show to us how it work in a video?

[@santii.4619]

Carv left the chat…

[@Benzknees]

It's in the FAQs on their website.