Why Tall Skiers Win Slaloms (Ramon Zenhäusern wins Alta Badia)

It seems weird but it´s true. Tall Skiers are better off in Slalom. Why is that?
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[@saintrroy]

Your logic is most interesting and the observation of the distance the upper body travel-distance for the racer to directly go down the fall line to get inside the gate is most definitely less for the taller racer, than the shorter racer. Also note, laws of physics play a simpler role, taller racers make contact with / clear the gates much higher than shorter racers, and that confers a massive advantage to the taller racer : because the force required to clear the gate is much less when you hit the gates higher than lower, cause of basic torque and lever length principles. That is one of the key reasons, you will find taller racers dominating Slalom generally, obviously not in every situation. If you observe Junior Racing, it is the big, tall heavy kids who are barreling down the mountain , straighter than their smaller competitors, (as the big kids need to move less, and clear the gates with significantly less rebound force to slow their progress ) who dominate Slalom races - this is a generalization but applies quite universally. It is the rare shorter racer who can figure out line and clear gates to match them as the force they need and the mass the carry are both usually less than the taller, bigger racer. The reactive force from the gate is a lot bigger for the shorter racer - basic physics . This is no longer true in Giant Slalom, where ability to weather g-forces and maintain angular momentum come into play.

[@beattheclock7509]

Thats very true, i like the example with kids races.

[@deetrane]

Your commentary is really valuable - much more so than the music track. Do you mind turning the music track down a bit in future videos so we can hear what you have to say? Thanks!

[@beattheclock7509]

haha yea sorry about that, i did turn it down more in the latest videos. Thanks a lot for the feedback!!!!

[@lukemasters7498]

dang the people in my region are the opposite, all the short guys ahead while the tall guys like me are mid to end. Only a couple of us though

[@rubensiekman2358]

Really great and interesting video, (Only the background music makes it a bit hard to hear what you're explaining)

[@skisunfb]

Servus! Great video and analysis! I'm also a tall skier and was wondering about your take on forward lean for skiers like myself with long levers (I'm 191). Do we generally need more (via spoilers etc.) than shorter skiers? My lower legs are much thinner than most shorter skiers and I feel the need to have to those gaps in my calf area suppored with a spoiler, sometimed two, just to get me centered. It gets tricky sometimes getting dialed in so that I can also ski bumps, powder and terrain. I appreciate any thoughts you might have. Merci viel mals!

[@beattheclock7509]

Hi Frederic, i believe finding a suitable setup is unfortunately for you a little more difficult. This is because of long levers. However once found, you can use these long levers to your advantage (just look at Marco Odermatt / Ramon). It makes a lot of sense to use spoilers ect. to adjust the boot in a way that allows you to ski well.. i´m not an expert in equipment and i am only 180, but finding the right tilting angle in your boot is crucial, so make small adjustments and see where they go.. This is always an incremental process and will take ~1-3 months at the beginning of each season (or not if you don´t change boots) I would go to a specialist and ask them for advice.. i can give you the phone numbers of a couple of experts in austria, but don´t know any outside the country.. Merci vielmol ;)

[@skisunfb]

@@beattheclock7509 Great advice - thank you! I might take you up on visiting a boot fitter in Austria, I lived in Vienna for many years and visit quite often. We have a few good ones here in Sun Valley (Idaho) but I think we tall guys are often left to our own devices (na hobidiehre!)....mainly trial and error, as you suggested. Ois guade! :)

[@beattheclock7509]

@@skisunfb love it! you can email me here: [e-mail]

[@tobiastschernuth1598]

looks still a bit odd, seeing a 2meter somthing guy with those tiny ski and gates. but i like him a lot

[@beattheclock7509]

saaame

[@lucazaccagnini2550]

Dear publisher of the channel, thank you so much for your work (and your colleagues' work)! I really appreciate your competence too, of course. One question about this video. Could you explain in the written word the reason why taller ski can better choose a tight line than the shorter ones? Maybe I didn't get your point well, and the only thing that I got is that being taller, they can move their upper body less than the shorter ones moving from one turn to the next. Thanks in advance.

[@beattheclock7509]

Thank you so much!! Imagine you are skiing a slalom: the more directly your body can travel down the falline, the faster you will be, that´s obvious.. now the important point here is that the more your body is "inside" the gate, the more direct your body travels down the falline... There is only one way to get your body closer to the falline: and that is you could chose a more direct line with the skis closer to the gate.. once that option is off the table (because of ruts), then the taller skier has the advantage. Because he has got longer legs, his body is naturally closer to the falline than his competitors..

[@sampovaljus6230]

Nice video, and intresting analysis, as always. But, for the next video, please tune down the background music - now I find it almost impossible to understand what you are saying because of the noise 👍

[@beattheclock7509]

@@sampovaljus6230 thanks a lot for the feedback, will do so!

[@lucazaccagnini2550]

@@beattheclock7509 ​ @Beat The Clock Thank you so much for the explanation. I think now I got it. Taller skiers have the chance to let the legs work in the lateral plane with the least involvement of the upper body mass, which remains quiet and facing down the hill. On the contrary, the shorter one's lateral extension is not enough to be at the right place with their feet at the gate, then they have to move their body mass a certain amount from facing the fall line to following the direction of their skis.

[@beattheclock7509]

@@lucazaccagnini2550 thats exactly it! You are very welcome!

[@dj_617]

Hirscher dominated slalom and gs at 1.73m.

[@beattheclock7509]

You are right, as i mentioned in the video.. He is simply a different kind of animal.

[@dj_617]

Michaela is short. So is Brignone. And yes Petra is tall. So it is all relative. Height has as much advantages as disadvantages. Skiing is not basketball.

[@beattheclock7509]

@@dj_617 Yes it does depend, but if well controlled height is an advantage.. or do you think it is by chance that most of the top SL skiers are tall?

[@beattheclock7509]

Haha and now Kristofferson (180) wins ahead of Foss-Solevag (182) showing you´re totally right and maybe that i´m wrong. I think the points I made are still valid, BUT obviously anything can and will happen and if Henrik skiing like that, his height isn´t an issue.

[@dj_617]

@@beattheclock7509 tall skiers have to make larger movement which is a disadvantage in fast set courses like yesterday.