How To Build Speed And Say In Control!

One of the keys to better skiing is the ability to maintain control while increasing the speed of your skiing.

This sounds pretty simple doesn't it? Just go faster, maintain control, and you'll be a better skier!

But how do we do it?

How do we build up speed and maintain control?

Well the key here, is to understand, how we maintain control while skiing, and to use this knowledge and apply it, so we can maintain control while skiing faster.

As most skiing actions in the Harb system flow from the actions of the free foot.

Could it be possible that controlling the ‘free foot' while skiing faster and faster is the easiest way to maintain control while skiing faster and faster?

Now, for those of you who haven't met your free foot yet, your free foot is the foot that is light and is usually on the inside of the turn.

Check out our website for more on this. Go to the instructor page for the free lessons.

Harb calls controlling the ‘free foot' free foot management. So what is free foot management?

Free foot management is the ability to ski well by focusing on and managing the free foot. And the reason why we focus on the free foot is because most skiing actions in the Harb system flow from the actions of the free foot. So if we can master our free foot management, we master our skiing?

With that said...

One of the main reasons skiers' cant build up speed and stay in control, is because they try to manage their faster skiing, with their slower skiing free foot management!

I mean isn't it obvious?

Skiers won't enjoy much success at all, if they try using a slow free foot management system, when attempting to ski faster and faster!

So why do skiers do this to themselves?

Possibly, the answer is, because that's all they know how to do! I mean if you are a small child and you have only learnt to crawl, you aren't going to suddenly jump up and win the 100 meter final at the next Olympics!

So where am I going with all of this? I am glad you asked!!!!

It's the same with skiing.

If you would like to build speed and stay in control, then your current free foot management won't get you there! So the first thing you'll need to accept is that something in your current skiing has to change.

And if most of our good skiing actions flow from good free foot management.

Could it be that we need a new free foot management system, a new faster one, one that can allow you to build speed and maintain control?

I hope so... As this is what I plan to focus on over the next few Ezines. Especially as this is fresh in my mind having just returned from the last few ski races of the season, where I realized, my slow skiing free foot management system doesn't help me ski faster in the race course. So I had to create a new one!

Let's look at the benefits to learning a new free foot management system that maintains control at higher speeds?

Well the benefits are endless, here are a few off the top of my head. A new free foot management system that allows us to build speed and maintain control will:

Help us to keep up with faster skiers
Help us keep ahead of snowboarders (this alone is priceless) Open up steeper terrain Help us ski bumps
Help us ski powder

So what is the first step?

What is the first step to discovering how to ski faster while maintain control?

The first step is to understand WHY you move the things you move, especially the free foot, while skiing!

Let's for a moment look at a master reference point.

And a skier with impeccable free foot management.

A skier who maintains their free foot in the ideal position, I call the free foot sweet spot, on each and every turn?

Who is this reference point?

Harald Harb that's who! Harald skis beautifully in all conditions, at all speeds and on all terrain.

Why?

Because Harald knows how to find and manage his ‘free foot sweet spot' in every condition even at full speed and he likes speed, just try and keep up with him when he is skiing! You'll find out what I mean!

Let's be 100% clear here.

Step one in building speed while maintaining control is to know how to find and manage your free foot so it remains in the ‘free foot sweet spot' while you performing faster and faster turns.

So what is your free foot sweet spot?

I have talked about this before.

Your skiing ‘free foot sweet spot' is the spot where you free foot resides so you maintain 100% balance on your stance ski.

One way to check and or discover that your free foot is in the right spot, is to imagine taking away your stance ski during a turn, and if you can complete the turn without ‘moving a muscle', by simply transferring your balance to your free foot, then your free foot is residing in the free foot sweet spot!

I feel the need to capitalize this.

WHAT I JUST SHARED WITH YOU IS PURE SKIING GOLD! I CAN”T STRESS THIS ENOUGH!

Why?

Because the only way to ski well is to manage your free foot so it maintains it's ‘free foot sweet spot' position from the start, middle and through to the end of the turn.

So many skiers forget this primary fact!

And this is what trips up most skiers. They forget this primary fact. Or they weren't aware of it until now.

And forgetting this fact is what leads skiers down the path of confusion!

See if you lose sight of your outcome, you lose your ability to think, move and ski with the certainty to ski well.

You see, trying to ski faster and faster with a slow speed ‘free foot sweet spot' positioning is a recipe for failure!

What makes this strategy even less effective is that when skiing at lower speeds, you can use a sloppy ‘free foot sweet spot' position and get away with it because of the lower speeds and lower demands placed on you.

This fact becomes ‘in your face' apparent when you try and step up by increasing your speed, when sloppy slow speed free foot management tactics!

You find out straight away, that slower speed free foot management won't do the job, at higher speeds!

So over the next few issues, we'll apply this new understanding to clearly identify why we move on skis.

This will hopefully open your eyes to seeing skiing in a whole new light!

For instance in the next issue we'll look at the release. As many skiers ask me? How much flex should I use to release the stance ski?

And armed with this new information we can now answer this question with 100% certainty.

And the answer for you to ponder over until next issue is...

Let's answer WHY we release the stance ski before we answer how much to release it by. As when we understand WHY, how much we release takes care of itself!

So WHY do we release the stance ski? Well we just identified that the key to skiing well is to maintain the free foot in the ‘free foot sweet spot' through the whole turn.

So could it be possible that the reason why we release the stance ski is so that it can switch into the free foot while maintaining it in its ideal ‘free foot sweet spot' position.

Let's assume for a moment this is right.

Then how much do we release it? How much do we allow it to flex, shorten contract etc...?

And the answer is simple now...

All you need to do is release the stance ski in a way that allows the releasing stance ski to switch into the free foot while maintaining it in its ideal ‘free foot sweet spot' position

I'll give you some examples on this next issue.

And I'll leave you with this fact.

Once you know that every skiing movement you make should support your free foot management, so your free foot maintains its ‘free foot sweet spot' position, then you'll be able to take your skiing to whatever level you desire!

And you'll certainly be able to build up high speed and stay in control!

Article brought to you by ex-ski coach now peak performance life coach Peter Stone from www.peak-performance-coaching.com.au. Visit us for free resources on how to live a rich and fulfilling life with all the energy, time and money you need to do what you want!