Skiing is an exciting pastime that will give you an excuse to travel and meet friends as well as help you keep your body in tip top shape. If you’re considering taking up skiing as your newest hobby, here are a few tips to help you get started.

The Proper Positioning for Skiing

Positioning is extremely important when skiing. If you start out with a bad position, you’ll most likely end up with an equally bad fall. The best pose to have before skiing is to keep your feet slightly apart, with the distance between your feet equaling the width of your shoulders. Your skis, on the other hand, must form a V-shape.

As you move, you’ll have to slightly bend your lower body, starting from the waist, then your knees going down to your ankles. Make sure that your arms remain slightly outstretched and steady on your skis. It’s very important that pressure is evenly distributed to both of your feet.

Making a Turn

It will seem extremely difficult and scary to make a turn on your first attempt at skiing, but rest assured that this is a doable objective. The first thing you have to do is place your body in the basic position once more – feet slightly apart, your lower body bent slightly, and your arms spread widely – then slowly but firmly turning your feet to the direction you wish to take. Make sure that you still keep your eyes straight ahead and not down on your feet while make the turn. Once you’ve turned your feet successfully to the right direction, you’ll realize that your body has automatically done the same!

While it’s easy to make turns on slow and gentle slopes, it naturally becomes harder on steeper courses because of the amount of effort you need to exert to keep control of your body and your skis. Practice however will soon make you a pro at turning left and right.

Walking and Gliding

If there’s a short distance between you and your intended destination and you’d wish to cover it by walking rather than skiing, take your skis off and put your ski boots to work. It’s easier and safer that way.

To glide in your skis, on the other hand, all you have to do is assume the basic positioning once more. Relax your grip then let yourself go. Again, keep your eyes straight ahead and not at the snow beneath you!

How to Schuss

Schussing is a German term that’s now used to describe skiing downhill. It’s impossible that you won’t find a need to schuss if you’re determined to have skiing as your hobby. Thus, it’s better to start practicing now than having to learn it in an instant.

The first thing you should do is find an appropriate slope where you can practice schussing. If you’re at a skiing resort, any member of the staff or crew will surely point you out to appropriate practice areas for schussing. If you’re alone, however, just make sure that the slope you’ll be practicing on is relatively low, with gentle curves, and without any physical obstacles in your course.

Assume the basic position for skiing, with your skis pointed downwards. Make sure that you’re relaxed and confident before doing this. Don’t attempt to do this alone as much as possible during your first few tries. If you’re ready, let yourself go. Always keep your eyes straight ahead of you. Make sure that your skis and feet are moving in harmony as you go downhill.

Remember to keep the same amount of pressure for both feet or you’ll easily lose your balance. If there are small impediments in the course, use your hips, knees, and ankles to avoid or go around them. While schussing, try to find a position that’s most comfortable for you. The important thing is to stay relaxed!

Keeping Control of Your Speed

Just like when you learn driving or horseback riding, you’ll also have to know how to effectively step on the brakes and make a clean stop. To do so, you’ll have to assume the snow plough position once more. This will allow you to control your speed. If you wish to make a full stop, just turn your feet inwards while forming an inverted V.

Although there are certainly many benefits to enjoy when going skiing, keep in time that this is still a moderately dangerous hobby to pursue for any individual. If you have any past or present medical condition, be sure to inform your physician first about your intentions before trying out any slopes. Have fun skiing!

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Novice skiers are sometimes bewildered by snow conditions that can vary from day to day. Just when you think you have mastered one type of snow, you are suddenly faced with icy patches or crud. These different skiing conditions are a big part of what makes this sport so fun and exciting. Relax! With a little time and practice you will be able to perform like a seasoned pro on any surface.

Snow texture on ski trails is impacted by both weather conditions and the amount of people who are using the trail. Snow can vary in moisture content and density. Commonly, the colder the weather, the drier the snow. The longer that snow remains on the ground, the denser and heavier it gets. When a lot of skiers are using a trail of older snow, icy patches usually develop because the action of the skis over the snow causes it to melt and then freeze again.

Here are some examples of snow conditions that you are likely to come across as the season progresses:

Powder

Skiers love powder! This is newly fallen, soft, fluffy snow that’s untouched by other skiers. The vast majority of enthusiasts regard skiing on fresh powder as the ultimate skiing experience. Some will travel obscene distances to get to powder. Powder demands a unique skiing technique, though, and the beginner may fall a lot. At least the snow is soft and dry enough to even make falling a delight! The greatest challenge when skiing powder is to keep your weight distributed over the skis evenly. Since the snow is so delicate, excess pressure on one ski will cause it to sink. It is also necessary to shift your weight more to the rear than on more stable snow surfaces.

Crud

Crud is powder that has been skied on. As more skiers use the slope the trail turns into a patchwork of virgin and packed snow. This presents the challenge of perpetually changing surfaces as you work your way down the slope. Skiing on crud can be fun, but calls for a more aggressive technique than skiing on powder. Your knees should be kept bent to absorb the impact of the deeper sections of snow, and you will have to be constantly alert to what is approaching.

Crust

Crusty snow has a hard surface on top of softer powder. Crust is formed when the sun melts the top layer of snow and it then refreezes. Crusts can be either hard or soft. Hard crusts ordinarily do not pose a problem since the skier will stay on top, but softer crusts will break. Skiing through soft crust can be a true challenge because your sideways movements will be somewhat restricted. The most intriguing altogether is an intermixture of hard and soft crusts. Hitting a section of hard crust while skiing through a soft crust can cause a nasty crash.

Ice

Ice is the most challenging and the least amusing. If your skis are angled as they cross ice they will slip out from underneath you causing you to wipe out. Ordinarily, only parts of the slope will have ice patches and they can be spotted by their coloration. The key to skiing icy slopes is to keep alert and flatten your skis whenever crossing an ice patch.

Slush

Slush is very soft, wet snow. It’s created by warming temperatures that cause the snow to melt. Because the snow is dense, it requires a fair amount of effort to turn. Gentle, gradual turns are more successful than quick maneuvers, which likely will cause your skis to get caught in the snow and make you wreck. Falling in slush is definitely not fun! If you are a skilled hard-core skier desiring to squeeze the last few days out of the season, possibly you can tolerate slush. All but these few diehards are better off avoiding it.

Whatever snow conditions you encounter – have fun!

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