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Post by gary on Feb 25, 2014 9:43:29 GMT -7
Pass the Pabst Blue Ribbon and make my wings spicy please!
I think we all have that internal drive that pushes us towards" the zing that keeps us coming back to the mountain"....and it's similar and different in all of us.
Whatever that "zing" is for you and me...as long as you're smilin' at the end of the day and you're enjoying it with like mind skiers......it's ALL good!
G
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Post by lynn on Feb 25, 2014 12:50:15 GMT -7
Gary Can we change the beer? PBR sucks, imho. Oops, did I set off a beer war?
Liam, I really like the conversation.
I was telling Jim a few weeks ago, that if 10 years ago, I watched today's Lynn ski, I would have pointed her out as my goal. And would be happy to just be at that goal.
Liar that I am. Now, that I am at that point, it isn't enough. I want to improve more. And feel that it is in my ability to do so. Slow, but sure.
Doesn't mean I am constantly doing drills. Far from it. And yes, there are those moments when the snow, the skier and the mountain all come together and just flow.
LP, sorry for the thread drift!
Jim and I are heading for our ski/road trip this friday night. Will think of all you finding nirvana in your own way.
Lynn
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2014 13:33:23 GMT -7
Gary Can we change the beer? PBR sucks, imho. Oops, did I set off a beer war? Liam, I really like the conversation. I was telling Jim a few weeks ago, that if 10 years ago, I watched today's Lynn ski, I would have pointed her out as my goal. And would be happy to just be at that goal.
Liar that I am. Now, that I am at that point, it isn't enough. I want to improve more. And feel that it is in my ability to do so. Slow, but sure. Doesn't mean I am constantly doing drills. Far from it. And yes, there are those moments when the snow, the skier and the mountain all come together and just flow. LP, sorry for the thread drift! Jim and I are heading for our ski/road trip this friday night. Will think of all you finding nirvana in your own way. Lynn Well then. Perhaps now you are ready for the Supershape Speed Go forth and find thee a demo! And so nice to hear that you are not constantly doing drills. When Gary and Liam post here, they often talk about the pure joy of skiing, the beauty of being in the mountains (wherever they may be), the friends and camaraderie, and most of all the FUN! But to be honest, they seem to be the only ones who express these sentiments here. This has kind of left me scratching my head at times, wondering what the others get out of this sport, aside from the clinical/analytical aspect of technique and striving for perfect movements. Was the entire other side of the sport being missed? The sensory; the emotional; the aesthetic....the adrenalin?! I got the sense that this was a big part of what Liam was asking in his earlier post -- "Where are you all at with that?" It stoked an interesting discussion, and there are some good viewpoints being expressed here. Carry on....
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Post by smackboy1 on Feb 25, 2014 13:55:10 GMT -7
PBR sucks, imho. Oops, did I set off a beer war? Just don't tell me you like Heineken. Now you've gone and upset Dennis Hopper... (p.s. NSFW) She wore Blue Velvet [skiing] Bluer than velvet was the night [skiing] Softer than satin was the light [corduroy] . . .
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Post by gary on Feb 25, 2014 14:01:10 GMT -7
Ok Lynn....give me a plain ole Fat Tire..I must add the PBR's were very popular at Powder Mountain....hmmm....or was that the cheapest beer one of the guys in our group could buy in bulk at the local store.. Either way it was cold and went well with snacks....!!!
Oh man that video cracked me up.....gesh..I'm sticking with PBR's..!!!
Let's go skiing:
Wife and I with family members heading to Bromly to ski Fri, Sat and maybe Sun this week...so yeah....another good reason to be on snow...Family!
Svend....I find it most effective not to have a too hard wired brain....!
I also might add I've skied with Greg..and he's always working on perfection but a blast to ski with!
Boil down all the discussions, all the drills, the focus, the skill sets....I've skied with Jim, Lynn, Svend, Mike, Greg, Ron, Perry and maybe one or two more here...AND I'd ski anywhere, anytime with them...CAUSE..we ALWAYS have fun!
Best, G
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Post by lynn on Feb 25, 2014 14:33:28 GMT -7
Oh my God, I remember seeing Blue Velvet at the theatre! What a weird movie! NO, NO, heineken. Minimal taste. Fat Tire is pretty good. Very fond of Magic Hat 9 too. There are many lovely, flavorful beers out there. Great craft beers in Vermont and Colorado. Utah is working on it, but those Mormons have been slow to pick up good beer. Something about not being allowed to have alcohol? OH, wait a minute. Skiing, yes skiing. That's what we were talking about. L.
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Post by HeluvaSkier on Feb 25, 2014 15:55:54 GMT -7
Delerium Noel. End Thread. On a somewhat more serious note, just because a skier is constatnly immersed in technical improvement does not mean that they wear it on their sleeve [okay, some do]. When I ski with others, I only mention technique if asked about it directly. I keep what is going on in my head to myself (Unless someone like Gary prods and says "hey... whats going on in there?"), and just have fun on the mountain. I'm not out to change anyone's mind about how to ski, nor do I assume they actually care about my motivation to improve, or how I'm doing it. I just ski. Of course... if you ask me a direct question... be prepared for a direct answer.
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Post by JimRatliff on Feb 25, 2014 16:07:26 GMT -7
Ok, a couple of recent examples. Feb. 13 we went to a little local hill with 600' of vertical that had gotten 12"the night before on top of the 20" the day before. We started of skiing some powder atop some bumps along the edge of a Black run. We had that half of the trail to ourselves for 5 or 6 runs until we had tracked it up, then other people began sharing it. By mid afternoon we agreed that we were probably the 2 best skiers on the mountain, but EVERYONE was having fun. We skied through the terrain park, we skied through the snow fan storage area, we skied around the edge of Devils Drop and dropped in, and we almost got the breath knocked out of us when it flattened out at the bottom. We smiled all day at the 6-10 year old kids that were loving the snow, and we had one flat runout almost to ourselves because few would carry enough speed in the powder to get around the corner. In fact, a couple of runs were almost like "boarder slalom" dodging the snow boarders that had lost their speed.
Little Brave at Beaver Creek: This trail always brings huge smiles to our faces, and we have both had people waggle their fingers at us because we were skiing too fast. It makes us feel like we are on a race course. Starts out really flat and wide, good for some big carves, then a steep section that generates the speed for the coming S turn, 2 or 3 big rollers with trees in the middle of the trail for gates, an easy right turn, another drop, and a sharp left turn at the bottom. Careful with that last turn because if you don't hold your edges you are going into the gully and the trees on the far side. Just visualizing running it in my head makes me smile.
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Post by ToddW on Feb 25, 2014 17:38:43 GMT -7
Liam,
It's a case of the high standards that I aspire to. Whenever I ski, something is being practiced whether I choose to or not ... and practice makes permanent. Therefore, I choose to decide what gets made permanent. It does not detract from skiing pleasure any more than an awareness of composition theory keeps good music from sending shivers up and down your spine.
Skiing for me is mostly about g-forces, playing with gravity, kinesthetic pleasures, ski buddies, and majestic views (especially the views!) The rest of it is about the challenge of self improvement. In non-athletic endeavours, I usually float effortlessly to the top. But I was one of those guys who was always picked last for teams in gym class. So being able to do something athletic, courtesy of PMTS, and do it better than many who have skied their whole lives is pretty cool.
I know exactly where my skiing stands, and I am friendly with several examiners and level 3 instructors and know their individual turns intimately. But I also know several serious amateur students of PMTS who ski radically better than them or me. So by my standards those examiners and instructors and I are all still poor skiers. It's lucky for you that you never took physics from me. I abhor grade inflation. Teachers like me are why university physics courses are graded on a curve ;-)
I'm deep into ski technique because that's how I personally maximize my expected total lifetime ski fun. I keep my trap shut about it on the slopes unless I'm skiing with another ski clinic geek type.
Todd
PS after ski beer tastes better when brewed and consumed in the Austrian Alps. Anyone for next year's Hintertux Camp?
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Post by danboisvert on Feb 25, 2014 19:13:42 GMT -7
... 3. My question is a cultural one, or maybe a personal one. At what point do you let go of that 'inner-coach' carping in your ear? At what point (bringing up an older thread where I read this and it struck a sour note with me) does Someone shouting out to you, while you are skiing powdery glades at Steamboat(!!), that you are Countering wrong, become a detraction, a step away from why you ski? Or is that always there? Does everyone who hits a bunch of camps get that permanent mindset? ... Sure, Others are better, and I'd like to move my skiing to be more like theirs and actually I spend time training to do so, but, I can let go, too: On the Forums and in the trees. Honestly, how many others here do? Why or Why not? And I mean that as an open ended point of discussion. When does the inner clinician go on coffee break and the inner ski buddy with an inner six pack and a plate of wings come out? I've never been to a camp but, for me, it's often which trail or mountain I'm on. Some mountains (eg, Magic) always feel like playgrounds to me, and I'm so busy playing I don't really think much. Other mountains (eg, Stratton) feel more like training hills, and I'm actively working on something pretty much the whole time I'm there. Mountains like Sugarbush seem to have a good mix, and it'll change depending on which run I'm on. I think the only exception is when I'm playing and something goes wrong or isn't working, I may give myself a quick reminder "uh, foot pullback at the top of the bump? hello!". I feel like letting the mind quiet down helps after you've got enough functional movements ingrained that you don't need the constant active reminder. That seems to take a bunch of days to get, in any sport. I didn't start skiing until I was 27, so I feel like I'm a bit behind the curve on it, but have been feeling this season like a lot of things have been smoothing out for me, despite my general slacking on drills and stuff. I'm sure video would show I'm making a mess of things, and I'll get back to more active work probably next season, but I'm enjoying the smoother ride, especially in the bumps. Sometimes mileage helps. It's nice to enjoy the play, too.
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