CARV app is pestering me to 'refer a friend and they get $75 off. Ends in 4 days'. If anyone interested, PM me or anyone else that already has CARV.
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Wow. Quite the passionate reply. You are quite right. If you do not get answers that make sense, you don't waste your time pursuing further answers or buying the product.
first day yesterday - i like lessons and camps etc.....price seemed cheap enough to me to justify a go. More interestingly, the carv camps put together
a roster of instructors that are kind of hard to get access to ime. This is what sold it for me - the ability to access instruction from truly world class folk.
I will attend a camp shortly.
It works about like I thought, ie yours scores are going to be highest on well groomed medium or light blues with fresh legs. The tips and drills appear
valid. Main value for me is watching your scores deteriorate (balance for me) as you move into steeper terrain - For me this is what I'm working on - I have said to various instructors
"see any technical short turns where speed management is key?" and over the course of a day or days it's hard for us to find an example from the lifts. It's not
done much except on youtube but that is possibly because it so difficult - my hope.
I consider this a weakness in my skiing (I'm not looking for feedback just adding to a resource that has occasionally been helpful) and hope a focus on short turn leads to better skiing off-piste where I focus.
I will probably modify the boot boards in a pair so as to ski more comfortably with them - I've been meaning to fuss with heel lowering again anyway and have a few older pairs of boots around-maybe you do too.
138 was the number - prob can squeeze a bit more out if I tailor my turns to the apps liking - That may not be the way I choose to ski but I'm gonna guess "learning"
whatever the app likes and trying to extend that style from light blue to light black aint gonna hurt anything and will probably help.
carry on.
a roster of instructors that are kind of hard to get access to ime. This is what sold it for me - the ability to access instruction from truly world class folk.
I will attend a camp shortly.
It works about like I thought, ie yours scores are going to be highest on well groomed medium or light blues with fresh legs. The tips and drills appear
valid. Main value for me is watching your scores deteriorate (balance for me) as you move into steeper terrain - For me this is what I'm working on - I have said to various instructors
"see any technical short turns where speed management is key?" and over the course of a day or days it's hard for us to find an example from the lifts. It's not
done much except on youtube but that is possibly because it so difficult - my hope.
I consider this a weakness in my skiing (I'm not looking for feedback just adding to a resource that has occasionally been helpful) and hope a focus on short turn leads to better skiing off-piste where I focus.
I will probably modify the boot boards in a pair so as to ski more comfortably with them - I've been meaning to fuss with heel lowering again anyway and have a few older pairs of boots around-maybe you do too.
138 was the number - prob can squeeze a bit more out if I tailor my turns to the apps liking - That may not be the way I choose to ski but I'm gonna guess "learning"
whatever the app likes and trying to extend that style from light blue to light black aint gonna hurt anything and will probably help.
carry on.
I highly highly highly recommend the camps organized by Thomas Roennau in Aspen at the Carv Performance Institute. Take a look at the faculty...
World Class Ski Coaching | Carv Performance Institute | Aspen
World class coaching for the intermediate to advanced skier. We are a team of world ranked CARV skiing professionals who use CARV technology to enhance your skiing performance.
carvperformanceinstitute.com
I’ve used CARV a half dozen times, I think it’s a really good tool for finding issues. Sometimes it diagnoses and offers suggestions that are right on point, other times it puts you on the road to finding it yourself.
As an example, until I saw video I didn’t associate a toppling issue with coming up some at transition. Better retraction Improved things. The software and verbal input doesn’t always succeed in making you aware. But that’s why I think CARV could combine really well with proper instruction. So CPI camps could be really valuable.
As far as lower scores in POW, bumps, etc. Sure as one might expect. But if you can get past the ego bruise and adjust to lower scores, it helps expand rotary and fundamentals leading to improvement, which is more the purpose than high scores for me. I would like to know Ted’s scores in bumps
.
It’s also nice to have truly useful features added along the way. As an example, I’d rather get scores on segments of runs as opposed to an average for everything including run outs, pops into the trees (ooh…look…powder lol). As of a few weeks ago the app now does that.
I‘m sold, I give CARV high marks. For the right student, it’s a really effective, efficient and affordable gateway to higher level skiing.
As an example, until I saw video I didn’t associate a toppling issue with coming up some at transition. Better retraction Improved things. The software and verbal input doesn’t always succeed in making you aware. But that’s why I think CARV could combine really well with proper instruction. So CPI camps could be really valuable.
As far as lower scores in POW, bumps, etc. Sure as one might expect. But if you can get past the ego bruise and adjust to lower scores, it helps expand rotary and fundamentals leading to improvement, which is more the purpose than high scores for me. I would like to know Ted’s scores in bumps
.It’s also nice to have truly useful features added along the way. As an example, I’d rather get scores on segments of runs as opposed to an average for everything including run outs, pops into the trees (ooh…look…powder lol). As of a few weeks ago the app now does that.
I‘m sold, I give CARV high marks. For the right student, it’s a really effective, efficient and affordable gateway to higher level skiing.
Do you get lower scores for brushed short turns vs. a pure carved turn? Do scores go down for brushing top of turn into a carved finish vs a carved turn?
I am wondering if the score drop is to changing your tactic. Arc to arc carved turns may not be the best tactic (if you are trying to ski all day) for certain slopes.
Is there a slope pitch sweetspot for highest score? Higher/lower pitch leads to lower scores even if you have 'perfect' carve still?
@Lorenzzo is the segment function working for you already? I thiught that is still a few weeks out from general release. I’m really interested in using that feature, I haven’t been doing many drills yet this season but have been using then individual turn IQ feature. That was an eye opener in how much variation there is in my turns lol. I’m frequently ranging from 60 to 140 in one run. Besides my lack of skiing skills, how crowded the trails are and they condition they are in plays a big difference which makes sense. I’m also need a decent amount of speed to get a decent score.
Haven’t tried to use that new feature, didn’t realize it wasn’t functional yet. As far as inconsistency, I’m not getting that much unless I change tactics which can be a function of crowding, snow surface, etc. I don’t expect high scores if I’m intending to brush, stivot on steeps, etc. I’m not going to break 140 in bumps or brushing around, I might be as low as the 120s in those situations. Then it comes down to the elements. Am I sub-par at something in those situations I should be better at?
What I’ve found is that once you brush, your score drops. It also is not a fan of cross under turns.
Best slope for scoring is 23 degrees & flat perfect groom from team on their FB page - I would tend to agree.
My biggest gripe is that Eastern terrain is too narrow & undulating, thus impacts the score (not to mention our pond ice snow…).
So, perfect for perfecting arc-2-arc carving on my old 10th Mountain wooden skis with the screw on metal edges and my old leather lace-ups.
Unfortunately, I can't seem to find those skis or the boots now .Agreed, I live in North Carolina, so my local slopes are slush during the day, and ice the rest of the time with narrow, short runs. I have been using CARV for 3 seasons and am seeing improvements in my technique e.g. balance, stance etc even for non-carving turns. For the first 2 seasons I predominantly focused on just SkiIQ which increased from 100-110, to 110-120, to 120-130 depending on the slope. For this year I am focused on getting more consistent in the 130 SkiIQs and my first 140. However, I am now also focusing more on the drills and challenges, even when I go to the slopes at night and ski on ice. The balance drill is a weak point for me, as well as getting higher edge angles, so is my current focus and I am seeing the benefits from this already.
For me it is less about comparing my SkiIQ to other people on the West Coast etc (as much as I would love to be a 150-160 SkiIQ champion!), however I do review my skiing compared to the local leaderboard on my mountain. My main focus is comparison to my own scores and metrics and seeing an overall improvement. Already in the first 6 weeks of this season, even with the crummy weather we have been having, I have consistently got more 120+ SkiIQs than the entirety of last season so things are heading in the right direction.
I still believe that CARV is a great tool for those that want to see and review their data and adapt based on it. For individuals that want to improve it can be beneficial irrespective as to whether you are a beginner, intermediate or advanced skier, but the sweet spot, in my view, is for the intermediate skier. There is a lot of potential as well and the improvements they are making are continuing to add more and more value. However, how much you get out of it is really dependent on how much you put into it and the type of skiing you want to do. It's easy to knock it, but to me it is just part of a toolkit I use to focus on improving. The new video coaching feature that ties the video to the individual turn SkiIQ is a definite step forward for visual analysis.
There are a few things I wish they would add, that have been requested by myself and others:
- Add a 'difficulty' indicator to the leaderboard that takes into account speed, descent, number of turns, length of run (and in the future snow/weather conditions etc)
- Add the ability to set up a ski quiver and more easily select which ski you are using BEFORE you start the ski session rather than after
- Ability to export the data e.g. to Excel, or have a website that is easier to review/compare your metrics and see highs, lows, averages etc
- Heat map of each individual turn to show if it is above or below the average SkiIQ for the run to make it easier to see where you need to focus more
I'd like to see when a score is logged & hits the leaderboard (& somehow calculated into a difficulty quotient). It's weird b/c they sorta made it like Strava, but sorta not.
Over the weekend, I landed #1 on the Leaderboard for 2 ski areas where my kids had races, however - I was only 2 points ahead on the seasonal board, yet a full 35 points ahead on the week / day of second. Feels like there should be a way to write an algorithm to sort this out.
Over the weekend, I landed #1 on the Leaderboard for 2 ski areas where my kids had races, however - I was only 2 points ahead on the seasonal board, yet a full 35 points ahead on the week / day of second. Feels like there should be a way to write an algorithm to sort this out.
Tried mine (christmas gift to myself!) on Sunday, found it useful and added an element of fun here in Michigan, where frankly I struggle to stay interested without coming up with games or whatnot to occupy myself. Certainly it's probably not for everyone (my my this thread has some religion going on....lighten up folks, it's skiing for pete's sake) and it is certainly, as already stated, focused on blue carved turns. One aspect I found gratifying was that my number was around where I thought it would be. I tend to feel like a fraud sometimes and am for sure my own worst critic, and I worry that I think I'm better than I actually am. T'was good to have a number that says that, at least on blue carved turns, I'm not complete dogshit, lolz. 141, and plenty of room for improvement on that, I think. Carry on.
As someone that is learning skiing in his mid 30s, I've enjoyed Carv! In general I've often found it more useful than the lessons I've taken, although admittedly I've just been "dropping in" to lessons and not intentionally picking instructors.
I think it does a good job of giving simple goals between runs, ie.. "focus on this one thing", whereas I often get overloaded by instructors.
The downside to Carv is I've had to get a warranty replacement twice and it can be quite finicky. It also drains a lot of phone battery quickly for me.
I like it and when you consider the cost for an entire year is equal to a 2 hour private lesson in many places, I don't think it's too expensive. They also did add a bunch of new things this year, so it makes the price easier to swallow when they actively seem to be supporting and developing it.
I think it does a good job of giving simple goals between runs, ie.. "focus on this one thing", whereas I often get overloaded by instructors.
The downside to Carv is I've had to get a warranty replacement twice and it can be quite finicky. It also drains a lot of phone battery quickly for me.
I like it and when you consider the cost for an entire year is equal to a 2 hour private lesson in many places, I don't think it's too expensive. They also did add a bunch of new things this year, so it makes the price easier to swallow when they actively seem to be supporting and developing it.
I tried the 'Train with an Olympian' (TwaO) training feature on Carv last night for the first time. Slightly icy conditions, and night lit runs. I typically score SkiIQs in the 120s on the runs I was doing but through the training focus ended up scoring more SkiIQs in the 130s last night than I have in total over the last 2 years, even compared to day time on well groomed runs. I also got my highest SkiIQ (136) twice on full length runs rather than stopping after 20 or so good turns. The way the TwaO feature is set up really pushed me to improve across multiple metrics. The other nice thing about using Carv is that as I ski at a small, NC resort, it keeps the boredom factor away both in terms of the general training drills, but also when it is foggy, sub-optimal skiing conditions I still want to get on the slopes and continue to progress on the training it provides.
Carv has also just released the Segment feature that allows you to break up the SkiIQ of a longer run into segments, which is great when skiing with friends/family and stopping briefly to let people catch up, or when the crowds get in the way.
For skiers that are looking to actively improve, or just enjoy looking at the data then Carv is a great tool. For me personally it has been a gamechanger in improving my skiing and keeping things interesting for me on my 'faily' night ski sessions. It has integrated well with some of the in person 1:1 private ski instruction lessons I did last year.
From a 'feel' perspective I also feel I have improved my skiing immeasurably over the last few weeks, now that my previously broken leg is properly healed, and I am much more consistently getting the higher edge angles, feeling my skis rebound the energy on my turns etc compared to last season.
Carv has also just released the Segment feature that allows you to break up the SkiIQ of a longer run into segments, which is great when skiing with friends/family and stopping briefly to let people catch up, or when the crowds get in the way.
For skiers that are looking to actively improve, or just enjoy looking at the data then Carv is a great tool. For me personally it has been a gamechanger in improving my skiing and keeping things interesting for me on my 'faily' night ski sessions. It has integrated well with some of the in person 1:1 private ski instruction lessons I did last year.
From a 'feel' perspective I also feel I have improved my skiing immeasurably over the last few weeks, now that my previously broken leg is properly healed, and I am much more consistently getting the higher edge angles, feeling my skis rebound the energy on my turns etc compared to last season.
Haven’t used my CARV set-up in a couple of weeks as it just hasn’t stopped snowing. But yesterday I rode the chair with someone who’s a CARV ambassador who gets involved with feature suggestions, beta testing, etc. One of the features this person is advocating is resort groups where you could locate and communicate with other CARV users on the slopes and organize get togethers. It would enable one to opt in or out based on individual scores, user history etc. The social media aspects would be expanded from there.
I skied with this guy yesterday and he rips. He invited me to ski with a group of CARV users next week. I miss Masters training but don’t want to devote the necessary time and resources to it. It would be nice if this became a reasonable substitute, maybe including an appropriate coach from time to time.
The CARV Ligety camps are underway at DV. Someone sent me a vid of Ted demonstrating a drill in 3D snow.
I skied with this guy yesterday and he rips. He invited me to ski with a group of CARV users next week. I miss Masters training but don’t want to devote the necessary time and resources to it. It would be nice if this became a reasonable substitute, maybe including an appropriate coach from time to time.
The CARV Ligety camps are underway at DV. Someone sent me a vid of Ted demonstrating a drill in 3D snow.
I was gifted some carvs, which I haven't used yet and I'm not even sure how I feel about them, but I'm also going to get new boots this week. Would it make sense to bring them in for the bootfitter to put in? Is this something bootfitters are used to doing now? I'm a little apprehensive about getting the perfect boot fit only to add the 2mm or whatever and mess it up, but I also don't even know if I'll like using it. I DO love data though, which I'm sure is why my father gave it to me.
I'd say yes, bring them with you. Worst case scenario you end up taking them out and you can replace them with the equivalent height insole spacers.
Update on my Carv thoughts. I must admit I'm growing a bit frustrated with the app and wonder if it's slowing my progress now, or at least the way I'm using it is.
I tried out some of the drills/coaching today and strongly disliked it. Way too much negative feedback and just telling me the same stuff over and over. Even when I passed several levels, it just kept wanting more and then the negative feedback drastically increased. Not a good experience at all.
The drills should really be more focused on positive progress and better detect when you've reach a current plateau/frustration point and move on to something else or a different method.
Went back to free ski and it just tells me the same thing every run. Clearly that message isn't helping me, so it really should try a different way to convey the message. I get that it wants me to increase my topple and outside ski pressure but clearly the one piece of advice it keeps throwing at me isn't resonating.
Also they need to figure out how to only count drill turns made above certain speeds. Telling me the turns suck WHEN IM IN A LIFT LINE isn't helpful, Carv.
I need to evaluate how I'm using Carv moving forward. I still like it as a tool but it's annoying (to me) how the drills work and that they aren't smarter at detecting when you're actually on a pitch vs a cattrack/lift line and give way too much negative feedback. I haven't found a way to alter that in drills or "train with an Olympian"
I still like Carv but I think it opens up a lot of opportunity for frustration.
I tried out some of the drills/coaching today and strongly disliked it. Way too much negative feedback and just telling me the same stuff over and over. Even when I passed several levels, it just kept wanting more and then the negative feedback drastically increased. Not a good experience at all.
The drills should really be more focused on positive progress and better detect when you've reach a current plateau/frustration point and move on to something else or a different method.
Went back to free ski and it just tells me the same thing every run. Clearly that message isn't helping me, so it really should try a different way to convey the message. I get that it wants me to increase my topple and outside ski pressure but clearly the one piece of advice it keeps throwing at me isn't resonating.
Also they need to figure out how to only count drill turns made above certain speeds. Telling me the turns suck WHEN IM IN A LIFT LINE isn't helpful, Carv.
I need to evaluate how I'm using Carv moving forward. I still like it as a tool but it's annoying (to me) how the drills work and that they aren't smarter at detecting when you're actually on a pitch vs a cattrack/lift line and give way too much negative feedback. I haven't found a way to alter that in drills or "train with an Olympian"
I still like Carv but I think it opens up a lot of opportunity for frustration.
@gratedwasabi I turned off audio feedback on free skiing for the reasons you describe. I look at the up after some runs to get feedback and learn my score.