Do you have a tool chest in your garage? Do you have tools that you might have used just once and never again, but for that one job it was the right tool? Well, instructors have tools ie drills they use for teaching. The more tools an instructor has, the better a teacher they can be.
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I come from the other side of the fence on Dolphin Turns. Learning to do them has been an on going quest for YEARS. Last season they started to come together, not elegant but the components were there. Some of the better bump skiing I have done in years followed. Think it came from consciously thinking about opening and closing the ankles (or it could have been the drugs). Would not teach them in a class situation, don't want the students ROFL at me.Only drill I have had in a lesson that was memorably terrible was dolphin turns. Really painful for my toes and one I will flat refuse to do. I'm sure I was doing it wrong, but no advice was offered. Only saw it in one lesson and glad to have not seen it again. Evidently I am not good enough to do this without pain.
The 'drills' I find to be a 'groan' lately are the static demos. One being 'stand on this mound here with your ski tip/tail free and see how you can pivot the ski from the hip socket.' Another is the 'edge tipping and angulation while the instructor tries to pull you downhill.' Thankfully I have not seen these in a while, but sometimes they come up in group lessons, and with a big group and demo on every member...
I am sure there were many other drills over the years that were hopeless when I had rental ski boots, but we soldiered on anyway.
The proper drill done poorly is not helpful. It could make things worse if practiced poorly outside the lesson.
It did not help that the instructor demoing them fell shortly thereafter in the moguls. I forget what drill she was doing in there, but I do remember the splat. I think she may have taken the dolphin turns into the moguls. That pretty much ended the dolphins for the day
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Think I’m going to use Ski Talk stickers for that…
Again, is it being done right? The emphasis should be on standing and gliding on that one ski, not just falling back onto the free foot used as a crutch. Done properly, teaches importance of balancing on one ski; teaches fore-aft balance; teaches flexing of joints in concert.
Absolutely! A necessity, but not always provided.
Agree with the above. The primary directive when working with newbies is to change how they dynamically balance from a heel to toe methodology to a through the arch methodology controlled by the flex complex (ankles, knees hips). Any exercise that perpetuates heel to toe movement is detrimental and a waste of valuable lesson time.
Sorry but I don't do straight. Students can figure that out for themselves if balancing properly. I teach what skis are designed to do and that is making circles. I do that starting with a wedge configuration that reinforces through the arch dynamic balance and places the skier on their inside edges.
I hear you. They do demonstrate advanced skills, but from the standpoint of most skiers there's a stupid human tricks aspect to them. Probably better to drill for one-footed skills that focus on smaller pieces of the turn cycle. That's more within reach for most people.
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Is it an improvement to holding the poles horizontally? I use that one a lot for all of the same reasons you are talking about. Holing the poles vertically just seems to get one hand too high and potentially put the student on their heels. Not disagreeing, just not understanding.Going to disagree with you here big time Bob. It may not be helpful in ski school but for my athletes it is a great drill for getting them comfortable rolling the ski edge to edge while keeping the body in the fall line with upper/lower body separation. As you move it to steeper terrain they need to start getting bigger edge angles as well. One of the very few drills I will actually use for myself from time to time (I hate drills!
Is it an improvement to holding the poles horizontally? I use that one a lot for all of the same reasons you are talking about. Holing the poles vertically just seems to get one hand too high and potentially put the student on their heels. Not disagreeing, just not understanding.
I have heard people say not to use any pole drills like the picture frame. A change in philosophy? I was taught using the picture frame
So what are your balancing drills?
The problem can be many people interpret that as the way to ski. I’ve been asked that many times , even from random people on the lift. So they make large turns facing downhill the whole time. Or try to.
