Why do so many powder skiing videos look like stem turns?

[crgildart]

Perfectly carved parallel turns aren't always the best tool in the box for the job at hand.. The more uneven and inconsistant the terrain gets the more adjustments outside of that arc need to be slarved..

 

[slowrider]

Some camera shots make body angles seem incorrect or painful looking. But they say the camera doesn't lie.

 

[SSSdave]

(video...Steep smooth wind buff powder surface of some softness one must engage with an appropriate level of resistance to efficiently smoothly balance against gravity acceleration. Be it breakable fresh soft cake? Engage too little and free falling speed. Engage too much and risk loosing it in a high speed traverse. But that is no option in chutes.

Day upon clear after a 50"+ low elevation Sierra Nevada dump. Swimming the thin top surfaces of a special physical medium in this amazing universe. A most wonderful happy elastic dynamic rebounding balancing fun, down and down, hopefully at least some of the time, past interesting peripheral trees and slope features one continually makes most fun decisions about. Shins and knees softly parting a white sifting sea of crystaline water H2O snowflakes making soft ssshhhh sounds. Feeling the visceral softness of snow pressure against the front of one's inner ski pants.

 

[slow-line-fast]

View attachment 181867

(video...Steep smooth wind buff powder surface of some softness one must engage with an appropriate level of resistance to efficiently smoothly balance against gravity acceleration. Be it breakable fresh soft cake? Engage too little and free falling speed. Engage too much and risk loosing it in a high speed traverse. But that is no option in chutes.

Day upon clear after a 50"+ low elevation Sierra Nevada dump. Swimming the thin top surfaces of a special physical medium in this amazing universe. A most wonderful happy elastic dynamic rebounding balancing fun, down and down, hopefully at least some of the time, past interesting peripheral trees and slope features one continually makes most fun decisions about. Shins and knees softly parting a white sifting sea of crystaline water H2O snowflakes making soft ssshhhh sounds. Feeling the visceral softness of snow pressure against the front of one's inner ski pants.

View attachment 181868

Feel free to do that at any time

 

[oldschoolskier]

I don't get to ski a lot of powder but I've always wondered about this. Below is an example. Is it just the perspective of the video or the nature of the terrain?

The few times I have been fortunate enough to ski powder, I feel that you can get away with slightly poorer technique and that maintaining speed matters more.

View attachment 181826

The person skiing can't edge pure and simple. Quickly listed, technique, ski type, ski width, conditions, and poor tune could all be the cause. Likely a combination of all of them.

True powder and soft snow skiing is different as it compensates a little for poor edging skills (actually rewards them a bit) as a hard set edge in powder initiates too much grab.

 

[François Pugh]

View attachment 181867

(video...Steep smooth wind buff powder surface of some softness one must engage with an appropriate level of resistance to efficiently smoothly balance against gravity acceleration. Be it breakable fresh soft cake? Engage too little and free falling speed. Engage too much and risk loosing it in a high speed traverse. But that is no option in chutes.

Day upon clear after a 50"+ low elevation Sierra Nevada dump. Swimming the thin top surfaces of a special physical medium in this amazing universe. A most wonderful happy elastic dynamic rebounding balancing fun, down and down, hopefully at least some of the time, past interesting peripheral trees and slope features one continually makes most fun decisions about. Shins and knees softly parting a white sifting sea of crystaline water H2O snowflakes making soft ssshhhh sounds. Feeling the visceral softness of snow pressure against the front of one's inner ski pants.

View attachment 181868

That video is too much slow-motion. I started watching it, but gave up before the skier came into view. Ain't nobody got time for that!

 

[CascadeConcrete]

I think there's a lot of armchair quarterbacking going on here (and a few people who have probably never skied something like this in their life saying the skier in the video can't ski well). This has nothing to do with powder and everything to do with terrain. That's a somewhat narrow chute at a pitch that probably exceeds 45°. It's not about looking pretty, it's about not screwing up, because a screw up there would have big consequences. I'm guessing the slight wedge at initiation isn't something they're intentionally doing. But it probably happens naturally as they try to shorten the radius and bring the skis around faster in narrow, steep terrain.

 

[François Pugh]

The camera makes it look not steep; it's a lot steeper than it looks in the video. The depth of focus of the lense causes you to lose depth perception. Just say'n.

 

[jimtransition]

I think there's a lot of armchair quarterbacking going on here (and a few people who have probably never skied something like this in their life saying the skier in the video can't ski well). This has nothing to do with powder and everything to do with terrain. That's a somewhat narrow chute at a pitch that probably exceeds 45°. It's not about looking pretty, it's about not screwing up, because a screw up there would have big consequences. I'm guessing the slight wedge at initiation isn't something they're intentionally doing. But it probably happens naturally as they try to shorten the radius and bring the skis around faster in narrow, steep terrain.

Exactly, is this guy stemming? Yes. Is he a better skier than everyone in this thread? Also yes.

 

[François Pugh]

Exactly, is this guy stemming? Yes. Is he a better skier than everyone in this thread? Also yes.

Sorry, but the ability to make snow-plow turns down a steep chute, does not make one a good skier. Neither does the ability to straight-line it.
Nice troll. BTW.

 

[LiquidFeet]

Hyperbole is entering the disagreements in this thread. It usually doesn't end well. I'm enjoying this discussion and hope people rein themselves in before things go south.

 

[raisingarizona]

Those are just more dynamic, fat ski turns in steep terrain. If your body angulation is such your skis can't be exactly parallel. It's like, physics and sh1t.

 

[martyg]

I doubt that you would see, let's say Tim Petrick, skiing like that.

 

[raisingarizona]

I doubt that you would see, let's say Tim Petrick, skiing like that.

Well that guy would be missing out on the fun new techniques that have developed with free riding on fat skis.

Fat skis started changing the way we look at lines back in the mid 90’s. The body angulation a lot of free skiers use often tucks the uphill knee deep into the chest and we let that uphill ski follow through as it floats on the surface. That gives our two skis a more triangular shape than traditional parallel turns.

you can see it in this classic Powder cover of Kreitler from 1999.

 

[martyg]

Well that guy would be missing out on the fun new techniques that have developed with free riding on fat skis.

Fat skis started changing the way we look at lines back in the mid 90’s. The body angulation a lot of free skiers use often tucks the uphill knee deep into the chest and we let that uphill ski follow through as it floats on the surface. That gives our two skis a more triangular shape than traditional parallel turns.

you can see it in this classic Powder cover of Kreitler from 1999. View attachment 182033

If you don’t know who Tim Patrick is, his contributions to the sport, and what he skis on, you are probably not qualified to have this conversation with me.

 

[Tom K.]

The human instinct for SELF PRESERVATION?!

As noted by Bob:

That vid has nothing to do with powder and everything to do with consequences of the terrain. Sticking the turns way more important than perfect textbook visuals.

I doubt that you would see, let's say Tim Petrick, skiing like that.

SIDE NOTE: I know time marches on, but every time I see Tim's name, I really, really miss his (and Lito T-F's) writings in Powder Magazine!

 

[raisingarizona]

If you don’t know who Tim Patrick is, his contributions to the sport, and what he skis on, you are probably not qualified to have this conversation with me.

Right…….oh, ok guy.

 

[Seldomski]

 

[Smear]

Exactly, is this guy stemming? Yes. Is he a better skier than everyone in this thread? Also yes.

Got curious and had to google the guy. Thinking let the people with "even lower FIS points" or better FWT ranking throw the first stones...

Got very surprised when the first video that showed up was a ski video from ski touring in my home town mountains.

Der eventyret starter (EP2) - Robert og fjellet - fftv.no

Robert Aarings ekstreme tiltrekning til fjellet.

www.fftv.no

Enjoy the scenery, damn I miss home, the vibe and the skiing. Remember that unsolicited MA on people that have not asked for it is rude and inappropriate even on the internet.

He is no ex-racer but an ex-nordic combined athlete (ski jumping and XC) and has pursued alpine skiing semi-professionaly for the last 12 years or so.

 

[SBrown]

Speaking for myself, because I do it all the time (even though I know who Tim Petrick is ), I am bracing my downhill leg to control speed. I recognize when I'm doing it. I should try not to do it. But I still do it.