We finally woke up to snow. Although the accumulations aren't that great. It is still fresh, and it will help the snow conditions. We need a week of snow to really prep the mountain for our typically snowfall heavy Feb and March times. At 8am the temps are 15*. With a few inches on the hill. Here at the house there is about 2'.
I was skiing with Macke and Rick. Two of my favorite students. They really understand the concept of learning partnerships (as it a portion of their profession). If we are going on a teaching tangent that they may not understand, they are quick to ask questions to establish relevance. It is a pleasure to skiing with students who understand that the instructor can only provide a certain amount to the lesson. A great lesson session requires interaction.
We started off the day at P9, warmed up with some exercises which combined range of movement with smoothness of movement. The idea is this: When skiing groomed, there is usually a combination of Outside leg long, Inside leg shorter (joints extended vs flexed) and a smooth pedaling action. 1-2-3-4 vs 1-2------------3-4. There is rarely a need to "stomp" on the outside ski, or twist (rotate) the legs to displace the tails from the track the tips have taken through the snow.
We were working on this during the afternoon. It seems to be a common theme for me this year. What happens in the first third of the turn, determines the reactions in the bottom third. In other words, as Judy McCarrol says, "If the top of the turn is trash, the bottom third is garbage."
We are going to take this into the bumps with Rick and Macke on thursday.
January 31st, Afternoon update: Sadie skied all afternoon today. She said there was 6-8" of new snow by 2pm. And it is still snowing. at 5:45pm it was 11*. It could be a great morning. 9am with Rick and Macke.
Here is the February 1st 5:45 update:
We received a few more inches of snow overnight, but then it is clear as of 5:45am. -12*. Dang! I will try to reach Rick and Macke and reschedule our lesson for the afternoon. I took this still this morning. -12* below is not that cold if you are only outside for a few minutes and have absolutely no breeze touching your skin. If there is a slight breeze, yikes. Here is the photo:
Februrary 1st, 2007 @ 5:45am and -12*
7:15am
to your sliding success,
Jon
