Breckenridge Ski Lesson Pictures And Some Food For Thought

Level 7: Joelle, Elsa, Becky, Dathy (last day for this season), Lori, Susan, Ruby – the mission …. go high. 6 chair, Imperial. Some off piste, some groomed, some bumps – snowy day, not too cold, wonderful skiing. Hip alignment and all that it entails, turn initiation with new inside ski, keep skis ‘grounded’, bump skiing with alternation between high edge angle and carve and feathered edges with skid. What a fun day!

BABES: Donna, Joelle, Barbara, Elsa, Becky, Nancy, Pam – powder day all the way, a good 5 inches of new, cold but workable, some steep, some green, some bumps (little ones), lots of snow piles to plow into and play. Guided Discovery day – experiment, go to the edge, enter the yellow zone, feel something new, don’t make the same old turn, use the tools in the ‘bag of tricks’ to play with the mountain, wedge/step/parallel/lose balance/find balance, sing, scream, get frustarted, get happy … just explore something different. Think we are all still speaking, hope so, I had a great day being more of a watcher than a talker – thank you.

 

 

Gary. This was probably the day that Gary will remember, watershed! All of a sudden it clicked … why is it so hard, why is it so easy. No more to be said.

Gary, Level 7 and improving with every day. Peak 9, Bananza, Gold King, some powder, some stuff between powder and groomed, foot pressure (big toe, little toe, on the edge, right/left ski, inside ski only), turns up the hill, hip position for strength, hands. Best turns ever, starting to play with the mountain.

Thorsten, Boston, level 7 – the private group lesson. Sunny day until about 3:00pm, warm, delightful. Waking up the inside ski, how the turn initiates, early edge change then steer to an edge, body alignment (especially hip position), slow the turn and feel pressure on feet, big toe/little toe pressure, less pivoting and more shaping, speed control with turn shape not skidding, shuffle turns, side slips, side slips on up hill ski, 360s, video analysis.  Much progress … but always just a journey.

What a great day – the college buds have survived another year and once again rally for a few days of skiing, tales of yore and probably a bit of whisky, beer and wine. Mike, Chuck, Sam, Don, Greg (aka, Budda) and Andreas (new this year, snowboarder, and a good one). Don’t know who wore out who … bunch of tired legs. Thanks for the beer and a memorable day – be safe this summer – give me an e-mail if you make Moab. Cheers.

Well, ladies, think we took Ore Bucket one notch higher – Upper 4 O’clock in blizzard with lots of new heavy snow, and low visibility … oh yeah, this one will be remembered. Let’s see … group separated, some lost, thigh deep snow an issue, everyone cold, a few wanted to kill me, a few were actually enjoying the experience … welcome to powder day!

Babes;Pam, Carla, Judy, Donna, Joelle, Nancy, Elsa, Becky – the level 7 ladies. Snowy all day, warm at bottom, cold at top. Information/transformation, managing/generating ski pressure, feel the pressure on both feet, feel the snow undulations under the feet, how completing the turn and linking turns are compatible, powder, bumps (some real progress here, the first bump run was a winner for all), brief discussion on Ore Bucket for the unfortunate/lucky ones that missed it (wonders of wonders, some want to go back, now that’s cool). Kind of a quiet day for us, not sure pensive or all thinking about Valentine roses and candy.