How to ski

Learn how to ski online. Useful tips and advice before you hit the slopes.

How to ski

TIPS FOR BEGINNERS

Find your balance: Stand in your boots so that the pressure from the tongue of the boot feels equally distributed from shin to calf. Most of your weight should be felt between the heel and the arch of the foot. 
Discover how to "walk" by alternatively sliding one ski ahead of the other.

Straight run:
Next, go just a few feet up a gentle slope. Your shoulders and hands should face down the hill, while your skis are sideways. With small steps, point your skis downhill, while putting your weight on your poles. Now stand on parallel skis, with knees bent and leaning slightly forward while putting some weight on your poles. Then just lift your poles off the snow and go!

Gliding wedge: It's now time to learn to control your speed. The usual way is called a "gliding wedge". This is a V-shaped position that is formed by sliding  both skis tails apart an equal distance  while keeping your ski tips together.
This position creates resistance as you go downhill and slows you down. A common exercise is to gradually make the wedge wider at you ski straight down the hill until you come to a stop. 

Wedge turn to a stop: You need to realise that a turn can occur without any actual turning forces being applied to your body. That means no twisting or leaning the body in the direction you want to turn. 
Instead, white gliding straight down the hill in a wedge, simply apply slightly more pressure to your left ski. The pressure should be very subtle so that the left ski seems to magically steer you gradually to the right until you come to a stop. It is absolutely critical that you apply this pressure on the left ski while keeping your body still. 

Linking wedge turns: Once you have learned how to control your speed by turning across the hill, the next step is to link successive turns. Instead of continuing a turn until you stop, a new turn is initiated before you lose all the momentum from the current turn. This simply involves a subtle transference of pressure to the other ski, thereby causing it to instead become the "turning ski". 

When turning you will need to shift your weight to the inside edge of the previous outer ski and turn your body to face downhill again for a moment, before continuing across the slope. So shift your weight onto your right leg when turning left, and onto your left leg when turning right. 

     
  • Jonathan Lee From Korea
    Sent on 23 May 2011
    This is very useful for ski beginner, but not enough. If you add some pictures, it will be more helpful to us.
  • Rgo From Australia
    Sent on 18 July 2009
    Wow, this helps alot...I've been skiing once...and it was NOT a nice experience... These tips will help ALOT.
  • mazda From india
    Sent on 05 February 2009
    im going to spain to ski and i have no idea what to do.....eve after reading thoughs tips!!what do i do? can someone please help me?!?xxx
  • Nigel Brawn From UK
    Sent on 02 February 2009
    tried the lesson in our lounge , great success , no injurys , hope to find some snow soon. many thanks A hopefull lounge skier
  • minoosh From iran
    Sent on 02 March 2008
    hello first i want to thanks for your helps today was my first time going to ski but i afraid of sking so much cause i couldn`t stop sloping and slowing down and i fall down several times .i tried to do all your comment but!!!!!!!!!please help me
  • Debo From philadelphia
    Sent on 21 November 2007
    this is the most great skiing tips i've ever herd
  • grace webster From England
    Sent on 16 April 2007
    forget reading about how to ski, the best way to learn is to practice. i went to borovets last year at christmas with 43 members of my family and friends! we had the best time with our ski instructor bobby who we still keep in touch with and are coming bck to ski next year x x x
  • Jake King From United States
    Sent on 13 February 2007
    this helped me learn how to ski and get the ladies
  • Peter Freer From England
    Sent on 24 January 2007
    My wife and I, Our 20yr old daughter and her partner are going to the Hotel Finlandia in pamparovo in February. Anyone reading this been there and any reviews please. Any advice re eating out, money exchange, facilities in the resort if there is no snow, in fact any comments are welcome. Thanks in anticipation
  • susanne From england
    Sent on 02 January 2007
    Hello. I am going skiing on January 27th for a week. I am off to Borovets and staying in the rila hotel. I have been 3 times before and really enjoy it. Last year we stayed in the rila and we thought it was really good and the staff were really helpful so we have decided to stay there again this year too. This year i am having begginer lessons. I can ski so i put myself in for the begginer classes so i will be ahead of most of the rest of the group. I am hoping to be able to ski down the red runs as i only got chance to go on the green and blue runs last year. So yes we aregoing to keep on going every january. x
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