About 5 or 6 years ago I knew a ski boarder who was really good. He switched to skis but didnt pick up the poles. He always told me "you dont need poles to hit jumps and rails." I tried it out and it helped me a lot, not relying on poles for balance, swing weight, and timing. Of course since then I've picked my poles back up and enjoy skiing with them.
However, I feel there is something to be said for putting your poles down from time to time as a form of training. I know CVA does this, John Swett competed at the Mega Mother Hucker last year without poles. He was making large smooth grabbed cork 9s and the judges penalized him heavily for not having poles. They even told him he would score higher with poles! But Swetty held strong and did his own thing, which is always good to see.
As a filmer, I ski no poles a lot, especially this year because Im trying to film as much as possible. Ive adopted a "no-poles" style for those time, with a wide, low stance, trying to minimize arm movement. With my poles, I feel more "synchronized" with my skis, and use my arms more, especially to time high speed turns. For some reason I really prefer poles for sliding rails too. Skiing switch with no poles is the bomb, I think they get in the way of switch, I love a nice big switch carve with my hands loosely hanging in front of me, it feels so steezy and fun.
I guess what Im trying to say is poles vs. no poles both have their advantages and uses. Its cool whichever way you do it, especially if you can make it look good. Try both ways to get the most out of your ski experience, and have fun!
