What are some common issues, advice, or general information someone improving should know?

W

WabbleDee

Member
Literally any tips you have that “clicked” and helped you progress in the park - jumps, rails, cliffs, moguls. Anything that one day you figured out and felt like you unlocked some shit on a game.

When I finally figured out my back leg on rails had to be wider and “support” me to prevent slipping out and hip checking the shit out of metal I was happy.
 
Riding with music helped me get out of my own head a ton. Focusing on a trick too hard can bring you out of the flow state and I've found music helps remind me to still have fun with it. It also helps to mix in other tricks if that one you've been trying over and over isn't happening
 
this is probably overstated but, having a good, strong pop that is timed correctly is key to most tricks, same with commitment, you have to 100% believe that you will do the trick in your head and commit to doing it before you even try
 
Skiing in the front seat with good shin pressure, helps for just about everything. Also hitting the gym to strengthen legs/support knees, made me a much better skiier overall and can rip all day without pain
 
I don't know exactly what made it happen but something about my first year at Bridger made me stop fearing speed so much. I realized how much speed helps for everything. Rails, jumps, cliffs, etc. Everything got easier with more speed and eventually the fear kinda just faded.
 
14454981:AndrewGravesSV said:
It also helps to mix in other tricks if that one you've been trying over and over isn't happening
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I'm really bad and stubborn about this. Sometimes I just can't let a trick go if I've been trying it and can't get it, especially if I got very close a few times. Eventually I either get it or get too exhausted and realized that I've lost my chance
 
I had fear of getting onto rails . I had a problem getting to that 90° .

Being in the right atmosphere with the right people helped me not be afraid to try and fall. And just try again and again. I was exerting too much energy jumping . Working on that pop and timing mentioned above helped me get up there. The magic words that made it click for me was ollie and flick my tips to that 90°, get my weight centered, and shoulders parallel to the rail.

I definitely need to work on being comfortable with the speed thing in the park. Skiing in a small place definitely works against me here.
 
270s on are just a 180 on, stare at the start of the rail and shifty 90. So much easier to lock versus trying to spin the 270 and see the end of the rail.
 
do a trick on every feature in the park. can be as small as a lip on but if you trick every rail every lap your gonna get pretty good. and dont pizza before rail
 
one of the biggest things for me that really clicked this year was looking over my shoulder more to spin and spot my landing and then just keeping it fun, whether that be with music, friends, or just random ppl
 
14455010:Aparker said:
do a trick on every feature in the park. can be as small as a lip on but if you trick every rail every lap your gonna get pretty good. and dont pizza before rail
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One of my friends always does this awful overexaggerated pizza before he goes into every single rail. I’m pretty sure he was just bein a goof. Without realizing it I started doing it too as a joke cuz I was goofing around but now it’s becoming a habit lololol
 
I didn’t land a three this year but have just been practicing them everyday and it helped so much. It just brings it all together. I was frustrated cause I could do huge 180s and go switch off anything but always failed a full rotation. hyped for the season

14455014:dognuts said:
one of the biggest things for me that really clicked this year was looking over my shoulder more to spin and spot my landing and then just keeping it fun, whether that be with music, friends, or just random ppl
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Speed makes literally everything easier. Rails are easier to balance on, more air time on jumps, more stable when carving. Speed is key especially as a copper skier where literally every feature is giant

**This post was edited on Aug 13th 2022 at 12:30:17am
 
Lots of good tips here! One thing that clicked for me years ago was hands and arms forward. Doing that will help you lean forward like mentioned above and keep you out of the backseat. Teaching my 3 yr old last season I told him to keep his hands on his knees and doing that made a huge difference when he was snow plowing around. Also skiing switch if you are looking over your right shoulder, lead with your right leg. If you're looking over your left shoulder, lead with your left leg. Doing that improved my stability and feeling in control.
 
14454995:ReturnToMonkey said:
I don't know exactly what made it happen but something about my first year at Bridger made me stop fearing speed so much. I realized how much speed helps for everything. Rails, jumps, cliffs, etc. Everything got easier with more speed and eventually the fear kinda just faded.
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I think that is the main difference between someone learning and someone good. Even if someone only has stock tricks in the park if they can haul ass then it’s cool.
 
To help channel the skill and style of your favorite pro skier, simply devour a photo of them in the parking lot before each sesh.

I woulda never learned 450’s if it weren’t for the uncountable photos of Sam Zhaner that I’ve eaten over the years.

Letter sized (16 x 24) heavy card stock seems to work best- ultra gloss upsets my tum.
 
You can get shin bang like pain just from landing backseat, pinching the calf muscle between bone and boot and stretching the knee back. Sometimes to reduce shinbang you have to lean into the pain.

skiing with dorsiflexion flexed constantly is a great way to keep the calves and knees happy.
 
Try to turn negative thoughts into positive ones. Sounds cliche I know, but for example: instead of "I'm worried about slipping out on this rail", "I need to focus on having forward pressure when I'm approaching the rail." Try to find the balance between not overthinking things and also focusing on what u need to do in order to land the trick. Also don't be afraid to ask people for help. Most people are happy to give advice, in my experience
 
For front swaps just bang your leading heel into the right side of the rail as you’re landing and the trick does itself
 
Look up the mountain when your about to do a back 270 out and it will become much easier and then it becomes easier to do to 450’s as well
 
All of these replies make so much sense, but none the less I will not adopt any of them because skiing is scary
 
Locking onto a rail will give you alot more control compared to just sliding the rail.. allowing you to spin off of the rail.

I learned this past season that your front ski should be slightly tilted in on the rail so only the inside edge of the front ski is making contact. This will allow for pedaling and allow you to lock into the rail
 
One thing that’s helped me is to do some meditation once I’ve got back to my car and taken off my gear. I reflect on how my day went on the hill and replay each run in my mind thinking about what went well and what didn’t.
 
I would try way too hard, get frustrated, or take a heavy slam and just ruin my day.

if I ski less serious and not really care if I’m going for tricks or not that day, I find I land more shit and I am just more stoked
 
Hands down the biggest thing that changed the way I ski was realizing I wasnt bending my knees enough. Once I started bending my knees more, my balance improved like crazy. 90% of people hitting their first rail go into it with knees bent and then straighten up after they get on. Henrik is like the best skier and if u watch him closely his ass is damn near touching the ground
 
14455859:BLandz said:
Hands down the biggest thing that changed the way I ski was realizing I wasnt bending my knees enough. Once I started bending my knees more, my balance improved like crazy. 90% of people hitting their first rail go into it with knees bent and then straighten up after they get on. Henrik is like the best skier and if u watch him closely his ass is damn near touching the ground
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Helps with style on video too. I remember watching some clips from when I was learning and I looked like a straight up kook straight legged and all.
 
14455886:powpatrol said:
I really find that slamming 4/5 bong rips in the car park before lapping the kiddie park helps me dial my 3s
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total opposite for me, the more I smoke the worse I get at jumps. Helps me a lot with rails though
 
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