snow twisting your leg---this is because the turn is too sharp and
probably too slow in the middle. To make things worse, the official
teacher comes along to troubleshoot, telling you to shift your
weight more to the turning ski. Well! weight-shift is not the prob-
lem; the problem is impatience, lack of faith, lack of momentum,
and lack of room to turn. Again, centrifugal force is natural
weight-shift, if you have some momentum to work with and con-
centrate on just steering that wedge---you can't do a forced weight
shift. If the student still can't do what I'm talking about, then
they're probably on too steep of a pitch to turn down and need to
revert back to side-stepping down or traversing and V-turning for a
while.
So . . . stress the importance of making the C as long or longer-
down than it is wide-across, therefore starting and finishing the C
in the middle of the run---otherwise, you're late and not in charge
of the run, the run is in charge of the student. Your basic wedge
may get narrower now, out of confidence. It's smart to know that
any traversing between turns is not part of the turn---this is one key
place where too many skiers get the dysfunctional idea of "making
'wider' turns." . . . So do continue doing one turn at a time, nice and
complete, but not too sharp: once a turn has slowed you down, let
your wedge drift neutral-like long down the hill again, let them
pick up some dynamic speed, and then make another turn finish
toward the other side. Feel the inside edge of the outside ski bite
more as your wedge turns develop---it'll feel good to sink down on
your outside leg as a shock absorber. Help them notice that the
initiation and downhill phases are a getting-neutral sensation, a
letting-go, not fighting gravity; but then the turn finish takes asser-
tiveness and follow-through. . . . Granted, if you are starting to
confidently explore the steeper reaches of the bunny-hill, finishing
turns in a strong wedge would be contrived---it is easier on the
steeper-green to let the skis slip or skid parallel at the end of a
wedge turn, which is our next assignment.
It's key to point out that the wedge is changing roles now right
before our eyes: an hour ago, the wedge was strictly for speed con-
trol; then we snuck in some interstate-highway turns that the stu-
dent didn't realize were turns at all; and now we are consciously
Who&WhatTurn, When&Where&Why---Not Just How! --- 141
using the wedge to help us turn, . . . and the turn is taking over the
job of speed control!---the wedge's days may be numbered!
(I saw some poor apprentice ski instructors at a pre-season
clinic in '05-06: there was too much carving going on in the clinic,
and no wedging whatsoever---it was strictly verboten, because of a
contract signed with the rental-ski manufacturer, which very few
instructors were privy to. Well, in the blink of an eye, this moun-
tain had a bunch of apprentice instructors playing the victim,
claiming that their potential as a great skier had been messed up by
the fact that they were taught "the evil wedge" back in the old days.
I couldn't talk them out of it, they were convinced that the wedge
was the root of all their own free-skiing problems.) You have to
know how to teach the wedge for what it is, the tricycle of skiing;
so then parallel is like the bicycle of skiing, and, if you stem a ski
from parallel, that's not unlike sticking a leg out to keep from tip-
ping over on your bicycle. The strong wedge for first-day begin-
ners is almost like a scaffolding needed to get started on construc-
tion of a great skier: as soon as you don't need it anymore, you take
it down and disassemble it, store it in your utility trailer till you
need it for the next project.
When your wedge turns are routine on the easy slope, and
you're anxious to see some new country, you may go to something
just a hair steeper, like another green run nearby or maybe just
some steeper pitches that you've been avoiding or side-stepping
down. Still do one turn at time working for quality, but start ex-
ploring the slightly steeper terrain by going across the hill in a
slipping traverse---you don't even need a wedge for this. When it's
time to start a new turn, open the wedge up with your tails, and
make a long-n-finished C-shaped wedge turn before you run out of
room, then traverse toward the other side to explore more terrain
before your next turn. Fewer turns at this point will build a begin-
ner's confidence and get them seeing more mountain without
wearing themselves out too soon. In the strict traverse, your skis
are parallel, naturally apart, with the downhill ski edged and pres-
sured enough to keep you going across the hill like you intend---if
your downhill ski is edged and pressured strong in the traverse,
your upper body will be angled out over the downhill ski and
fairly perpendicular to the slope. To avoid picking up speed in the
traverse, add some side-slipping down, instead of just straight-
running across and gaining speed across the mountain.
A lot of beginning skiers don't understand that just one degree
too much pointed down can mean picking up too much speed; one
142 --- Heinsian DOWNHILL SKIING
degree less can mean staying in control---there's a tipping point (to
use the term Malcolm Gladwell cashes in on), a fine line, between
the two. They can get confused: they have their skis a lot more
across the hill than down, "So why am I picking up speed?!" but
they don't have them enough across the hill. It's like what Edwin
Silberstang says about playing poker: "You don't lose with bad
cards; you lose with good cards that weren't good enough." (The
story of my life up to now: I've never said the old cliché that I "was
dealt a crappy hand"; I was in-fact dealt the best hand, a Royal
Flush, or Five-of-a-Kind with Jokers Wild, . . . but it's hard to stay in
the betting if you don't have enough money to bet with.)
For the record, the best friend to traversing is side-slipping
down the mountain, which means that the skis are turned one-
hundred percent across the slope, not almost one-hundred percent.
When beginners don't have the knack yet for side-slipping, the little
brother is side-stepping down. Again, remind them that side-step-
ping down is easier than side-stepping up, which was one of their
very first tasks. As they side-step down, encourage them to let the
skis slip a bit, which they didn't want when side-stepping up. So
now the funny thing is: we see that side-slipping down could be
even easier than side-stepping down. Keep the knees angled uphill
slightly, and have them keep a downhill attitude with the head and
shoulders---the hands can lead the way down while keeping the
pole baskets uphill and out of the way. They might only be able to
slip the downhill ski at first, while stepping with the uphill ski, and
this is fine.
It's important for instructors to realize that traversing is a lot
like snow-plowing, in realizing how temporary it could be: it's
something you use as scaffolding to build a great skier, but it is not
a permanent goal. Far too many students and instructors alike
carry some of these beginner phenomena out of context into their
intermediate skiing and teaching, twisting things up in their mind
their whole ski life or teaching career. For the record, while racers
may not have a lot of use for side-slipping---about the only time
they do it is to pack and smooth the race course,---extreme skiers in
the steep-n-narrow are the greatest masters of side-slipping, a pre-
requisite and close relation to great skidded turns, yet hardly any-
one ever acknowledges it---just witness them closely in their steep-
est parts of a Warren Miller movie (even in 2010), how much slip-
ping they have going down, even in heavy snow, without it ever
being pointed out except for by a few guys like me.
We've covered a lot so far with our beginners. Some will reach
Who&WhatTurn, When&Where&Why---Not Just How! --- 143
this milestone within a two-hour lesson; and some traumatized
students may barely make it to a self-sufficient wedge. There's
nothing wrong with more cautious or troubled students starting
from the beginning all over again, but then they need the very best
teacher. (I talk extensively about beginning snow-board drop-outs
coming back on day two to try skiing instead, with the common
money-back guarantee. A lot of these students are beat up so bad
by the snow-board fiasco they might not even make it as a skier,
which is sad considering most probably could have been decent
skiers. It's trying being a good teacher who constantly finds him-
self fixing other teachers' mistakes, including those of famous
charismatic skiers, best-selling writers, Olympic Gold Medalists,
and multi-million-dollar film-makers.)
About now, things start to get real pleasant and more fun for
the instructor, provided the instructor knows enough to keep add-
ing on---for a lot of new instructors, this is about all they have in
their teaching bag, the cut-n-dried basics. There's a lot less stand-
ing around now, and a lot more regular skiing. For a new instruc-
tor watching an old pro from the chair-lift, he might scratch his
head as to what the instructor is actually teaching, or how he can
"drag it out into a lesson." But students at this point still have most
of their learning ahead of them, and they are still quite mallable---I
love this level, in large part because, with some good instruction,
they won't stay at this level for too long.
So, now, if we can be on parallel skis slipping some during a
traverse between wedge turns, there's no reason we can't just go
ahead and end our wedge turns with parallel skis . . . and make less
and less of a traverse between. Wedge turns that end with skidded
parallel skis will come easy with the increased confidence and mo-
mentum in the middle downhill part of the turn. In fact, on the
steeper parts of green hard-pack, you'll find it easier to skid parallel
than to keep forcing a wedge at the finish---these are called wedge
christies. In fact, it is getting steep enough now that wedging
probably won't feel comfortable except for turn initiations and
briefer middle phases. Still concentrate on one turn at a time: when
you open a wedge at the end of a traverse, for that next turn, notice
that your weight will likely transfer to the uphill ski in order to
start the turn. Even people who do it in a relaxed manner tend to
not realize: we ski on the outside ski, which is the uphill ski at the
beginning of a turn and the downhill ski at the end, generally. . . .
Pretty soon, you'll be linking wedge christies without any traverses
between them. Your best turns will be as long down the mountain
144 --- Heinsian DOWNHILL SKIING
as they are wide across, still a C-shape. Stand tall on the new out-
side ski to start a turn, stay fairly tall through the downhill phase,
and sink down on the outside ski to finish.
Before we get into pole planting, it might be wise to change the
tempo and talk about rhythm with this progressive beginner. Up
to now, most turns have been the quality one-at-a-time type, no
rhythm. But they need to know that rhythm is a big part of upper-
level skiing, and they don't need to be kept in the dark about it
now. A high percentage of intermediate skiers have no concept of
rhythm; they don't realize it can make the difference to rising above
where they are at. So, on something not-too-flat and not-too-steep
on the green hard-pack, have them try some spontaneous christies,
short rhythmic turns without worrying about speed control. These
are just narrow rhythmic turns, not too sharp, that take more
abrupt leg motion, so it's okay now to really talk about shifting
weight. These can be tricky if you don't introduce them right, so
here is the easiest way to get these going: get some momentum up
in a straight-run, form a narrow wedge, and then start favoring one
ski and then the other for definite weight shifts. With a narrow
wedge, the skis are already steered, so the student can get turning
without trying too hard; then they can concentrate on deliberately
and decisively shifting weight and getting some rhythm from ski-
to-ski and turn-to-turn. Show them that they can angle the hips in
and shoulders out from side to side, but remind them that the
head-n-shoulder continue to stay focused down the mountain.
Once they see the benefits of assertive commitment quickly from
one ski to the other, they'll notice the inside ski tends to get light
and not cause any trouble---in fact, they start parallel skiing with-
out even realizing it because of the more pronounced centrifugal
force. The emphasis is not so much on speed control here as it is on
learning rhythm---if the slope is easy enough, there doesn't need to
be much thorough turning going on; . . . but the student will get
extra credit if they can do this on a slightly steeper slope that does
want more turn finishing---the last turn to a stop will really make
your instructor smile. If it's too flat and their speed peters out, just
have them straight-run to a place where they have enough speed or
pitch to work with again.
Sometimes, with a steep-enough pitch, if they have a fair
amount of steering going on in their spontaneous christies, or if
they need some help with better steering, I will have them hold
their ski poles horizontally out in front assertively down the
mountain---they can hold them this way without even taking the
Who&WhatTurn, When&Where&Why---Not Just How! --- 145
straps off their wrists, just by setting the lower shaft in the other
hand. These horizontal poles serve as a reference tool to keep fo-
cused perpendicular to the destination point down the mountain.
It's too early for pole plants at this point, especially with spontane-
ous christies---if you were to introduce pole-swinging now, you
would do a tremendous amount of damage to their quiet hands
and their rhythm.
When they get more comfortable with rhythmic spontaneous
christies, encourage them to do their last turn to a stop, like a J-
turn stop---they'll get extra credit. It won't be easy at first, so this
will give you a platform on which to tell them it's probably best to
put the spontaneous christies on the back burner for awhile: do the
J-turn stops as an isolated exercise. Don't spend all day on this, but
show them how shoving the inside hand over the ski tips, an exag-
gerated version of holding the perpendicular poles, will help the
skis come around to a crisp finish----the skis reciprocate with this
counter-rotation of the upper body. It helps to get some speed up,
so they have something to work with---practicing a half-dozen to
each side will be plenty for now . . . and make a nice short home-
work assignment if they have plenty of free time before their next
lesson.
Of course, doing too many J-turn stops can make a student
antsy to just go skiing; and spontaneous christies can wear a begin-
ner out, so they are not something you want to do all day. You'll
spend most of your time in a more casual mode. And, pretty soon,
the start of a wedge christy, because of your increased confidence
and momentum, will be maybe half a wedge: we'll start a turn by
just stemming out the tail of the uphill ski; and the skis will run
parallel again before the end of the turn. And, with still more con-
fidence and momentum, your skis will run parallel half-way
through this up-stem christy----any traversing becomes less and
less.
The right practice at the right time leads to confidence; confi-
dence leads to momentum; and momentum leads to parallel skiing;
and parallel skis are two skis that don't intersect when one hits a
bump of a chunk of ice. Parallel skiing is a function and not a style,
and it comes easy when the inside ski is light enough. It's just a
matter of time before you don't need a stemmed uphill ski to start a
turn, on green runs anyway; you're almost a green-circle parallel
skier, if not already. But keep in mind parallel skiing on the green
hard-pack won't mean you can do it on the intermediate terrain in
your near future. (This has been one of my pet-peeves for decades:
146 --- Heinsian DOWNHILL SKIING
hordes of expert skiers and teachers would have you believe that
parallel skiing is the main goal, but actually the slopes and the
snows are the bigger goals. Many an innocent newly "parallel
skier" has had an abundance of traumatic egg-beater wrecks on the
next steeper slope . . . because they were led to believe they had
mastered skiing.)
So, now, . . . to get us more prepared for the intermediate
slopes, let's introduce our students to pole swings, which have been
on the back-burner up to now. So far the poles have served several
nice purposes, and they've really helped with balance, but they can
really come in handy as a timing device to help with future rhythm.
(If there is anything that ski instructors have neglected or taught
wrong over the years, it's teaching pole swings, and different
swings for different occasions. In the late 1990s, on the Weather
Channel, I saw a world-famous Olympic skier teaching pole-
planting to a middle-aged intermediate in Colorado. In the course
of about two minutes, he had her doing it wrong, or opposite of
what he intended. "No! No! that's not it!" he screamed, and I could
tell he'd never taught that type of real student before.) When you
introduce a student to pole swinging, you want to do it right the
first time, or you can create a monster that only the best teachers
may be able to fix. Introducing poles has a lot to do with the title of
this manual, because it's almost impossible to learn them if you
aren't willing to do one turn at a time for awhile. A lot of times, it's
the discipline a skier has with his poles that decide the difference
between staying a mediocre advanced skier . . . and becoming an
expert. Introducing pole swings is something you want to start
early in a lesson, not near the end, because of their delicate nature
and how easy they are to screw up.
Let's do some familiar one-at-a-time up-stem christies with
pole swings. Basically, a pole swing is a natural turn signal. Fun-
damentally, it's not unlike driving your car: swinging your left pole
signals a left turn, swinging the right pole signals a right turn. Go
across the hill to the left, swing the right pole into the snow, stem
your left uphill ski, and do the right turn; . . . then go across the hill
to the right gathering your thoughts, swing your left pole into the
snow, stem your right uphill ski, and do the left turn. . . . It's cru-
cial to understand that you swing the pole on the side you'll be
going to---don't swing your left pole if you plan on turning right;
and make sure you swing before the turn, because you might be
committing a balance violation if you start your turn before you've
signaled. It shouldn't be difficult to notice that it's always your
Who&WhatTurn, When&Where&Why---Not Just How! --- 147
downhill pole that gets swung: I mean, if you're a downhill skier,
every new turn you start is going to head down the hill. Still, there
are people who can get flustered and forget which is left, which is
right, and what's up, and what's down---this is why it's so impor-
tant to introduce pole-swings one turn at a time, starting early in a
session, striving for quality, not quantity. But it is simple if you
look at it: from a traverse, swing the pole, transfer your weight, do
the turn, . . . traverse and think, swing the new pole, transfer your
weight, do the turn. . . . The two key points: swing the correct pole
well before the new turn, even a second or two before. This early
turn signal, though not the only way, will help you be on time later
on in your ski life with more crucial pole swings. Learning to be
'early' is far better than striving to be 'quick'---this old man knows.
Now, some might argue that beginners don't need any pole-
plants, and that may be true; but they can sure use good pole
planting when they get to intermediate steepness. And, in keeping
with Heinsian Philosophy, it may be better to introduce the two
variables separately one-at-a-time rather than both at the same
time. On the other hand, once in awhile, you can use the introduc-
tion to pole-planting as a diversionary tactic to take their mind off
something else that might be bothering them. One thing is for sure:
too many intermediates and advanced skiers don't have a clue
about poles, and they are not getting taught right by the Status Quo
(---this has always been true, and it is even more true now).
Sometimes I will have the student plant their pole where I
plant mine, and then turn where I turn, in the beginning. But, to
make sure they get the timing right, I' change modes and ask them
to forget about my tracks and try to plant when I plant, . . . and turn
when I turn---this is a most elementary synchronization, but it is
not at all quick. Once they get things figured out for themselves, it
is more common that I'll synchronize myself up the hill above
them, and I'll command: "Touch the pole, transfer the weight, . . .
and turn, . . . touch the pole, transfer the weight, . . . and turn, . . . ."
I want that pole touching before anything else happens, otherwise
they have a danger of making a bad habit of being late with it the
rest of their ski life.