Today I am trying to learn a new way of skiing mogul. Long time ago, my ski instructor told me that are two ways skiing the mogul runs. The first skill is easier, you go on top of the bumps, use the bump to slow down than make a turn by going around bump. The second skill is more advance, you have to run on the troughs without slowing down.
I have been skiing using the first skill for quite some time, it is slower and more tiring, since the knee has to constantly absolute the shocks from the bump. It does look like a pro, but I can come down on mogul runs in one piece. My friend just took a week long skiing lesson, so she teach me her newly learned technique. Instead of going around the bump, use the side of the bump to slow down. It is not curving or edging, but leaning on to the curve, extend the leg and use the pressure to slow down. Instead of making big traverse cut across the bumps, ski down the moguls fellowing the fall line. I am able to make a few turns using this new technique. I found my movement is much smoother and I really ski like a pro. However after a few turns, I will either turn too much and fall into through, or I will turn not enough and fly over the bump. I am exploring how to control the pressure so that I can link up the turns.
I found my skill has improved quite a bit after practicing on moguls for the whole day. If you can conquer mogul runs, you can conquer any other run. Whenever I see HK TV programs talk about skiing, they always say skiing is an high speed exciting sport. Obviously, the script writers do not a thing about skiing. Skiing is not about high speed, it is all about staying in control. The satisfaction of skiing is not from zoom down the mountain as fast as possible. The satisfaction is from conquering all kinds of terrains with a good down hill rhythm. In the matter of fact, each slope has its own rhythm. Skiing too fast or too slow won’t look good, you just have to find the right balance.