The skiing season is pretty short this year due to the Olympic. The Sea to Sky Highway is closed during the games for normal traffic and hotels in Whistler will be ridiculously expensive. That means I have to use up most of all my ski passes before the Olympic in February.
Today is my second skiing day in season. I feel much better than my skiing first day before Christmas. Last time I sign up for lesson and I am so out of shape that the instructor bump me down from level 6 to level 5. I am getting a bit better today, plus we have really great snow, a very powder day. Skiing on powder snow is very different from skiing on groomed runs. If you don’t go fast enough, your ski will sink. I got trapped twice today in knee deep snow, digging myself out is pretty exhausting. You also have to lean a bit more backward on powder snow, or your ski tip will catch the snow and make you fall.
A few years ago, when I took my instructor class, I was told I lean too much backward. Since then I consciously try to lean more forward. This time, the instructor told me I am leaning too much forward, looks like I over correct my stands. It is important to keep your balance even between your ankle and arch. Leaning backward speed you up and makes you lose control. Leaning forward put too much pressure on the ski tip and make it hard to turn.
When I go to Whistler, I always have the noodle bowl and a cup of coke for lunch. Somehow the portion of the noodle bowl seems getting smaller and smaller every year. The cafeteria server only gives you half a bowl of noodle and fill it up with the empty space soup. That portion is definitely not enough to feed a hungry guy had exercised the whole morning. The portion is so small this year that I finally decided I am not going to get rip off the Whistler. I fix the problem myself and get even with them. I simply ordered two bowls and merge the noodles before checking out at the cashier. Now I get a full bowl of noodle, as shown in the advertisement, instead a pathetic half empty noodle bowl.
The skiing you described (level 6 vs level 5) sounds more like work and less like enjoyment.
LOL re the noodles bowls merging before the cashier (which I presume you paid for only one bowl) ! 😛 Naughty naughty!
The difference between level 6 and level 5 is whether you can come down on a double black diamond run with style. I can go down on double black, but I am kinda struggling.
My friend, going down on double black diamond – “with style”, “struggling”, and “not at all” are fine lines. Don’t push yourself too much and don’t hurt yourself skiing. You don’t really want to ride down the hill on a ski-doo.
The different is how to tackle moguls. The struggling way is make turns one mogul at a time. A better way is linking turn on the top of the bump. The most elegant way is using the trough of the bump while maintaining control.
If you can’t do the first way, you should not go down on a black diamond run. I am OK with the 2nd way in the morning when I still have energy, but I still can’t master the 3rd way.