Skiing & Business. Coaching & Instruction. - Skiing

The Wrekin - POV Video.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 04:47:17 +0000

A short video shot last Friday on the Wrekin.

Welsh Skiing - Dec 2012

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:31:51 +0000

Inspired by my 'Shropshire Skiing' on Friday afternoon I was minded to see how conditions were in Wales for a trip the following day.

I'd already scoped our the Berwyns for possible skiing opportunities but in the end I was swayed by reports of 'powder' on the Breacons and Pen-y-fan.

Arriving in the car park off the A470 at around 11.30 I muck about trying to find a parking spot that I'd be able to exit from should the snow start to come down. Once sorted I kitted up and checked the OS map. The tops were in cloud, a shame as on the drive down the Breacon Beacons looked fantastic in the morning sun.

Breacons in the snow, looking towards the A470 car park during a rare sunny interval !

As luck would have it I bumped into Mike from the Snowheads forum and he kindly offered to walk up again. He'd been to the top for an hour waiting for the weather to clear with no luck. As we headed up the snow started to fall and the wind increase. By the time we hit the 600m level it was howling a blizzard.

David in the Breacons, Dec 2011

With the weather closing in and visibility reducing we decided that hiking to the top wasn't going to be very rewarding, so we kitted up for an easy slide back to the car park. By this time the path had filled in but the tufty grass was poking through in places. Mike lead the way cutting high across the slope, down the valley to get a more direct run to the bridge.

This was very different kind of skiing, requiring patience and softness with the ski's. Push too hard and you break through into the grass and muck causing the ski's to slow rapidly, but choose an good line, avoid the odd rock and don't rush things its all good.

"Mike Pow" a purveyor of the finest Welsh Skiing and my guide in the Breacons.

It's a shame the Breacons were not more welcoming as there is definitely potential. Fingers crossed for a Blue Sky powder day next time...

The Snowheads forum thread for all who wish to get involved is here

Shropshire Skiing - December 2012

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 04:00:54 +0000

I finally managed to score some Shropshire skiing for 2011, and my first Welsh skiing the very next day.

Last Friday dawned murky in the village but a glance over to The Wrekin showed lots of white on the top, so a early Friday finish seemed a good idea. By the time I loaded the car it was snowing hard, and it got heavier as I drove over.

In the car park I hooked up with Nicholas, a skier from our local slope who was out for a walk, and we hiked up together with the dogs.

A good covering

The hill was looking very Wintry above the half way house but the cover was quite soft as had yet to be 'pisted' by the passing walkers. Discretion was the order of the day and I decided to ski the grassy pitch from Heaven's Gate to Hell's Gate. It was probably only 75 meters or so but it was nice to have snow under skis again.

Skiing below Heavens Gate

I had a second attempt just below Hell's gate but the cover was thin and the grunching noise off putting !

All in all a pleasant walk up. Fingers crossed for more snow this coming Winter.

Catered Chelet in Baqueira

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 18:31:49 +0000

Ski Inspired, the people behind the BB ski school are offering catered chalet accommodation in Baqueira this year. Just 40m from the lift with a top class chef we're looking forward to sampling the food and accommodation at some point this year.

http://www.baqueira.co.uk

Shropshire Skiing - The Wrekin

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Wed, 12 May 2010 04:53:38 +0000

Trip 2

The following Monday night and Tuesday day saw a fresh fall of snow across Shropshire. We had enough to cover the Dendex at Madeley giving a brief period of floodlit, lift served night skiing which I took full advantage of.

With a Saturday trip back to South Shropshire arranged with some fellow Instructors from the slope, by Friday I was tempted to check out The Wrekin. A walk up a week or so previous had shown some hard packed cover at the top and with the extra snow it could be good for a few turns.

An early finish in the Office, packing the car with Dog, Skis and the usual stuff I arrived at the bottom at around 3pm with the light already fading.

Boot's on, Skins attached I made it as far as the dog leg below the cafe before deciding to bootpack the rest of the way, ski's on my pack. At about half way I came across some Snowboarders who reported enough snow for some turns at the top. Spurred, not least by the fading light I made to the top, grabbed some 'sunset' photo's and popped my ski's on.

The ski down at the dusk went as far as the tree line before the rocks called an end to the slide. I'm guessing it amounted to around 150m of vertical but all the better for being on my 'local' hill. An unsteady walk down a 'short cut' in ski boots followed.

PS. Some video below shot the following year:

Video Clips from last season.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 04:04:54 +0000

Trifides Grand couloir - La Grave.

Powder on the Glacier - La Grave.

Tree Skiing in Serre Chevalier. March 2011.

Montgenevra Tree Skiing.

Montgenevra. Off Piste run to La Vachette.

Guides - Serre-Chevalier

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 23:51:54 +0000

I spent an excellent week skiing the Serre-Chevalier area in the company of two excellent guides, Alain & John Luke. Superb Tree Skiing, steeps and they kindly organised a trip over to La Grave, which was also superb.

Their web site is:
http://www.montagne-et-ski.com/

Avalanche Accident Prevention Card

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 23:05:36 +0000

Earlier in the year I took part in some research for the Canadian Avalanche Centre who in collaboration with the Simon Fraser University were conducting a study on avalanche awareness of out-of-bounds skiers and snowboarders. The goal is to develop better avalanche awareness materials for this group.

Analysis of the data collected is ongoing but as a thank you they sent me a copy of their pocket book and reminder card entitled "Avaluator" which was based on initial research cumulating in 2006. I received mine in the post yesterday and it looks to be a useful tool to aid decision making and a check list for those venturing off piste.

Obviously this type of publication is no substitute for training and using a guide but it aims to provide skiers and boarders with a tool which will enable them to avoid obvious mistakes and "set them on a path of learning and practising good habits".

For more information see the Canadian Avalanche Centre web site at:

http://www.avalanche.ca/default.aspx?DN=428,4,558,3,Documents

And Pascal Haegeli's site at:

http://www.avisualanche.ca/adfar1/avaluator.html

Update:

Following a couple of emails to Pascal, he comments:

"The Avaluator combines two methods for personal risk management on backcountry trips in avalanche terrain.

The Trip Planner allows the user to pick reasonable trip destinations based on the regional danger rating from the avalanche bulletin and a trip rating that expresses the exposure of the trip to avalanche hazard in general. For more background in terrain ratings visit:

http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/banff/visit/visit7a1_e.asp
http://www.avalanche.ca/default.aspx?DN=646,428,4,558,3,Documents

The Obvious Clue Method was developed by Ian McCammon based on US avalanche accident data. The idea is that the more clues are present, the more similar your situation to past avalanche accidents. You can find more background on this method in the following papers:

http://www.avisualanche.ca/downloads/2004_ISSW_DecisionFrameworks.pdf
http://www.avisualanche.ca/downloads/2006_ISSW_McCammonHaegeli.pdf
http://avalancheinfo.net/ADFAR%20Proj%20Docs/CAAReviewEuropeanDecisionFrameworks.pdf

There are two parts to the recommendations of the Avaluator:

1) The colors on the Trip Planner Chart and the Obvious Clue Scale (green-yellow-red) are expert recommendations about what level of training and experience is necessary to safely travel in avalanche terrain under the given conditions.

2) In the booklet we also provide estimates on the percentage of historic US avalanche accident that could have been prevented if the accident parties would have followed these guidelines. A comparison of US and Canadian avalanche accidents showed that their characteristics are comparable and these percentages are applicable in Canada as well.

So while the Avaluator contains some common sense recommendations, the user should be aware that the recommendations were developed by North American experts and that the percentage of prevented accidents is based on North American accident statistics.

The Avaluator does not have any capabilities to predict individual avalanches. It is built on historic avalanche accidents from North America and its goal is to make users aware of conditions that have resulted in accidents in the past. The recommendations of the Avaluator provide the users with a sense of how much training and experience is necessary to safely travel in avalanche terrain under different conditions. The Avaluator provides a new accident perspective to complement the existing avalanche safety methods such as snow science, group management and rescue skills."

Stairs, Feedback and Skiing.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 00:29:16 +0000

Winter and skiing seem a long way away sitting here with the sun shining and a gentle breeze blowing across the garden.

Even though it's early Summer there are things we can do to help set up our skiing for the Winter. Perhaps one of the simplest is walking up the stairs. It's the perfect chance to develop a key skill which will speed your up skiing development, it's free and one no one need know !

In order to climb the stairs you need to use your legs effectively, as you do when skiing. Because you've been walking up stairs quite successfully for years it's likely you don't give it a second thought, but if you think about it the movements you make are actually quite complex.

So the next time you walk up the stairs try and pay close attention to feelings you get from your feet and legs. Are you stomping ? Is your footfall soft ? Where are your feet landing ? Does the left feel different to the right ? Use all the 'feedback' mechanisms available to you. Feel, listen and maybe take a quick look at what's going on too.

Then walk up the stairs again. This time modify your movements based on what you have just felt. Maybe make your steps softer, or their placement more accurate. Or if you noticed a difference between the left and the right see if you can even it up. Each time you walk up the stairs or go for a walk, try and be aware of your footfall and how your legs are moving.

This simple activity helps you develop your 'internal' feedback skills, in this case a heightened awareness of what your legs and feet are doing. This is a key skill which will help you improve your skiing. By accurately feeling what's happening under your feet means that you are able to modify your movements and make fine adjustments, and then feel the difference.

When you get back on skis this will pay dividends. Your heightened awareness of whats happening under your feet will enable you to know better how you are skiing. You can then change how you are skiing and feel the difference. When working with your ski Coach or Instructor you will be able to compare your 'internal' feedback, i.e. how your performance felt to you, to your Coaches verbal feedback, how your run it looked to him.

By having more accurate information and a fuller understanding of how you are skiing you will be able to progress faster.

Negative Reinforcement in skiing

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Fri, 16 May 2008 07:32:34 +0000

I just caught a section of Derren Brown's 'trick or treat' program on Channel 4 and the theme was negative reinforcement.

He was conducting an experiment with a tight rope walker, a good one at that, not only could he walk a tight rope, he could skip at the same time. . . . . . .

After seeing the guy do his stuff on the high wire Derren Brown asked him to repeat the performance, BUT while thinking "I must NOT fall". The "Do NOT fall" message was reinforced by adding an inflatable crash mat and Derren Brown repeated the instruction "Do NOT fall" several times and just before he started.

Guess what ?

The same tight rope walker who had a moment ago walked the high wire, skipped with a skipping rope and all without any safety net "went to pot". His balance was poor, his movements less accurate and eventually he fell to the mat.

This graphically demonstrates how focusing on a negative element of your performance simply reinforces that negative. In the case of the tight rope walker, focusing on "not falling" caused him to eventually fall.

So in a simple skiing example, when your ski instructor says "Don't let your hands drop back" and you keep that as your focus on your next run, as likely as not you'll end up doing exactly the thing you were trying to avoid and the instructor was trying to address.

For success it's far more effective to focus on the positive. In the case of the "hands" a more helpful instruction from the Instructor, and focus for you could be "Keep your hands forward".

It's all to easy for instructors to fall into the trap of using 'Negative' instructions with their clients, so should your Instructor say "don't do" such and such, gently turn the request around and ask them to tell you what you should be doing !

ps. It should be possible to see the program again for 30 days using C4s on demand service - see http://www.4od.com

Almost there ?

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:19:46 +0000

Focus and Concentration in skiing

Snow, Sky, Snow, Crash. It had been going so well, I was just 2 gates from the end of a GS race course.

The race in question being part of the qualification process for a ski instructor licence. The idea is to ski the GS course within a percentage time set by a pro ski racer. You get 2 go's and the best time counts. The first run was going fantastically and a few gates from the end I found myself thinking "bloody hell, I've nearly done this, just let it be over!"

The next thing I knew, it was. I'd crashed head over heals trying to make the the penultimate gate, so it was back to the top for a final go. I knew I could do it as I'd still got several seconds in hand while recovering after the crash. The second run started 'so so' and I found myself on wrong the line through the 'easy' top gates. This wasn't going well . . . . . . .

The thing is, 'technically' I was easily capable of skiing the course within the time required. My equipment was good and I had the right tactics worked out for the course but my 'head' was not so good. It was not a confidence issue or a problem dealing with the 'pressure', but the lack of concentration & focus. Prior to the crash I had switched my focus from skiing the correct line through the gates to "just finishing" and at the start of the second run I wasn't focused at all, "just skiing".

This is a problem for many recreational skiers (and participents of other sports) when they encounter tricker slopes or challenging conditions:

A good friend and fellow coach often comments that when he's skiing powder his run goes really well, up until the point he thinks "I can't believe how well this is going" at which point he takes a fall !
During one of my race training runs I was surprised by an unexpected shadow on the course (it was immediately after lunch). I thought "ah, I'm going into shadow - this could be tricky" and promptly missed the next gate as a result. Doh !
More randomly I once found myself circulating Oulton Park race circuit on a 250cc race bike thinking "I wonder what's for tea" !!!!

As well as being intrusive and changing your focus, these thoughts often have negative connotations:

When things ate going well, the idea forms that your performance would normally be 'worse'.
I may not finish the race or loose the game.
This is going to be hard or tricky.
or just not paying attention.

Luckily once you become aware of this type of thought it's easy to recognise. When they do pop up it's simply a case re focusing on the task to hand. The line through gates in case of my race or linking the next turns together for my powder friend. It worked for me in my race test, and I finished 5th and made the time.

Kebab and Chips please !

Stepping Stones

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 22:56:18 +0000

Top golfers use 'stepping stones' !

Watching BBC Breakfast over my toast and coffee the other morning, the program switched into sports mode with an interview with Justin Rose the top English golfer competing in the US Masters.

Justin, currently ranked top European and 9th in the World was being interviewed about his excellent start to the event, topping the leader board after the 1st day.

During the interview he described how winning major tournaments such as the US Masters was his long term career goal and how he has broken this goal down into smaller goals, winning specific tournaments of increasing importance.

I nearly choked on my coffee when he described these intermediate goals as 'stepping stones'. This is exactly the same way as I describe the goal setting process to my skiing clients and on my web site.

The idea is to break down a 'big' goal into smaller, more achievable sub goals (or stepping stones) which lead you towards the 'big' one. These stepping stones cover not just outcomes or results but also incorporate elements such as technique, equipment, fitness, tactics or psychology depending on your relative position to your 'big' goal.

Justin was also using the 'stepping stone' idea to manage the possibility of not winning at the Masters. During the interview he stated that he still had a few steps to go before he expected to win events such as the Masters - not that it wouldn't be nice. This meant he could try his best for the win without too much self imposed pressure, as should he loose, he still had his pre planned 'stepping stones' which will lead him to success.

The great thing for skiers everywhere is that this approach is not confined to top level sports people but available to everyone. Start now - decide what your 'big' goal is and take it from there !

My Golf is the perfect candidate for a few Stepping Stones...

Ski Instructor Judgment.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 01:14:28 +0000

I was recently asked to give some feedback to a couple of fellow instructors.

The first is planning to take their next instructing qualification and wanted a view on their current 'technical' level while the second asked for my thoughts after shadowing his Carving workshop for ski school clients.

Watching both Instructors was thought provoking and hopefully proved very positive for everybody concerned.

One thing that struck me during the week is the importance for Instructors to be able to match the best available slope to the learner skiers ability and the skiing activity planned. This is a fundamental skill for an instructor and is based on the ability to accurately judge the many variables involved, and is a key to a positive outcome for their clients.

The impact of these decisions for skiers in early the stages of learning is even more critical, and is complicated by the lift & piste combinations available in the resort. There are plenty of anecdotes about instructors who have pushed their clients too hard, too soon with negative results. A good instructor will not be afraid to return to easier slopes if need be.

Some resorts are extremely learner friendly and offer an excellent progression of slopes for beginners. Pila in the Aosta Valley Italy and Baqueira in Spanish Pyrenees are excellent resorts offering good piste progression giving lots of options for Instructors and skiers alike.

Sun Glasses - Important for skiing!

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 00:32:47 +0000

I found myself unexpectedly taking a class last week in the Pyrenees. The group was a Mother and 3 kids, the youngest only aged 5 or so. I was shocked to realise that non were wearing Sun Glasses or Goggles. When I mentioned that it would be a good idea to put them on it became clear that they had been left in the car.

The Mother and later the Father were unconcerned at the potential damage the sun was doing so I called the lesson to an early end.

Bright sun, high altitude and unprotected eyes don't mix !

Baqueira - Accommodation

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 00:25:32 +0000

Ski Inspired - A new holiday company offering holidays and accomodation in Baqueira Beret and the Val D'Aran. Operated by Tim and Annette who founded the British Ski School in Baqueira several years ago, Ski Inspired offer accomodation for all tasts, from the 5* luxary of the La Pleta to B&B accomodation in the local of town of Viella. Prices include Lift Passes and Lessons. For more information see: www.skinspired.co.uk

Hostau Era Claverola Good value B&B Accommodation in Salardu, just below Baqueira. Regular bus services or 5 minutes in the car. email Nuria the manager

Auviatge Miret During my 06/07 Baqueira Winter season we stayed in a lovely apartment in the village of Garos. Garos is about 1/3 of the way up the valley from the main town of Vielha and the drive up to Baqueira takes around 15 minutes in the car (a fiat Panda in our case!). A Bus service runs up and down the valley and the bus stop is about 3 minutes from the apartment with a convenient 8.15 bus getting me to the Tuc Blac at 8.40 ish in time for coffee before ski school. Judit was our host and her apartments are new build and of very high quality and include underground parking. Her web site is: www.auviatgemiret.com

Ski Boot Fitting

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 04:53:23 +0000

On our last skiing holiday my wife had some problems with her ski boots. By the end of the 3rd day her feet were red sore and skiing was no fun at all.

With Winter fast approaching ( and more like here if our weather is anything to go by ) I decided to get her down to a specialist ski boot fitter to try and fix the problem.

Word of mouth (or more accurately posts on a popular ski web forum) guided me to Colin Martin who runs Solutions for Feet in Bicester, Oxfordshire. Colin is a certified Pedorthist (C.Ped), a skier and instructor who has spent many years specialising in fitting and customising ski boots.

Colin examined my wife's feet and ski boots and it quickly became apparent after testing and measuring that there are 2 big problems. The first is that her boots are 2 sizes too big, and the second is that she has tight calf muscles which reduces her ability to flex at the ankles, a key skiing movement.

Colin proceeded to check my boots. I wasn't surprised to find my boots are also 2 sizes too big as my buying decision was influenced by the unbearable pain inflicted on me by my 1st pair of boots. I was surprised to hear that I could also do with working on my calf muscles to loosen them up. Luckily for me my ski boots feel fine although the liners will wear out quickly.

Unfortunately for my wife the only solution for is a new pair of correctly fitted boots and some stretching exercises.

For many skiers buying ski boots is fraught with problems as I know from personal experience.

However today proved to me that it is worth taking the time to search for someone who is skilled and experienced enough to suggest the most appropriate ski boot for you and your level of skiing, AND have the skills to craft and tailor your ski boot to your foot.

With the vast range of boots available from the many and varied ski boot manufacturers, the trick is to select a boot with a plastic 'shell' that matches your feet as a starting point. Small adjustments can then be made to the shell and liner for a perfect fit.

A couple of visits back to the boot fitter to fine tune the fit will leave you with comfortable, perfectly fitted boots which will help you ski more effectively and will as likely as not, last longer too.

The result of ill fitting ski boots.

PS. No ski boots were purchased in the making of this blog. Yet.

Small changes in your skiing can make a big difference !

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 03:36:32 +0000

Being a Ski Coach puts me in an interesting position when learning new Sports. One of the most important is that it reminds me what it feels like to be a 'beginner' which in turn lets me improve my ski teaching.

One of my new passions is Indoor Climbing which I started about a year ago. A couple of things come to mind that are relevant to those who want to improve their skiing:

Firstly, my climbing has improved with my fitness. As my upper body and finger strength has increased with practice so I've been able to take on harder and harder climbs. It's pretty obvious, but a simple way to help improve your skiing is to get fit! For me this usually involves plenty of Hill Walking, Gardening and Indoor climbing.

Secondly, climbing has reminded me how SMALL changes in technique can have a BIG impact in success or failure. In climbing you are either make a 'move' successfully or fall, so it's easy to see if a change in technique make a difference. For many beginner and intermediate skiers it's likely that if you can make some quite small technical changes to your skiing and feel a BIG difference. You will need the help of a Coach or Instructor to assist you in identifying the best for you, but posture and fore/aft balance is often a good starting point.

However, the real value of your Coach or Instructor will be in helping you to make the change.

Variable Conditions - Have a plan....

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 02:39:30 +0000

Sorry for not posting recently. It's been a fantastic season so far and I've been busy Teaching, Skiing and having fun

I'm going to kick off my first post for a while with some thoughts on variable conditions. This time of year (March\April) conditions change massively between the first and last run of the day, and the techniques you use after breakfast may well trip you up just before tea.

Off piste skiing is a big favourite of mine and I've just counted at least 8 different ways I've used this week to make arcs. In a single run the snow can vary between wind blown crust, to powder, to slush and my skiing has to change as I adapt to the conditions under foot. The same applies when skiing on piste. As the aspect, width, steepness, altitude of the run varies the snow conditions will change. Other factors include the time of day, the weather and the amount of skier traffic.

Luckily from the moment your skis touch the snow (and often as soon as you glimpse the snow on the way to the lifts) you will be making a sub conscious evaluation of the snow conditions. It's helpful to make this a conscious thought process, especially if you are new to skiing.

The snow gives you a lot of clues to help you choose from your 'tool box' of techniques the best one(s) for a particular slope. On the approach to the start of the run:

Listen to your ski's ? Are they rattley or quiet ?
Feel for the snow underfoot - Is it soft or hard, slushy or frozen ?
Look at the snow - Is it lumpy, hard or soft, fresh, deep, pisted ?
Texture is a good one - Is it pisted corduroy, Wind blown crust or soft slush.

Some of these clues might be scary - rattley ski's on a hard piste early in the morning can be intimidating. But forewarned is forearmed and by considering the conditions you can start each run with a clear idea of which technique you are going apply.

Sometimes it takes a couple of arcs to confirm your initial impressions, so be prepared to adjust your approach and you will need to keep adjusting as things change during your descent.

Having a wide repertoire of skiing techniques gives you the best chance of success on any given day. You'll have more choice from more ways to ski different conditions. It means that you can have more fun more of the time, and not have your day cut short should the snow conditions change !

Variable conditions can be tricky....

Learning to ski ? Know your DIN Settings.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 22:43:47 +0000

A friend of mine once tried bungie jumping. Standing on a high bridge, the next guy up stepped forward so that the Instructor could attach the harness and bungie cord for his jump. For a 'Laugh' the Instructor started to attach the cord around his neck, no doubt expecting the guy to object and see the 'joke'. In this case the guy didn't object at all and seemed quite prepared to jump. Perhaps it was because he had implicit trust in the Instructor, or maybe he didn't know any better ! Which ever, it goes to show how reliant you are on the 'experts' when starting out in a new sport.

Skiing is no exception. As a learner you are confronted with lots of unfamiliar equipment and you rely on the experts from the hire shop to set it up correctly for you. If the 'experts' mess up, or are maybe not expert at all, you could be at risk. A group of friends recently went on holiday and hired skis and boots from the local hire shop. On the first morning one of them fell, suffering a knee injury after the skis failed to come off.

The problem was incorrectly calculated settings for their ski bindings. On a hunch I checked the 'shop' settings for their ski bindings against the industry standard charts. For each person the shop had set them too high, making it harder for the ski's and boots to separate in the event of a fall. Appalling service from so called experts.

This could happen to you, but it's simple to avoid.

Ski bindings are adjusted according to a "DIN" value so that your skis and boots separate in the event of a fall. The idea is to reduce the chance of leg and knee injuries. Your DIN value is calculated from information including your weight, height, the sole length of your ski boot, how aggressively you ski and your age. DIN settings are an international standard and are transferable between different makes of Alpine ski bindings.

Because DIN values are an industry standard there are lots of charts and spreadsheets available online to make working out your own personal DIN setting quick and simple. Once you know your DIN setting you can give it to the shop each time you hire (or buy) ski's so that they can set them correctly. As a precaution double check visually that they have been set as requested before you leave the shop. Expect the front \ rear \ left \ right settings to be the same. If in doubt have them double checked by a qualified expert.

Try this link for DIN Charts: http://www.dinsetting.com/dinchart.htm

DISCLAIMER: This article is for information only. Always have your bindings checked and adjusted by a professional.

Front Binding. Check the DIN setting through the sight glass.

Rear Binding, showing up & down positions. DIN setting best seen on right ski in up position and in this case is represented using a diagonal marker.

Shropshire Skiing - First Tracks.

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Tue, 11 May 2010 05:17:36 +0000

Trip 1.

By the start of January 2010 Shropshire had been in the icy grip of Winter for weeks. Finally it had snowed and the temptation to see of Shropshire Skiing was possible was too much.

In the Summer I'd picked up a pair of touring bindings and set them up on a spare pair of twin tips. A pair of second hand 'skins' had been acquired and I was looking for an excuse to see if my ski tech skills were anything like. So I loaded up an inappropriate car with dog, ski's and the usual paraphernalia and set off.

I ended up crossing through Much Wenlock to Church Stretton with the idea of maybe skiing Hope Bowdler Hill. I ended up dropping in to Stretton and heading towards Carding Mill Valley, but on a whim kept going to look at Caer Caradoc and The Lawley now across the Valley.

The Lawley looked a good bet, so I picked up an OS map in town and found the path to walk up. I was in two minds whether to take the gear, but decided it was worth a punt.

There was decent coverage at the top, a bit crusty but enough for some sweet turns right down to the gate.

Caer Caradoc looked a tempting in the sun set, but it was too late for a hike up.

Measure your skiing

nospam@example.com (David Tapley) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 04:55:53 +0000

A coach and friend of mine recently blogged on "Adaptability or Versatility" in the context of recreational skiing, and pointed out that while racing is obviously 'measured', usually by a stop watch, Recreational skiers and skiing is typically 'judged'.

Ski School instruction is an good example, where as a learner you are set a task by your Ski Instructor. You attempt the task, skiing down to your Instructor who gives you their judgement on your performance. This approach has it's place, but an undesirable result can be a focus on "How do I look?", rather than "How effective was my skiing?", or to put it another way, Style over Effectiveness!

Instead I'd suggest that many recreational skiers would benefit from viewing their skiing like racers do, 'measuring' the outcome of a given run rather than relying on someone else to judge it. For example at it's most basic your desired outcome might be "get down the run safely and having a good time while doing it"*

It doesn't matter what it 'looked like' when you have achieved the outcome you wanted. As you gain more control over your skiing you can aim for more specific outcomes. The next step could be "get down the run safely, have a good time, AND maintain a constant speed." and so on, adding more specific measures as your skill develops. Importantly by using these are 'measured' outcomes you can assess for your self the success (or not) of your skiing, and if you want they give you the means to learn from every run of the day.

One of the key benefits of the Coaching process is that your coach can provide you with the tools to be able to 'assess' YOUR own performance, which in turn means that you can take more control over your ski learning, feel better about your skiing and change it as you need.

*borrowed from the link above.