How Do I Make Great Short Turns?

Steve Smart of NASTC demonstrates how to make great short turns

Point 1. Edge your skis by rolling your ankles and knees
as quickly as possible after you make the weight shift to your outside ski.

Point 2. Keep pressure in the middle of the ski. If you push your knees
forward too much the back of the ski will slide out.

Point 3. Keep your ski poles moving. I always think of having a pole
in the snow at all times. This helps you anticipate the next turn.

Point 4. Keep your shoulders forward and your hips back. This is like
the basic ready position a soccer goal keeper uses to get ready for a penalty
kick.

Point 5. Turn the skis with your legs not your hips or shoulders. A
centered stance and good edging movements from the lower leg will allow your
legs to make all the movements and keep your upper body “quiet.”

Steve Smart is a Ski Instructor, Skiing Demonstrator, Canadian Ski Instructors
Alliance Level IV Examiner (9 yrs), Canadian Demo-Team member (since 1989),
top Canadian skier in the 1996 World Technical Skiing Championships. He’s
been a NASTC Trainer since 1997 and
teaches their Whistler-Blackcomb, Kirkwood, and Big Sky, MT courses. 

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