Aaron, our sales manager, recently spent time in Tignes enjoying the fabulous setting of the Espace Killy.
While he was there, he asked ski guru Floss from our ski school of choice (FreeFlo Ski) for a couple of skiing tips on how to improve your skiing when you feel you have reached a plateau.
So here are our top ski tips for posture during your school ski trip
1. Keep your balance over your feet
The first of our ski tips concentrates on balance: it’s really important to remember to keep your hips over your feet so that the pivot point is under the balls of your feet. If you push your body weight backward you are not letting the front of the carver ski do its job because there is not enough weight on the front to initiate the turn.
Think about pushing your hips forward rather than adopting a crouched position and a great little exercise for doing this is to practice turns whilst making a circle around your body with your ski poles. By passing them behind you, your hips are naturally pushed forward and your weight goes to the front of the ski and governs the turn.
2. Maintain a horizontal eye line… Don’t look down!
Beginners learning to ski on a school ski trip will very often be drawn to looking at their skis as they come to terms with a new activity. Looking at your feet or skis is something to avoid because it can knock you off balance and once you are out of balance it is harder if not impossible to return.
Another great little exercise for helping your posture is to have your poles held upwards and to focus on an object in the distance. Keep this object in the middle of your poles throughout your turns and you will find that this naturally helps to keep a horizontal eye line.
3. Relax your arms and keep them away from your body
Don’t hold your arms like you are holding shopping bags or stiff and straight in front as that is just painful for your back. Try and adopt as natural a position as possible so that your poles feel like an extension of you and not an external force to be countered. Planting your pole helps to initiate the turn and if you are spending your time carrying them and not working them your technique will suffer.
4. Keep your hips knees and ankles flexed.
Bend the knees used to be a mantra for skiers learning to ski but really this is a common myth. You will find that the position of the foot in a modern ski boot ensures that your knees are automatically flexed and realistically that is enough. If you bend your knees too far you run the risk of pushing your body weight towards the back of the ski which counters the earlier point of pushing your hips forward.
Skiing is such a dynamic and technical sport it’s very easy to over think and to get confused by listening to your friends and partners on how to do it, which is why Activ4 School Tours is proud of its association with Floss and FreeFlo Ski based in the spectacular resorts of Val D’Isere and Tignes. For lots of students a school ski trip is their introduction to skiing and will form their lasting impression. That is why the quality of the ski school is so important and in the Espace Killy, Activ4 gives you the chance to work with intuitive British Ski Instructors who will help you progress, have fun and enjoy the full freedom of the mountain in a safe and confident manner.
If you are looking for first class ski coaching in this iconic region of the Alps for your school ski trip then why not have a chat with us?
Staying in the picturesque village of Tignes Les Brevieres, with its lift system direct into the heart of over 300km of piste, this is a trip of substance for schools looking for that quintessentially French skiing experience.
