Meet the Challenge: Powder
Instruction
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What Holds You Back
The idea of operating within a medium instead of on its surface. As you lose sight of your skis, they resist direction change, seemingly assuming a will of their own.
The Challenge
To find a line-and sufficient speed-to wipe away all resistance, except that which keeps you balanced. To float in slow motion, as if under water.
Meeting the Challenge
Press down and away going into the turn, and then lift your feet up and across, so that both skis act as a single platform. Turning power comes from your ski bottoms, not your edges. You must accept some imbalance. Don’t sit back, as myth suggests. Rather, stay balanced over the midpoint of your skis.
Work With the Terrain
Turning resistance slows you down, so look for steeper runs with small bumps and undulations that offer lift and turning opportunities.
Clinics
Learn in the heart of powder country: The Alf Engen Ski School at Alta, Utah, offers experts-only clinics daily, during which guides lead you to secret stashes; (801) 359-1078. Canadian Mountain Holidays offers Powder Introduction for skiers new to deep snow skiing and Powder Experience for skill refinement; (800) 661-0252.
