How-To

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cold and flu season peaks in either January or February, which happens to coincide with the best skiing. To avoid missing out on a powder day, here are three tips to start implementing now.

Ever wondered how to make the most of those demo days at your local hill? Here are some tips.

Skiing a spine, with fall-away turns on both sides of it, isn’t easy. But it’s a great way to sharpen your technique.

This exercise complex develops strength and balance in the posterior chain (glutes, low-back, hamstrings). Development and strengthening of the posterior chain, particularly the hamstrings, is very important for preventing ACL injuries, a common injury among freeskiers.

This exercise develops explosive power in the hips, glutes, and legs. A quick, explosive jump is the ultimate expression of lower-body power. These weighted jumps demand a forceful triple extension of the hips, knees, and ankles, and are a great teaching progression for anyone interested in Olympic lifting (clean, jerk, snatch) or anyone wishing to train a traditional Clean or explosive exercise with minimal equipment.

Now that winter is upon us there’s an important question to be answered: How do you actually make the ski bum lifestyle happen? Here’s how to work as little as possible, ski every powder day, and still pay your bills. Most of the time.

We returned to Mt. Bachelor, Ore., last spring and called in the pros from America's Best Bootfitters and Masterfit University—the guys who teach bootfitters how to fit boots—to help us evaluate the 2012 offerings.

Get equipped to capture a frameworthy picture every time.

Pro big mountain skier Seth Morrison shares his tips on skiing a spine.

Killing time 'till next season? Break out your power drill.

Give your skis a little TLC after a long season of abuse.

The man with the mohawk gave us some tips on how to make kick turns. Ski ballet background helpful but not required.

If you want to ski powder and still hold down some semblance of a real job you're going to have to get up early. Backcountry guide/dawn patroller/employed dude Zahan Billimoria told us how to do dawn patrol right.

For each of the past six years, Evans Parent has hit the road for a three-month powder mission, blogging along the way. He slowed down for a minute to share tips on how to follow in his tracks around the world. By Olivia Dwyer.

How to be a ski bum and keep your corporate job, including the five best cities for skiers and ten tips for power chasing.

Changing the world, one ski bum at a time.

So you want to be a film star and ski big lines in AK? Lots of the most recognized names in big-mountain skiing got their start in the Subaru Freeskiing World Tour. Here's how you can break into the game.

You don’t have to rip to heliski. In fact, for intermediates and up who struggle with powder, the untracked wilds are the best place to learn.

The city of Denver is taking it back to the concrete streets. Over the past few years, the Ruby Hill Rail Yard has shattered the mold for urban skiing and set the bar for other cities around the country. Did we mention it’s free, and it opens this weekend?

Is La Nina holding up her end of the deal?

Average guy shows his friends what he can do on skis in downtown New York City, becomes internet sensation. He told us about how to avoid manholes, where the idea came from, and his ski of choice for urban skiing.

How to stay ahead of storms, know who is getting dumped on, and never make a turn on firm snow.

Rockered skis have fundamentally changed the way we ski powder. Find out how to step up your game in a step-by-step sequence from Skiing Interactive.

Momentum will hold it’s first girls-only freeride and mogul sessions in an effort to show girls that they can play just as hard, if not harder, than the boys.

Colorado's Arapahoe Basin closed Sunday, June 6, as the last resort open in the state. The Beach, the Basin's notorious parking lot apres-ski spot, was full and there was plenty of end of season pond skimming to be had. Here are the photos.

TKTK Dek by Megan Michelson

The only ski resort in Colorado that runs two lifts for dedicated downhill mountain biking, Winter Park will open for summer operations on June 12. This summer, they have new features and expanded trail networks. Here is everything you need to know about Trestle Bike Park.

Mount Hood, Oregon’s biggest summertime ski, snowboarding, skateboarding, and BMX camp, Windells, will see new dry slope airbags and a school credit option at the summer 2010 Windells Camp session. We spoke to camp founder Tim Windell about airbag landings, the Concrete Jungle, and Shaun White.

Pro skier Jeremy Benson recently returned from his first ski trip to Europe. Here are five lessons he learned in the steep-skiing mecca of Chamonix, France—from how to ski steeps to why you sometimes need to wear a harness while skiing.

10 made-up terms every skier should know, including "bootgasm” and “mansoup.” Plus, a few tips on making the most of each term.

The ski season may be winding down, but that means that pond-skimming season is just beginning. We’ve got tips on how to become a pond-skimming pro and what ski resorts host the best ponds and spring festivals to display your newfound prowess. —Brigid Mander

A new website offers tips on dealing with one of the most congested ski highways in the country.

In a good snow season, the back bowls are the place to ski. Here are three tips to improve your skiing.

So you want to learn to slide a rail or stomp a big air? You can't just show up in the terrain park and cut to the front of the line. There are rules. We asked Austin Christenson, the manager of the terrain park at New Mexico's Taos Ski Valley, to lay down some guidelines for novices venturing into the park. —Olivia Dwyer

On steep slopes, the risks are higher—if you fall, it’s harder to stop. But so are the rewards. Pitches tilted past 40 degrees can be thrilling if you overcome your fears and tackle the terrain confidently. Learn how to self arrest and more. —Hillary Procknow

SKI Mag sends a blogger, Hillary Rosner, to do our dirty work: Get in ski shape. She joins a CrossFit gym, which is reputed to be the best—and most brutal—way to get strong fast. It's painful, but the good news is that now Rosner has a backup job...as a brick layer. Or jackhammerer. Or contestant on that reality TV show where they pull trucks of cement. This week she questions her commitment level.

There's an unspoken rule in ski country. Most ski techs will work for beer.

Pro skiers Ingrid Backstrom and Jessica Sobolowski share tips during their recent freeskiing camp at Squaw Valley to teach women how to tackle big-mountain skiing, from scouting lines to self-arrests. By Olivia Dwyer

I thought I knew about going fast on ice. I’ve skied the east, after all. But when Audi invited me to go to Austria to drive their cars on ice, I realized I had a lot to learn. Here are some driving tips I picked up while spinning donuts on Austrian ice. —Niall Bouzon

A five-step process to search for and recover an avalanche victim.

SKI Mag sends a blogger, Hillary Rosner, to do our dirty work: Get in shape for ski season. She joins a CrossFit gym, which is reputed to be the best—and most brutal—way to get strong fast. It may be painful, but the good news is that now Rosner has a backup job...as a brick layer. Or jackhammerer. Or contestant on that reality TV show where they pull trucks of cement. Here's how she pays—and dearly—for holiday excess.

Bollé athlete Jen Hudak plays host to “Twin Tips,” a series of entertaining and educational videos designed to help you ski safer and stronger.

The most important thing to remember when planning your day at this Idaho resort? Follow the sun, of course.

There are several legendary inbounds bootpacks in the Western U.S., places where the resort's toughest skiers hike for their turns. Take the Ridge at Bridger Bowl, Taos' Kachina Peak, Jackson Hole's Headwall, or Aspen's Highland Bowl. We spoke to ski patrol at Highlands to find out the best technique for carrying your skis up the bootpack.

If your New Year's resolution is to finally ski Jackson Hole, we are here to help. Check out our goals for 2010 (including carpooling to the ski hill and buying powder skis) then tell us what your ski-related New Year's resolution is and you can win a four-day trip for two to Jackson Hole, Wyoming (including airfare, lodging, and lift tickets!).

Bollé athlete Jen Hudak plays host to “Twin Tips,” a series of entertaining and educational videos designed to help you ski safer and stronger.

A single-day lesson always helps, but to truly transform your skiing takes a commitment of time and energy. Here are our favorite multi-day immersion clinics that will finally take you to the next level. From Vail to Vermont, the list includes a resort near you.

We've compiled 22 powder shots, along with a bunch of powder-related tips into a gallery for your viewing pleasure.

Bollé athlete Jen Hudak plays host to “Twin Tips,” a series of entertaining and educational videos designed to help you ski safer and stronger.

How to get up in deep snow, avoiding "tree wells", and other powder-related tips.

Shredding waist-deep, blower powder is the most exalted experience in skiing. But for the uninitiated, skiing powder can feel like stirring cement. That’s because deep snow demands a distinct set of techniques.

Nothing will put your stomach in your throat like launching a cliff or hitting a jump. Unfortunately, most of us flail like a hamster thrown from a window on our first few flights. To get past this, you need to learn the four stages of launching any air: inspection, takeoff, air, and landing.

Random facts and knowledge about taking your skis off the snow.

Introducing four women-only ski camps geared for girls looking to up their game.

You’ve been skiing for years and have cranked out millions of vertical feet—and maybe even taken a lesson or two. The result: You’re a confident advanced skier. Satisfied? Don’t be. With a little more work on snow and in the gym, you can be a seamless expert.

Last winter, X Games Mono Skier X competitor Andy Campbell had two of his skis stolen in Steamboat, Colorado. Fortunately for Campbell, he’s an active member of Teton Gravity Research’s ski/snowboard forum.

To help you get the most out of skiing—and avoid the mistakes of others.

Get up in super-deep snow, how to find a free, and warm, place to sleep in a ski town, and 17 other skiing tips.

Advantage: Sadly, violence works

To hit an air—either jumping a cliff into powder or sending a tabletop in the park—you need to be able to pop the take-off. The better the pop, the more solid the landing. These steps, taught by 15-year-old Andrew Pollard, a Black Diamond team rider and member of the Alta Freeride Team, should help your pop this season.

The father of glading was Réal Boulanger, and other tree-skiing facts.

Sure, tree skiing can be dangerous. But conquering your fear is the first step to skiing in control and making quick decisions in the glades.

Pro big-mountain skier Cody Townsend won't tell you where this 2,000-foot couloir is located.

Including advice from Seth Morrison, Chris Davenport, and Alaskan heli-ski guide Kirsten Kremer, we offer up a crucial list of facts and tips you need to know before you head out of bounds.

Perfecting your avalanche rescue skills before you head into the backcountry can mean the difference between life and death.

At Woodward at Copper, Colorado’s new indoor park training facility, you can learn Rodeo 5s, backflips, and more, into the comfort of a foam pit.

Build your own wood fired hot tub in a few (relatively) easy steps.

John Symms gives you tips for pulling off nose butter 540s: Carve, pop, spin, land. Easy as that.

Erik Roner shows you how to rip the lift line. That is, learn to showboat or get out of the way.

Ian McIntosh has tips for conquering pillow lines.

Rachael Burks offers tips for difficult traverses.

After a long day at the office, it's tough to find the motivation to work out. But, diligence always pays off. Here are the best tips and tricks to make the most out of your gym time, so that you'll be ready for your first days on the slopes.

The secret? Drafting. Squaw Valley's Cody Townsend teaches you how to master Harkin Banks' moves from "Hot Dog...The Movie."

Set your rotation with your toes. Mike Wilson shows you how.