| Giant Slalom Turn With Lateral Projection | | | | to reach that restaurant for lunch. |
| Ever since you started skiing you have been | | | | You will notice that stopping after doing several of |
| encouraged to keep your weight on the downhill ski. | | | | these high speed turns is an art in itself. It is safer to |
| Now for the first time (officially) you are going to ski | | | | convert to a few short turns, which applies the |
| on your uphill ski. Try these two exercises to give | | | | brakes slowly, before coming to a stop. Going |
| you an idea of what it feels like: | | | | straight into a standard christie stop from 40 mph |
| 1) Choose an easy gradient and traverse across it | | | | with your head and shoulders almost touching the |
| slowly, skis flat, with weight on the lower ski. | | | | ground, and a fountain of snow spraying skywards, is |
| Transfer the weight to the upper ski, but keep the | | | | asking for trouble. |
| lower one on the ground. Don't overdo it unless you | | | | CONTRE VIRAGE - TAIL SLIDE |
| want to sit down. Tool around for a bit. Try to keep | | | | Contre Virage (literally from the French 'against the |
| the skis moving forward with no side slipping. | | | | turn') is a good one for the bar at the day's end, but |
| 2) Try it on a steeper slope where you can use the | | | | is a simple enough maneuver. All it involves is bringing |
| edges with some angulation. You will of course be | | | | your downhill hand up and towards your chest in a |
| edging with the outside edge of the upper ski. You | | | | short arc! If you are going fast enough the back of |
| will be climbing up the slope with steps of about 6" | | | | the skis will slide round. This can have a useful braking |
| each time. | | | | effect as the skis are coming round against the fall |
| When you are bored with this, get going on a fast | | | | line, and with angulation can have quite a dramatic |
| traverse, angulating over the lower ski, take a step | | | | result. You can also use it to initiate an edge set prior |
| up onto your uphill ski, and as you do so, project | | | | to breaking into short turns at the end of these long |
| your upper body exactly the same way as you have | | | | fast turns you are doing. |
| done before, up and forwards towards the fall line, | | | | How does it work? Once again it's your natural |
| keeping your weight on the uphill ski. As the skis | | | | torsion at work again. When you bring your arm up, |
| come round to the fall line the uphill ski becomes the | | | | your shoulder twists round a bit, followed by the |
| downhill ski, and changes from one edge to the | | | | muscles down your side, your thigh, your lower leg, |
| other. As soon as the ski has changed from one | | | | your heel, and low and behold the tail of your ski. |
| edge to the other you begin to apply pressure on | | | | You may remember that you can achieve the same |
| the front of it with angulation. | | | | kind of tail slide by the rapid drop of your upper body |
| The step up accelerates you into the turn by | | | | in the short turns. The result is the same, but they |
| reducing any braking side slip on the lower ski at the | | | | are different methods for different turns. Contre |
| start of the turn (see 'contre virage'). It is used | | | | Virage depends on steering while the rapid drop |
| significantly by giant slalom racers to gain height on a | | | | depends on unweighting. |
| course, and a variation is used by slalom skiers for | | | | If you are unsure of the differences between |
| the same purpose. You too can use it to gain height | | | | unweighting the skis and steering the skis in order to |
| when you are traversing round a mountain, and you | | | | turn them, check out the article entitled 'How Turns |
| realise you have to climb as well as going forwards, | | | | are Made'. |