Skippress - Index

Skippress - US Vol. 7 No. 2 - Index

In its 13th consecutive year, the Subaru Master the
Mountain program visits over a dozen mountains in
the U.S. to help skiers and snowboarders make
turns the way Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel
Drive holds the road — with confi dence and power.
The program provides both beginners and experts
with the professional instruction they need to
excel… on the groomed, in the moguls and deep in
the powder.
Subaru also continues to join forces with
Nordica, Swix, and Nitro Snowboards to give
skiers and snowboarders the ultimate on-snow
pit crew this year. Reps from Nordica, Swix
and Nitro will offer free demos to anyone with
a valid lift ticket. Be sure to visit them on the
mountain! For a complete schedule of the Subaru
Master the Mountain program, please visit
www.outdoorlife.subaru.com
“Seven Sunny Days” is the new film from the
award-winning crew at Matchstick Productions,
featuring the best skiers in the world, including
Simon Dumont, Mark Abma, Ingrid Backstrom,
Hugo Harrison, Rory Bushfi eld, Sarah Burke and
many more.
Subaru is proud to sponsor the Matchstick Movie
Tour, geared up and hitting the road to bring the
latest action-packed ski fi lm to a theater near you.
Look for your town, come to the show, meet the
athletes, and win tons of prizes.
For details on the specifi c location of a tour stop
near you, visit www.skimovie.com
ALPINE TIP BY NICHOLAS HERRIN
For Stability in the Steeps…
Photos: Scott DW Smith
01
02
03
Presented by
Get the Upper Hand
The trouble with the steeps is that it all comes at you at
the same time. Instead of trying to deal with every halfremembered
survival technique, focus on just one.
Here’s the one. Keep your upper hand — the one closest
to the hill — over your skis. As in photos 1 and 2. This
will help pull your upper body over your skis and into a
strong, balanced position.
That goes against instinct. The natural tendency on a
steep run is to reach for safety. Which means leaning into
the hill. As in Photo 3.
There was I, caught moving way too fast on a steep slope.
Why? Because I was reaching for the slope to slow down.
That threw me off balance and unable to stand on both
skis. Notice that my downhill ski is actually pointing in a
different direction than my uphill ski. Not good.
A much better example is set by my teammate, Jeb Boyd’
in photo 1. You can see Jeb’s right hand is not even touching
the snow. His hand is right over his skis, allowing him
to stay balanced and stand on both skis. And both his skis
are pointing in the same direction.
So keep it simple. Keep your hand over your skis on steep
terrain. Get the upper hand.
Keep your upper hand
over your skis.
Nick Herrin is the Assistant Director of the
Telluride Ski and Snowboard School, and a
member of the PSIA National Alpine Team.
more tips on skipressworld.com