NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #31/NN_1992_31.iso/spool/rec/skiing/9029

Text File | 1992-12-31 | 2.8 KB | 56 lines

Newsgroups: rec.skiing
Path: sparky!uunet!s5!is1.is.morgan.com!is.morgan.com!sergei
From: [e-mail] (Sergei Poliakoff)
Subject: Re: Question to more advanced skiers (bumps)
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Organization: Morgan Stanley - IS
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Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 15:42:43 GMT
Lines: 43

|> I'm not sure what you are disagreeing with here.  In the universe
|> where I live, an object on an inclined plane will undergo acceleration
|> that depends on the angle of the plane with respect to gravity.  If
|> the opposing forces are equal, the greater acceleration experienced on
|> a steeper slope will result in higher velocity.
|>
|> The key words in my earlier statement are "as easily."  If you try to
|> ski a very steep slope at very low speeds, you must expend energy to
|> apply more frictional force to reduce the acceleration.  This is not
|> "as easy" as expending no energy to fight the acceleration, and simply
|> going the natural speed of the slope.

I was very practical about the issue : everyone seems to go slower on steep
slopes , admittedly expending greater energy.   In fact, in Killington my
wife usually makes it quicker to the bottom  by  the
roundabout Wildfire  and has a pleasure of watching me negotiate
the remaining chunk of much more direct Outer Limits :-). Makes me
wonder ...

|> You're right.  Even if you slide down the slope on your back with your
|> skis in the air, I should not dare to say that you are skiing
|> improperly.  After, all skiing is an evolving art.
|>
|> I (perhaps mistakenly) thought that we were interested in making
|> smooth, balanced, cleanly carved turns, rather than scraping down the
|> hill sideways.  I also assumed that efficiency was an admirable goal.
|> Even with these assumptions in place, I'll admit that there is still
|> plenty of room for stylistic variation.

Interestingly, a good friend of mine who has been skiing for over 20 years
now and never learned to ski properly , refuses  to carve or do any
accepted thing for that matter  for one reason : it TIRES him a lot.
He goes down the hill -ANY hill- in  style that I can only describe as
crab-like, but  confidently, fast and safe ,in arrogant  defiance of any
accepted ski dogma and my advice. He doesn't get tired much. However, each
time he attempts to follow me through graceful arcs (I am a form freak, for
those interested), his legs ache, his back aches, he is out of breath and
falling ...  Observing him in Killington  a lot, I established that his ski
style is absolutely adequate and legitimate on ice, hardpack, moguls,
groomed.  I expect it to fall apart in powder, although  he says he had no
trouble in CO ...

Sergei