Railing It

When shaped skis made their debut skiers quickly discovered how much fun it was to lay them over and ride the side cut. The skis made it easy to ski reasonably well with little effort. However, skiers were no longer working the ski, they were instead just “railing it”.

In the last couple of years the term “railing it” has come to mean something much more positive. Rather than the park and ride – getting on your edges and hanging out until your ski comes around -“railing it” now refers to working the ski in order to leave two clean arcs in the snow from the top of the turn all the way through the transition to the next turn. While the old way of railing it left you at the mercy of the radius of your ski, with the new way of railing it you control the size of your turn.

What makes railing it different than an ordinary intermediate parallel turn is that you are controlling the amount you steer without pivoting per se. How then do you dictate the radius of your turn? By building enough energy to bend your ski.

Easy enough said but how do you do that? To initiate edging early you need to balance over your new outside ski immediately after you finish your last turn. A good way to practice this is to skate ski on an easy run or trail and then link the skate ski push into the beginning of your new turn. Start your turn by inclining your ankles, knees, then hip all before the fall line. Railed turns are large turns so the hip joint quickly follows the ankles and knees at the top of the turn leaving some room for the smaller joints (ankles and knees) to further move inside to add some “oomph” at the end of the turn. With all of the lower joints inclining into the turn, remember to keep the upper body angulated to the outside of the turn/down the hill to allow you to balance over your outside ski.

To rail it you need to build up speed to bend your skis so go on terrain where you feel comfortable going fast - minimum terrain + maximum speed. Think about leaving two clean lines on the snow. On a day where it’s easy to see your tracks, you can see how well you did by simply looking back up the hill once you’ve stopped.

Now, words I never thought I’d hear a ski instructor say, get out there and rail it!

Losing It

One benefit of improving your skiing is the feeling of control that develops. To achieve that secure feeling we often seek runs, terrain, and conditions with which we are comfortable and then ski them at a comfortable speed. I’d like to challenge that conventional way of thinking by positing that the only way you can truly know that you are in balance is to lose and regain it. One amazingly fluid and exciting skier I had the pleasure to ski with recently likened her skiing to a series of linked recoveries. She goes for it when she skis and if she gets out of balance she corrects mid-stream with a double pole plant or repositioning of the body. To watch her you would never think she is out of balance. My best runs of the day were when I really went for it – it is amazing how quickly you are able to recover from any imbalances when you are active in your skiing. When trying this, keeping the turn shape smaller as it keeps you moving. To be clear I’m not advocating being unsafe. You have to be mindful of other people on the hill. But the next time you are out skiing, look for opportunities to ski off-piste, on rollers or side angles, and pick up the speed skiing on the edge of your comfort zone. You may be surprised to see what you are capable of.