I've heard that article cited a lot online, which I'm not sure is
entirely a good thing. Like in any sport, there are individuals with
different styles that have been successful. Harvey is correct there. My
sense is that it typically has to do with the way an individual learns
the sport and adapts to their own anatomy, especially while growing up.
However, the problem in evaluating any style is that there are usually
no comparison points, i.e., between an individual's peculiarities and
their doing it another, more biomechanically efficient way. What Harvey
(and others) miss is that without a determined attempt to change,
there's no way to know how successful the individual could be or could
have been (in pro golf, think Jim Furyk vs. Tiger Woods). Instead, they
look at the results sheet and reason backwards. That said, the implied
point that coaches should tread lightly with individual styles is a
good one.

The other thing about the article, and to speak directly to your
question, is what Harvey doesn't say: no matter what the style there
are certain things in technique all good skiers have in common. In
talking about differences, it seems even more important to identify
those. Level hips and shoulders, quiet upper body, starting poling with
an ab crunch and often shoulders), ankle flex throughout the cycle, hips
forward at the key moments, starting glide with a flat or outwardly
turned ski, are some that come to mind.

RM



"Jeff Potter (of OutYourBackdoor.com)" wrote:

I just read the new Master Skier. It has a cover story by Ian Harvey
that says there are lots of very different ski techniques that winners
use.

...Straddling or total weight shift. Forward torso or twisting torso.
Steady or lots of up and down. Long or short strokes. Stepping up the
hill...or not.

They all work for stars who we can point to.

So what's the right way to ski?