Learning Moguls - Lessons??

Hi, I'm 24, been skiing off and on for over twelve years, maybe 15 times a
season the years i skiied, took about five years off during high school/
college. I was never all that great, you can learn a lot skiing with
someone thats better than you but I was always the best of my group,
which isn't saying much, I've never known any serious skiers.. the last
three years I got back into skiing and I still don't know any serious skiers,
only serious snowboarders.. Anyways, I don't know what level I am, I live in
Montreal, I ski aggressively most times, my problem is moguls. I've never
learned how to ski moguls, or big steep bumps. I don't know what the trick
is but I don't have it. I like skiing on a nice powder day, at the end of
the day you end up with those nice super soft bumps, I can rip down that
stuff no problem but stick me in those hard as ice ruts and 3"+ cement
bumps and I turn into a ragdoll the second i try and link more than three
consecutive turns.. i noticed there are two kinds of mogul/bump skiers, the
ones that can gracefully navigate the line between the bumps and then the guys
that just fly virtually straight down the run sometimes jumping over a couple
bumps at a time. i'll take either ability i'm sure it all comes down
to three things, technique, confidence and strength. my question is, would
lessons be helpful or just a waste of money? yes yes practice practice
practice but practicing the wrong technique or no technique tends to be
futile.. one lesson, six lessons, a season of lessons? i'd be willing to
practice an awful lot, how long does it take to master moguls, or at least
know what you're doing? how can you tell if you're got a good teacher?

(jim) writes:

Hi, I'm 24, been skiing off and on
[snip "then was then and now it's now"]
Montreal, I ski aggressively most times, my problem is moguls. I've never
learned how to ski moguls, or big steep bumps. I don't know what the trick
is but I don't have it. I like skiing on a nice powder day, at the end of
the day you end up with those nice super soft bumps, I can rip down that
stuff no problem but stick me in those hard as ice ruts and 3"+ cement
bumps and I turn into a ragdoll the second i try and link more than three
consecutive turns.. i noticed there are two kinds of mogul/bump skiers, the
ones that can gracefully navigate the line between the bumps and then the guys
that just fly virtually straight down the run sometimes jumping over a couple
bumps at a time. i'll take either ability i'm sure it all comes down
to three things, technique, confidence and strength. my question is, would
lessons be helpful or just a waste of money?

Have you figured it out on your own? No? Then, yes, lessons would
probably be a good idea -- but I'd recommend a private, since you're
not too likely to end up doing much bump skiing in a group lesson.

yes yes practice practice
practice but practicing the wrong technique or no technique tends to be
futile..

Exactly.

one lesson, six lessons, a season of lessons? i'd be willing to
practice an awful lot, how long does it take to master moguls, or at least
know what you're doing?

"How long will it take me to master the sword?"
"Ten years."
"That's too long! What if I work twice as long and twice as hard?"
"Twenty years."

Old martial arts chestnut, that. It takes as long as it takes, and
depends on too many factors -- your physical condition, your
coachability, your instructor's ability, the availability of good
learning conditions, your equipment, etc. etc. etc. -- for anyone to
make any kind of prediction.

how can you tell if you're got a good teacher?

Making progress is a good rule of thumb.

--
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ::::::::::::::::::::::::
Mary Malmros
Some days you're the windshield,
Other days you're the bug.

Mary Malmros wrote:

"How long will it take me to master the sword?"
"Ten years."
"That's too long! What if I work twice as long and twice as hard?"
"Twenty years."

Unless you are David Lee Roth, in which case you never will, you will
just break your face...
----------------------
Chester,
The more you know, the more jokes you get.

Mary Malmros wrote in message ...
(jim) writes:

Hi, I'm 24, been skiing off and on
[snip "then was then and now it's now"]
Montreal, I ski aggressively most times, my problem is moguls. I've

Have you figured it out on your own? No? Then, yes, lessons would
probably be a good idea -- but I'd recommend a private, since you're
not too likely to end up doing much bump skiing in a group lesson.

one lesson, six lessons, a season of lessons? i'd be willing to
practice an awful lot, how long does it take to master moguls, or at least
know what you're doing?

I agree with Mary.

I wrote about my own experience of changing my bumps skiing
that can be found by searching google in
rec.skiing.alpine for: anybody43 moguls

I will repeat one point:- In changing my bumps skiing
all of my skiing was deconstructed and re-constructed.
It was a long road for a few-weeks-a-year-skier (I did
more last season) and I still feel a little less confident
than I was in some places since the re-construction is not
finished.

"aggressively" ... "moguls" ?? - they will beat you every time
Maybe when you get good at bumps you can start to bash them up,
hopefully one day I will find out.

I love the bumps but interestingly you sound like a better
and more experienced skier than me in general.

I am sure that you will be able to make progress, but be
prepared for a lot of work on basics first.

Good luck.

You're probably still up-unweighting. Watch the good skiers in bumps and
you'll see they never get tall to start the turn -- they *compress* to start
each turn. This means they absorb the bump. If you up-unweight, any hard
bump becomes a little ski jump, and you launch.

Take a lesson, learn to ski without the up-unweight, and your bump skiing,
powder skiing, crust skiing, steep skiing, everything will improve vastly.

Seth
http://masia.org
http://skiinghistory.org
http://snowindustrynews.org

"jim" wrote in message
...
Hi, I'm 24, been skiing off and on for over twelve years, maybe 15 times a
season the years i skiied, took about five years off during high school/
college. I was never all that great, you can learn a lot skiing with
someone thats better than you but I was always the best of my group,
which isn't saying much, I've never known any serious skiers.. the last
three years I got back into skiing and I still don't know any serious
skiers,
only serious snowboarders.. Anyways, I don't know what level I am, I live
in
Montreal, I ski aggressively most times, my problem is moguls. I've never
learned how to ski moguls, or big steep bumps. I don't know what the trick
is but I don't have it. I like skiing on a nice powder day, at the end of
the day you end up with those nice super soft bumps, I can rip down that
stuff no problem but stick me in those hard as ice ruts and 3"+ cement
bumps and I turn into a ragdoll the second i try and link more than three
consecutive turns.. i noticed there are two kinds of mogul/bump skiers,
the
ones that can gracefully navigate the line between the bumps and then the
guys
that just fly virtually straight down the run sometimes jumping over a
couple
bumps at a time. i'll take either ability i'm sure it all comes down
to three things, technique, confidence and strength. my question is, would
lessons be helpful or just a waste of money? yes yes practice practice
practice but practicing the wrong technique or no technique tends to be
futile.. one lesson, six lessons, a season of lessons? i'd be willing to
practice an awful lot, how long does it take to master moguls, or at least
know what you're doing? how can you tell if you're got a good teacher?

Chester Bullock wrote:

Mary Malmros wrote:

"How long will it take me to master the sword?"
"Ten years."
"That's too long! What if I work twice as long and twice as hard?"
"Twenty years."

Unless you are David Lee Roth, in which case you never will, you will
just break your face...
----------------------
Chester,
The more you know, the more jokes you get.

strength _is_ impotant for moguling, but going with the terrain (the
moguls) is _as important_. You´r not "fighting" those bumps, you´re playing
with them, and as one poster before said, you don´t lift up, you "absorbe"
them (well most of them, those under 1/2 a meter) ;-). It´s not only skiing
technique, but also getting a feel of the piste before you, i.e. whilst
skiing down and mastering the next one or two bumps you have to look
forward for the course of skiing for your next two to three bumps ( and you
will have pretty much choice then) to ski.

So it´s strength, ability of skiing _and_ a good prieview of the piste you
are hollowing down

cheers and good skiing

tom
--
Nobody is perfect, not even in failing

In article ,
(jim) writes:
My question is, would lessons be helpful or just a waste of money?

If you are serious about bump skiing, skip traditional PSIA ski school and
go to a bump camp. I've had very good experience with the two day camp
run by Chuck Martin at Winter Park http://www.mogullogic.com/

bruno.