The Basic Skills Of Skiing Explained

You must learn three things in order to be able to ski - standing up, turning and stopping.

To stand up on skis you need to make what is commonly known as a 'snow plow', by standing with your feet at shoulder-width and pointing your toes inward (forming a V shape). Then, slightly bend your knees to create a more stable stance, spread your arms out wide to give yourself more balance, and lean slightly forward - as opposed to leaning slightly back. Moving forward / down is no problem as your skis will automatically do so on even the slightest slope.

Slowing down and stopping can be accomplished by narrowing the end of your snow plough i.e. moving your toes inward. To stop on a steep slope, you will also need to turn gradually until your skis are not headed down the slope, but are resting horizontally across it. To speed up, employ the theory in reverse - move your heels closer together, widening your snow plough.

Turning is simple enough, you just need to point your skis in the direction that you want to go (i.e. point your skis right if you want to turn right and turn your skis left if you want to turn left), but in practice it will take some time to master - balance and timing being the important factors.

For sharper turns though, it will take a little more than just pointing your skis in the right direction; you will also need to shift your weight to the foot opposite of the direction you want to turn (for example, if you want to make a sharp right turn, you would shift your weight to your left foot). You will master sharp turns more quickly if you will remember to move nothing but your feet while turning, as moving body parts, like your arms and shoulders, makes turning more difficult.

To learn these basic skills should take you just a few days, however, you should not rush the learning process. Also, do not rely on friends or family members to teach you, use a certified ski instructor.

By taking skiing lessons at a ski school, you will ensure that you are learning the techniques correctly and that you are not adopting any bad habits, which can be difficult to lose later on. Also, it is worth noting that research has proved that those who learn from a certified ski instructor are less at risk of injury than those who learn on themselves or from family members or friends.

You have the option of taking skiing lessons privately or as part of a group. Private lessons are much more expensive than group ones but all of the ski instructors attention is concentrated on you and you will make quicker progress.

If opting for group skiing lessons, it is advisable to first find out the number of students in a class. It really depends on how a ski school manages the students, but ideally look for one that has class sizes of no more than seven or eight students.