Skiing into the handle

[Justin_C]

I find one of the biggest things with my skiing is that I have trouble skiing into the handle. I am always grabbing the handle way too early and high. When I try to work on skiing into the handle I feel very off balance and quite awkward. Any suggestions for skiing into the handle and pulling from down low?

[skibug]

If you are used to pulling yourself across course with your upper body and hips dragging behind you; it will feel different for a while. It might even feel a little out of control, off balance, and like you are sitting back on the ski. None the less, you have to get your handle to the the hip and hip to the handle. It is a combination of getting the two to meet. You can't possibly get the handle to the hip without bringing the hips up. It took me a while to become comfortable with this. I still conscoiusly think about pinning the handle to my hip as my ski completes the turn. Just keep at it and it will begin to feel more natural. I think the biggest adjustment is being ready for the boat to pick you up and not allowing yourself to be pulled out of that position of hips up and handle down.

[ral]

@Justin_C, post some video. It will be easier to give better advise. In general, if you are grabbing the handle early and high, you might be turning with straight legs and not on a balanced position over the ski.

[Justin_C]

I will post some video once I figure out how to shrink the file size a bit

 

[thager]

When I ski into the handle it is so unexpected and painful that I double over and moan unintelligible adjectives about Horton or MS. Seriously, when you do it right it feels right. To ski back to the handle requires good extension with a tight line. The ski must be on edge while maintaining your center of mass over the ski. The ski will carve back under you as you sweep the handle back to your hip. Drive your knees and hips while maintaining a stacked position then hold on for the ride. Repeat five more times. What am I talking about? Beats me.. I think I did it right for one set today. Every good run for me starts way back at the gate shot.

[greghayes]

Skibug's statement describes exactly what I feel that I am struggling with right now -

 

"If you are used to pulling yourself across course with your upper body and hips dragging behind you; it will feel different for a while. It might even feel a little out of control, off balance, and like you are sitting back on the ski."

 

Yes - that's how I feel more often than not - either dragging across with my upper body or out of control with the ski popping out in front of me after the second wake. Maybe this video will help illustrate the point of this thread - any suggestions are welcomed.

 

[skibug]

Greghayes, first comment I have is that you are letting off the pull/lean too soon. You need to hold the position / edge you get out of the buoy, at the finish of the turn, through the wakes. That is why you feel the ski is "popping" out in front of you. You are giving up your strong body position to the boat and are flat crossing the wakes. Try thinking about driving the ski with your front knee. As you finish the turn, coming out of the buoy, drive that knee cross course all the way through the wakes. Your hardest / strongest lean against the boat should be from the white water to the second wake. It is more difficult to get used to on your off side; but, you just need to keep working at it and it will come. You will be amazed at how easy and early that pass will be.

[greghayes]

Thanks Skibug - great comments/observations and simple stuff to think about next time.

 

I am overcoming a prior habit of pulling too long - so I have been consciously trying to develop maximum pull between the whitewater and first wake. I see what you mean and will keep my lean going just a little longer.

 

When you say "driving" with the front leg - do you mean keeping leg pressure or more about "steering?" If I am interpreting your comment correctly - I am going to combine the technique of skiing into the handle with rear arm pressure combined with an emphasis on front leg pressure in the lean.

[skibug]

I guess it is hard to eplain and easier to illustrate; but, in general it is sort of like steering with leg pressure. You want to keep the front of the ski down through the wakes; so you need to keep applying pressure to the front leg as you come into and then through the wakes. I sort of think of it as pushing my knee so that it is alwasy slightly ahead of my ankle; if that makes sense, i.e. "driving" the knee forward

[greghayes]

Thanks skibug - I've been off the water 'til this weekend. Pulling to the second wake really helped.

 

The knees ahead of the ankles harkens me back to some Mike Suyderhoud training from the early 90's - so I get what you are driving at, I think I just need more water time to work it all out.

 

West coast rules...

[greghayes]

I've been off the water for a few weeks - but I worked today on pulling through the wake, which was very successful for me. I have been overloading before the wakes and this discussion has helped me ski very wide, with less load and improving my course timing.

 

My driver/spouse/non-course skier even commented on how I looked smoother today than the last time I skied.