"In the Beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert's there are few" : Suzuki

Whether you are new to skiing or a weathered professional, the aim is to always be learning and having fun. There are no "experts" in skiing. Those at the top are simply more aware of more things that they themselves could be learning. If you are not learning then something is wrong.

You can’t learn new things in skiing just by watching others, because surprisingly, what you see is determined by what you know.

Children are no exception to this rule. Sometimes children learn to ski quickly because, being small, they have a good power to weight ratio, are more stable (high centre of gravity) and accelerate slowly (due to low body volume / high surface area ratio). This encourages children to use their own bodies naturally – to exploit their inherent knowledge of their bodies.

Adults, having a slightly harder time of it in general, are less likely to use efficient natural body movements spontaneously and instead tend to resort to defensive actions driven by fear. The initial emotional desire is always to force the skis and/or body around. No amount of watching better skiers can shift the underlying perceptions that quickly develop from this.

There is a third way to know skiing – through conscious choice. Choose only information and actions that work with the body’s intelligence and ski design – and avoid those that don’t. I will begin here to show how to make that distinction.

Skating provides the basic movement pattern for skiing. Hire or buy a pair of ski-boards (such as Salomon Snowblades) if you don’t already have some. Ski-Boards are carving skis which are short enough (under 100cm) to act very much like skates. In fact, when well sharpened they are great fun on an ice rink. Ski-Boards are serious stuff - not toys as some people imagine. No matter what your current level in skiing, they can shortcut your journey to the next one. Feedback is so clear and rapid from ski-boards that you don’t need ski poles - so leave them at home.

To get used to ski-boards skate around on the flat for a while. If the ski-board skids away from you when you try to skate - i.e. the edge doesn’t hold, then have your boot canting and equipment alignment checked. Notice how, when you skate you move clearly from one leg to the other. Each leg works independently, the transfer of weight from one to the other is obvious. When the weight goes on to a leg it bends - under tension - and then you push back up to finish and transfer the weight again. This is an action very similar to walking. Both the skis and your body reflexes are designed to respond to this pressure cycle.

During each skate, tilt the ski a little more onto it’s (inside) edge, slow down and exaggerate the skating action - and the ski-board will take you in a gentle carving arc during each stride. When you use a gentle downhill gradient and don’t need to propel yourself, you can just keep the legs a bit apart and repeat the same action - leg to leg – skating without lifting the ski-boards off the snow - gravity propelling you - and the ski-boards turning you. Even on ski-boards carved turns are not rapid or sudden. You need to be patient. This is not however intended to be an explanation of how to carve. The idea is to understand how the simple action and rhythm of skating relates to skiing – both carving and pivoting.

With the skating action the body is active, and the legs are functional and powerful. The skis respond to this and are designed to do so. The leg is bending through the start of the turn (skate) and extending through the end as the skier pushes up.

Standard ski instruction often teaches exactly the opposite movement pattern - the skier stretches the leg through the start of the arc and bends the leg through the end, rendering the body and skis non functional and powerless. This is a key reason why most people have a great deal of trouble progressing.

One of the most important reference points to be aware of is that the ski must always turn you. If you try to turn the ski, even slightly, then it will not work well for you (when skating you are not trying to turn the ski). The ski has mechanical properties that cause it to turn. Any attempt to turn the ski when it is against the snow will destroy the build up of turning forces under the ski itself. This is particularly important at the start of a turn. Most people try to turn the foot (on the outside/weighted ski) to start the turn. What follows is a comedy of errors, which soon convinces the skier that he/she should have started to learn much younger. If at this point you are asking, "How do I get the ski to turn quickly - really quickly - if I’m not supposed to turn it myself", then you are asking the right question. For now I will just say simply that turning the foot or leg to turn the ski is an emotional response - which will guarantee injury eventually. There appears to be no sport of any kind where you stand on your foot and try to twist it forcefully - unless you want to break something. Good skis are very expensive pieces of high technology - and they can turn you on a sixpence - when you use the movement pattern that we have described in skating. The skier’s biggest enemy is the emotional temptation to turn the ski.

Aren’t beginners taught to turn or "steer" the weighted outside ski? Yes - frequently - but not by me! Intelligent use of skis requires respect and understanding of both body and ski design. Forcing the ski through the turn with leg/foot rotation does work to a limited degree, but at very best creates mediocre skiers and at worst creates high risk of knee injury.

Read any book on skiing and it will talk about "balance" - a given certainty as a requirement for good skiing. In fact, skiing is interesting because we are well and truly out of balance. Explaining this is simple. A good skier is always stable. Stability comes from accelerations - change of speed and/or direction. Stability and instability are what we feel and identify with. Acceleration is part of "dynamics" in physics and dynamics is the mechanics of non-equilibrium. In dynamic skiing we are out of equilibrium – out of balance.

When the skis and body are being used as designed - as with the skating action - then stability is improved. The skier who does the opposite - stands or jumps up at the start of the turn, tries to turn/steer the skis with the legs/feet, then sinks down towards the end of the turn and plants the pole into the ground - is certain to be unstable.

The best skiers are stable and fluid. They are dynamic and far out of balance - without fear. Their bodies function freely in accordance with their natural athletic ability - and the skis respond as precision tools.