Bumps in the road are partly what makes life interesting. And on snow moguls might seem like a bit of an acquired taste and something that initially skiers
and snowboarders may not enjoy. But if you are going on a ski trip
with friends and family bumps might be part of the package,
whether you like it or not. Since they caused by other skiers
and snowboarders turning in the snow, they can crop up at any time
and can even get pretty serious on blue runs. It's much better that you embrace them
rather than avoiding them. And learning the skill
set involved to tackle bumps in the snow will help to accelerate
your irrefutable rise to becoming an expert. Besides, when you get used to them,
they're absolutely flipping awesome, great fun anyway. So here are five things to understand
about mogul skiing designed to give you a mental head
start before your time on the snow. Now, there are many different ways
to ski moguls, and the technique that you choose
is going to depend on your ability, the snow conditions
and the size and shape of the bump. Firstly, you might wish to do longer traverses
and ride over multiple bumps as you go across the hill. This can be a really good way of getting used to the size of the bumps
before you dive into skiing them more directly. Secondly, you may wish to turn on top of the bump. When you are stood on the crest of the bump,
the tips and the tails of your skis become free. And it is easier to pivot the skis
and scrape down the far side of the bump. Or thirdly,
you may wish to stay lower in the ruts and check your turns against the bumps,
using them to help you slow down. Second thing to be aware of about moguls skiing
is that there is a lot of turning your feet and skidding the skis going on. Now, here's a quick progression exercise
that you can use to practice or to help understand what's going on. And you can also use this exercise to hone these skills on the pistes
before you go into the bumps. So firstly,
just straight side slipping down the hill. Secondly, you're going to start
pointing your skis slightly up and slightly down the hill in order to go diagonally forwards
and backwards whilst you're sidestepping. Many people know this as falling leaf side skidding. Falling leaf side slipping is going to give you
excellent control of your speed and line and you'll be able to proceed
as slowly as you like in the moguls. Progress this exercise by adding in some turns
into your falling leaf side slipping, getting used to turning your skis
and feet underneath you whilst going slowly. Finally, we've got a tricky exercise
called 'braquage'. This is where we're aiming to go straight
down the hill, turning our skis and feet underneath us and skidding them to slow down,
whilst facing your upper body down the hill. If you can manage these exercises on a piste,
they will help you with the skills that you're going to need in the bumps. Now, another thing to be aware of in
mogul skiing, is that in order to turn quickly, you're going to have to be balanced
over the center of your skis, therefore pivoting them from your feet. If you're leaning back, it's going to be
a lot harder for you to turn quickly. Another thing to be aware of is that it will help to have a narrower stance
when you're skiing bumps. If you have got your feet wide apart,
then each foot is going to interact with bumps and lumps differently
and you'll soon get split apart or tangled up. If you have your feet closer together,
then both legs are going to interact with the terrain together. Another thing to be aware of in mogul
skiing is not to forget your pole plot. Unlike in other types of skiing,
the pole plant is going to give you a very necessary
and valuable amount of upper body support. So don't forget a strong firm pole plant. Another little exercise is that when you see
a ridge at the side of the piste, practice turning on either side of it
and absorbing the crest as you go over it. You'll also want to push your feet
and skis down the far side of the ridge to practice
the extension that you'll need in mogul ski. This is a good exercise to practice
some of the skills that you need in the bumps. So whenever you see a nice ridge
at the sides of the piste, use it as a fun little training exercise. When it comes to moguls skiing,
things can get very technical very quickly. But you are more likely to encounter
soft piles of snow on the pistes first. And these will serve as perfect training tools
to get you started in mogul skiing. Now, if any of that seemed confusing,
then please do hire a ski instructor to help
you get to grips with your mogul skiing. A lot of people start off hating them,
but very soon realise their appeal. And if you want to get better at
skiing in general and be able to ski all over the mountain, moguls are a necessary step
and an excellent training tool that will hold many of skiing's
most important skills. So there's a few tips to help in your moguls
skiing, and I hope they are useful to you in your quest to become the next Ben Cavet.
