Decide to extend a little later. Smoothly managing the tricky transition phase between turns defines the expert skier.

The last two frames in this sequence show how it’s done. Notice that weight is consciously transferred from right to left ski by relaxing and bending the right leg. At the same time the left leg is extended into the new arc.

Extending the leg is to reach out and maintain contact with the snow, not to push the torso in any direction. This timing issue is critical to graduate to expert skiing. It can be practiced on a gentle slope by rolling from edge to edge in a wide stance, sometimes called “rollerblade” turns. Play with transferring weight from one ski to another by bending and extending legs alternately.

Demonstrator: Paul Cunnius
Gear: K2 Apache Xplorer, Tecnica
Snow: Sun Peaks
Photo: Martin Olson