Ski Tips
Getting on and off the mountain – Backpacks or Lockers!
Unless you pay the premium, getting from your car (or wherever you are staying) to the bottom lift can be tricky at any mountain. If you get hot and sweaty when you are layered up and walking in ski boots, it can go from tricky to miserable - fast. It’s easier for snowboarders, so this may just be for skiers.
You’ll want to dress for the top of the mountain so you can deal with the colder temperatures, winds, and possible snow. But at the base it’s much warmer and you have the unpleasant task of carrying skis and poles all while wearing clumsy ski boots. This means you don’t have any free hands to carry anything else which usually means wearing everything at the base while walking. HOT! And the last thing you wanna do is end up at the top of the mountain wet with sweat and risk hypothermia. Utilize lockers where you can, they’re usually only $10 a night and you can offset that easily just by packing a water, Gatorade, or small sandwich given the high prices to get hydrated and fed in the lodges.
Also, consider wearing a small backpack while skiing. In it you’ll put a light pair of shoes which means you can start from your car in your shoes with your goggles and helmet, and maybe a layer of clothing or two, in your backpack. Strap your ski boots together and sling them over the opposite shoulder of your skis if you don’t have a locker. This way you can put your ski boots, helmet, goggles, and final layers on right at the bottom lift or gondola to limit the time you are all bundled up and avoid walking far in your ski boots while bundled up. Sometimes you can even go right into a gondola without being fully dressed and finish the job of readying inside or when you get off the gondola. Throw a bottle of water or your beverage of choice in that backpack as well to stop the need to go into the lodges and buy overpriced beverages and interrupt your flow! (hydration is even more important in the thin dry air at elevation!)
If you need info on what to wear:
Mostly it comes down to base layers. Maybe you’ve heard that before and if you did you probably also heard “cotton is rotten” people raving about wool. Base layers are the layer of cloth up against your skin. It has the important job of regulating body temperature but also managing the sweat you generate while you are pushing yourself hard or maybe sitting in a shuttle or lodge. Unmanaged sweat turns into cold, cold water once you start riding the lift in a stiff wind.
I like wool because it does a great job of drying quickly (moving your sweat away from you and into your mid layers like a fleece or down jacket) and because it avoids that stink you may be familiar with from some of your synthetic clothes. Synthetic means it’s basically made from plastic, ie petroleum. So, wool will be a better choice for any of you that are worried about the environment, ingestion of microplastics, or just trying to live a sustainable lifestyle. Wool performs great, insulates the same whether wet or dry (which you cannot say for cotton), doesn’t stink up the place, and as long as you care for it well (wash on gentle with something like Woolite, and hang dry or dry flat) it will last long enough to make the increased up-front cost well worth it in the end.
Now that you have base layers and something in the middle to retain some heat, get something for the outside to keep you dry for those occasional tumbles, blowing snow from the snowmaking machines (or if it’s actually snowing!), and sitting on a snowy bench at your favorite mid-mountain lodge. Waterproof breathable is the way to go, and it no longer costs an arm and a leg so you can find your favorite brand or style and go for it without looking for big dollar names. But you should also look for something that moves well with you without a lot of wind noise and drag, and something that is durable. Snow and ice can be unforgiving, and it goes without saying how tough skis, boots, and poles can be on clothing.
If you’re lucky enough to be skiing on a beautiful sunny day: Wear Sunblock! On crisp, sun-filled days, especially if you are above about 8,000 feet of elevation when the air is much thinner, the sun can be vicious! Make sure to use lip balm and also put sunscreen on your face. The sun actually bounces up off the snow and ice and hits your face for a second time to burn you even faster. You should also be sure to wear good goggles or sunglasses to keep the sun out of your eyes. The goggles aren’t just for the snow and wind!
A few tips for skiers looking to move to more advanced slopes:
Some skiers have a hard time making the transition from pizza to french fries turns. An easy way to practice your technique is to barely lift the inside (uphill) ski and let the outside ski do the work to get practice. Orange Triangle trails are the perfect slopes to practice this on!
If you own your skis you may want to adjust your binding to allow for more pressure before the skis come off. Beginners tend to fall down more and their bindings are set to release with very little pressure to avoid injury when they fall. As you become a better skier, and the slopes you tackle are steeper, you’ll have to apply more pressure on the skis and bindings as you turn. Hitting a bump of snow at higher speed, or taking a hard turn, should not cause the ski to release if it is set up properly.
Get your ski edges sharpened - After buying my own skis I didn’t do this for 3 seasons since it was very hard to see the gradual decline in your turning ability. But finally getting them sharpened was like a brand new day! Also, you don’t want dull edges on steeper slopes especially if you are doing east coast skiing and the slopes are a little icy.
Lean forward in your ski boots. Leaning back (as if you are sitting on a chair) will increase your speed and make controlling your skis harder which can become dangerous on a steeper slope.