The Art of Skiing
by Andy Rubesch, Alpine DCL

At the 2007 Divisional Academy, I was lucky enough to be in Stan Aunan’s group and at one point he made a passing reference to “the art of skiing.” Ever since, that phrase has stuck in my head as I have wondered, what really is the art of skiing? That is probably an unanswerable question, but somewhere in the search for that answer, I think we can find inspiration for instructors (and students) who get burned out on ski school clinics and certification training and leave our programs.

Most of us have had those times when we are so struck by the grace and skill of someone skiing by us that we think, “Wow, I want to ski like that.” The way the skier is moving is like a dancing expression of the joy of sliding on the snow. The skiing is technically proficient, but not necessarily perfect. While it may be hard to define what exactly is making the skiing art, you are inspired by what you see and want to emulate it in your own skiing.

We all have also seen skiers who are technically sound but not “artistic.” These skiers are proficient with all four skills and meet all or most of our definitions of good skiing. Their skiing meets all the parameters of the exam tasks and they leave clean arcs in the snow, but they are boring to watch on the mountain.

What is artistic skiing (or riding)? The best definition that I can think of is the picture of someone skiing gracefully down a slope in sync with the snow and the mountain. Every movement seems effortless and natural, and you can tell he or she is having fun from 100 yards away. Everyone will have their own artistic skiing expression, yet artful skiing is disciplined and demonstrates mastery of fundamental skills. Instructors who want to just “go out and rip” without mastering fundamental skills are likely candidates for ski school burn out. A successful training program will give instructors glimpses of that end goal of artful skiing while communicating the need to master maneuvers like wedge turns and how those maneuvers improve the ability to rip.

A great parallel to the artistic skier is the jazz musician. Great jazz musicians spend years mastering their instrument. They don’t just get up on the stage and improvise whatever they want. They practice instrumental technique, scales, arpeggios and chords for countless hours, drilling exercises that many people would find quite boring. They know the history and background of the music they perform and are scholars of style and form. This work is done very seriously as they improve their craft throughout their lives, all the while going back on stage to perform, each time improvising with a greater level of artistry.

Like jazz musicians mastering scales, skiers must master the four basic skills of edging, pressure, rotary and balance. High-performing skiers spend countless hours mastering tasks like wedge turns, open parallel turns, sideslips and hockey stops. These skills and tasks are practiced until they become second nature and are engrained in muscle memory. Skiers gain experience in many different conditions and terrain and have an understanding of how and when to apply different skill blends. They take the study of these skills seriously and maintain discipline and focus in their skiing. The art comes out in those beautiful moments when the skills are forgotten and the body and mind just respond to the environment in an expressive and instinctual way.

If we as instructors and mentors are going to “Inspire life-long passion for the mountain experience,” we must be artists on our skis. Getting there takes time and disciplined work. Every time you are on the mountain, take some time to master your fundamentals and drill disciplined movements into your body until they are second nature. Then, every time you are on the mountain, take time to just ski in a joyous expression of your love for the sport and the mountain. And go out and rip!

Andy teaches for Skibacs Ski School at Summit Central at Snoqualmie. He is the band director at Tillicum Middle School in Bellevue, WA During the winter, if he’s not skiing, he’s at a jazz festival with his middle school jazz band. “Leverage the Positive” continued on p 25TDivisional Academy ‘07