Letting the ski do the work.

Down-unweighted telemark turns

by Michael Furtado

I start with several assertions:

·          Telemarking is a parallel turn: in other words, the skis in a telemark turn interact with the snow in the same way they do in a parallel turn.

·          The physical forces and dynamics affecting the skier are also the same.

·          Pressure on the skis is greatest at the end of a turn, when the skier is resisting gravity by edging the skis and skidding or carving them at an angle to the fall line. Pressure on the skis drops after the turn it completed, and then begins to build as the new turn is initiated.

·          From the skier’s perspective, more leg strength is needed at the end of a turn when the pressure is greatest: the greater the amount of leg flexion at the end of the turn, the more muscle strength needed in order to continue pressuring the ski and finish the turn.

 There are two ways to release pressure on the skis at the end of a turn, so that the skis can be rolled onto a new edge and moved laterally to initiate the new turn. The first is up-unweighting, the second, down-unweighting.

 Up unweighting requires the skier to move from a flexed position at the end of a turn, to extend forcefully and by doing so releasing pressure from the ski. The classic modern telemark turn will follow this sequence:

·          The skier is most deeply flexed at the end of the turn, with the skis offset, the downhill ski ahead of the uphill ski.

·          When the turn is finished, the skier extends (up-unweights), the skis are brought to an even position and the lead is switched as the skier drops into a flexed telemark position. Be extending at the end of the turn the skier exerts additional pressure on the skis while still flexed, and the skis are unweighted after full extension is reached.

·          The skier changes edges in a sequential manner, first with the new leading ski, with independent leg movements.

 In this sequence the skier is flexed deepest at the moment when the skis have the most pressure on them. Burning thighs are the result, especially in legs that aren’t getting any younger.

 In down unweighting the sequence is somewhat reversed. The skier is extended at the end of the turn, then flexes or contracts to unweight the ski and steer it into a new turn. The sequence would go like this:

·          At the end of a turn the skier is fully extended, skis even and parallel. More weight is distributed on the downhill ski.

·          As the turn is finished the skier flexes (down-unweights) and drops into a telemark stance. The uphill ski is the leading ski as it is guided into the new turn.

·          The edge change occurs after the lead switch, and involves more of a simultaneous leg rotation.

 When a telemark skier down-unweights his or her legs are in an extended position as pressure begins to build, which is bio-mechanically much more efficient. The turn initiation is rounder and smoother, and carving is enhanced.

 And the big secret to down-unweighting is that the ski does the work of moving into the new turn. This occurs because the energy stored in the ski is suddenly released by the skier flexing, and the skis “rebound” laterally into the new turn. When skiing the fall line, rebound can become very forceful, leading to an exquisite experience of flowing with, rather than against, the hill and snow.

 Try it. The down-unweighted turn is exhilarating, and requires dramatically less energy. For the … “mature” skier, this means more runs and more fun, and about a gallon less liniment by the end of the season.