This is a paper i wrote

what do you think? give me a grade.

The world of skiing is drifting away from racing and more towards the world of free skiing. Free skiing is and integral part of the skiing community, it encourages the progression of the sport. In the year 2010 skiing half pipe is going to become an officially sanctioned event in the Olympics. This is essential to the sport because it will more put free skiing on the map, as well as make it a more mainstream sport. Currently free skiing is a growing sect of skiing but not even close to the popularity of that of racing and events sponsored and put on by the FIS (federation of international skiers) the FIS is the governing body of race skiing. An organization like the FIS is needed for free skiing, there needs to be some organization to al of the events and where and when they are, the key is for this organization to not take away the free in free skiing. This sport prides itself in independence from a governing body that is restrictive as the FIS. There are some semi formed bodies, but none that pulls all competitions together. The key for this body would be to just be a regulator, not a rule setter like the FIS is in racing. In racing all aspects of the sport are regulated, including equipment and what you wear. Freeskiing is defined by its attitude of whatever your style is is cool as long as you’re not criticizing someone else’s style or skiing. From free skiing has also come many advancements in ski technology, specifically the idea and evolution of the twin tip free ride ski. All in all free skiing is an integral part of skiing that deserves more recognition than it receives
Of all of the separate governing body’s that rule over the different sections the FIS reigns supreme .they as a group control all aspects of the racing division of skiing from the type of course to the equipment used. The thing is that free skiing needs a governing body such as FIS, but not as strict, organize competitions and give out prize money, but do not make their responsibilities more so than that. A somewhat example of this has already been instituted into the sport; it is the core free ski tour. The core tour is nice because any one that wants to can enter into the comp and ski against all of the big name pros there. The main short fall of the core series though is that it does not offer very much prize money, and if you expect to draw a lot or all of the major pros you need to be willing to pay the big money in prizes so they think that it is worth it to come and ski in the comp. pros are also motivated t ride harder it they are given a reason to. The bigger the prize, the bigger they go. So if this series were to be worked on and gained some larger corporate sponsorship it could be very good for the sport. In 2010 there are a lot of athletes who really want to see this type of program integrated into skiing, others say that it would ruin the sport and make it less core, and more sold out. In all reality though it would only help push free skiing in a direction that can only do well for it. When you have companies putting lots of money and research into a sport and the products around it, then you can only go one way, and that’s up. As equipment gets better so does the level of riding. Every little bit of technology helps to push the sport along. This has proved to be a very good and effective thing for racing, and if free skiing were to take advantage of it then the possibilities could be endless! Now is an exciting time to be involved in all of the research and development that is going into the sport, and it’s about time. Until recently most companies were putting all their research and development money into racing, and now free skiing is getting a much larger chunk of that pot of money.
The technology of the twin tip ski is quite easy when you look at it from the outside, but when you go in and look at the construction of it on the inside its actually a quite complicated process, making a ski with 2 tips is much harder than it looks. This is because you need to make the flex of the ski mirror itself to the same point on the other side of the ski. An uneven flex pattern makes a ski ride different backwards than it does forward, making switch landing and riding different and more difficult and not giving the rider the control and response that they are looking for. There are many different technologies that have been created in the last few years to make the ski as durable, light weight and bomb proof as possible. The major element that makes a ski a ski is the core, there are many kinds of cores out there, it all depends on how hard you ride a ski on witch one you get. Salomon uses the space frame core, it is a very light weight foam core that is not very durable and breaks down fast. The next type of core is a solid wood core. The types of wood used in these cores are aspen for a very flexible ski, and things like birch for a very stiff ski. Finally you have cores from Rossignol and line that integrate a couple of core ideas into them. Rossignol uses the THC core (triple hybrid core) it uses a sandwich of aspen, foam, and carbon fiber to retain its rigidity; it doesn’t break down and loosen up like the space frame core of Salomon. Line also uses a maple core with 5, ¼ inch wide pices of carbon fiber laid on top of it to help a ski retain pop and rigidity. Also included in the wave of technologies coming out of new school skiing is edges. Companies have had to design and produce new types of edges to put on free ride skis, because people slide rails and this heats up the edge and expands it causing the ski to delaminate after sliding a lot of rails. The company 4frnt has been an innovator in the are of edge design because they have come up with the firs totally seamless edge on a ski making it extremely hard for the edge to pull away from the ski unless the whole edge goes with it. The major problem with 4frnt’s edges though has been their durability towards pressure. They tend to crack quite easily. This problem has been solved by line with the Rockwell 48 edge, it is a practically bomb proof edge that is built to hold up to anything. The only thing is, there are 2 joints where the edge breaks on the ski the tip and the tail, I.E. the edge is not seamless. The key to all of this new technology is that it would have never happened if Ski Company’s didn’t decide to put the money into research to find better things to use to make a ski last longer and become more durable.
Also included in a lot of peoples minds when thinking of Freeskiing is the safety stand point of things. Because terrain parks have become larger and now include rails as well as aggrandized jumps, Freeskiing has become extremely dangerous. The danger is enhanced when fledglings attempt to emulate professionals, disregarding their own abilities. Even though professionals can do all sorts of flips and spins while incorporating difficult grabs with extreme style and ease, it does not become apparent to the average skier how much time and effort they have put into skiing to become so smooth and disciplined.
Nowadays, it is extremely rare to visit a ski area that does not have a terrain park. While some ski areas have one large terrain park, others may have several smaller ones. There are even mountains that have numerous larger terrain parks. With the addition of terrain parks, ski areas are now seeing a considerable hike in insurance rates. This is because the insurance companies have realized how dangerous terrain parks can be, and are forced to raise insurance rates to guard against lawsuits and other claims. Also, most mountains have a division of employees titled “park rangers,� who simply ski or snowboard through the terrain park, checking on people and altering jumps to make sure everything is safe. This is just another sign shows how potentially dangerous terrain parks have made Freeskiing become. However, ski areas need to cater to the “new school� style of skiing, so terrain parks will be around for a long time.
Rails are another aspect of skiing that if done incorrectly, could be extremely hazardous. There are many different types of rails, some of which are easy while others require a seasoned veteran to be conquered. One type of rails is called a “sex change� rails, which is exactly what could happen with the slightest mistake. Because these rails stand anywhere from four to six feet off the ground, it is pertinent that the skier fall to the left or right of the rail, avoiding potential serious injury. Other rails are in the shape of an s, hence the name s rail. These are extremely challenging and require the skier to lean and transfer body weight in the curves. Like all rails, there is the possibility that with the slightest mistake the skier could fall and smash their head on the rail, causing severe damage. Rails are just another reason as to why Freeskiing is so dangerous.
Not to be forgotten when considering how dangerous Freeskiing is are the size of the jumps. Most ski areas have smaller jumps for less experienced skiers and large jumps for those who are more proficient. The size of the jumps at some mountains makes most people’s jaws drop in utter disbelief. It is so difficult to fathom the size, regardless of the stunts they perform while in the air. Some of the jumps are so big that the skier must literally hit the jump at 40 or 50 miles per hour just to reach the landing ramp. Because these jumps are so extravagant and humungous, the dangers of Freeskiing are elevated greatly.
Throughout the past few years, the risks of Freeskiing have increased dramatically. The jumps have become immense, the rails have become more technical, and the terrain parks are practically taking over the mountains. If this trend of bigger is better does not stop, then the injuries and possibly even deaths in the sport of Freeskiing will continue to rise.
The key to all of this is that professionals are on a level where they are taking a very calculated risk when they go off of a jump and set a rotation. Yes they do get hurt, but it is part of what comes along with their job. They are paid to go out and push the sport. And a key way that the sport could be pushed would be to include skiing super pipe in the Olympics. Who doesn’t dream of winning an Olympic gold medal? All of the pro skiers that you see out and riding all dream of that to, and would love to make it happen someday, and the expansion of the Olympics should not be restricted only to the super pipe, slope style should be integrated into the Olympics as well to incorporate and show people how well skiers can take jumps and slide rails. When you talk to someone about Freeskiing they think all you do is take a jump, that’s it. They do not realize that tricks like 1080’s all four ways(3 full rotations, forward spinning left, forward spinning right, switch spinning left, and switch spinning right) are a text book tricks for most of the skiers on the top of their game currently. Most also do not believe it even possible for someone on skis to slide a rail and are amazed when someone does a 450 (one and a quarter rotations) off or on to a rail then riding away like it is nothing.
Regardless of what snowboarders and racers want Freeskiing is going places and no one is going to be able to stop it, in 2010 half pipe skiing will be in the Olympics because it is a important part of skiing. Freeskiing encourages the expansion of the sport and will continue to for years to come. Everyone just needs to prepare themselves; more and more racers are converting over to Freeskiing and ditching their 195’s and tights for 175’s, baggy pants and a baggy jacket. It’s not just a trend either, Freeskiing is going to be around for the long term so be ready everyone, here we come!



'what?' Lauren every time you ask her a question for the first time!skiing what i thought this was a porn site and every one i was talking to were sexy ppl ..i thought skiing was a sex term we all uesed. damn!-twintiprider