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How hard to make the switch from ice coast to powder

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skiwoj
Posts: 2286 - Karma: 52
How hard is it to ski powder compared to skiing tiny hills in WNY?
Apr 12 2007 11:15AM
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mohawkskier
Posts: 743 - Karma: 98
if you can ski well not hard
Apr 12 2007 11:19AM
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skiwoj
Posts: 2286 - Karma: 52
what do you mean well?
Apr 12 2007 11:23AM
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KG_
Posts: 2198 - Karma: 20
i went out to bc this year fr 1st time. skiing in powder is alot harder than it looks. landing switch is REALLY hard
Apr 12 2007 11:32AM
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ERIEcoastSKIER
Posts: 544 - Karma: 10
i ski in ohio an other than finding little stashes that the groomers missed after a storm, i had never skiied po. I skiied it for the first time in utah last month and it is alot different, but so much more fun once you figure it out. just start the day on a couple of blue runs untill you feel comfortable iwth the snow. i just tried to ski it like normal snow. make sure you stay forward- that was my biggest mistake at first. But its not to hard to make the transition, after a few blue runs, i skiied blacks confidently and by lunch i skied double diamonds conifdently. dont be afraid to fal either because its fun in the powder.
Apr 12 2007 12:17PM
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Melvs
Posts: 15174 - Karma: 480
I skied for 15 years before I ever got to ski powder (or anything more then a couple inches), and it took me a couple days to get used to it to the point I felt comfortable.  Took more to get to the point where I could rip hard, but I feel pretty comfortable on any terrain with pow now.
Apr 12 2007 1:14PM
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skiwoj
Posts: 2286 - Karma: 52
I've been skiing for 7 years now, so it will probably take me a week or 2 right?
Apr 12 2007 1:19PM
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FartBoy05
Posts: 1306 - Karma: 9
im moving from ny to tahoe. woot
Apr 12 2007 1:23PM
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tronnnnnnn
Posts: 736 - Karma: 14
its a bit of a change, but itll be easy to get used to.

i remember when i first moved to mammoth from ny 4 years ago. the first pow day i went out with a roommate to get some freshies. i remember thinkin it was the same old dael. i went flying from a groomr into my first pow field and immediately my tips dug in and i was tomahawkin like never before. once i realized it was different and leaning was an issue, it came really quickly. just be areful at first
Apr 12 2007 1:26PM
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Roy
Posts: 1982 - Karma: 1,240
I can actually ski, cuz we have some steeper stuff where I am (we have one run called the devils dive, and the owner said it hits 55 degrees which looks about right) so Im not just pointing my skis at jumps and hoping I hit them. But when I got to Big white for the first time I didnt find pow hard at all. If anything its a confidence booster for going big. BUt like someone said switch landings are deffinatly not easy.
Apr 12 2007 1:27PM
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duhamelski
Posts: 3842 - Karma: 192
it really depends where you are skiing. to ski powder you need steeper runs that are more open. what ski you have also makes a big difference. if you have solid skiing fundimantals it shoudnt be that bad. ifr you are in colorado it is going to be alot easier than in tahoe because for one the snow is lighter and for two you can just ski to the bottom of the run worry free but in tahoe and utah you might have a 50' cliff below you that you need to worry about
Apr 12 2007 1:36PM
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Barmski
Posts: 4342 - Karma: 811
stay centered over your skis.
Apr 12 2007 2:26PM
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hoodratz47
Posts: 12021 - Karma: 9,498
and dont froget to slaughter a young goat... to applease the gods
Apr 12 2007 2:54PM
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skiwoj
Posts: 2286 - Karma: 52
well that goes without saying, i mean some not so obvious tips
Apr 12 2007 2:55PM
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attitashfreestyle29
Posts: 3070 - Karma: 209
It sure as hell is a lot easier then going from perfect powder to ice. People on the west are spoiled with good snow whereas on the east we take what we can get.
Apr 12 2007 3:25PM
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Microcosm
Posts: 4765 - Karma: 153
Just go with the flow. And don't forget to hoot and holler when you fund an untracked line.
Apr 12 2007 3:51PM
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deezy.
Posts: 2538 - Karma: 26
yes pow is different from east coast ice it makes your legs soo tired
Apr 12 2007 3:53PM
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Kungris
Posts: 375 - Karma: 9
Just don't let your tips dive.
Apr 12 2007 4:17PM
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snowXrider540
Posts: 1182 - Karma: 12
i think it is easier to ski west coast than ice coast. personally anyways, we have skied shit snow our whole lives and can ski on almost anything. youll be straight.
Apr 12 2007 4:19PM
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miroz
Posts: 10333 - Karma: 3,945
don't lean too far either forward/backward, and if you can link any turns at all you'll definitely be fine
Apr 12 2007 4:19PM
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Troop801
Posts: 345 - Karma: 17
HA.
Apr 12 2007 5:03PM
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five4ty
Posts: 153 - Karma: 19
Form is essential. I took some eastcoast, small mountain, friends to the BC interior for a week of BC riding, and they adapted within 2 or so days. Their form was good to a point that all they needed to do was adapt to the modifications to form powder riding required.

So, if you have the classic east-coast racer form and skills, then you should rip within a few days.
Apr 12 2007 5:10PM
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STACKS
Posts: 1938 - Karma: 42
not hard just go skiing and have fun
Apr 12 2007 5:30PM
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gawd
Posts: 598 - Karma: 2,042
shouldnt be that hard just ski it
Apr 12 2007 5:32PM
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chairdawg
Posts: 1422 - Karma: 36
when i went out west i went in powder its not to hard it just gets you alittle out of breath but once you get the bouncing rhyem down its not bad
Apr 12 2007 5:38PM
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skiEER
Posts: 4089 - Karma: 79
ice is way harder to ski it doesnt take long to ski powder
Apr 12 2007 5:49PM
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dan4060
Posts: 1458 - Karma: 847
Adapting to steeper terrain is more difficult. The terrain at big western mountains (squaw, jackson, whistler) is MUCH steeper than anything in the east.

I grew up back east, and the first time I skied out west I was on skinny bump skis. I thought I could ski anything, after icy vermont bump runs, but I was wrong. You will have a huge advantage if you have skis that are at all fat. Even park skis nowadays are about 85 or more under foot, the skis I learned on were 63 or so. Skiing chopped up refrozen crud, or breakable crust is a whole lot more difficult than skiing pow, or east coast hardpack for that matter, but once again we have the advantage of fat skis, which makes learning much easier. Trying to learn to ski deep snow on skinny skis was really tough. It took me several trips west and alot of effort before I found it fun. My first two trips out west I longed for east coast ice and bumps, where I felt like I could ski.

Even on fatter skis, it helps to keep your skis together at first. You ski much more down the fall line. Keep the speed under control though, their can be plenty of junk under the snow that you do not see. Start conservatively, work up as your confidence gets better and you get more comfortable.

It's good that you ski the mountain, as opposed to the park all day. This will help you adapt. Have fun, skiing steep lines in deep snow is the greatest thing in skiing.
Apr 12 2007 6:19PM
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theconcept1212
Posts: 963 - Karma: 50
uh huh
Apr 12 2007 6:26PM
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poofartpee
Posts: 7436 - Karma: 1,538
if u have strong legs u can learn quickley if not itll take more time...unless u have fat skis
Apr 12 2007 6:46PM
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K2skipunk
Posts: 2837 - Karma: 111
its freakin awesome, thats all you need to know
Apr 12 2007 6:59PM
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K2skipunk
Posts: 2837 - Karma: 111
best feeling in the world, i think its a bit harder than groomers though
Apr 12 2007 7:00PM
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snowbird4life
Posts: 2265 - Karma: 26
just go for it man, its not hard at all, its just west coast egos trying to tell you your gonna suck on our big bad mountains. i say 4 runs of anything like true pow and your fine. except for our super gnarly epic storms. may god have mercy on your soul.
Apr 12 2007 7:14PM
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DFA79
Posts: 276 - Karma: 10
A lot good racers come from the eastside because they have to perfect the technique to hold turns on ice. There are a lot of people out here in Utah that never learn that technique because the snow is more forgiving. Modern fat ski tech allows good groom/park skiers to transition their game to the pow a lot quicker.
Apr 12 2007 7:17PM
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KG_
Posts: 2198 - Karma: 20
west coast = foam pits
east coast = sleet pits
Apr 12 2007 7:21PM
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kickerking
Posts: 133 - Karma: 11
It took me one long run and powder skis to master powder skiing after only skiing east my whole life, but I ski a lot.
Apr 12 2007 7:27PM
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chickenwang
Posts: 5639 - Karma: 40
about as easy as buying a plane ticket
Apr 12 2007 7:30PM
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crunkasfuck
Posts: 752 - Karma: 352
easy pow will take a couple a days
Apr 12 2007 7:31PM
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hollygrove
Posts: 7845 - Karma: 93
I think it would just be all about your ability to ski. But I also have no idea what its like living on the east coast, or how hard it would be for you guys just to ski park. I can't even imagine.
Apr 12 2007 7:40PM
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ski_powpow
Posts: 1247 - Karma: 1,200
if you have never skied pow or very rarley and big mountain terrain it will take more than just one week
Apr 12 2007 8:14PM
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-_-Johnny-_-
Posts: 480 - Karma: 39
wtf, do they label they bc slopes black, blue etc?

And, the idea of never having skied powder seems absurd to me. If you haven't you definitely haven't experienced skiing as it should be
Apr 12 2007 8:32PM
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robtheslobonacob
Posts: 471 - Karma: 17
just dont fall in a tree well and it will be easy
Apr 12 2007 9:48PM
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