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Reprints From The Professional Skier

Fall 1996 - "Shaped Skis Adopted For Adaptive Application" by Don Schwartz

This article is reprinted from The Professional Skier. All copyrights apply. Please see our copyright and disclaimer notice page.

The constant evolution of skiing provides an ever-changing environment in which instructors must be able to adapt. New equipment designs continually affect the way we look at the mechanics of skiing and associated movement patterns. Innovations such as the shaped ski can broaden the options available to us as we strive to develop our student's skills and abilities.

The shaped ski, with its hourglass design, is a tool whose intent is to enhance performance by improving the skier's ability to understand, introduce, and control more advanced movement patterns earlier in their development of skiing skills. In the case of an adaptive student, who may not possess the skills or ability to achieve the desired result through a traditional progression, shaped skis can provide an alternative solution.

The challenges posed by a recent student illustrate this point. The student, a male in his late 30s who I will call "Michael" contracted polio as a child and, as a result, has no functional use of his right leg below the knee. He has some muscular ability from the right knee to the hip, but his right upper leg is much weaker than his left upper leg. Able to bear weight on his affected leg, Michael is ambulatory but with a rocking, crab-like gait. For the past 15 years, he has been trying to ski on two skis, making turns mostly with the left leg while dragging the right leg along. Michael was too self-conscious to try three-track skiing but was becoming discouraged with his inability to make significant progress.

After performing a thorough indoor evaluation of Michael's physical abilities, reviewing his goals and expectations, and discussing some possible solutions, I decided to try an approach that combined modified movement patterns with the use of shaped skis (in this case, 163-centimeter Elan SCXs). I wanted to couple the movement patterns that Michael was capable of doing with the performance characteristics of the shaped skis (e.g., easier "turnability") to help him create linked, parallel turns in both directions.

Because Michael was unable to steer his legs independently (especially his right leg), we worked on modifying his turn initiation by introducing an exaggerated rotary movement generated from his hips and emphasized by simultaneous leg movement. Michael had sufficient muscle control in his thighs to move laterally across the skis, allowing them to flatten as his hips turned to create a skidding effect at the very top of the turn. As soon as he changed direction, he would move his hips laterally back to the inside of the turn, setting the skis on edge.

This is where the hourglass design of the shaped skis contributed to the successful completion of the maneuver. Given that Michael was using a radically configured 163-cm ski, with its quick-turning dynamics, he could easily complete the control phase of the turn by simply placing the skis on edge. Because the skis, when placed on edge, followed the contour of their radical hourglass shape, Michael was able to use this to dictate the shape of the turn. And by coupling the turning characteristics of the shaped skis with the rhythmic rotary movements generated from his hips, he could now perform a series of open-parallel turns. Michael's lack of mobility in his right leg had previously prevented him from generating the forces required for this turning ability on a conventional ski.

The effects were dramatic. Interestingly enough, turns to the left (previously made with great effort and little success) became round and controlled, while turns to the right (on the dominant leg) were stable but displayed much less continuity. Apparently, Michael's left leg dominated the turn to the right so much that he continued to drag his right leg rather than allow the ski design to assist with the turn. He discovered that the performance characteristics of the equipment and the different turn initiation technique permitted the active involvement of the right leg as part of the turn mechanics. By reducing the dominant role of the left leg and allowing the right leg to assume a more active role when turning in both directions, Michael achieved consistent turn shape and flow in both right and left turns.

While the above strategies were outlined with regard to Michael, a similar approach may prove useful for students with other disabilities, including certain levels of spina bifida and cerebral palsy. Any student with a mobility impairment wherein he or she is strong enough to stand up and ski but is limited in the ability to pursue a "normal" progression of movements might benefit from introducing movement modifications and shaped skis. Of course, other equipment considerations, such as outriggers, might also figure into the plan. It's probably best, however, to avoid using this approach with beginner students. They still need to start with such fundamental skills as rotary movements, edging, and pressure control, and shaped skis may cause them to rely more on heavily on equipment design than their personal skill development.

Conclusion

As adaptive instructors, we have a wide variety of equipment options when seeking a workable solution to meet students needs. Look for solutions that use movement patterns and equipment characteristics to produce the desired outcome. Just as we develop the skiing progression by using a blend of skills and skill development, we also need to use a blend of movements relative to the functional characteristics of the equipment and the abilities provided by our students. This approach will ensure continued progress among our students, regardless of whatever challenges they may face.

Don Schwartz is an Alpine Certified Level III and Adaptive Certified Level III instructor and is head of the adaptive program at Vermont's Okemo Mountain Resort.