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RSS FeedCan you really learn to ski with online ski lessons?
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| Yes | 8% | 12 votes | Total: 158 votes | |
| No | 92% | 146 votes |
Yes
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Add to FavoritesLearning to ski, though difficult, can be accomplished through online lessons. An online course will get someone interested in learning how to ski to the mountain. In order to prepare for something new, one must read, study and visualize how the process is done. It gets a new skier mentally prepared for what to expect on the mountain.
Skiing is a process and, like any process, can be learned through following instruction. Yes, learning a game or activity through reading is not for everyone but, some people can visualize better through reading about how to do something first. It is almost like giving yourself a checklist before you attempt something new. As you attack the slopes, it is in your head what to do and what the outcome will be. It is not a process that is for everyone but to say it can't be done is wrong.
Depending on your mindset, one can get the hang of anything somewhat familiar through reading. If a person is fairly active, skiing can be learned pretty easy. This is not to say that an online learner will be swooshing down black diamond cliffs but, it can be believed that an online learner can get to a beginner rated slope.
Before getting started, I think it would be prudent to learn how to stop first. Probably, the most difficult part to skiing is stopping, unless you count getting off the chair lift as skiing. There are two methods that can be learned. One way to stop is to point your feet inward, making a reverse V with your skis. Another way to stop is to get your skis parallel to the slope, similar to how a hockey player stops before hitting into the goalie or boards. This will eliminate your momentum and allow you a break.
Start at the top of the mountain and start down at an angle. The angle can be as steep or shallow you want depending on the speed you are comfortable with. Please note, the sharper the angle, the faster you will go. When ready (preferably before the tree-line), shift your weight to the leg on the downslope of the hill. For example, if you are going to the left, you will shift the weight to your right leg. Be careful not to move your feet as your skis will cross, resulting in a fall. When ready, shift back and continue down the mountain.
Yes, it sounds easy. But, when you learn anything for the first time, you have to put the process into action. Learning to ski can be started through an online course but it will be perfected on the mountain.
Enjoy the snow, whichever way you go.
Learn more about this author, TeeOff.
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No
You step out of the house after spending quite a few hours doing some online research. You are walking down your sidewalk, when you realize you forgot your key and head back in to grab them. You walk up to your car and open your door, step one. You sit in the seat and buckle your seat belt, step two. Insert the key in the ignition and go! WRECK! Would you learn to drive by taking a "comprehensive" course online? Of course not. For the exact same fact there is no way you can learn to ski from online lessons. Skiing is a learned skill, just like driving and just by sitting in front of a screen and watching videos of other people do it doesn't mean you can hit the slopes of a black diamond and tear it up. People getting off their butts and hitting the BUNNY slope would have problems, let alone trying to tackle an actual trail on the mountain.
The key to skiing, driving or any skill for that matter is real world and real life experience. Actually going out and preforming the physical action that is takes to perform the task you are trying to complete, in this example skiing. You need to feel the ski's, make sure your boots fir properly, get your poles the right length. You have to learn to carve, to adjust your speed, to have your skis move in concert with each other. You have to learn how to stop, a difficult thing by itself without ever once trying it for yourself. The muscle memories that are committed to your bodies memory are immensely more important than mimicking Bode Miller's moves as he bombs down the mountain in the Olympic Super G. Your real world experience allows you to gauge your skill and most importantly, get an actual feeling for the successful movements involved with skiing. What slowing down feels like, what carving is like, how it should feel and how it shouldn't. These movements and feelings are the basis of learning a physical skill.
Sitting in front of your computer screen and looking up your favorite YouTube video of skiing tutorials will result in nothing but broken bones and broken wallets after the mounting hospital bills. The high speed and reaction time key to skiing, must be developed through first person interaction with your equipment and the hill, not with your mouse and the computer screen. Would you drive the same way that you do when your playing Grand Theft Auto IV? I didn't think so. So save yourself from a collision or two with some fir trees and two or three visits to the hospital and make sure your actually start AT the mountain and not at the mountain of links for Free Online Skiing Tutorials.
Learn more about this author, Zach Wild.
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