Bumps for Boomers - My Experience at the Mogul Skiing Clinic

[shortydude]

I know Bumps For Boomers is an Aspen based course, but I don't have any plans for going to Aspen.

This next year I may go to SLC for a week and ski the Cottonwood resorts. So I was wondering if anyone knows an instructor/school in the canyon resorts that's has a similar style of zero energy turn moguls?

[Bluewing]

Would they let you use Sherpa's in that class?

I don't think any type of ski or skiboard would be a problem. They teach 2 days of the class on Line Bullets with non-release bindings so I think at that point there are no limitations.

[shortydude]

Would they let you use Sherpa's in that class?

[Bluewing]

Bumps for Boomers Technique Summary and Video

Joe Nevin, founder of Bumps for Boomers, sent the following content in a follow-up email to people who took the moguls skiing clinic this year. This is a good summary of the techniques. The video is a great visual of the B for B techniques and tactics as demonstrated by Joe himself.

BETTER BALANCE
• Keep hands forward and quiet
• Flex your ankles rather than bend your knees
• Lead each turn with a pole touch
• Ski with a narrow since to keep both feet on the same consistency of snow

MORE CONTROL
• Steer your skis perpendicular to, or higher than, the fall line underneath your feet at the completion of each turn in order to decelerate before you initiate each new turn
• To initiate each turn make your short leg long (instead of trying to start a turn) .
• WAIT for gravity to move your skis in the direction of the fall line before steering your skis
• Continuously LOOK DOWN the hill at your next turn location target

LESS FATIGUE
• Ski using a tall stance with long legs so your skeleton, rather than your muscular system, supports your body weight
• Ski slower to minimize the need for dynamic flexion and extension movements
• Avoid abrupt movement to make it easier to stay in-balance and eliminate the need for fast reflexes
• Move as little as possible and only move in slow motion what needs to move

SMART TACTICS
• The Green Line Turn has a smaller radius than the trough, e.g. you initiate your turn on the flat top of a mogul and drift down the secondary fall line of the same mogul that you initiated your turn on.
• Only do one of two things: TURN to a DRIFT or DRIFT to a TURN


One of the important take-aways I would like you to see is how slow my turns are (e.g. how slowly I come around the turn). This is a result of two factors:

• First, a conscious deceleration prior to initiating the next turn (remember that a zero momentum turn can be made ... even from a dead stop).

• Second, using short leg long to initiate the next turn and WAITING for gravity to start the turn rather than feeling an urgency to make the turn happen quickly.


Here is a video of Joe skiing the Pumphouse run at Aspen demonstrating the approach. I can't embed the video here due to the way it is configured in Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/210287161/3fdbb1be4e. Joe is 71 years old and still killing it in the moguls. He is an advocate of skiing shorter than normal length skis and uses his Kastle MX84's in 156cm size in all conditions. He is taller than me and would normally be on 170cm+ sticks. No exactly skiing shorties, but going against convention.

[Bluewing]

A Few Photos

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[Bluewing]

Bumps for Boomers - A Few Wrap-up Thoughts

A few thoughts to wrap this up:

1. You are the CEO of your own skiing - they said this a lot during the class meaning you are the one in control of a mogul run so you have decision-making power. It also applies if you ever take a course like this - take control of your own experience. A few examples of this:

a. Group placement - after the first maybe 2 hours of the class they had us ski down a run with the coaches observing. Based on that they assigned people to a coach in groups roughly by skier ability. I was placed in the more advanced group - yay! For me, this was a mixed experience. It was good because my group really progressed through things quickly, got into the moguls right after lunch on the first day and pushed into some serious terrain on Day 2. I like to challenge myself so this was great. The downside is that on Day 2 it was a bit of survival skiing in some really gnarly terrain so from a learning perspective not great. Also, on the morning of Day 3, the first day on full size skis, the coach was really pushing the pace hard and moving very quickly through the drills. It was a bit overwhelming for me and I basically couldn't even ski a groomed run confidently. Joe Nevin happened to be with our group so I slid over to him and said I was completely lost and he skied with me a while to get me back on track and then placed me in another group that was a bit more evenly paced, which worked out great the rest of the class.

b. Coaching - the coaches were all professional and well-intentioned; however, it was easy to get into a mode where you were just "along for the ride" even if the coaching approach was not working. For me having the coach shouting instructions/corrections on every mogul run was not a problem and helped. For some other people in my class by Day 3 and 4 they looked a bit beaten down. I think they would have been well-served to chat with the coach to get less feedback or feedback only at the conclusion of a run instead of during.

c. Ski choice - Days 3 and 4 were on full-sized skis. B for B recommends people ski a shorter length ski than normal - not just for class but in general. If renting skis the coach provides recommendations. In the case of my class, the coach selected the skis. I did not like the skis I was on during Day 3 at all, especially on the hard, low grip groomers so the day was not as enjoyable as it could have been. I swapped those skis out for Day 4 and was on skis I liked much better. However, if I had it to do over I would have rented from a different shop because I would have tried to be on a specific model of ski.

2. Have fun! If you ever take a course like this it is easy to get very focused and make this seem like work. I had an absolute blast on Days 1 and 2 on the Line Bullets. I never worry about much when I ride skiboards. Days 3 and 4 were a bit more stressful at times being on unfamiliar skis and doing the drills and skiing moguls on skis. I was very conscious about breaking my focus on the learning and enjoying the views and blue bird sky. A few people in my class on Days 3 and 4 were very stressed so I made it a point to try and break that tension for them.

3. Be adaptable but also know what works for you - I have embraced this set of techniques and approach and enjoyed the learning experience. They talked a lot in class of the need to develop new neural pathways so the movement patterns they were teaching became your new way of skiing. I get that and it takes time and repetition. One also has to be aware of what is working and what isn't though and make adjustments. So, there are certain tweaks I have made so I feel more comfortable and dynamic. Don't be afraid to personalize this.

4. This is a way to ski and not the only way - to ski well in all types of terrain and in all types of conditions one needs a bunch of different skills, tactics and experience. There is no one way to ski, but there is a better way to ski in specific terrain in a specific set of conditions. You are better off having a wide range of skills and tactics at your disposal.

5. Would I do it again? I would not do the 4-day course again - not because it wasn't good, but because B for B offers a 3-day MBA course for people who took the 4-day course. 80% skiing, 20% instruction with one day on each of 3 mountains. https://www.bumpsforboomers.com/ski-...-bumps-clinic/. I might be back in Aspen next year for this course!

[Bluewing]

How different was the actual clinic instruction from what you were trying to do on your own?

Studying the Bumps for Boomers materials on their website and practicing the techniques, as I could understand them on my own, was a big help in preparing for sure. There is no substitute for the coaching though for several reasons:

1. The coaches see what you can't so I got a lot of great input on how to improve my technique
2. The coaches had a variety of drills we did throughout the class, which were not on the B for B website - these drills are important to build and refine the skills.
3. My understanding of some of the techniques was not quite right so the coaches helped me close those gaps
4. Having someone yelling (in a nice way) at you from the top or bottom of a mogul run on what to do or stop doing is invaluable - real time feedback has an immediate benefit
5. Watching the coaches ski was an incredible way to pick up on a lot of things - the coaches were all really good skiers who modeled the techniques and tactics at all times so following them and observing was a great way to learn
6. With a coach I had someone to ask questions of and get clarifications and suggestions in real time as I encountered challenges

[Fedfan]

How different was the actual clinic instruction from what you were trying to do on your own? I've been trying to figure out B4B techniques, too, since last Spring. I don't know how well I'm understanding it, but it's making very positive change in my riding. I find myself looking for moguls when my legs begin to tire. I might have to start a Bucket List and put Bumps For Boomers near the top.

[Bill]

Thanks for the great report, Bluewing. My wife and I have taken private lessons with Joe but never the full-blown clinic, so your take is especially interesting. I believe having clients use shorter skis on day 3 and 4 (as opposed to the their own skis) is a new thing, but could be wrong. Did he supply these skis?

Did you get hollered at for going too fast? I have, but not my wife Carolyn who by nature is a very deliberate skier. Joe actually encouraged her to go faster. He said it's the first time he's ever had to do that.

Looking forward to more details when you get a chance.

[Bluewing]

Bumps for Boomers Course - High Level Review

I was at the Bumps for Boomers mogul skiing clinic from 16-January to 19-January-2017 at Aspen, Colorado (the course was conducted on Aspen [Ajax] mountain). I will post some specific details and thoughts later, but wanted to share my high level review of my course experiences here:

--This was a great investment of time and money.

--Bumps for Boomers is very well run and organized; the instructors were good and Joe Nevin, the founder, was there every day on the mountain with us.

--The concepts they teach are straightforward - that does not mean they are easy to master - I worked really hard all 4 days to absorb the instruction and refine the skills I was learning. It was fun, but definitely challenging at times.

--We skied lots and lots of moguls - 3.5 days of the course were spent in the moguls, including some really challenging black terrain. For me while it was challenging at times I was never anxious or afraid while in the moguls because the techniques they teach allowed me to control my speed, apply good tactics and regain control when I did make mistakes. In 4 days I only fell once and it was a minor "over the handlebars" on Day 2 when I jammed by tips into a sharp transition.

--The first 2 days of the course were taught on Line Bullets with FF Cam bindings - great to see these classics still in service. Great learning tools to help improve balance and get the skiers to ski centered. Also, for me at least, on the skiboards I was not tentative go get right into the moguls since I was not worried about getting these small boards hung up or having a major crash.

--Aspen is a great mountain. We had access to a ton of nice mogul runs with very easy logistics of getting to this terrain on the mountain.

--The skills and tactics taught not only apply to moguls - this is a lower effort, lower impact way of skiing any type of terrain. My legs were much, much less tired at the end of each day than my normal way of skiing (carving hard and hammering everything). Their secondary marketing tagline is "Ski for Life" and that rings very true - with this approach one could be skiing, including bumps, way into their life.

--Hand, arm and pole position - they taught a different hand, arm and pole position than I am used to. Pole touches were different as well. To be honest, I really struggled with this and it felt very foreign to me for 3 1/2 days even though I have skied with poles for the past 6 years. On the last half day the instructor said "no more poles" having us carry our poles in one hand - my skiing improved dramatically and the hand and arm position felt natural. Without having to worry about a pole touch, I finally got the timing right for coming forward to initiate the zero momentum turn. I will not be using poles for a while as I cement this new positioning and movement pattern in my mind.

--The other skiers I met and skied with were from all over in a fairly wide range of ages, skewing to people 45+ years old. I think everyone faced challenges like me, but it seemed like it was enjoyable for all.

--The third and fourth days of the course were done on skis with Bumps for Boomers recommending shorter length skis. For me I normally ski 170cm skis, but on these two days I skied a 156cm and 155cm (different skis on both days) skis and did not miss the extra length.

--I had the opportunity to talk with Joe Nevin quite a bit and I skied with him some as well. Really a nice guy. I hope I can ski as well as him when I am 70+, which he is. I mentioned how skiboards got me back into skiing and talked up skiboardsonline.com, not only as a forum for skiboard enthusiasts, but also for people interested in short skis. His program has faced a bit of resistance due to the use of skiboards as a learning tool and recommendation that people ski shorter than "normal" skis.

More specifics to come a bit later - getting ready to leave for a business trip to Italy.

[Kocho]

Good to hear you are happy with your progress, Bluewing!

On my end, I just want to confirm that this particular type of turns worked very well for me too this past Saturday. And was especially handy in the deep and steep moguls that I ran into unexpectedly. Made quick work from them (actually, rather slow pace, but without any effort or apprehension). It also works in deeper piled-up snow, as long as it is not heavy and wet.

It is best to practice this type of turning on an easy green slope first. I saw some ski instructors teaching it too (the students were aspiring/current ski instructors for that mountain). They also had another variation thrown-in in combination with these low-edge turns, which makes it fun to go slow:

- Start with one of these turns, then instead of continuing over to another one, let your skis slide downhill and backwards, then do the next turn down and across the fall line. I think it's the "falling leaf" exercise.

https://youtu.be/DHJhY9rgU-Y

[Bluewing]

Final time on the slopes before heading out to Aspen was 8-January at Elk Mountain. It was colder than the 9 degrees F the thermometer reading in the morning. Quite a bit of wind from late morning on. Snow condition was variable - all variations of hard snow with some sizable areas skied off to ice, blowing man-made snow that was not groomed, growing piles of skied off dry powder, ruts in hard snow from ski racers laying down hard carves while warming up. The zero/low momentum turn technique continued to work well. Really a lot of fun experimenting with varying speed, turn radius, etc on the steepest pitches. A much different experience than I would have normally had carving at speed down everything - more immersive this way since I really have time to take note of the variations in conditions and playing around on the descent. I was purposely skiing in the worst of the icy areas just to test how my skis would do with this new technique. Works fine on icier conditions as long as you keep the skis center weighted and you keep your weight facing down the pitch. Lean into the hill and/or get back a bit and the loss of grip lets you know to adjust. The cool thing is that you have time to realize it is happening and to make the adjustment and feel the adjustment make a difference.

Practiced very small radius, fluid turns along the trail edges on the less steep parts just to keep things interesting and to get a nice long period of these turns to try and burn things into muscle memory.

I have done all the prep I think I could so now it is up to Joe Nevins...

[Bluewing]

Weird Snow and Skiing Slow

Last two times at Bear Creek in the past week I have experienced maybe the weirdest snow conditions I have skied in. It has been tough weather-wise in my area - lots of freeze/thaw cycles and periods of heavy rain. The cover is getting thin at Bear Creek. The first day of the two it was very much like spring conditions with lots of areas of deep corn snow that seemed to have no bottom. Those areas were interspersed with areas of groomed hard pack and skied off areas of frozen chunks. We had to be very mindful of the areas of deep corn snow - very easy to get tips and tails hung up and it felt like there was no support under the skis. The slow skiing technique was very well suited to this condition - keeping the skis close together and re-balancing on the uphill ski before initiating the turn worked well. I was really sore the next day though from my upper hamstrings to my lower back. It felt like I was "soft pedaling" the skis the entire time I was out, which must have put a lot of strain on these muscles.

The second time out the snow was firmer, but also a mixture of various conditions, including interspersed areas of ungroomed man-made snow the resort blew after grooming. Some of these areas had snow 6-8 inches deep that was unconsolidated and was developing large holes or crevices as it got skied on. Lots of areas of yellowish, frozen snow some of it down to the cat tracks. Some areas of glazed, frozen snow right from the start. The snow was mainly getting skied off in small chunks. We had a great time skiing on this junk using the new techniques. It didn't matter what the condition was - it was easy to ski it and control was maintained regardless of the snow changing under the skis. In the past I would have still been in control but would have ended up skiing faster than intended due to the skis basically being in controlled slides on the steeper pitches. With this new approach speed was perfectly controlled and any sliding on icier areas or on areas of frozen chunks was much shorter in duration with much less elevation loss. I was also able to keep my skis very close together regardless of how poor the snow conditions were, which helps a lot since both skis are experiencing the same thing at the same time. In the past I would not feel comfortable skiing in this type of condition with my skis close together. Instead, I would ski with more aggression with my skis farther apart as a safety margin even though I intuitively knew that was not the best way to approach it. That would work but it required more effort, was a much rougher ride and often required me to make very quick decisions and movements. One of the black runs was skied off quickly into mini-moguls - we did this run multiple times skiing in the worst of it and had a blast. Very good control and everything seemed to happen in slow motion - lots of time to make decisions and adjustments.

My ski partner's observation that this technique "removes the pitch" is dead on. Basically any run we are on now does not seem steep. Very cool and still a slightly surreal experience.

[Bluewing]

Day 3 - Adjustments and Progress

I got out to Bear Creek again today with my friend I usually ski with who is giving this "slow skiing" experiment a try as well. Warm day today: temp at 9am was 35 degrees F and when we were done for the day at 1pm the temperature had risen to 50. Nice snow, good grooming. Soft snow though. First few runs we were both experiencing a bit of catching on the uphill ski as we started to transition it into the turn. It took us a few runs to figure it out. We were not transferring our weight to the uphill ski right before initiating the turn so the ski was "light" as the turn started and we still had the weight on the downhill ski so it was basically acting as a block to the first part of the turn. Interesting how small things at slow speed/low momentum and low edge angles become apparent. In the harder snow condition 2 days ago it was easier to skid the ski so even without the uphill ski properly weighted it transitioned into the turn fine.

Bumps for Boomers talks about rebalancing (weighting) the uphill ski right before you initiate the turn. For me when I made the correction it felt like I was stepping off of the downhill ski and onto the uphill ski. Problem solved - the uphill ski transitioned into the turn properly. It was a great day of zero/low momentum turns of all shapes. For a while we followed each other down the runs trying to stay perfectly within the tracks of the lead person. Great exercise to turn with precision. This technique has been a revelation. My friend describes it as "removing the pitch" from the run. We we practicing these slow turns on the steepest pitches available and it all seemed very relaxed and calm. We intentionally skied close to the trail edge, in fairly narrow area on one steep run between a lift tower and trail's edge making turns in this space, and skied through crappy snow back and forth just to practice turning in junk. All without any issues and perfectly in control and at ease. I was skiing with my skis very close together with no issues.

A light pole plant or pole tap often helped with turn initiation today. My friend was rotating his upper body on pole planted turns and was not sure why. I suggested he might be putting the pole plant too far in front. I told him to aim the pole plant in the space from his ankle to 6 or so inches in front of his ankle. He did that and the upper body rotation was removed. Even skiing is a game of inches I guess.

When I opened up the speed today my carving was much more fluid and my skis while carving were much closer together than before I started practicing this technique so I have benefited there as well. Skied with far less effort today again as well - another benefit of this approach.

I think I am sold on this now. 2 weeks to Aspen so hopefully I can get out 3 or 4 more times before doing the course.

[valmorel]

I have been doing this far too long to have any clue what I do really except to say that I actually like skiing bumps. Well, at least on skiboards anyway. Best board I ever used in bumps is def the 120. Sometimes the shorter boards are a bit too short and don't quite flow with the rhythm of the bumps. I like softer boards in bumps too. Less disruptive when I get it wrong.

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