How to Ski Moguls

With a little practice (well, maybe a lot of practice), you can lose your fear of moguls - those challenging slopes full of hard bumps and mounds of snow.

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Ski Lift Tickets
• Downhill Ski Boots
• Downhill Ski Poles
• Downhill Skis
• Men's Ski Gloves
• Ski Clothing
• Ski Goggles
• Women's Ski Gloves

Skiing Moguls

1. Stop at the top of the mogul field. Pick your line down the slope. Start skiing.

2. Don't look down at your skis or at the bumps once you've started skiing. Focus on your line - several moguls ahead.

3. Make quick, short-radius turns, adjusting them to fit the terrain. If you find your skis bridging bumps, your turns are not small enough.

4. Link together as many turns as you can before resting. Never obstruct the trail while resting.

Practicing

5. Practice short-radius turns on a low-angle, groomed slope before heading to the mogul field. Get the feeling for quick, consecutive turns.

6. 

   Start at the top of a low-angle mogul field, in which the bumps are not too close together.

7. Practice skiing bumps of different sizes and shapes until you have a feel for them.

8. 

   Maintain contact with the snow at all times; use your knees like springs to absorb the terrain differences. Don't "hop" from bump to bump.

9. 

   Practice planting your pole at the top of the bump and turning around your pole.

10. Keep your skis pointed downhill as much as possible. If you find yourself going too slowly to maneuver, you're not letting gravity work for you.

Tips & Warnings

• Over time, you will perfect ways of dealing with all kinds of bumps. You'll ski at a steady pace that is rhythmic and not dictated by the size or shape of the bumps.
• Ski safely and in control. Don't stop in the middle of a trail or where others can't see you from above.
• Always yield the right-of-way to people ahead of you.
• Be careful of trees and man-made obstacles.
• Skiing is an inherently dangerous activity that can result in serious injury or death. We recommend that you seek proper training and equipment before attempting this activity.

Who Can Help Sponsored

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[jibbons]

on 8/18/2009 A good drill for squaring your shoulders is to go to any groomer (no moguls) run you can find and hold both ends of your polls (handles and tips). This should put your poles in a horizontal line across the bottom of your field of vision. Now look down the run and determine the quickest way straight down the hill, this is the fall line. Hold your polls and square your shoulders so that you are facing straight down the fall line. Begin skiing down the hill as you normally would, but keep your horizontal poles facing straight down the fall line. The goal is to maintain a solid square frame (hips and shoulders), while using your legs to do the turning below you. The opposite would be to always keep your shoulders facing the same direction as your knees, which would have you facing the side of the run all the way down.

This is difficult, and will most likely take many runs to achie...

on 8/8/2006 Picking up from the instruction to plant your pole at the top of the mogul:
Extend your legs to aggressively put pressure on the inner edge of the outside ski of the new turn as you pass on the uphill side of the mogul. This will make the ski carve a turn around the top of the mogul - you can adjust the turn to put you in a good position to make a similar turn on the next mogul. Your upper body will pass over the top of the mogul without being bounced, because extending your legs to the side of the mogul has the same absorbing effect as pulling up the knees. This technique keeps pressure on your skis to maximize your control and thereby control your speed.

on 8/8/2006 To stay forward in the moguls, make sure to absorb the mogul in front of you when the tip of your ski hits it. Also, try to keep your knees over your feet and your hips over your bindings for better balance and control.

on 8/8/2006 There are several ways to ski bumps. A gentler ride results from skiing the tops: skiing up the backs and turning on the tops. A faster, more challenging ride results from skiing the troughs, also known as the zipperline. In either event, Initiate quick turns on the balls of your feet. Feel your heels rise and your ski tips fall into the trough if you are skiing troughs or the front side of the bump if you are skiing the tops. Make sure that you ski on a hard edge as you make your turns to control speed.

on 3/30/2006 Watch any video of a good mogul skier and notice how his upper body
isn't moving around very much. And yet his skis are making turns. You
have to learn to twist at your hips when you make your turns. If you turn
your upper body to the side, you are on your way to a bumpy ride to the side of the run. Every time you do this it will tire you out -- so learn how not to do it!