Match Your Shoulder Angle To The Angle Of The Ski Slope For Better Balance

You will have better balance and more stability if you match your shoulder angle to the angle of the ski slope as you ski through the fall line and complete each turn.

As you ski through the fall line there are combined centrifugal and gravitational forces pulling your body toward downhill. The strength of these forces increase the faster you ski and the steeper the slope. For better balance and stability you need to resist and brace yourself against these forces. The most effective way to do this is to match your shoulder angle to the angle of the ski slope.

One of the major causes of a fall when skiing is to keep both your balance and/or too much weight on your uphill ski as you ski through the fall line and complete your turn. Many times this happens because the skier feels it is safer to lean uphill because of the perceived safety from being closer to the hill. However, when this happens you end up trying to resist the centrifugal and gravitational forces without being braced – which is not a stable situation.

Imagine for a moment being in a tug-of-war and trying to resist the pull on the rope without having your foot nearest the rope and the opposing team bracing against the pull.

In order to ski with stronger and better balance the majority of your weight and balance should be on the outside downhill ski as you ski through the fall line and complete your turn. To facilitate this, match the angle of your shoulders to the angle of the ski slope as you ski through the completion of each turn.