GETTING BALANCED

Three broad categories of conditioning will help prepare for the ski/board season opening in the next couple weeks (we hope). The first is stretching. The second is cardiovascular and strength conditioning. The last is balance. Each plays an integral part in keeping us on our feet as we slide off the top of the mountain.

One of the most memorable competitive runs in skiing remains the Olympic Downhill final by Franz Klammer in the 1976 Olympics. On the third gate, moving at 60 or 70 miles an hour, he momentarily looses his balance. On one ski, with the other seeming to be above his head, he passes the gate and pulls it together. With both skis back on the snow, he drops into a tuck. Somehow on that run, Klammer linked almost disaster with almost disaster to finish with the fastest time and the Gold medal. A single run that everyone who watched can tell you where he or she stood as they watched. Amazing balance.

Like walking, talking and skiing, great balance is learned, not innate. How many times have you watched an individual skiing a slope clearly over their head? Wondering how they continue, making one linked recovery after another? Balance. As they get to the flat at the bottom, we shake our heads and say in unison, "They just have great balance."

And how many times has the second recovery become the fall of the day everyone laughs at the end of the day.

Think about a turn when you almost lost it and pulled it back. And the times you couldn't pull it back.

Balance.

The key is to staying upright on skis? Balance. Like walking, talking and skiing, balance can be learned.

First, find a narrow curb on a street and walk the curb. We are used to walking where we want and curb walking is not as easy as you might believe. With arms outstretched, first one leg then the other will be swung around as you wobble to stay on the curb. Like skiing, the faster you walk, the easier it is to stay on the curb. And like skiing, there is a self-destruct point. Too fast and boom. Practice on the curb. In a short time you will find it easy and want to move on to more difficult (narrower) feats of balance.

This is learned balance.

Next, find a short wall the same width as the curb and practice laps. Walk from one end to the other and repeat, turning around on the wall. Try not to leave the wall.

Then reduce the width. Find a narrower wall.

When that becomes easy, find a railroad siding--one without running trains to sneak up on you--and walk the rails. This will be significantly more difficult than a wall or a curb. The rail is slightly rounded. Place the ball of your foot on the top of the round, or you will feel a wee bit out of balance. As you step, feel the top of the rail. Feel the round.

Practice on the same length of rail. When you fall off the first time, turn around and return (walking on the rail) to the start. Practice that length first. When you are comfortable, extend the length. Extend the exercise to turning on the rail without stepping off and start making laps on the rail section. Next, extend the distance of the laps

Progress will be quicker than you believe. After only a couple of sessions, you will notice a surprising new comfort level on the narrow rail.

The next component is motion. Find a Bongo Board or a Voodoo Board (Greenwood's Ski Haus carries them). These are plywood boards designed to move back and forth across a hard wood roller. When you first try the board, have someone face you holding your hands as a spot. The boards are not easy. Staying up on the board is a combination of precise balance, weight transfer and rhythm.

Sound familiar?

All you need to ski/board--balance is weight transfer and rhythm.

Take the time to prepare just a little for the season. Work on your balance. Quite literally, it will carry you.

Illustration (Man on a snowboard holding a balance scale)