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Randy Witlicki <[log in to unmask]> writes: > Okay, I usually pass on these, but... > When a snowboarder carves *really* sharply, you often >see several inch deep ruts. I can't seem to do that kind >of snow surface damage with alpine skiis. Sure you can- get the shortest shapeliest stick with a sub-15m radius that you can find get it up to about 20-25mph and just _jump_ on it with all your leg on one ski. You'll leave a ski width trench about 3" deep on most freshly groomed groomers. It can even be fun for a run or two. But really big guys can do that on GS skis. I watched a guy from the Swedish national team forerun an amateur race two years ago- left a 6" deep trench on one turn and he caught 20' of lateral air out of that turn to lay an identical trench on the next. They had to send someone down after him stemming to fill/clear his track to make sure none of the racers got hurt. It was a clear demonstration of the difference between the pros and the amateurs- the forerunner's time was 3 seconds faster than the winner (on a ~1 minute course). But, so what if there are ruts in the surface? The only way to get perfect corduroy every time is to poach runs when they're closed. (I not advocating this necessarily...) >I think that a boarder with their single edge are scraping off >more snow than most sideslipping skiers. I doubt it- they just sound louder while doing it, and it looks more like a bulldozer, but the fact is, with more pressure on less edge they're digging deeper and pushing less surface snow than skiers in slip-mode. It's not a snowboarder issue, it's an intermediate skill level issue- and it's never going away, so just live with it, sharpen your ride and your skills to be able to carve the glare ice, and don't forget to have fun! dana _____________ ________ __ __ /________ ________ ___ __( Tele till you drop ___\ ________ ________ __ ____) ______ __________ _ ___/ ______ ___________ _ __( o ____ __________ __ __ \(|\.____ _______ ____ ___`\>/______ ____ ______ ____ \` ______ __ _______ ______`________ _ _______ _______________ __ ______ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - SkiVt-L is brought to you by the University of Vermont. To unsubscribe, visit http://list.uvm.edu/archives/skivt-l.html