Does Mid Winter Skiing have an impact on Mid Summer Scores?

[Horton]

Does Mid-Winter skiing have an impact on Mid-Summer scores?

[jcamp]

For me it does anyway. The one winter that I did not take a trip to Florida it took me 3 times as long to get going that summer. I used to believe that winter skiing was just for fun. Now I know it's really important for summer skiing.

[jayski]

How can you even say no? lol

 

Let's see all elite athletes regardless of sport train YEAR ROUND....

 

Do snow skiers just train in winter, well ya but they travel to 'winter' when it's summer somewhere else...

 

Do golfers just train in summer? Steve Stricker built himself a heated open sided shed to hit balls in the middle of Wisconsin's winters

 

Do road cyclist take the winter off? Pretty sure @skidawg's son isn't sitting on the couch in his "off season"

 

Do the elite skiers take the winter off???

 

But hey, what do they know... :)

[ski6jones]

Winter skiing just gets me back up to speed more quickly. I suppose to the extent that it increases the amount of time I am working at or near my hardest pass during the summer it's a maybe.

[Rednucleus]

I am anxious to find out! This is my 1st year that I have skied through winter. I have been out 7 times in January and averaged once a week for Nov & Dec - petty good for W WA. In the past I have stopped Nov thru March, and every year takes me longer to feel good again on the water - so ask me again in June how I'm doing!

[Drew_Wright_OBXtoFl]

Just not skiing stinks am I better because of it that I am not so sure. But skiing in Florida in the winter is awesome.

[Wish]

How can it not??

[skialex]

I believe it does, if you can continue performing at a similar level as summer, but maybe at easier passes.

This is what I’m trying to do anyway. Run more openers, focus on technique, form and sometimes slow the boat down on a cold or bad day.

I also believe that, if performance drops considerably, it could be counterproductive to ski in the winter though. This is when injuries happen and bad habits adopted.

Having this in mind, I ski through the winter and can ski my best at any time even in May, not like the end of the season as it used to be at my early skiing years.

 

 

[JackQ]

I find it does. One of my best seasons (in relation to my potential) was when I lived in San Diego, and my ski partner (Scott Larson) and I had a routine of skiing once every 7-10 days but only would run back to back passes that we would not miss or stress our selves. We could maintain timing, balance and ski feel while letting the body heal. Then as the season approached just slowly increase frequency and volume.

 

When I lived in Maryland and took 4-5 months off, I would take a beating physically in the beginning of the season and would not peak until after the regionals/nationals.

[Horton]

@JackQ Skiing with Gumby (Larson) would be good for anyones score.

[GAJ0004]

If I could I would go to Florida one weekend per month in the winter.. Unfortunately work and lack of money get in the way..

 

[Horton]

It is not super cold or really warm here Dec - March. I do not see a ton of value in the 2 sets every week or two I could get. The water is cold, I am stiff and cold, the ski does not really work right and the glare is terrible.

 

meh.

[mbabiash]

@Horton

I agree. I think if you lived in South Florida it would be different. Or had the means to spend a lot of time down there in the winter. I use the winter to heal up and get strong.

Some pros in the past took the winter off. I believe Rossi took the winter off.

[Horton]

@mbabiash I don't know. I don't think Orlando has that many more warm winter days than we do here. If an average it was 5-10 degrees warmer in the winter yes.

[Horton]

this is my week.

 

[matthewbrown]

Scrapping 32’s when it’s 45/45 water feels like a different sport. May as well wait until spring when you don’t feel like you have a lead belt strapped around your waste.

[lpskier]

Average January high in Orlando is 71 and average low is 52. I can usually count on one hand the number of days on average I miss in any two month period due to cold weather December through March. I'll miss more days due to wind, and I don't miss many days due to wind.

 

If nothing else, you can use the Central Florida winter to learn (or at least try) new technique and to try new equipment.

[Chef23]

@rayn what is your opinion?

[Chef23]

I think it depends on how often you get to do it and what you are focusing on. If you could ski once a month with coaching it could definitely make a difference. If it is just one trip for a few days I think it is fun but likely doesn't make a significant impact.

 

I don't have any real experience with it though.

[eleeski]

The more I ski the worse I get.

 

If it's fun, winter ski for sure.

 

Winter is for snow skiing.

 

Eric

[Deanoski]

I snow ski in the winter water is so cold it does not help my waterskiing staying in shape and strong is more important IMO

[thager]

Just skiing a few times in the winter I would say no, which is what happens to us northerners.

A few quality skis with a good instructor at a ski school is a different matter, if I pay attention

and I take good video and/or notes for use come spring.

[Horton]

Why would anyone want coaching when they are not skiing close to how they ski in summer?

[Chef23]

@Horton if you got regular sets in the winter with coaching I think it would help. If you just went for a week or so maybe you pick up one or two things that help but I don't think it would make a significant impact. I agree I do like to get coached when I have been skiing regularly and am skiing at my normal level.

[John Brooks]

Winter is for keeping my wife happy, working on honey do list, building up credits to ski in the summer. Occasional winter sets for fun and keeping in tune my deep water starts.

[ski6jones]

It clearly depends on what conditions. For me it means sneaking a few sets a month when conditions happen to be real nice. If it means skiing all winter in AUS or south FL that's something altogether different.

[BraceMaker]

Considering a nice day to ski up north our water is in the 60s and the air the 70s or low 80s when I've skied in the south on 100 degree days and 90 degree water that's nothing like my normal.

 

But I don't think it helps.

[Than_Bogan]

Although winter skiing is not important enough to me to bother with a trip most years, I do think that coaching is perfectly valuable even when you're pretty far out of ideal shape. The fundamental things I can improve don't change that much as I get more into ski shape.

[skier2788]

Live in CO and this month will be the first in almost two years that I have not skied at least once. I have traveled south and skied a lot over the last few winters. Does it help with muscle soreness yes. Does it help your early season scores yes has my mid summer scores changed? Nope not a significant amount anyhow. So I would say no mid Winter skiing does not get you better mid summer skiing. Of course it depends on skill level. If you struggle with standing on your ski balanced yes it will help.

[A_B]

Hell yes if you are from NW Ohio. Definition of mid-summer for us Northerners is about a month any more. When I was chasing tournaments, I went to Ft Myers every winter and skied there as a pre-season. Top skiers in this area I know go down to FL every month for a long weekend or week. Depends on their jobs and money.

[eleeski]

Today's ride is why winter skiing doesn't help:

 

Tore my wetsuit putting it on. Cold parts aren't something I have to deal with in summer.

 

Modified my binding. Still needs more work. Didn't get up. Now I'm really cold.

 

The water feels really hard and the ski reacts differently.

 

Struggling with the set and pop the handle into a boat guide. Tying that back in is cold.

 

In season, the water temperature would be more comfortable for me and suited to my ski. Mistakes wouldn't have physical consequences - like shivering. Tying in a buoy would be a rest/reset opportunity, not the end of the run. And after fixing the binding I'd be able to test it right away instead of waiting for a dry wetsuit. Now I have a crappy run to remember until I ski again.

 

Vic did give me a hard time about whining about the cold. It's June water in Canada temperature. If I had to ski this cold, I'd have multiple functional wetsuits. Buoys would be frequently used so less apt to pull out. My equipment would be dialed in. The off season variables would be dealt with.

 

Maybe rides like this will make me tougher. But I want to be better, not tougher.

 

Eric

[The_MS]

I get more bennifit from a season of hockey then I do from skiing a few times in the winter. It may take a few more sets in spring to get in ski shape but being in hockey shape gets me to short line sooner with less body issues.

[RichardDoane]

my best scores were back when we skied at least once a week all winter - unless the lake was frozen. Now (with older/wiser mentality) it's seems better to stay in shape and just hit it harder come spring.