Jump to content
Note to New Members ×

First time Skwaler? Suggestions?


xacta168

Recommended Posts

Speed is your friend forcing turns is hard on the hamstrings. Avoid  t bars Ibuprofen is handy to have on hand .. Have you ever slalomed on a water ski ? Get on the bike and get in shape. A whole bunch of muscles you never knew were in your body are about to be called upon. It's the most fun you will have had sliding on snow ! Do some carpet carving and get comfortable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did the transition from alpineboard to skwal a couple years back and wrote about it plenty. It is on this forum, just keep going backwards, or find my posts and go backwards from there.    

 I just got an "easy" this morning from avante, originally from Dons big # purchase, it is like new.  Avante did an incredible job packaging the board, so good that I am putting some pics of the pack job up.    Are there any easy direction to follow to post pics here, my puter keeps locking up when I try, the pics are in my "Gallery" now.   thanks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really struggled with going straight, side-slipping, and stopping gracefully.  Carving took about 2 turns to figure out the basics as it's really close to alpine carving.  Hand-touching turns were 1/2 a run away; hip-dragging turns came a couple runs later.  Johnasmo video'd Riceball and I on our first Skwal run at SES last year.  

 

I need to practice side-slipping more...  My board REALLY wants to flip around backwards without a ridiculous amount of weight on the front foot, not sure if that's technique or the Skwal USA board.  

 

I also should have spent more time carpet surfing to make sure the stance was close.  Slight outward cant on both feet was key to comfort for me.  And getting that rear knee in tight to the front one and moving the legs as a unit.  That probably varies heavily with the stance and waist widths though.  

 

It took a while to stop stressing unneeded muscles.  Try relaxing various things while riding and see what happens.  No change - don't tense up that area!  

 

Have fun!  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Greg,

Just remember that this is an inline ski and not a snowboard, so ride it like a waterski or weight it like a pair of downhill skis. Allow the feedback to tell you how then to dial it in. My Coda is a blast, particularly for mid-day when the groom has lost it's cord, and the push piles are staking up. No slouch in the Pow-pow either! As mentioned above the slow speed maneuvers take some practice. I also plan to use mine to transition skiers into carvers by starting them on the Skwal with poles.

 

Al

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 months later...

Now, I am NOT a Skwal fan, nor rider anymore.  But, Gordon Robbins put me on a La Croix some 26 years ago, on Sno-Pro bindings, and me in (at first) in Kolfach moutaineering [think Damien] boots. THE 1ST thing I did after my run up+back the base double (now quad B) at Okemo was to reverse the cants to push my knees AWAY from each other! Despite my Austrian Ski Instuctor's advice as a child, NO, The Knees do not need to always be Together!!   [sorry Hansi, and put those damn 'whipping poles" away, my knees were BENT enough, thank you! God,I used to Hate it when he would smack the back of my knees when I was skiing! ,, that's Child Abuse these days...]

 

Secondly, I switched out boots, to Dachstein Exetrem's , which were stiffer overall, and had the 'drink+drive' hinge for Tele-Skiing or hiking, before I'd go past the lower two chairs at Okemo.

Those two changes (and later, much shorter poles) let me figure out how to get this thing to work while not carving. The Carving was easy, just lean, angulate, and stretch slowly. Going slow, dealing with chalk or ice, well, that required the 'softer knees' I could get by releasing the locked back on the front Extrem, and canting outwards gave my knees room, to flex out Over the edges, softly. Being lower in body position overall made life much easier, though more tiring, as the 'bone-on-bone' structure of a French ski/ride style was subverted. I never did use this in bumps, and never will.

 

If I ever get on a Skwal again, it'll be with very short poles, multi-forward-lean boots, and then, only on perfectly groomed snow.

Nice ride, while it lasts, but Not too versatile, imho.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...