Too many mountain athletes avoid gym training and “do their sport” for fitness. That's a mistake. Professional mountain athletes' most important equipment isn't their skis or climbing shoes, it's their bodies. Gym training shows respect for the mountain and your sport. 鈥�Coach Shaul

ATHLETE: , mountain guide

MA TRAINING: 6 years

SUCCESS STORY: Lead instructor, examiner, and discipline coordinator for the American Mountain Guides Association ski program; 2007 AMGA Guide of the Year; lead guide for Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and Teton Gravity Research.

Early in my career, I realized that if I were to achieve my goals as a mountain athlete, I could not simply rely on athleticism, youthful vigor and immersion in my sports. As a mentor, instructor and examiner for guide training and certification for the American Mountain Guides Association, we hold participants to a high physical and technical standard, and I need to be able to meet that standard myself. Working with MA on sport-specific training has allowed me to continue to keep up with the younger folks.

I recently had major hip surgery. In the months leading up to surgery, I trained hard, knowing that this would accelerate my return. With well thought-out programming, I have returned to far exceed the levels I was at in aggressive, high-level mountain guiding.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Be Professional appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Pro athletes need to take in a lot of calories, but eating crap will ultimately harm you. Our suggestion: Six days a week, eat all the meat, veggies, fruit and nuts you want鈥攏o sugar, wheat, pasta, potatoes, rice or alcohol. One day a week, cheat like a mother. Supplement with whey protein shakes, fish oil, and a daily multi-vitamin. 鈥�Coach Shaul

ATHLETE: , pro skier

MA TRAINING: Intern coach-in-training

SUCCESS STORY: 2009 U.S. freeskiing champion

As someone with celiac disease, I was already aware of the importance of careful food choice, yet as an athlete constantly burning through fuel, I was unsure of how to consume enough calories. Starchy vegetables have turned into one of my favorite staples, with sweet potatoes taking the lead. They are versatile and delicious; you can make them into a pie, fries, or even spaghetti. Here, one of my favorite recipes for the root.

SWEET POTATO WAFFLES:
Recipe makes 6 waffles

2 large sweet potatoes
4 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice

Boil or steam the sweet potatoes, then use an immersion blender/food processor to blend into a smooth puree. You can also complete this step with a good, old-fashioned potato masher and some strong arms. Mix puree, eggs, and all wet ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Liberally apply coconut oil or butter to the waffle iron and bake on a medium heat setting.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Fix Your Diet appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Mental fitness is just like physical fitness. Athletes lose their mental edge if they don't train their minds. We use intense work capacity efforts, coaching and gym competition to prepare our students for the mental challenges of competition and the dangers of the mountains. 鈥�Coach Shaul

ATHLETE: , expedition kayaker

MA TRAINING: 2 years

SUCCESS STORY: First descents all over the globe; showcased in eight kayak films, The Wall Street Journal, and numerous paddling publications.

Whether you're running a huge waterfall or portaging 90 pounds of gear over mountainous terrain, kayaking is a mind game. You have to be able to focus in order to succeed. Good mental fitness is essential if you want to come home safely.

Living in Jackson, Wyoming, I'm not able to kayak year-round. Before MA, I used to spend the first half of the season just playing catch-up. My skills were there, but I was not physically or mentally prepared to tackle a hard Class V whitewater expedition. Now, come spring, I have the strength to hit some of the hardest rivers in the world with confidence.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Train Your Brain appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

The closer you get to the season, the more sport-specific your training needs to be. Skiers need eccentric leg strength. Climbers need finger and forearm strength. Focus on general fitness early in the offseason to build base strength and durability, but zero in on your sport in the six to eight weeks leading up to the season. 鈥�Coach Shaul

ATHLETE: , mountain guide

MA TRAINING: 4.5 years

SUCCESS STORY: Guide for Exum Mountain Guides; guide for Exum, Chicks With Picks, and Chicks Rock; movie stuntwoman. Has made ascents of big walls in Yosemite and Zion National Parks and across Europe.

Traditional wisdom in the climbing community is that more time climbing equals better climbing. But while there's no shortcut to building technique and good judgment, this is an inefficient way to improve. As a parent, full-time teacher, guide, and grad student, I have very limited time.

MA's sport-specific training cycles build stamina, endurance, and power, and therefore confidence. While time-effective, it's hard training, and has helped me lower my injury rate down to zero. It's sometimes hard to appreciate this in the moment, but outside, reaching for another improbable hold on steep rock, I consistently feel grateful for the programming.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Train for Your Sport appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

A hard training session followed by six beers at the bar is stupid. Serious professional athletes don’t drink excessively, don’t smoke, and don鈥檛 chew. They wear their seat belts, don’t text while driving, take vitamins and supplements, and go to bed early. They are as professional and thoughtful about their personal habits as they are about their sport and fitness. 鈥擟oach Shaul

ATHLETE: Jessica Baker, professional skier and mountain guide

MA TRAINING: 4 years

Success Story: North American & World Tour big mountain freeskiing champion; founder and owner of ; Alaska heli-ski guide; Exum mountain guide; Jackson Hole alpine guide; PSIA Intermountain Demo Team member.

My specialty has always been alpine skiing, but I came to Rob to get strong for climbing. When I started at MA, I was in my second year working for Exum Mountain Guides, and I knew I needed to be strong to guide in the mountains day in and day out without getting injured or tired. Rob put me on a relentless cycle of strength, work capacity, and stamina climbing workouts. By week six, I started feeling the results. I was able to hold onto small edges with ease, and relax on moves that used to pump me out immediately.

Real athletes can鈥檛 party all night and still perform well in the morning, and in the mountains, where small missteps can have dire consequences, an off day is not on option. Being fit and healthy is just part of my job: I often work all day guiding in the mountains, and then head to MA for training later the same day.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Cultivate Healthy Habits appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Larry Bird made thousands of jump shots in empty gyms. Tiger Woods sank thousands of putts on empty greens. Mountain athletes need to practice too. Is your ski turn to the left in the steep stuff a little shaky? Practice it. Is your crack climbing suspect? Practice it. Practice your strengths, and practice your weaknesses even more.听 鈥擟oach Shaul

ATHLETE: , professional climber and mountain guide

MA TRAINING: 4 years

SUCCESS STORY: Exum mountain guide; mountaineering ascents and ski descents in Tetons and Wind River range, Canadian Rockies, Mexico, Patagonia, and Nepal.

I started climbing when I was 14 years old. This took me away from team sports, and I never experienced being coached or training in the gym. When I came to MA, I really lacked strength and power in my climbing. Coach Shaul created a program for me that combined repetitive training with Olympic lifting.

The side effect of training hard at MA is that my life and career just keep getting better. I strongly believe that this kind of curriculum should be a mandatory part of training for professional mountain guides.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Practice, Practice, Practice appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

A strong core helps protect vulnerable limbs. We train the midsection daily, with extra emphasis on lower back strength and endurance. My go-to core exercise is the sandbag get-up: Start with a 40- to 80-pound sandbag on your shoulder.Lay down onto your back, with the sandbag. Get up anyway you want. As the time or reps progress, switch shoulders as often as you like, but keep the final number of reps on each side the same. 鈥擟oach Shaul

ATHLETE: Matt Annetts, professional snowboarder

MA TRAINING: 2 years

SUCCESS STORY: Verbier Extreme Freeride competitor; numerous podiums in the .

Until two years ago, I had never set foot in a gym. Now after feeling the results from a commitment to training at MA, I look forward to the painful sessions. It is amazing how much stronger I felt on my snowboard after just a couple months of working out.听

The programs Rob has us doing vary from week to week, but everyday there is a focus on strengthening the core. For me, this is the most important area to train. My balance has improved, I feel much stronger landing airs, and when mistakes do happen, my body can take much bigger hits without injuries. All of that has the effect of prolonging my career as a snowboarder.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Train Your Core appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

In the mountains, everything begins with the legs. My pro athletes already have the endurance for long days in the mountains; what they lack is the raw strength to keep them injury-free. We work to build hip and leg strength without significant weight gain by using high loads and low volume. Our favorite all-around hip and leg exercises are classic and loaded walking lunges. 鈥�Coach Shaul

ATHLETE: , mountain guide and alpinist

MA TRAINING: 4 years

SUCCESS STORY: First ascents in Alaska, New Hampshire, Patagonia, Nepal, Newfoundland, and Arizona.

As a mountain guide, I thought I had strong hips and legs, but Rob’s workouts hammer the lower body even more than climbing the Grand Teton in a day. I used to be plagued with lower back spasms, due to overdeveloped muscles from a life spent rock and mountain climbing. MA’s routines target poorly balanced muscles I barely use, which has drastically reduced the strain on my lower back. That equals less pain and more gain for me in the mountains.

The post Mountain Fitness Tips: Hammer Hip and Leg Strength appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

As owner and head coach of , Rob Shaul lives and breathes discipline. From his gym in a warehouse in Jackson, Wyoming, Shaul uses traditional strength and conditioning workouts to teach climbers, mountain guides, kayakers, and other outdoor athletes how they can boost their performance by structuring their gym sessions. As you might expect, he doesn't believe in random training.

“We like knowing where we're going,” says Shaul, who calls his program “MA” for short. To that end, he creates carefully programmed, sport-specific training routines designed to help his athletes build functional strength. While his job is in the gym, Shaul acknowledges that, 鈥済ym numbers are meaningless if they do not build to an outside purpose.鈥�

With a roster of students that includes freeskiing world champions and Navy SEALs, Shaul's brand of focused fitness has helped professional athletes from across the spectrum of mountain sports (including me: I'm part of a freeski team that he trains and sponsors). I spoke to Shaul and 10 of his disciples to find out how he guides pros to the top.

Be Professional

Too many mountain athletes avoid gym training and “do their sport” for fitness. That's a mistake. Professional mountain athletes' most important equipment isn't their skis or climbing shoes, it's their bodies. Gym training shows respect for the mountain and your sport. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, mountain guide

MA TRAINING: 6 years

SUCCESS STORY: Lead instructor, examiner, and discipline coordinator for the American Mountain Guides Association ski program; 2007听AMGA听Guide of the Year; lead guide for Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and Teton Gravity Research.

Early in my career, I realized that if I were to achieve my goals as a mountain athlete, I could not simply rely on athleticism, youthful vigor and immersion in my sports. As a mentor, instructor and examiner for guide training and certification for the American Mountain Guides Association, we hold participants to a high physical and technical standard, and I need to be able to meet that standard myself. Working with MA on sport-specific training has allowed me to continue to keep up with the younger folks.

I recently had major hip surgery. In the months leading up to surgery, I trained hard, knowing that this would accelerate my return. With well thought-out programming, I have returned to far exceed the levels I was at in aggressive, high-level mountain guiding.

Focus on Functional Strength听

Don't treat fitness as a sport. Avoid getting caught up in loads lifted or workout completion times. Your gym training must improve your on-mountain performance and durability. If it doesn't, change it. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, professional听freeskier

MA TRAINING: 2.5 years

SUCCESS STORY: 2012 World Tour听Freeskiing听champion; owner of Wright Training.

When I finished my college ski racing career, I thought that I would never have to lift weights again and that my outdoor activities were enough to sustain my career as a professional. After graduation, I became a personal trainer and began to understand the importance of regular gym sessions, but it was still hard to motivate.

Training with Rob has completely changed my outlook. I've realized that lifting weight is about better functional and athletic movements, not bulking up. I feel more confident about my body now than I have in all my years of skiing, and I'm focusing on achieving new personal bests in my training in order to improve my competition performance.

Fix Your Diet听

Pro athletes need to take in a lot of calories, but eating crap will ultimately harm you. Our suggestion: Six days a week, eat all the meat, veggies, fruit and nuts you want鈥攏o sugar, wheat, pasta, potatoes, rice or alcohol. One day a week, cheat like a mother. Supplement with whey protein shakes, fish oil, and a daily multi-vitamin. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, pro skier

MA TRAINING: Intern coach-in-training

SUCCESS STORY: 2009 U.S.听freeskiing听champion

As someone with celiac disease, I was already aware of the importance of careful food choice, yet as an athlete constantly burning through fuel, I was unsure of how to consume enough calories. Starchy vegetables have turned into one of my favorite staples, with sweet potatoes taking the lead. They are versatile and delicious; you can make them into a pie, fries, or even spaghetti. Here, one of my favorite recipes for the root.

SWEET POTATO WAFFLES:
Recipe makes 6 waffles

2 large sweet potatoes
4 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice

Boil or steam the sweet potatoes, then use an immersion blender/food processor to blend into a smooth puree. You can also complete this step with a good, old-fashioned potato masher and some strong arms. Mix puree, eggs, and all wet ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Liberally apply coconut oil or butter to the waffle iron and bake on a medium heat setting.

Hammer Hip and Leg Strength

In the mountains, everything begins with the legs. My pro athletes already have the endurance for long days in the mountains; what they lack is the raw strength to keep them injury-free. We work to build hip and leg strength without significant weight gain by using high loads and low volume. Our favorite all-around hip and leg exercises are classic听听and loaded walking lunges. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, mountain guide and听alpinist

MA听TRAINING: 4 years

SUCCESS STORY:听First ascents in Alaska, New Hampshire, Patagonia, Nepal, Newfoundland, and Arizona.

As a mountain guide, I thought I had strong hips and legs, but Rob's workouts hammer the lower body even more than climbing the Grand Teton in a day. I used to be plagued with lower back spasms, due to overdeveloped muscles from a life spent rock and mountain climbing. MA's routines target poorly balanced muscles I barely use, which has drastically reduced the strain on my lower back. That equals less pain and more gain for me in the mountains.

Train Your Core

A strong core helps protect vulnerable limbs. We train the midsection daily, with extra emphasis on lower back strength and endurance. My go-to core exercise is the sandbag get-up: Start with a 40- to 80-pound sandbag on your shoulder.Lay down onto your back, with the sandbag. Get up anyway you want. As the time or reps progress, switch shoulders as often as you like, but keep the final number of reps on each side the same.听鈥敯浯遣钩Τ筇С蟛钩鼙�

ATHLETE:听Matt听Annetts, professional听snowboarder

MA TRAINING:听2 years

SUCCESS STORY:听Verbier听Extreme听Freeride听competitor; numerous podiums in the听.

Until two years ago, I had never set foot in a gym. Now after feeling the results from a commitment to training at MA, I look forward to the painful sessions. It is amazing how much stronger I felt on my snowboard after just a couple months of working out.听

The programs Rob has us doing vary from week to week, but everyday there is a focus on strengthening the core. For me, this is the most important area to train. My balance has improved, I feel much stronger landing airs, and when mistakes do happen, my body can take much bigger hits without injuries. All of that has the effect of prolonging my career as a听snowboarder.

Train Your Brain

Mental fitness is just like physical fitness. Athletes lose their mental edge if they don't train their minds. We use intense work capacity efforts, coaching and gym competition to prepare our students for the mental challenges of competition and the dangers of the mountains. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, expedition kayaker

MA TRAINING:听2 years

SUCCESS STORY:听First descents all over the globe; showcased in eight kayak films,听The Wall Street Journal, and numerous paddling publications.

Whether you're running a huge waterfall or portaging 90 pounds of gear over mountainous terrain, kayaking is a mind game. You have to be able to focus in order to succeed. Good mental fitness is essential if you want to come home safely.

Living in Jackson, Wyoming, I'm not able to kayak year-round. Before MA, I used to spend the first half of the season just playing catch-up. My skills were there, but I was not physically or mentally prepared to tackle a hard Class V whitewater expedition. Now, come spring, I have the strength to hit some of the hardest rivers in the world with confidence.

Train For Your Sport

The closer you get to the season, the more sport-specific your training needs to be. Skiers need eccentric leg strength. Climbers need finger and forearm strength. Focus on general fitness early in the offseason to build base strength and durability, but zero in on your sport in the six to eight weeks leading up to the season. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, mountain guide

MA TRAINING:听4.5 years

SUCCESS STORY:听Guide for听Exum听Mountain Guides; guide for听Exum, Chicks With Picks, and Chicks Rock; movie听stuntwoman. Has made ascents of big walls in Yosemite and Zion National Parks and across Europe.

Traditional wisdom in the climbing community is that more time climbing equals better climbing. But while there's no shortcut to building technique and good judgment, this is an inefficient way to improve. As a parent, full-time teacher, guide, and grad student, I have very limited time.

MA's sport-specific training cycles build stamina, endurance, and power, and therefore confidence. While time-effective, it's hard training, and has helped me lower my injury rate down to zero. It's sometimes hard to appreciate this in the moment, but outside, reaching for another improbable hold on steep rock, I consistently feel grateful for the programming.

Periodize and Program

Don't waste time with random workouts. Setting goals, planning, programming, measuring your gains, and keeping objectives in view will speed up your progress. Working out without a plan will lead to fitness plateaus, holes, and staleness. Pros need more than that. 鈥�颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒

ATHLETE:听, professional skier

MA TRAINING:听2 years

SUCCESS STORY:听Two-time U.S. extreme听freeskiing听champion; appeared in Teton Gravity Research segments 鈥淥ne for the Road鈥� and “Dream Factory.”

When people see Teton Gravity Research鈥檚 films each fall, it鈥檚 easy to think that every day is bluebird, deep, and stable. In reality, we might only get a handful of good days to film each season, and a lot of time they鈥檙e sequential. Whether it鈥檚 bouncing back from a crash the first morning or the first day or going an extra lap on the last day, MA has provided me with the durability and endurance to squeeze a little extra out of myself in the good windows.

I think of each day as brick that you鈥檙e given. You can either throw it aside and make a pile (working out randomly) or carefully place it and make a foundation (training strategically). Both methods are going to give you a platform from which to start your season, but one鈥檚 going to be far more stable.

Cultivate Healthy Habits听

A hard training session followed by six beers at the bar is stupid. Serious professional athletes don't drink excessively, don't smoke, and don鈥檛 chew. They wear their seat belts, don't text while driving, take vitamins and supplements, and go to bed early. They are as professional and thoughtful about their personal habits as they are about their sport and fitness.听鈥敯浯遣钩Τ筇С蟛钩鼙�

ATHLETE:听Jessica Baker, professional skier and mountain guide

MA TRAINING:听4 years

Success Story:听North American & World Tour big mountain听freeskiing听champion; founder and owner of听; Alaska听heli-ski听guide;听Exum听mountain guide; Jackson Hole alpine guide;听PSIA听Intermountain Demo Team member.

My specialty has always been alpine skiing, but I came to Rob to get strong for climbing. When I started at MA, I was in my second year working for听Exum听Mountain Guides, and I knew I needed to be strong to guide in the mountains day in and day out without getting injured or tired. Rob put me on a relentless cycle of strength, work capacity, and stamina climbing workouts. By week six, I started feeling the results. I was able to hold onto small edges with ease, and relax on moves that used to pump me out immediately.

Real athletes can鈥檛 party all night and still perform well in the morning, and in the mountains, where small missteps can have dire consequences, an off day is not on option. Being fit and healthy is just part of my job: I often work all day guiding in the mountains, and then head to MA for training later the same day.

Practice, Practice, Practice听

Larry Bird made thousands of jump shots in empty gyms. Tiger Woods sank thousands of putts on empty greens. Mountain athletes need to practice too. Is your ski turn to the left in the steep stuff a little shaky? Practice it. Is your crack climbing suspect? Practice it. Practice your strengths, and practice your weaknesses even more.听听鈥敯浯遣钩Τ筇С蟛钩鼙�

ATHLETE:听, professional climber and mountain guide

MA TRAINING:听4 years

SUCCESS STORY:听Exum听mountain guide; mountaineering ascents and ski descents in听Tetons听and Wind River range, Canadian Rockies, Mexico, Patagonia, and Nepal.

I started climbing when I was 14 years old. This took me away from team sports, and I never experienced being coached or training in the gym. When I came to MA, I really lacked strength and power in my climbing. 颁辞补肠丑听厂丑补耻濒听created a program for me that combined repetitive training with Olympic lifting.

The side effect of training hard at MA is that my life and career just keep getting better. I strongly believe that this kind of curriculum should be a mandatory part of training for professional mountain guides.

The post The Top 10 Fitness Tips for Mountain Athletes appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

The Top 10 Tips for Beginning Ski Mountaineers

On November 8^th of 2011, I departed from Argentina鈥檚 southernmost town, Ushuaia, on the 320-foot-long Clipper 国产吃瓜黑料r.听 Spring had arrived in the southern hemisphere, and I was joining 21 other ski guides for an expedition that would include 100 clients. We sailed across the infamous Drake Passage on the way to a two-week-long journey to explore and ski Antarctica.

Seth Wescott

Olympic snowboard gold medalist Seth Wescott looks back

As guides to the globe鈥檚 toughest terrain, the like-minded crew had an unspoken understanding: skiing in Antarctica is serious business. Leader Doug Stoup held twice-daily meetings about conditions, potential routes, and established safety protocols for each location. The prep and a 1-to-4 guide to client ratio allowed us to access remote couloirs, summit big peaks, and drop onto steep faces with many clients. The constant prep and instruction helped reinforce a number of ski mountaineering rules. I thought it would be nice to share. Here are ten tips for beginners, as told to me by ten of the planet鈥檚 best guides, with some inspiring photos from Jim Harris to boot.

Take a Ski Mountaineering Class

Tip from Doug Stoup

Take a course. There are great ski mountaineering classes offered throughout the West. In Colorado, take a class with Crested Butte Mountain guides. In Tahoe, California, sign up with Alpine Skills International. In Wyoming, head into the Tetons with . When looking for courses, accreditation is important; I would look for instructors who are UIAGM or AMGA certified.

Here are four of my favorite schools:
, Truckee, California
, Crested Butte, Colorado
, Jackson, Wyoming
, Seattle, Washington

Doug Stoup has guided in the Arctic and Antarctic for more than a decade. He completed the first snowboard descent of Antarctica's highest peak, The Vinson Massif, as well as numerous first descents in the Arctic region of Svalbard, Norway. His company, Ice Axe Expeditions, specializes in North Pole and South Pole ski adventures.

Website:听

Find the Right Gear

Tip from Walter Laserer

You need to have the best equipment you can find on the market and you also have to know how to use it. Good mountaineering schools have the newest and best equipment for rental. It makes sense to visit your first lessons with rental equipment. Your guide can tell you what to buy. Essential gear includes the appropriate skis, touring capable boots as well as touring bindings for the type of backcountry skiing you will be doing (i.e. or or ), adjustable ski poles, a shovel, a probe, a transceiver, a headlamp, and a small repair and medical kit.听Once you鈥檝e bought your ski mountaineering equipment, you鈥檒l use the gear for years.

Editor鈥檚 Note: Check out 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 round-up of backcountry ski gear
Alpine Touring Gear from The Gear Junkie
Backcountry Ski Gear from The Gear Guy
Avalanche Safety Gear from The Gear Guy
View all ski gear from The Buyer's Guide

Walter Laserer is co-founder and owner of . After more than 20 years of operation, it is one of the most respected mountaineering schools in central Europe with 10,000 clients.听Beside alpine education, is also focused on guiding the “Seven Summits.” Laserer is one of the world鈥檚 most experienced guides and has led more than 60 expeditions from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. As an Austrian, Walter has also done a lot of famous steep skiing including the west face of the Eigher and the northwest face of the Aiguille du Midi.

Website:

Beef Up Your Avalanche Skills

Tip from Kristoffer Erickson

Those that decide to pursue objectives in ski mountaineering, or Glisse Alpinism, are sure to find great rewards. Before getting involved in the sport, be sure to dial in your backcountry avalanche skills. You are more than likely entering a realm where avalanche forecasting doesn't exist and you will be playing in terrain where avalanches occur. Make sure to carefully assess the difficulties and hazards. Determine what technical skills will be needed to safely execute your chosen goal. Lastly, if you don't have much of a climbing or mountaineering background, and are unfamiliar with crevasse rescue techniques, you should hire an experienced guide that can teach you the proper movement, decision-making, and rope skills necessary to enjoy a lifetime of ski mountaineering.

Find an avalanche class that caters to your skill level on one of these sites:

A true pioneer within the sport of ski mountaineering, Kris Erickson has made expeditions around the globe for the last 15 years in search of glisse alpinism. He has made first descents on every continent except Australia.听He was the first American male to ski off the summit of an 8000m peak with his descent of Cho Oyu (8201m) in 2002, and has made over a dozen ski descents off of summits higher than 6000m.

Website:听

Build Up Your Endurance

Tip from Kent McBride

Focus on your endurance. Since you're trying something new鈥攕kinning or climbing with crampons and an ice axe鈥攜ou'll need to be in great shape to handle exercise at high altitude.听Here鈥檚 a simple training plan to execute in the offseason that will prepare you for ski adventures in the backcountry. Find a hill that offers听1,000 to 3,000 vertical feet of climb at an angle of at least 35 degrees.听Run up and shuffle down for 45 minutes to an hour at a time, taking breaks as needed. You may only be able to do one run in the beginning. You will be able to do more laps as you gain fitness.听Going uphill, move at a fast, steady pace to get your heart rate up.听Coming downhill, practice the “sherpa shuffle” with quick, small efficient steps to glide down the terrain as smoothly as possible.听If you're doing it right, you'll hurt after the first ten minutes going up. As you get in shape, find steeper and higher hills. Integrate this into your endurance training two to three times per week.

Kent McBride is a UIAGM/IFMGA certified mountain guide who has extensive guiding and instructing experience in all the realms of skiing and听climbing.听In 2005, he climbed to the Central Summit of Shishapangma (8000 meters) in without bottled oxygen and then completed the first ski descent of the Untsch couloir.

Website:

Practice in the Spring

Tip from Chris Davenport

Skiing is a sport of experiences; the more you have the smarter you will be when it comes to making good decisions. And ski mountaineering is all about decision-making. Whether it's assessing the snowpack, understanding the impacts of the weather, group dynamics, or route selections, there are always choices to be made, and many of them may save your life. So if you are looking to get more into the mountaineering side of the sport, you'll need experience. Get out there when the snowpack is safe, during the spring corn cycle, and choose straightforward objectives. If you can hook up with more experienced partners, attempt to learn all you can from them by asking questions and observing. Be a sponge and soak up information every day you are on the hill. Experience develops intuition, and intuition leads you to good, safe skiing.

Chris Davenport, of Aspen, Colorado, is widely regarded as one of the most successful and progressive big-mountain skiers of his generation. A two-time World Champion skier, Chris is the author of two books, a ski-film star and producer, a guide, a ski camp owner, a sports announcer, and an acclaimed speaker. 听In the spring of 2011, Chris successfully guided a climb of Mt. Everest and made a rare ski descent of the Lhotse Face of Everest along the way.

Website:听

Learn to Climb Technical Terrain

Tip from Jorge Kozjuli

If you are getting into ski mountaineering, I recommend getting some alpine, rock and ice climbing experience in order to get used to exposed ridges and steep terrain. Some knowledge and comfort with ice climbing will make a big difference, building a feeling and love for your tools like crampons and an ice axe.

Check out:
Climbing areas like the
Climbing festivals like the
Or try a local guide company like

Jorge Kozulj is one of the few UIAGM-IFMGA guides settled in Patagonia, Argentina who has dedicated his career to ski mountaineering. He has been leading trips听since 1999, exploring remote locations along the Andes looking for steeps, all the way from Northern Patagonia to Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre.听

Website:

Make the Uphills Easy

Tip from Bela Vadasz

Touring with skins can feel a bit awkward at first. But with a few hundred strides and focus on some technique tips, you can make the uphill feel easy.听 Practice this skill set often to be efficient and to save energy in your excursions.

Start with good posture:
Practice a nice upright body position, with your back plumb to the slope. Stay tall and relaxed, and keep your hips centered over your feet. Avoid excess bending at the waist and cantilevering with each step.

Make short, diagonal strides:
Move your opposite arm and leg forward. Stay centered and balanced over the middle of your skis. Use your foot, knee, whole leg and hip to move your ski forward. Try to stride without rotating your upper body. Keep your poles and arms in two imaginary slots that remain parallel to your skis.

Pole Grip:
Across a slope, you can choke up on your uphill pole grip. Some touring poles even have an extra traction to give you a better grip. It's ok to grip over the top of the handle of your downhill pole. It gives a little extra power in your skiing grip and stride.

Keep track angles low:
Many put their heel lifters high and attack the slope straight up. Poor form! Lower track angles (about 12掳-18掳 max) tacking up the slope allows for a biomechanically efficient stride that can be well paced, with a cadence you can keep up all day long without tiring.

Know when to roll your knees and ankles out to flatten your skis for maximum grip with your skins and know when to edge your skis to get the bite and hold across certain slopes that you need.

Bela Vadasz has been skiing the Sierra Backcountry for over 50 years. He was one of the first American Guides to receive his IFMGA international license. He began coordinating the AMGA Ski Mountaineering Guide Training program and still helps as co-coordinator of their ski program. Bela remains passionate about his love for Ski Mountaineering and inflicting the spirit to others as well.

Website:听

Stash Your Axe

Tip From Doug Workman

You want to go further. You want to become a ski mountaineer. Making the leap from powder slopes to peaks can feel like a big jump. But a few simple skills can go a long way.

Here is one example: You will need to learn to use a mountaineering axe from a qualified instructor, but you can learn how to stash it for quick access. The Axe Stash is a slick guide trick to put your axe away where it can quickly be retrieved if you feel insecure while climbing or descending.

Put your hood on to get it out of the way. Lean your head forward slightly.

Gently stab the shaft of your axe between your back and your pack. The pick of the axe should rest on the top of one shoulder strap. The shaft should be at a 45-degree angle across your pack. If the axe is longer, the end of the shaft will protrude a bit out the opposite side of the pack that your pick is facing. Voila! Your axe can quickly be drawn from its鈥� pseudo-scabbard during your next transition from a rocky scramble to a steep couloir. Just don鈥檛 forget that it is there when you take your pack off, as the axe may tumble down the slope making you look more like a gaper than a guide.

Doug Workman is a heli-ski and ski mountaineering guide based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Valdez, Alaska.

Website:

Take Your Time

Tip from Andrew McLean

Approach the backcountry with respect and humility, or it will provide it for you. Skiing skills are just the basic requirements for ski mountaineering. Learning the nuances of avalanche avoidance, terrain assessment, safety, rope work, and all of the other factors involved with the sport is a lifelong endeavor.听 Don鈥檛 expect to become an expert in one season.

Avoid skiing all out in the backcountry and keep a bit in reserve.听 You never know when you are going to hit an icy patch or trigger an avalanche and need some extra oomph to get out of it.

Andrew McLean has completed first descents on all seven continents and has skied all three of the Alaskan Family of peaks鈥�Denali, Hunter, and Foraker.听 He lives in Park City with his trophy wife and two jacked-up daughters.

Website:听

Tell Someone When You鈥檙e Out

Tip from Kevin Quinn

I encourage everyone to get fired up and venture into the mountains. Make certain to go with someone who is a good partner, meaning they have experience and the know how to react in event you need to count on them. And, always be sure to let someone know where you鈥檙e going.

Referred to as “Quinner” by those who know him best, Kevin is the owner and founder of Points North Heli-国产吃瓜黑料s in Cordova, Alaska. The company has been featured in the last ten Warren Miller films. When Kevin is not running his heli-ski operation, he can be found in Squaw Valley, California where he is an ambassador and member of the free-ride team, or somewhere floating a remote river chasing huge fish, flying his airplane, jumping out of airplanes, pedaling his mountain bike, or even exploring Antarctica.

Website:听

The post 10 Tips for Ski Mountaineers appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.