Snowsaurus - Skiing and Snowboarding Terms and Phrases
Photo: Bohringer Friedrich
Are you new to the piste and wondering what the hell everyone is on about when
they're talking about snow ploughs, parallel and carving ? Then this is the place of you.
All the terms explained in English. Simple English...
If you have any other good ones, email them in. The more unusual, the better...
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Clothing, particularly outerwear. The phrase is commonly used in the skiing industry, especially
over in the States.
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An adavanced ski turn technique, that allows you to turn without any major loss of speed.
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Not the material that your dads flares were made of in the 70's, but the appearance of the pistes after they've been
groomed
by the
piste-bashers
into lovely parallel lines. A great feeling to be the first to ski over them !
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The Crazy Canucks was the nickname given to group of Canadian ski racers who burst onto the world scene in the
1970's and 80's and became famous for their fast, risky and often reckless style of skiing. The members of the group
were Dave Irwin, Dave Murray, Steve Podborski and Ken Read. Their risky style produced not only plenty of dramatic
falls but also plenty of success - the group earning more than 100 top 10 World Cup finishes between 1978 and 1984.
Journalist Serge Lange lays claim to coining the phrase after watching Dave Irwin fall in a race, and the nickname stuck with the
rest of the Canadian skiers after that.
The Crazy Canucks are amongst the best loved sportsmen in Canada and a film based on them was made in 2004.
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No, we're not talking about what you might need after a bumper plate of rosti, but the term given to a
big fall of snow. As in a fresh dump, or a decent-sized dump. Good dump, huge dump
See also
a good dump,
a huge dump
and
a fresh dump
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The most direct route down a piste or slope.
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The Federation Internationale de Ski (in english the International Ski Federation) is the world's governing body
for skiing and ski-related wintersports and is based in Oberhofen-am-Thunersee in Switzerland.
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A discipline of snowboarding where the boarder uses man-made terrain and features such as
half-pipes, rails and jumps to perform aerial tricks.
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The term given to a form of snowboarding where there are no restrictions or rules but the focus is on
dealing with whatever natural terrain the mountain throws at you.
Don't get this confused with
freestyle snowboarding which is more about man-made terrain such as
half-pipes, rails and jumps.
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Sticky, sloppy, snow that you get in warmer weather. Often ungroomed and hard to ski in.
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The next stage in skiing after you've mastered the
snow plough. As the name suggests, the idea is for the ski's to point
in the same direction.
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Large caterpillar-tracked snow vehicle that
groom
the snow on the slopes into condition so that we can all ski and snowboard on them.
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Getting the snow on the pistes into a nice fresh condition, such as the
corduroy effect. Usually done by a
piste-basher.
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Being stood on the slopes hearing cries of "Pizza! Pizza!" you could be excused for wondering
what on earth is going on. Whilst it is possible that a hungry thief has made off from a mountain
restaurant without paying for his midday snack, it's more than likely to be some poor ski
instructor screaming instructions at a group of 5 year olds, as it's the term used on youngsters
to describe the
snow plough.
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To ski straight down the fall-line of the slope, skis parallel, therefore
achieving high speeds.
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Someone who spends the entire ski season in a mountain resort, usually getting work
in a chalet, in a bar, or as an instructor. Hard work, but worth it for all those days out on
the white stuff.
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Usually the first thing a skier is taught on the slopes, the snow-plough is a basic technique
that allows you to slow down or turn. Basically, the front point of the skis are brought
together and then ends are pushed wide apart.
See also
Pizza.
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The description of snow conditions during the warmer Spring months. The freeze-thaw process from night to day
results in softer snow around noon. By late afternoon, if the sun's been on it all day, the snow can be
really wet. It then freezes overnight and the process starts again.
Also known as
Corn Snow.
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A style of skiing created in Norway back in the 1800's. You'll know it if you ever see any skier doing
it as the inside ski is pulled along with a bent knee and a raised heel. Therefore the equipment is
totally different as only the toe is connected to the ski (as in cross-country skiing).
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A common disease that can effect skiers, boarders or basically anyone who has spent time in the mountains.
It's not just confined to the winter months of December to March but can strike badly during the Autumn as the afflicted
desperately search the live cameras on the web for signs of fresh dumps of snow. You don't just get addicted to
web cameras of places you've recently visited either, as you end up trawling for every resort you've ever been to
or basically everyone you've ever seen in a ski brochure, advert or an episode of Ski Sunday.
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The White Circus is the nickname that's been given to the
FIS World Cup tour as it's skiers and accompanying coaches, technicians,
media and fans sweep around the world from ski resort to ski resort as the race calendar gets ticked off.
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You'll often read this term when reading about winter sports clothing - it's the name given to the way the material
transfers moisture away from the skin and through the clothing.
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Term often used by ski-racing commentators to describe the skier's mid-air arm movements (going round and around,
like ..err winding down a window!) just after hitting a jump as they desperately try to retain their balance.
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: snow ski terminology
: skiing phrases, snow and snowboarding phrases
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