adaptive airtime

Adaptive Equipment Does Not Need to Be Used Just for Adaptive Lessons

By Ed Meltzer PSIA-E Adaptive Examiner

Eastern Adaptive Coordinator

Recently, Beth Fox, Adaptive chair for Rocky Mountain region and coordinator for clinicians at the Adaptive National Academy, tasked me with creating content for stand-up hand-held rigger clinics. The working title for this year’s clinics was “Fundamental Relationships: Outriggers,” and we held them at the Eastern region’s Snowsports Management Seminar and ProJam. They were attended by both Adaptive and Alpine participants. In the Adaptive community, we think about adding equipment to “Adapt” a lesson for athletes with disabilities. In these rigger clinics, we explore adding appropriate adaptive equipment for the purpose of improving skiing skills for our Alpine instructors and general population.

Telemark Education Team

(Front Row Left to Right): Kathy Brennan (Eastern CEO), Greg Paquin, Keith Rodney, Kurt Byrnes, Karen Dalury, Mickey Stone, Adele Wellman

In my preparation and execution of the stand-up rigger clinics, I discovered that the participants felt significant changes to their movement pattern when using riggers to ski. If used correctly, stand up riggers are the primary force to initiate a turn at transition. Having the rigger move before the skis steer causes friction on the snow and pulls our flat skis into the turn. Exercising patience at this point in the turn results in rounder shaped turns and virtually eliminates the tendency to rush the shaping phase often causing Z shaped turns instead of the desired C shape. The rigger movement comes from extending the leading (inside) rigger while simultaneously rotating the wrist in the direction of the turn. The outside rigger also moves forward but remains relatively flat to the snow surface. After returning the riggers and body to a neutral position, the new inside rigger is extended and rotated causing the same snow-torigger ski friction that pulls our skis into the new turn. At my most recent clinic, we had some serious Z-turners. This habit stopped as we played around with rigger movements. We ended the session with a final run using our poles. The improved turn shape stayed with the group!

(Back Row to Right): John Doan, Jim Shaw (National Team guest), Mark Lacek, Shannon Belt, Matt Charles, Jay Nation, Chris Roundy, Bruce Hennessey, Don Sensenig, Jim Tasse, Dave Capron, Shawn Riggle

Missing: Mike Beagan, Libby Doan, Ali Pirnar

If you want to take this a step further, drop one of your skis and try “Three tracking”. With the use of riggers, one-ski skiing is not as daunting a task due to the stability of the rigger platform.

As a side note, for adaptive instructors teaching sit-ski lessons, familiarity with rigger movements is key to a successful lesson and teaching with riggers (if you have instructors who can assist with lifting) is an effective way to create visuals for your sit-ski students.

If your resort has an adaptive ski school, see what they have for stand-up rigger inventory and ask them to show you the movements and equipment set up. It is yet another way to get to know each other and further the PSIA-AASI goal of “One Team!” <<

(Left

Mickey Stone, photographer Not in photo: Dale Rodgers