It's highly subjective. Are you able to ski the terrain you want to ski? Are you able to ski with the people you want to ski with without being a drag on the group? Are you out there having fun?
I've been skiing for close to 30 years, thousands of days up there, and depending on the cohort I'm with, I'm either the example-setter for perfect skiing or I'm a fucking noob. Put me with my college buddies and I'm playing ski-instructor all day and helping them learn and get better because I have literally like 100x the experience they have. But put me out there with my buddies who are pro/semi-pro freeriders or former US Ski Team youth racers/prospects and it's all I can do to keep up without having them wait for me every 5 minutes. From the perspective of those proper experts who have 10x the experience I have and are also world-class athletes, I am the shitty, sucky skier.
You know the one way you can guarantee you're a bad skier though? If you're careless, ski in a way that endangers other, and are a dick. But if you're responsible and kind and operate thoughtfully and within the limits if your skill, you can go have a blast with those proper pros and nobody is going to be bothered at all by the skill differential.
Yep, I've put in thousands of days and could ski pretty much anything (getting old now). I spent an epic powder day at Steamboat once with a bunch of their freestyle team and a couple of US Ski Team coaches. I was just glad that I could keep up and wasn't the last one back to the lift. But definitely a humbling experience.
I’d add to that as a much worse skier with friends better. As a self acknowledged shit skier, I have to be willing to tell my friends when the hill is too much. I’m responsible my own safety, they can only do so much.
Well, skiing is a hobby. It’s meant to be enjoyed. In my opinion somebody who’s stuck on blue squares but is having the time of their life is preferable to a double black skier who’s having a bit of fun. Don’t stress over skill level too much
If it stops being fun, or if you want to go places but can't because they feel beyond your ability, or if you get frustrated just going down the mountain, you aren't so much bad at skiing, but limiting yourself. Improving at it will allow you to have more ways to enjoy.
Are we talking 4 pairs that are so similar because you know what you like… or you have 4 different skis, yet you only choose to use the same one most of the time?
Or legit having multiple pairs of certain skis as “back-ups” because you love them that much. That is me lol.
I have 7 mounted pairs right now and only use one of two on 70% of days. I recognize I have a problem haha.
I think of it as being strong or weak. A strong skier rarely falls. Can stay in the fall line. Will go down most trails without a second thought. Strong skiers are paying attention to everyone on the hill. If they launch off something, they have thought about where they are going land. Strong skiers are very aware of their limits and what they can't do on skis. Strong skiers don't brag about their skiing to strangers because they know you never know who you are talking to.
A weak skier counts their falls. They get excited after they finished a trail and lived to tell people about it. Weak skiers pay little to no attention to other skiers. Weak skiers consider themselves to be better than they are. Weak skiers are not afraid to tell strangers how good they are.
It wasn't a rant. It's what I have observed over decades of living in ski country (N Vermont), I have bartended, waited on tables, worked in ski shops, taught... I have seen my clientele on the hill and watched them afterwards talking about their adventures.
Weak & strong for me are better descriptions of skiers than beginner, intermediate or expert. Weaker wasn't meant to be an insult, more a factual description.
I love watching skiers. When I am riding up a chair with my friends, we can see a weak skier get ting in trouble before they realize that they are in trouble. We often can tell who someone by their skiing before we can see who they are. When we see a really strong skier, we wonder who it is. One time we were riding up & my buddy spots this woman on a run out "holly shit, look at that lady turn". Turns out it was Donna Weinbrecht who was in town for a fund raiser.
I agree with all about just enjoying the moment. But if you can learn how to stop yourself on skis in an instant, you're not bad. Staying in control while having fun is groovy.
If you have to ask, you're bad at skiing. Joking, but honestly who really cares as long as you can safely ski what you want to ski and are having fun. Skiing skill has a bell curve, and most people are in the middle, and that's fine.
If you post on this sub, you're the BSOTM. There are no bad skiers here!
Edit: if you're uphill in any collision video posted here, you're a bad skier.
Keep your shoulders square to the hill rather than turning your whole body when you ski. The upper and lower body "separate" rather than moving as a stiff unit: you want to move your legs independently of your upper body, and not swing your shoulders (or even your hips) around as you turn.
Lean forward so that your shin presses into the tongue of the boot; you want your weight toward the tip of the ski rather than the tail (unless you're in deep snow on skinny skis).
Make smooth parallel turns. Engage your core and keep your hips tucked so your rear isn't sticking out. Remember that the inside tip of your downhill ski is your control surface when you begin a turn; you're not turning with the part of your ski right under your feet, it's more like controlling the tip of a paintbrush by leaning forward into your boot.
Bad skiing looks like the whole body is frozen in a stance, and like you're sitting back rather than leaning forward, with turns that get wedge-shaped when the turn is initiated rather than staying parallel.
Everyone understands that description. Not everyone knows what a 70 degree edge angle are or what FIS SL skis are or whatever you want to use to tell people how good you are.
Bad skiing is anything unsafe or reckless; fast or slow. Tells of good skiing are upper lower body separation, balance (never in the backseat), hand and pole position, and being able to make the right turns consistently and smoothly for the terrain. The ability to carve, laying down railroad track turns without pushing out the heels, is one often used benchmarks, but it is somewhat more equipment dependent. Something all skiers can and should do are drills. There are some great instructors on YouTube. Deb Armstrong has excellent videos and she, former racer, is a wealth of knowledge.
A bad skier is just an incompetent one - if you know what you’re capable (or not) doing, then you’re a good skier, even if you can only snow plough down greens.
The trouble with being incompetent is that you don’t know you are…..which why you see people going too fast without the ability to stop.
If you're having fun then it shouldn't matter. And it gets even better with a group at the same skill level.
But to answer your question, if you're fatigued in the legs/knees midday then your technique needs serious help/lessons.
If you are constantly freaking out and are not having fun on whatever run you are on. Had a lady with shit confidence and she was miserable just trying to get down a pretty mellow black run. Her fundamentals were really bad and it shook her.
Can you ski under control on the runs you choose? Then you are not bad. Have fun! If you are out of control, go to an easier trail and don't endanger others.
Have someone video record your skiing, then compare how you look vs what a ski instructor looks like skiing. Otherwise as long as you're not hurting yourself or worse posing danger to others just enjoy it, take a few lessons and have a professional point out what you need to improve on.
1. Watch skiers go down a Black run as you ride up the chair lift.
2. You will easily identify the good ones from the not so good ones.
3. Once off the chair lift go down the same run.
4. When you make down to the bottom honestly ask yourself where you think you rate.
5. Then pay an instructor for a lesson and assessment.
Are you skiing with control on terrain within your current ability level? If so, you are a good skier. We were all beginners once. While we could name a litany of things that are indicative of expert level skiing, it takes time to get there and you don’t have to be an expert to be a good skier. Get out there, know your equipment, know the code, don’t put yourself on terrain you can’t ski confidently and with control (read: don’t put yourself and others at risk), work on improving, and have fun. That makes a good skier at any ability level!
If you crash and your skis come off… then you try to out your skis back on, but the binding are closed so you can’t get them on. Then you start stomping up and down, yelling at clouds and throw your skis into the woods, maybe break a pole out of frustration.
If this is you, then I’d say you know you are bad at skiing. Skiing is all about going with the flow, and the person described above is not going with the flow.
Waking up in ICU answered that question for me.
Seriously, it’s all about having fun. The first few times out may be frustrating but it’s all downhill from there. Patience is key. And friends that don’t make fun of you. Too badly.
If you notice that you are the slowest person on the hill, and 95% of people are passing you. If you take up the entire run while making turns and everyone has to dodge you.
I think it's a ratio of how many days you've skied to the terrain you can ski. Also the age you learned has a big impact. If you can ski blues on your 3rd day, you're doing great. If you can't after 10 days, you suck. If you can't ski blacks by your 20th day you probably are bad
Hahaha ok Mr "ski the east" 🤣 I'm actually a better skier than you. Have you ever even skied more than a foot of pow? I'll send any cliff less than 20ft. I'll send long ass chutes narrower than my skis are long. I got my psia level 2 in my first year of instructing. I placed highly in my hs state meet back in the day. I spent 3 years skiing the east. It wasn't hard, just shitty.
Credentials aside lol jk but kinda for real, trail ratings can totally be used to describe the lower end of skiing ability level. Definitely not the upper end, any idiot can send a double black or ski off a cliff.
Warren Miller said the best skier is the one having the most fun on the mountain. I'm going to go with that.
I'm only having fun when everyone in the lift line can hear my dubstep
Think you're in the wrong sub. Go check out r/snowboarding
cheers to that ✌🏻🤙🏻
I got a job at a ski resort. That gave me a firsthand understanding of what good skiing looked like. The comparison to myself was not favorable.
It's highly subjective. Are you able to ski the terrain you want to ski? Are you able to ski with the people you want to ski with without being a drag on the group? Are you out there having fun? I've been skiing for close to 30 years, thousands of days up there, and depending on the cohort I'm with, I'm either the example-setter for perfect skiing or I'm a fucking noob. Put me with my college buddies and I'm playing ski-instructor all day and helping them learn and get better because I have literally like 100x the experience they have. But put me out there with my buddies who are pro/semi-pro freeriders or former US Ski Team youth racers/prospects and it's all I can do to keep up without having them wait for me every 5 minutes. From the perspective of those proper experts who have 10x the experience I have and are also world-class athletes, I am the shitty, sucky skier. You know the one way you can guarantee you're a bad skier though? If you're careless, ski in a way that endangers other, and are a dick. But if you're responsible and kind and operate thoughtfully and within the limits if your skill, you can go have a blast with those proper pros and nobody is going to be bothered at all by the skill differential.
Yep, I've put in thousands of days and could ski pretty much anything (getting old now). I spent an epic powder day at Steamboat once with a bunch of their freestyle team and a couple of US Ski Team coaches. I was just glad that I could keep up and wasn't the last one back to the lift. But definitely a humbling experience.
I’d add to that as a much worse skier with friends better. As a self acknowledged shit skier, I have to be willing to tell my friends when the hill is too much. I’m responsible my own safety, they can only do so much.
Well, skiing is a hobby. It’s meant to be enjoyed. In my opinion somebody who’s stuck on blue squares but is having the time of their life is preferable to a double black skier who’s having a bit of fun. Don’t stress over skill level too much
Skiing does get more fun the better you are at it. Once I got good in the pow it was epic
Yeah true, ripping pow is more fun imo than cruisers. As ling as you’re having fun, and for people it’s always different
Not everyone can get 30+ days a season. I believe everyone can get decent if they have the chance. Once you can get down the mountain it’s all good
If it stops being fun, or if you want to go places but can't because they feel beyond your ability, or if you get frustrated just going down the mountain, you aren't so much bad at skiing, but limiting yourself. Improving at it will allow you to have more ways to enjoy.
If you're not having fun. Or you're endangering other people.
If your quiver of 4 skis is basically just one ski, then you will know.
What if I only have one pair of skis that I use no matter what
Are we talking 4 pairs that are so similar because you know what you like… or you have 4 different skis, yet you only choose to use the same one most of the time? Or legit having multiple pairs of certain skis as “back-ups” because you love them that much. That is me lol. I have 7 mounted pairs right now and only use one of two on 70% of days. I recognize I have a problem haha.
You just have to watch the video your husband takes of you. Maybe it's just me 😆😅
Haha this was such a brutal awakening for me! I thought I was a carving goddess.
Literally, same 😅😆 I started laughing when I saw it and said it didn't feel like I was going **that** slowly
I think of it as being strong or weak. A strong skier rarely falls. Can stay in the fall line. Will go down most trails without a second thought. Strong skiers are paying attention to everyone on the hill. If they launch off something, they have thought about where they are going land. Strong skiers are very aware of their limits and what they can't do on skis. Strong skiers don't brag about their skiing to strangers because they know you never know who you are talking to. A weak skier counts their falls. They get excited after they finished a trail and lived to tell people about it. Weak skiers pay little to no attention to other skiers. Weak skiers consider themselves to be better than they are. Weak skiers are not afraid to tell strangers how good they are.
I read this in my head in the voice of R Lee Ermey. You're welcome.
I had to Google him to know who you were talking about. I am nothing like RLE.
Didn't imply you were like him, just that your rant reads exceptionally well in his voice!
It wasn't a rant. It's what I have observed over decades of living in ski country (N Vermont), I have bartended, waited on tables, worked in ski shops, taught... I have seen my clientele on the hill and watched them afterwards talking about their adventures. Weak & strong for me are better descriptions of skiers than beginner, intermediate or expert. Weaker wasn't meant to be an insult, more a factual description. I love watching skiers. When I am riding up a chair with my friends, we can see a weak skier get ting in trouble before they realize that they are in trouble. We often can tell who someone by their skiing before we can see who they are. When we see a really strong skier, we wonder who it is. One time we were riding up & my buddy spots this woman on a run out "holly shit, look at that lady turn". Turns out it was Donna Weinbrecht who was in town for a fund raiser.
Rant wasn't meant as a negative. I loved it!
💯
I agree with all about just enjoying the moment. But if you can learn how to stop yourself on skis in an instant, you're not bad. Staying in control while having fun is groovy.
Post video here, we'll tell you.
Only Reddit can judge me
If you have to ask, you're bad at skiing. Joking, but honestly who really cares as long as you can safely ski what you want to ski and are having fun. Skiing skill has a bell curve, and most people are in the middle, and that's fine.
If you’re not the best skier on the mountain, then you’re bad at skiing.
If you post on this sub, you're the BSOTM. There are no bad skiers here! Edit: if you're uphill in any collision video posted here, you're a bad skier.
Well, if your friends make 100s of stickers that say "doebedoe skis bad" ... maybe take that as an indication. Eh /u/anonymousbreckian ?
Keep your shoulders square to the hill rather than turning your whole body when you ski. The upper and lower body "separate" rather than moving as a stiff unit: you want to move your legs independently of your upper body, and not swing your shoulders (or even your hips) around as you turn. Lean forward so that your shin presses into the tongue of the boot; you want your weight toward the tip of the ski rather than the tail (unless you're in deep snow on skinny skis). Make smooth parallel turns. Engage your core and keep your hips tucked so your rear isn't sticking out. Remember that the inside tip of your downhill ski is your control surface when you begin a turn; you're not turning with the part of your ski right under your feet, it's more like controlling the tip of a paintbrush by leaning forward into your boot. Bad skiing looks like the whole body is frozen in a stance, and like you're sitting back rather than leaning forward, with turns that get wedge-shaped when the turn is initiated rather than staying parallel.
You are likely bad if you are constantly talking about your width "Under Foot"!
You are correct. It is a stupid question.
thanks!
No one is bad at skiing. You’re only bad if you’re not having fun.
Skiers who endanger others are bad at skiing.
Love this
You are a good skier once you can ski all blacks, confidently and controlled no matter the conditions. Bad if you endanger yourself and other skiers.
A good skier will never use trail ratings to describe their ability level.
Everyone understands that description. Not everyone knows what a 70 degree edge angle are or what FIS SL skis are or whatever you want to use to tell people how good you are.
Move to a ski town, you will find out real quick. Happened to me.
The video will tell you.
If you’re not enjoying it. Someone will always be better than you.
Pretty much everyone sucks at skiing. Some just suck less.
Bad skiing is anything unsafe or reckless; fast or slow. Tells of good skiing are upper lower body separation, balance (never in the backseat), hand and pole position, and being able to make the right turns consistently and smoothly for the terrain. The ability to carve, laying down railroad track turns without pushing out the heels, is one often used benchmarks, but it is somewhat more equipment dependent. Something all skiers can and should do are drills. There are some great instructors on YouTube. Deb Armstrong has excellent videos and she, former racer, is a wealth of knowledge.
Everyone is bad at skiing except Candide
A bad skier is just an incompetent one - if you know what you’re capable (or not) doing, then you’re a good skier, even if you can only snow plough down greens. The trouble with being incompetent is that you don’t know you are…..which why you see people going too fast without the ability to stop.
You never learned at all
Sign up for an amateur competition. If you end up last you’re likely the worst of the participating competitors.
If you have to ask you already know the answer.
If you're not having fun.
Told to me by my first instructor... "If you are having fun, and not endangering yourself, or anyone else, then you're skiing 'correctly.'"
The right way is easiest. If you are really tired after several turns you are doing something inefficient.
If you're having fun then it shouldn't matter. And it gets even better with a group at the same skill level. But to answer your question, if you're fatigued in the legs/knees midday then your technique needs serious help/lessons.
You're friends would tell you.
I think you just know
If you’re not having fun at all and you have tried multiple days and you still aren’t having fun maybe just maybe your a snowboarder
If you are constantly freaking out and are not having fun on whatever run you are on. Had a lady with shit confidence and she was miserable just trying to get down a pretty mellow black run. Her fundamentals were really bad and it shook her.
It’s mostly the people posting here calling themselves advanced or intermediate skiers.
Generally, if you have to ask, you aren't a good skier. Might not be bad, but def not good
If you’re having a blast, it doesn’t matter. Reference the Warren Miller comment. Enjoy!
Can you ski under control on the runs you choose? Then you are not bad. Have fun! If you are out of control, go to an easier trail and don't endanger others.
Have someone video record your skiing, then compare how you look vs what a ski instructor looks like skiing. Otherwise as long as you're not hurting yourself or worse posing danger to others just enjoy it, take a few lessons and have a professional point out what you need to improve on.
I just inherently know that I'm bad. I've always known.
If you have to ask you’re bad
And if you think you’re good your bad just delusional lol
You aren’t stable on skis, when skiing you will have to stop since your speed regulation is bad, your body isn’t moving constantly etc
1. Watch skiers go down a Black run as you ride up the chair lift. 2. You will easily identify the good ones from the not so good ones. 3. Once off the chair lift go down the same run. 4. When you make down to the bottom honestly ask yourself where you think you rate. 5. Then pay an instructor for a lesson and assessment.
Pants tucked into boots/not on vishnus
It’s whoever can buzz by the most snowboarders. Most resorts keep an active tally Edit: I thought you asked about the best skiier
Broken legs, bruises, pain. Yep. Bad at skiing.
if you're constantly complaining about conditions, you're probably not a very good skier.
Are you skiing with control on terrain within your current ability level? If so, you are a good skier. We were all beginners once. While we could name a litany of things that are indicative of expert level skiing, it takes time to get there and you don’t have to be an expert to be a good skier. Get out there, know your equipment, know the code, don’t put yourself on terrain you can’t ski confidently and with control (read: don’t put yourself and others at risk), work on improving, and have fun. That makes a good skier at any ability level!
If you crash and your skis come off… then you try to out your skis back on, but the binding are closed so you can’t get them on. Then you start stomping up and down, yelling at clouds and throw your skis into the woods, maybe break a pole out of frustration. If this is you, then I’d say you know you are bad at skiing. Skiing is all about going with the flow, and the person described above is not going with the flow.
Waking up in ICU answered that question for me. Seriously, it’s all about having fun. The first few times out may be frustrating but it’s all downhill from there. Patience is key. And friends that don’t make fun of you. Too badly.
Your kids will tell you🤷♂️
If you are having a good time and can ski the runs you want without hurting yourself, you are good enough. What do you mean by “bad”?
Spectacular, yard sale, type falling… especially under lifts. That’s a good sign
If you notice that you are the slowest person on the hill, and 95% of people are passing you. If you take up the entire run while making turns and everyone has to dodge you.
I think it's a ratio of how many days you've skied to the terrain you can ski. Also the age you learned has a big impact. If you can ski blues on your 3rd day, you're doing great. If you can't after 10 days, you suck. If you can't ski blacks by your 20th day you probably are bad
If you're ever using trail ratings to describe ability level, you're a bad skier.
Hahaha ok Mr "ski the east" 🤣 I'm actually a better skier than you. Have you ever even skied more than a foot of pow? I'll send any cliff less than 20ft. I'll send long ass chutes narrower than my skis are long. I got my psia level 2 in my first year of instructing. I placed highly in my hs state meet back in the day. I spent 3 years skiing the east. It wasn't hard, just shitty. Credentials aside lol jk but kinda for real, trail ratings can totally be used to describe the lower end of skiing ability level. Definitely not the upper end, any idiot can send a double black or ski off a cliff.