12/21/24
October 19, 2004
How ski racers train. : From the website of Gord Brown, a coach on the staff of the Canadian ski team, come five short video clips of Australian alpine skier AJ Bear performing some dryland training drills. They're all pretty good, and a couple of them (particularly one leg stabilizer ball and ball sit to stand) look jaw-droppingly difficult...but my favorite is either trampoline to ball or balls in a row, I'm not sure which.
BTW, AJ Bear is a 27-year-old member of the Australian ski team, who specializes in speed events and whose highest World Cup finish to date was a 21st place finish in a super G at Val Gardena in '02. His team is about what you'd expect the Australian Ski Team to be -- I couldn't find an official team website, but I did find this. So, in other words, the Australian Ski Team is about what you'd expect, and this guy is a fairly typical product. And he can still do that crazy stuff on a balance ball. Makes you wonder what the big dawgs on the World Cup do in the gym...
posted by lil_brown_bat to other at 02:11 PM - 2 comments
Skiing athletes don't really get much recognition in North America. Every single person skiing at the World Cup level is as at least as much a athlete as a any top tier hockey, football or baseball player. Not only do you have to be really, really strong, but you must also have amazing balance and great flexibility (which those videos demonstrate very well). It's a pity that these guys don't get the respect they deserve.
posted by camcanuck at 03:48 PM on October 19, 2004
I did some dryland training (sprint training for ultimate frisbee) with an alternate member of the canadian ski team, and I was absolutely amazed at the strength, power and agility he posessed. He was a great coach, and every once in a while someone would say "that's impossible" or something, he'd demonstrate it easily. Once he lunge-walked the whole track (about 800m).