Interski report
	INTERSKI 2007, Yong Pyong, Korea. What a week! SNOWSPORTS FOR ALL was the theme. We went to showcase Australian Culture and Skiing and to gather as much info as possible from our skiing friends from across the globe. With an open mind and interest in learning new/different concepts we hit the slopes each morning to attend workshops and lectures in the afternoon led by the various countries. I had the task of reporting workshops from Argentina. ARGENTINA When I watched the Argentine team ski the first impression is without a doubt is that they have pressure control down to a fine art. Though their other skills are no less strong, they make skiing look fluid and effortless. I attended the lecture on SMART SKIING AND STRIGHT LINE with Ernesto Fernandez, team coach. SMART SKIING is the relationship between the internal forces that a skier undergoes, and the invaluable source of energy generated by linked turns on an inclined plane. The goal is to optimise muscular activity and the energy savings that the skier can experience the use of these forces. Ernesto spoke about Aikido; form of martial arts, translated means "the path of harmony of/with energy". The Argentine Compensation Technique, with its particular concept of maintaining a constant load, tries to harmonise the energy load along the whole turn. In both cases, Aikido and the Compensation Technique, the energy is controlled but not blocked. Part of Smart Skiing is taking advantage of the pre-existing external forces.  The other part resides in how they apply these forces, in relation to the goal, with the intention of looking for efficiency and as a consequence the economy of movements. STRAIGHT LINE On the hill Argentina demonstrated their low to high-end turns. I joined team member Joaquin Darquier for the workshop. From the first movements the skier makes to snow plough or turn the focus for instruction is to keep things very simple and not to use any unnecessary movements. The discussion amongst the classes is related to how things feel in the soles of the feet. Joaquin taught us that as they move through the progression they strengthen the skills to adapt to faster speed and changing terrain but the goal is to have an the most even pressure possible throughout the turn. In order to accomplish this, the skier focuses on creating pressure before the fall line and absorbing the excess pressure after the fall line. Therefore working the ski where gravity is working for you and taking the pressure off through the second half of the turn in order to have gravity assist the smooth crossover movement. For more reports click here.