How-To Train: Top Drills For Ski Racing

Press Release Provided by SYNC Performance

SYNC Performance introduces the winter series How-To Train featuring former World Cup skier Miha Kürner. With 3 videos in the series, each video focuses on top drills curated for Slalom, Giant Slalom, and Speed events. Following the drills in this series will give you the confidence you need to win on race day. 

SYNC Performance is excited to present the YouTube video series How-To Train featuring former World Cup skier and current Alpine Director for Killington Mountain School, Miha Kürner. In each video, Miha walks us through the top drills for Slalom, Giant Slalom, and Speed events. 

Integrating drills into your warm-up routine is vital for skiing at your best. Starting your day off with drills will make you feel more balanced and confident once you get into the course. Considering you only have one or two runs to be the fastest on the hill, incorporating the right drills will give you the confidence to do so. 

When it comes to choosing drills for the different events, we asked SYNC Athletes what their biggest issues are when it comes to slalom, giant slalom, and speed events. As a former world class athlete, Miha Kürner put together the essential drills curated to help athletes in those events. 

The first video in the series, Top Drills for Consistent Slalom Turns, focuses on drills that help with balance, edge setting, turn shape, and active weight transfers. All athletes have had a stretch of DNF’s that never seem to end and by incorporating these drills those DNF’s can turn into times. The first drill Miha walked us through was Javelin Airplanes which teaches your body to be in an optimal balanced position throughout the turn. Next up was Javelin Hop Turns, which teaches fast realignment of the body from one side to the other. After that was Pole Plant Ready Garlands which teaches correct edge setting and upper body coordination. Following those, Miha walked us through Pole Plant Step-Off Slalom Turns helping you with correct active weight transfer. The last drill for this episode was Corridor Play which will help you develop the ability to actively control turn shape and placement.

Watch the full YouTube video on How-To Train: Top Drills For Consistent Slalom Turns here. 

Lots of athletes struggle with producing fast, powerful and efficient arcs, so for the second video in the series, Top Drills for Powerful and Efficient GS Turns, Miha’s drills focus on the start and completion of a turn, active weight transfer, balance, upper body positions, and pole plants. To start off this video, Miha showed us how to do the drill Pole Plant Ready J-Turns which focuses on edging, angulation, and completion of a turn. Next up was the Thousand Steps Traverse drill teaching active weight transfer between turns. Following that was the Pac-Man drill that will help with the coordination and movement of the upper body throughout the turn. Next Miha walks us through the Lifted Inside Ski Sliding Turns drill that helps you with the timing of the active weight transfer. Lastly, we learn about the Pole-Plant Game which will help you develop a more efficient weight transfer. Practicing all these drills for Giant Slalom will make your turns more powerful, balanced, and efficient leading you to the top step of the podium. 

Watch the full YouTube video on How-To Train: Top Drills For Powerful and Efficient GS Turns here. 

The third and final video in the series focuses on the Top Drills to Help Build Confidence in Speed. The biggest struggles athletes face in such events is having the confidence to reach those high speeds. The drills in this video will help athletes square their shoulders, learn weight distribution on glide turns, and be comfortable and balanced in an aerodynamic position. The first drill is High Tuck, Low Tuck Turns which teaches angulation without compromising aerodynamics. After that, Miha walks us through One Handed Tuck Turns for when athletes may encounter a shorter radius turn. This drill helps keep you in an aerodynamic and balanced position for longer. The next drill is The Offering which helps keep the shoulders squared to the tips of the skis throughout the duration of the turn. Following those, Miha demonstrates the Hands on Knees drill which teaches an even weight distribution between skis on gliding turns. The last drill for this episode is the Aero Glide Turns. This drill focuses on when a full tuck turn is not possible but you still need to be aerodynamic. 

Watch the full YouTube video on How-To Train: Top Drills to Help Build Confidence in Speed here. 

With the incorporation of all these drills into your slalom, giant slalom, and speed routines your consistency, power, efficiency, confidence, and speed will be impacted for the better.