Guest Blogger: Tips from John Egan, from Sugarbush Resort

Pre-season conditioning tip – move your road run to the trails!

As many already know, running is a great way to get in shape for the ski season. It not only improves your cardio, but it also wakes up those skier thighs!

However, no matter how hard you train on pavement, it never seems to be enough. Day 2 soreness seems inevitable. It’s true – there is no better prep for skiing and riding than skiing and riding.

Whether you like bumps, trees, or groomers, snow sports require both an agile mind and body. You are required to constantly react to variable pitches, surfaces, and conditions. Your typical road run on the same route at the same time of day, cannot fully simulate and prepare you for the variable and dynamic nature of skiing and riding.

The good news… you can enhance the effectiveness of your pre-season runs simply by moving them to the trails. The uneven surfaces, hills and elevation better address the mind body dynamics of skiing than a road run. Here are some things to keep in mind to make your trial run fun, effective and safe:

• Look for uneven surfaces and terrain (hiking trails are great, even the side of the road right off the pavement can be good)
• Start out on trails with lesser elevation gain and gradually build up
• When running, place your feet on the bigger, stable surfaces and avoid plants and wobbly things – this really works your eye/foot coordination
• Watch your feet and each step, but also don’t forget to frequently look ahead to see what’s next
• Run with a friend and follow all safety and environmental rules as any hike or run

- Tips from John Egan, Sugarbush Resort

Early Season Ideas to Keep Your Feet Happy and Have a Fun First Day on the Slopes.

Just a few simple early season suggestions to ease back into your ski boots makes a world of difference for any level skier.

• First remove the ski boot liners to check for any old boot warmers or signs of a mouse nest that may have developed during the fall.
• Put on only one pair of thin ski socks. Wearing two pairs of socks does not help at all and may even cause your feet to become colder from lack of circulation.
• Be sure to wear your boots around the house a few times before you actually go skiing.
• Make sure that you boots fit properly. They should not be too big or feel loose.
• Shin problems are a major issue for an uncomfortable feeling. This could be from your long underwear ending midway in the boot causing shin pressure. Make sure that you have no wrinkles in the boot from socks or under garments.
• A good boot fitter can easily suggest ways to help with your boot problems once you have skied a few times. You may want to try a foot bed to help naturalize your foot balance.
• Next, make sure that you have your ski bindings checked by a certified technician. This is very important for your safety and may help prevent serious injury.
• Have your skis waxed and tuned, especially if rust has developed.

You should be ready to head to the slopes and make a few turns. Have fun and enjoy the ski season.

Before you hit the slopes be sure to give Tours de Sport a call.

By: Goody Dwyer

Dear Santa, I Need New Skis!

Dear Santa, I need new skis!!!

Ok, so some of us may be to old to believe that Santa will leave us new shiny skis under the tree this year, however it can’t hurt to send him a letter anyway, right?

So, if you are stuck on what exactly to ask him for this holiday, here is a quick list of recommendations to get you started!

1 – Fierce for the Ladies- Salomon Jewel Origin Skis! Don’t let the flowers fool you! A real performance ski for skilled Ladies that ski everywhere. Nice flex pattern and Women specific sidecut, combined with torsional rigidity for grip and versatile geometry. A winner for advanced women.

2 – For the All Mountain Ripper in you! Atomic Nomad Crimson Skis! This ski features Atomics Torsion and Flex Control (TFC). The innovation of TFC shaves excess weight in the tip and tail, and creates forgiving flex zones. On today’s Nomads, you’ll ski longer without getting tired, turn easier and feel more confident. The sidecut represents an ideal compromise between turning and stability.

3 – Best bet for the Boarder - Burton T-6 Snowboard! For the Freestyler in you or the need for speed this board is top of the heap. Burton’s exclusive NEW Smooth Ride Technology harnesses the power of the T6, filtering out noise and taking the bite off so you can ride faster and go bigger with less impact on the body.

And that’s just to name a few! With so much new technology and hundreds of choices there is sure to be something to fit everyone’s taste as well as budget. Check our your local ski shop for even more cool stuff as well as lists of demo days in your area!

Still can’t decide? Try it before you buy it at some of our popular ski destinations this season. Demo equipment available at ski resorts such as Killington, VT, Okemo, VT, Snowshoe, WV & Mont Tremblant, CA!

So whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza, I hope your “Santa” brings you a little gift from the Snow Gods this season!

Get Ready For Ski Season! Courtesy of Fundamental Fitness

If you have a passion for skiing you spend money on quality skis, boots, poles and goggles. You also spend time and money planning the perfect ski getway. With all of this preparation, do you also take the time to prepare your body for the demands of a day spent on the slopes?

Here are some practical tips to increase balance, strength and muscular endurance. Specific exercises are provided with the goal of improving performance on skis.

Single Leg Drop and Stick -
• Find single leg standing balance.
• Quickly drop into a squat position (depth with which they are comfortable) and then maintain balance in that position for five seconds.
• Keep one foot off the floor throughout the entire set.

The Skier Crunch
• Start extended with your body straight, toes on the ball, hands straight below your chest.
• Maintaining perfect abdominal squeeze, roll the ball up under your hips, so you’re balancing on the top of your toes. Hold for two seconds and extend. Maintain that squeeze!
• Work up to two sets of 15 with perfect form, and then try it with only one leg.

Single Leg Ball Squat -
• Keep proper alignment through the hip, knee and ankle.
• Reach back with buttocks as you descend into a comfortable squat.
• Gradually try to squat lower.
• Complete two to four sets of 4-8 reps for muscular strength or 10 to 15 reps for muscular endurance.
• A beginner can start with both feet on the floor
• Advanced Progression 1: Keep tension on the quadriceps, gluteals and hamstrings by working in the lower range of the movement. Rather than returning to a full standing position, only extend the knee to 30 degrees


Eva Rosvold is the owner of Fundamental Fitness a personal training and coaching company in Frederick, MD. Check out the website for more information at www.fundamentalfitness.biz.

Guest Blogger: Tips from John Egan, from Sugarbush Resort

I like to ski with a friend and take turns leading and following. When in the lead try to design a run that is hard to follow with different size turns and rhythms not speed. When following try to be smoother, softer in your touch and more fluid than the lead. Make sure you can talk tease or at least communicate while skiing as this will help you to relax and be more aware of your surroundings.

- John Egan, Sugarbush Resort

Guest Blogger: Tips from Norm, from Sugarbush Resort

Perhaps the most important philosophy we use in teaching kids is the idea that while skills are important, it’s creating a positive experience that really matters. Of course we want kids to improve and excel at their chosen discipline, but more than that, we want them to learn to love skiing and riding. It’s only through that love that they will continue to be motivated to be on the hill and to be a part of a family’s skiing and riding lifestyle.

As instructors, we go out of our way to create those positive experiences while you are here with us at Sugarbush. On the hill, in the Adventure Den, and at functions like Blazer parties, our goal is create a positive association with the sport. However, you can create those positive associations at home, too, by bringing your love of skiing and riding into your everyday life. Watching ski movies (or making them…), hanging posters up on walls, and having books available to read all help to keep skiing and riding a part of your and your kid’s day, and serve as a reminder of great times, past and future, that your family can share.

A great friend of the Children’s Programs here at Sugarbush sent us a list of the books he and his kids read at home. I can’t say I’ve personally read them, but knowing how important skiing is to the family that sent the list, I am sure that you will find them to be great additions to your family’s reading library. The books include:

• Do Teddy Bears Ski? by Rick Sanger
• Adventures of Fraser the Yellow Dog – Rescue on Snowmass Mountain; by Jill Sheeley
• SNOW; by P.D. Eastman
• First Tracks; by Jonny Boyd
• Ollie’s Ski Trip; Elsa Beskow
• The Race of the Birkenbeiners; by Lise Lunge-Larson
• Curious George In the Snow; by Margret & H.A. Rey
• Trouble with Trolls; by Jan Brett

Our dad’s list also includes a DVD: The Backyardigan’s Snow Fort which includes an episode on being on Ski Patrol. Dad also reports that most or all of these can be found at the major bookstores, from the New England Ski Museum, and even at your local library. For that matter, take a few minutes and search for “snow,” “skiing,” “snowboarding,” or “winter” at your local library and see what you find. If it's good, let me know and I’ll make sure it gets added to future Tips From Norm.

Last, but not least, the Snow Monsters series has a free DVD that we have and give away at lots of our on-hill events. Come join us for the Hot Dog Race or the Teddy Bear Race, or some other family-friendly event, and we’ll get you a copy.

Until then, Think Snow, and when you can’t be on the hill, find ways of bringing the hill home to your family.
Thanks for checking in. We’ll see you out there.

-Tips by Norm