Thirty Seven. Thirty Seven dedicated bounders came out for what must be a hill record. There were so many folks that we had some mild bumping and definitely crossed paths. It was a pretty impressive site.

So what went right and wrong?

Effort was good: There definitely were some moments. I feel your pain……and it hurts so good.

Body angles/posture: Much improved. Those who have been coming regularly have showed continued improvement. We had many first timers who need to address more technical work. (See previous NENSA post about technique).

Technical Compression: That is what I call overcompression of the hip to chest angle. During bounding High flex (compression angles) are crucial to developing the explosive power we use in skiing. We are 50/50 in that regard. Some do….some don’t. As I harp about constantly; it is the quality of the effort, not the speed. There are no Hillbounding World Championships. Ask if not sure.

Speed: Speed is not quite there. That is OK as I would rather see a SLOWER effort with better technique. I do notice a shortening of the stroke when speed does increase. Remember this: THERE ARE ONLY TWO WAYS TO SKI FASTER;

1/ INCREASE TEMPO (THERE IS A LIMIT OBVIOUSLY)

2/ INCREASE STRIDE LENGTH.

One will offset the other, be sure you do both! Tempo is a function of fitness but stride length is a function of technique (power helps too).

Technical Compression: That is what I call overcompression of the hip to chest angle. During bounding High flex (compression angles) are crucial to developing the explosive power we use in skiing. We are 50/50 in that regard. Some do….some don’t. As I harp about constantly; it is the quality of the effort, not the speed. There are no Hillbounding World Championships. Ask if not sure.

Speed: Speed is not quite there. That is OK as I would rather see a SLOWER effort with better technique. I do notice a shortening of the stroke when speed does increase. Remember this: THERE ARE ONLY TWO WAYS TO SKI FASTER;

1/ INCREASE TEMPO (THERE IS A LIMIT OBVIOUSLY)

2/ INCREASE STRIDE LENGTH.

One will offset the other, be sure you do both! Tempo is a function of fitness but stride length is a function of technique (power helps too).

Much improved. Those who have been coming regularly have showed continued improvement. We had many first timers who need to address more technical work. (See previous NENSA post about technique).

All in all it was a great night. Let’s do it again next Tue at 5:30 pm. Expect something totally new……and fun.

All in all it was a great night. Let’s do it again next Tue at 5:30 pm. Expect something totally new……and fun.