Outside boot touch with a twist Subscribe Pub

It is an advanced separation and coiling drill, a literal twist on top of the classic Touch the outside boot drill used everywhere: while touching the outside boot, twist the upper body to the outside of the turn so the inside hand points to the outside of the turn. The idea is that the shoulders are facing down the fall line when the skis are crossing the slope.

You can also think of it as a more advanced version of the The Schlopy Drill.

This gives you a lot of critical elements of great skiing:

• lower overall position to touch the boot, so flexing
• counterbalancing / crunch at the hips, to bend over the legs
• coiling / separation / counter-acting / counter to point to the outside of the turn

Start doing this earlier and earlier, until right in transition and stay in this position through the turn. Then progress to and refine it by moving progressively and continuously throughout the turn.

Many kids and beginners/intermediates have a lot of problems doing this drill properly, so here's a progression to here:

• classic hand on hip, with the inside hand leading the turn (point with the skis)
• hand on hip with a twist: outside hand on hip, twist the upper body so that the inside hand is pointing to the outside of the turn
• same twist but lower the outside hand to keep it on the boot rather than the hip.

As a progression from here, you can:

• clap in transition (when the skis are flat), to clearly separate the phases of the turn, and then
• touch both boots in transition, to keep low in transition

Variation:

• touch the top of the outside boot with both hands

A note on the "twist" to the outside: it should be progressive: a little at the beginning of the turn and finish with the skis sideways crossing the slope while the upper body is facing down the slope - that is an extreme position great for racing, but we get good by averaging out the extremes :)

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Read more drill ideas.

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