Ice is the best teacher but not many people like to attend her lessons.

"Ice keeps you honest", "let the ice do the teaching" I love it! What I call hard pack many would call ice and when it's really ice very few skiers go to it and look like they're having a good time! Hard pack is a different story! Completely edgable! I always touch up my edges. I watch your videos and I learn what I can! Thanks for all the free lessons!

Deb, I’ve been teaching 50 yrs this season and I still use demos I saw you do 20 years ago. Thanks for being a hall of fame skier.

Deb, you covered technique, tactics, but really honed in on attitude. It reminds me that I need to dial in the right attitude to take on new challenges with my own skiing and to encourage my students to challenge themselves too. Your video inspires me. Thanks so much.

Being an eastern skier , ice was always a problem until a trip to Sugarloaf , which included an hour and a half instruction every day for 5 days with an older ski instructor who was tough as nails but took great care of students who wanted to learn . He had an attitude of enthusiasm as infectious as yours Deb and stated almost exactly what you did adding easy does it on ice , to FEEL IT underfoot and as you said to stay committed in the turn . That was over 20 years ago and the instruction I got from that gentleman still resides in me , he changed my skills for the better forever . Thank you for sharing your expertise with us all , you're a treasure trove of information and an inspiration to us . I had the pleasure of meeting you on a chair at Vail in March , after you passed me on Poppyfields and praised me for whoopin it up on the way down , but unfortunately I didn't know it until I saw you in one of your videos , it was a delight ! Thanks again for sharing the knowledge and keeping the youthful spirit !! God bless you and keep you in His care ❤️!

Funny that you mentioned Waterville Valley, NH. I learned how to ski there and was a member of the WV Black and Blue Trail Smashers Club. Spent many days riding the World Cup T- Bar and running gates on that hill back in the 70’s. When I ski NH now I usually go to Cannon Mt. which is Bodie Miller’s home mountain. Firm. Fast and Frozen describes the typical conditions there Short swing turns along the side of the trail is a trade mark of experienced Cannon skiers. Being 72 years old I now ski full time at Alta, UT. When the snow occasionally gets firm at Alta it is equal to a wicked awesome day back in New England.

I recently had a friend describe the conditions at Gore Mtn as “ceramic”. I saw a real, with an instructor, “learn to ski the ice” lesson at Stowe where the conditions on Lift line were best described as “polished powder transitioning into frozen granular”. If you want to learn to ski ice, just come to the NE, and sharpen your skis...

Deb, love the videos!! Skiing in central MA last night practicing some of your drills and had to laugh at A-basin "ice" conditions. What you described in this video is everyday out East. I'm not sure we love it, but it's what we got.

She is nothing but great !Deb you are so simple and clear! Love her!

This instructor is awesome... You can tell she really cares and wants us all to ski well, be safe, and have fun... Awsome!

Ice coast skier here. Can't say we necessarily "love" ice, but I'm excited to approach it with a new mindset this season. Thanks Deb!

You’re the best Deb. Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom. Hello from Nakiska.

Thanks, Deb. You always teach me What I Need. You know my problems well.

Thank you, Deb. As a self taught recreational skier I really appreciate your advice and in some comments below! I’m looking forward to ski on ice!

Thanks Deb! I love your videos. Even if I don’t have a chance to get on the mountain this is practically as good! As I watched, I thought how the idea of loving the ice and embracing its ability to teach us can apply to a lot of diverse challenges we face. Good life lesson for many situations, thanks for calling our attention to that.

Another great instructional video!! Thanks, Deb!!!

Love this and it’s so true. Ice breaks out all the tools and skills and really tests those reflexes. I’ve found that your own confidence is a big factor too. When it starts feeling sketchy just rely on a good ol pivot slip to regroup. Sharp edges and edge control are amazing assets. So many times I’ve been out hiking on icy slopes or even crossing icy parking lots saying this would be so much easier if I had my skis.

Loved the Waterville Valley reference as a New Englander... Love your videos, thank you.

Great lesson and you made learning to ski ice fun! Thank you!

Deb's teachings are golden! thank you!

Deb,you explain the technical aspects of skiing in a way that everyone can understand,and you make everything look like fun which is why we all ski in the first place.

Wonderful video! Great advice!

Deb is the way !! Nice and fun video, thanks. You are completely right, ice improve you as a better skier. As an eastern pyreenes skier, I am often skiing on ice.

Watched a minute amd a half of your vid and already love the way you've set up the teaching comcept.

As always great tips! In the 70's learning in spring conditions in the Sierra Nevada where the shady spots sounded like you were skiing on an asphalt road! Ah the memories! (Grooming has gotten much better now) But you are so right! It will get away from you in a big hurry if you don't keep up. Thanks so much! Praying for snow in the Southwest!

New skier in Maine here. I was introduced to ice the hard way on my second time skiing. Heading back out tomorrow so I’m binging your videos!

Thanks Deb. Wonderful message and. Video

So helpful. Great video.

Just found your channel and have enjoy and learned alot from every video

Wise suggestions. I like Your style. Well done.

I've found a great channel to dive down deep and learn all i can. Thank you for sharing your experience through these videos. I've only skied once but i have a sister in Pitkin county & once we can travel again ill be heading that way. We had the opposite conditions when we went skiing the last week of February after a heat wave came through in the week leading up to our trip. It was skiing on slush. We took our falls but had fun and are driven to keep at it. Learn in horrible snow maybe ill be able to out perform my expectations in some decent snow. Have a good one.

watched this three months ago. Skied today. Finally took it in... Ice is awesome!

Thank you for your videos Deb!! One of these days I’d love to catch up with you on the mountain (I ski Loveland and the Epic resorts outside of Denver) but you are a gem and helped me (and the family) so, so much!! Thank you!!

Just want I need today. There’s barely any snow in Colorado so early this season. Love your advice: love the ice!

Thanks Deb! NJ area Skier here. Still not the best with ice but getting better. Thanks for the video.

So true... my 2nd season as an instructor in Austria had poor snow conditions and over the season my own skiing improved hugely. How can you teach skiing if you can’t ski ion it yourself! That season alone shaped the way I skied ever since. Great piece as alway...

I must say that I am terrified of ice. Still lots to learn, so thanks for your great advice.

Golden statement "Don't make sudden sharp turns." I did, fell on my back, injured my knee and hip.

Thanks Deb! excellent tips greetings from 🇨🇱 Chile!

Thanks for the skiing ice content

Hey Deb, great to see you back, great video, stay safe :)

Thanks for a great video on how to approach skiing on ice. I ski in the Catskills, NY (Hunter Mountain is one of the resorts here) I prefer not to slide/slip on ice, because it scares me to be not in control during the slide/slip. You gave me some new insights to work on other than my current strategy of traversing the ice until I get to a snow pile at the side of the trail to make a turn. Thanks. I have seen some people on icy steeps that drive the skis down the fall line presumably to dig into the ice and let their ski edge radius turn for them. By digging in, I believe that they are able to keep an edge until they are perpendicular to the fall line where they hop to drive their skis into fall line for the next turn. When they hop, I think that that is where they get speed control. I hope that I am describing this technique in understandable terms. I am just amazed that they have no appreciable sliding/slipping on ice with this type of skiing in my observation from the overhead ski lift. Are you familiar with this type of icy steep skiing? Any comments or insights? Thanks again.

Come to Pennsylvania and experience the thaw freeze cycle. Well see if you love the ice. ; )

I’ve skied Waterville Valley, the wind and ice make greens feel like black diamonds.

You rock Deb!

Thank you Deb, that was really interesting and informative. Sometimes the tendency is to use too much edge for too long; fear factor then kicks in with skidding and off balance. Like the tip to keep moving. Look forward to the video on skiing the "ice patch". So lucky your resort is open and has snow. Looks great! P.S. Can you do a video on skiing in a garden centre as that is what we sometimes have to ski on here in Scotland; ice, heather and rocks. Have even had sparks coming from my skis; as you say in the USA; "smokin"!

Ice in Vail is like powder in Europe ! Come over to feel the difference

Thanks Deb. In training for the Murren inferno on January 21st.

I agree with all you say and all your points are well stated. I do think the phrase functional tension can apply as well.

Cute vid, I love it! Skied ice today and something clicked! Suddenly found my edges and could rocket some short and wide turns :) I was feeling more in tune with my hips and helped keep upper body quiet downhill and good outside leg pressure... not sure why the hips thing helped, but YAY!

Wow…now I’m excited about ice!

Skiing in Australia we don't get much choice as it is mostly icy! I like to ski on ice for the reasons you mentioned. I always say that ice sorts one's technique out.

When I was younger my skis were the Salomon S9000, 200 cm. The edge hold on ice was incredible. Today, I am using a recreational 160 cm slalom ski. They are still fairly good on ice but not near as good as the 200 cm s9000's. Being an east coast skier I use less of an edge angle on icy conditions and if you hit an unexpected ice patch it is better to let the ski slide a bit as opposed to breaking with an extreme edge angle. Keep you skis sharp, I give my skis a quick go with the diamond stones after 2 or 3 outings.

Growing up in Pennsylvania, there was ice just about every time I went skiing! I don't think we'll make it to Steamboat this Christmas, tale care!

deb, i went on my first “blue” runs this weekend at 42 yrs old thanks to your lessons on KZfaq!

This video is so funny and educational. Deb, please don't retire....

I think I had the hardest fall ever at Snowbird yesterday since I started skiing 4 yrs ago. I am 6’1 with 175 pounds. I skied Atomic Redster G9 with 177 cm in length on 4/29/24 at Snowbird. (Those beer league skis are hella fast and require solid fundamentals to control….) For blue runs I was totally in control of my speed, but I skied black run called Regulator, my speed reached 60 MPH at least and the run was getting narrower in the end (I also messed two turns meaning I was so scared, sitting back, and tips of ski pointing to downhill twice), meanwhile, I MUST make sure not to hit someone to in front of me, so I lost the control with my speed and ended up fell hard and threw myself 32 feet away. I think I had mild concussion caused by my irresponsible skiing behavior. I checked with clinic at resort and front desk told me I should be fine but make sure to get some rest. Today, I still have a little bit of headache, dizziness, and foggy in my mind (these are symptoms of typical concussion), will seek for medical attention if symptoms last for 2 more days. I believe I learned a profound lesson from skiing where controlling speed on the slope is critical. As a PSIA Certified Level 1 skiing instructor, I clearly remembered that our examiner reinforced the idea of speed control on the slope during the day of our exam. I am a little bit shameful by what happened to my skiing incident. I hope everyone will stay safe and enjoy the nature while you are on the slopes. Peace ✌️

as an eastern skier i can say... Ice... it scares me!! I always bring a casket with me if im going to attempt ice

Easterners deservedly brag about their ice skills but stating they love it may be a stretch... at least for the recreational skier. Just yanking your chain Deb. Another great video!

I remember coming down La Face in Val d’isere 100 metres of ice. Can’t say I enjoyed that at all.

Just chanced in this video as I’m heading out to ICE in France and not the usual Telluride snow. LOVE the enthusiasm! Will try not to be toast

Thanks!

Try skiing in Poconos any time. LOL. That's ALL we've got. You go from sheer ice to a foot-deep crushed ice bank. If you go too fast, the compression will get ya.

I learned in the 80s to ski under nighttime lights at a mountain we affectionately called The Best East Coast Skiing in Colorado. Absolute windblown boilerplate and refrozen water ice. I too have seen the grass under there. 🤣 I had bruised elbows and hips the whole first season, but to this day I can edge well. You just don't get to cheat on ice.

I would love to see application of when to use the hop turn, and why. It’s just my go to in crud when i’m not able to do much else / not able to turn as fast as i want with out getting out of control. This often happens in medium steep black diamond that is all cut up or just heavier powder / mt hood snow. If it’s really steep however, i love that because gravity makes it so much easier to make that turn, plus isnt usually that choppy. My hop turns however, arent near as fast as you show. Do you think this is maybe just more about conditioning and not as strong to do the powerful explosive transition as we come around and especially out of that turn (i think im too slow exploding OUT OF THE END OF THE TURN, so then im late for the next turn, with too much weight on the wrong ski, which then messes up the balance. I’m 51 now, but do remember struggling in the same stuff when i raced in high school. I need to be able to get off that outside ski sooner so my weight and position is more ready for that next turn / transition.

10 seconds in and i already like this lady

We had a warm winter here in Minnesota- lots of 45 degree days with teens overnight. Don't think I ever heard anyone use the word icy? Borrowing from nordic ski, they called it "firm and fast." Ha!! Corduroy so crispy it was like skiing on a corrugated metal roof. Thanks for the much needed lesson! ;)

When skiing ice bad habits are magnified. Such as extending to release pushes the skier off balance into the fall line where the skier picks up speed. Extending to release is to slow of a transition since a skier can not be tipping while extending. For speed control on ice never stop tipping from side to side relax into angles.

Carving very hard snow is about building and releasing loads gradually. I have recently concluded that to do this, the transition is key. Assume you are finishing a carved turn. As you release the skis, you have to keep the skis inline with direction of travel, and you need to go from one edge to another as quickly as possible. What happens if your skis come off the ground from too much energy release (pop...and/or in the backseat)? What happens if you are slow transitioning from one set of edges to the other? The skis and skier will invariable "yaw" a bit, and then when you roll onto the new edge and load the ski it will not be lined up with the direction of travel. You have already set up a skid/chatter before you even load up the new turn. In most snow the slight "give" in the snow will allow the ski to "get back on track" to initiate a carve. In fact, I believe that soft to medium snow actually creates bad habits for skiing hard snow because the skier does not realize their skis are "getting out of direction". The snow invites them to load the ski quicker and harder, and they no not realize the snow is self aligning the ski and covering up their bad habits. The hard part is making the transition fast, while still making is smooth so the skis/edges stay lined up with the direction of travel. Do not let soft to medium snow fool you into building bad habits. Keep the edges on the snow. Make the transition fast and smooth. Keep the skis points in the direction they are traveling, so that when you roll onto an edge, everything is lined up. White Pass Turns and Uphill Ski One Ski Garlands are good drills to work on this. The master of this is of course Mikaela. This is not hard snow, but watch as the skis stay on the snow, and never get off track. They are always in line with the direction of travel. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/Zt94nsd8uMmXmYE.html Here she is on hard world cup prepped course snow. Watch the wide shot starting at 37s on the lower part of the course. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/edFhlq2j35-Xj2Q.html

I"d love to see this video reshot on real glare ice, probably in the Northeast. To what extent should a recreational skier try to carve on ice, really lay down tracks? And to what extent is it a controlled skidded turn? These demos are on what passes for a powder day where I''m from.

From all what I know: Let the ice do the work, do not stiffen up, stay smooth and alert. (Tested and proven on snow turned bumps and only snow cannon ice surface remaining inbetween, preferable on freezing cold, whiteout late afternoons with mushy calves)

I carry a file edge sharpener in my backpack to resharpen my skis on the days when there is a lot of ice, or if it is a race course that has been fertilized to make it faster.

nice vid Deb - so true embrace ice.

Wow I do this, I´m in Andorra now and it´s the first time I have seen real Ice. I´ve never ski in Bermont, but here the were some world cup runs really Icy. What I did it was to stay low and finish my turns. keep my upper body look down, but stay low.

I’m learning to ski on the ice coast! Hoping it makes me an honest, technical skier.

good one!

I always get a chuckle when in CO and people moan about ice. Try midwest or NE if you want ice! I skied a run at Killingtin years ago, was blue ice. Great advice on finishing the turns and to not get lazy...ski the whole run!

Yes. Ice is wacko. Respect it and don’t fight it! Raced as a youngster in the Laurentions and taught at Mt. Tremblant. Say no more. 😂

Ice can be nice! Like snow, dozens of different qualities.....some friendly and soft on top, some bullet proof through and through! For bullet proof I go into slow motion, firm, deliberate gradual initiation and finishing the turns, while making sure PLAN your entry and exit off those boiler plates before you are on them helped to ski it clean, always planning for straight as possible glide on the boiler plate and exit to where you want to approximately Edging was key for me too, firm edging but not too much.... I sharpen for 5 minutes with my stone after every day of skiing. A bad day on ice is still a thousand times better than a good day at work! :)

what about carving on ice and, also when u sharpen your skiis too much will it be uncomfortable to ski on normal snow or a soft one?

SUPER!

you go girl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Deb, do you offer in person lessons at all? Seems like you have an infectious good attitude and a lot of knowledge!

Careful on the lift Deb! You were so excited to show how one can walk on parking and I was .. "wth".. you look confident on the chair . But just saying. Tc.

спасибо!

Hi deb! I’m a novice eastern us skier. I was hoping you could critique my ice skiing. When I ski, I do much wider S turns than you but when I hit ice on my turn I just slide down even though my skis are in the turn, they just don’t grip. Then I end up sliding down sideways, still upright, but very fast. How do I fix this? Thanks again for the great content!

Deb. Love your videos, love your passion. Skiers interested in improving would be well advised to emulate you. However, please lower your chairlift bar so your video students will do likewise. 😎

...Does body shape and weight change how you teach one vs the other. I have three and they all have different body type. But I’m teaching each the same. Not sure if I need to stress my heavier skier to be more active, nimble vs my super light guy to actually be more precise and less body. Your teaching really makes me think of tech! Enjoy those early season turns!

In Ontario Canada, we call it Ontario Packed snow.😀

Love all Deb Armstrong videos, but I'd love to see this one done again on actual icey ice. Go east somewhere, or maybe use a race course after the race is done.

I think it depends on what kind of ice you're talking about. If it's just here and there under the snow, that's one thing, but if it's a huge sheet of pure black ice, like you might find after a freezing rain storm on hard pack, it's just not fun at all. At least I don't find it fun.

Deb- I love your videos and your attitude in this one. But I’m so confused. Short radius turns on ice? We need sharp skis but you had yours dulled for a competition on ice??? Maybe my short radius turns just aren’t there yet. 🤷‍♂️

I find that 3 hours of skiing ice, my ski's are really blunt. Totally toast. Is everybody having the same problem and they sharpen them every day?

Ha ha, but that's A-Basin, where it's never icy, LOL. Just kidding, the point is still valid. Great tips, thanks Deb! I love it, especially, "embrace the ice." Coming up in the Midwest we had a saying: "Ice is nice, because fast is a blast!" Always in control, though. Very good point about not becoming a ballistic missile out there.

early pressure is huge..it moves the pressure out of the shit hits the fan zone at the bottom 1/3 of the turn.

Now you're talking my language. VT, look forward to some ice.

Couple pitches on Woman’s Downhill at a lake Louise come to mind.... Rec skier can wreck !!

USA is really bestowed with some great skiing, lots of variety, and is more accessible (financially) than most other countries. Ice, corn, powder can all be had for a discount when compared with Europe or Canada or Japan. This land is your land, this land is my land...

I like ice mixed with frozen death cookies on steep moguls above a cliff.

I wonder if skiing on ice could take a lesson from skating (on ice) ? Is it similar movement ?