The Ski Sport

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22103, 27 May 1937, Page 4 (Supplement)

The Ski Sport

Of all snow sports ski-ing is the most delightful. Tobogganing is great fun for a while, but after the first little bit of skill is acquired; there is riot much .to be learned about it. Skating also has its attractions, but although; the ability to skate well gives a great deal of pleasure, and even a good skater is always learning more about his art, it has the drawback of being confined *tb one "small space—the ice rink or frozen lake or pond. Ski-ing shares with all good sports the capacity to give delight by the mastery of the body, by the feeling that limbs and muscles are trained perfectly to do what you want'them to. In addition there is excitement of easy speed, and the satisfaction—if you can ski well—of graceful movement. It surpasses the other snow sports in- its setting among the beauty \of the mountains, and the freedom !of movement it gives the skier. A snow-covered countryside is no delight to the walker if he has ;to sink up to his knees in snow',at every step. Boots are soon soaked

through, and legs become tired. But the skier moves lightly over the top, every little incline is an opportunity to glide freely, and every steeper slope sends him off like the wind. Even when he has to climb, the pleasure awaiting him on the run down makes the effort worth while. Children in most parts of New Zealand are not so fortunately situated for ski-ing as others in the European countries. The young Norwegian, Swiss, German or Austrian learns to ski very young, because every winter the countryside is heavily snow-covered. Even in New Zealand, however, many children liying hear the foothills of the mountains have begun to find that ski-ing is a splendid method of finding enjoyment during the winter. Others are lucky enough to spend winter holidays in the mountains. Young men and women living in the cities have found the sport so much to their liking that they have formed clubs, and built huts ih the mountains so that, they can spend week-ends on ski during the winter.* ' Somebody once said that ski-ing was "the art of walking' on snow with six foot planks tied to your feet." That was probably a beginner's definition, for ski do feel like that the first time they are put

on. Later, the skier is hardly aware of them, for he has so mastered them that they are merely extensions of his feet, and respond readily to his will. That is the ideal, but most skiers fall short of it The beginner on ski is usually terrified by the habit his ski have of slipping away from him before he is ready. The natural inclination when a person is frightened is to hang back, but on ski that does not help at all, it merely means that the ski slip away and the skier falls on his back in the snow. A skier, if he is to remain upright, must do something unnatural from the start. He must lean forward from the ankles, however frightened he feels, and the faster he is going the further forward he must lean. The illustration shows what is meant by bending forward from the ankles. Although it really deals with a turn that can only be achieved at a more advanced stage, the illustration also ,shows the adoption" of a crouched position

when ski-ing. The body must never be stiff, and knees and hands must be well in front of the boots. All ordinary skiers, and often experts as well, know what it is to fall. Beginners fall most of the time. But ski-ing is not dangerous because of this. The reason is that snow makes a good cushion to fall into, and skiers rarely come to any serious harm. In this, ski-ing is different from skating, because a skater who falls does so on to hard ice, which is like concrete. Clothing and Equipment For ski-ing, clothing should be warm and it should not readily absorb moisture. Outer garments should not be of knitted wool, for the snow sticks to the fibres of the wool, is melted by the -warmth of the body, and soon soaks through. Worsted materials are better. Boots should be water-tight and solid. Light city boots or shoes are soon wet through, and wet feet are no fun—and also dangerous—on an all-day excursion. Thick woollen socks—preferably two pairs—should be worn. Ski are usually made of hickory or ash, although Southland beech has also been used successfully for light ski. Hickory is best because it is strong as well as fairly light, does not warp readily, and does

not absorb very much water. The size of ski required varies according to a person's height. The suitable length is found by measuring from the ground to the palm of the hand when the arm is stretched above the head. The skier also carries two sticks, which are used to help in climbing and also for balance. The length of these is from the armpit to the ground. A ring of bamboo and leather is attached to the stick about six inches from the point to prevent it from sinking into the snow. A most important part of the ski is the binding—an arrangement of straps to hold the boot firmly at the middle of the ski, so that the toe is caught and it is yet possible to raise the heel. Thus equipped—with gloves to protect the hands—the beginner is ready to go on to the snow. Experts carry all sorts of extra equipment, but these are the essentials. If there is a long journey home afterwards a change should be made into dry boots and socks in the car or train. And do not forget the lunch. Falling: and Turning Two things the beginner finds almost impossible—turning and stopping. His only way of avoiding an obstacle is to fall down before he gets to it. He should not be frightened or ashamed of falling at first, but as soon as he begins to get a little confidence, and can remain upright during a short run he should get someone to show him how to "snow plough," so that he can stop, and then how to do a "stem turn." That turn is one of the essentials of ski-ing, for on _it are based the clean-looking Christiania turns that are constantly used by more expert skiers. People often ask skiers if they are not frightened when they jump. The answer is that most skiers do not jump at all, and the question is really based'on a mistaken view about what ski-ing is. Ski jumping is a sport on its own, as different from ordinary ski-ing as high-jumping is from an 880 yards race. The spectacular ski jumps sometimes shown in pictures are exciting to watch, for the competitors jump 220 feet and morehigher than the Christchurch Cathedral spire. In New Zealand, although there are some hundreds of members of ski clubs, not more than seven or eight of them ever do any jumping, and the best they have done is about 70 feet. The ordinary skier rarely leaves the ground, except by accident. Ski-ing is a new sport in New Zealand, for it has been popular for only six or seven years. The real home of ski-ing is in the northern European countries—Norway, Sweden, Lapland, and Finland. The people there used primitive ski before the Christian era, and Ulf, thefr old god of winter, is always spoken of aswalking on ski. Even there it only began to be taken up as an organised sport about 1860, in the Norwegian district of Telemark. Most people think of Switzerland as the chief ski-ing country, but ski were not introduced there until 1883, the first Swiss ski club was not formed until 10 years later, and the first races were held in 1902. In Germany and France also ski did not appear until 1883, being introduced from Norway. Filigree is the name given to a class of ornamental work done with threads of gold or silver, or with ifine wire, and frequently attached to apparel or decorative objects. It was made by the ancient Greeks, and in the Middle Ages was very popular and reached a high standard of artistic beauty. It is still m** 1 * in certain parts of Italy.