Step Turn Tutorials
This is a recommendation to practice a specific type of cornering transition, rather than a drill. You’ll need a corner that sits at the top of a hill that is steep enough that you need to Offset the hill, but flat enough at the top that you can transition to a step turn as you enter the corner. This scenario is quite common in sprint courses and it’s important to learn the best way to tackle a turn like this.
The key is to pole with your outside ski in Offset as you approach the turn and prepare for the corner. Step Turning and Offset (V1) are similar in that you set the 2 poles down with one ski, then second ski works alone.
When step turning on the flats (which some people call a “Skate Turn”), the double pole push matches the outside ski, meaning the poles set down with the outside ski. In step turning, the outside ski can be used in a strong skate push so long as you aren’t moving too quickly. The inside ski on a step turn does not push; it just gets lifted, then set down facing a new direction.
Timing the double pole push with the outside leg push helps you get a lot more power out of the leg push and will have a dramatic affect on how quickly you move through the corner. The key skills to develop are:
- A habit of looking ahead and spotting this type of corner well ahead of time.
- Offsetting with the pole push matching the outside ski as you enter the corner.
- Smoothly transitioning from Offset into the Step Turn.
- Developing powerful leg pushes, synchronized with the pole push
- Gaining as much speed as possible through the turn.
