Dolphin Turns – The Hows and the Whys

Dolphin turns are a great movement pattern for advanced to expert skiers who want to improve their performance in the bumps.  What dolphin turns provide is ability to manipulate fore/aft pressure along the length of the skis, ski snow contact at transition, and an ideal body movement pattern for flying through the air.

I like to think about the general movement pattern for dolphin turns as a reverse bicycle pedal, and this is typically how you will see them introduced.  Using one foot, you would slide one ski forward while picking up the tip and pushing down on the tail.  Now pull the knee toward the body, and ski off of the ground.  With knee picked up, push the tip of the ski into the snow by pulling the foot back under or behind the body using a flexion of the knee.  This is the movement pattern you will want to perform with both skis at the transition of the turns.  Practice moving your feet through this circular movement pattern several times on each side.

The next step is to try both skis at a stand still.  Using the poles for support is great when practicing this exercise.  Kick the feet forward from the body or center of mass.  This will lever you on the tails of the skis and allow the tips to shoot off of the snow.  Now flex the knees up to the chest to get the retraction and bring the skis off of the snow.  You can apply some of your weight to the poles since you do not have the dynamics of the turn to give you the additional pop needed.   If done correctly the flex of the knees will set the skis up to land on the tips or forward of the binding on the skis.  Do not worry about the height of the skis for this drill, but aim for accurate movements.

The next step is to try this in a traverse.  You do not need to change edges.  Just practice the same movement pattern as above several times going across the hill.  Make sure to try this on both sides.

The next and final step is adding this at the transition of your turns.  Again, don’t worry about the amplitude of the movement pattern, just worry about the accuracy.  Another focus should be to complete your turn.  This will give you additional magnitude (turn forces).  You want this magnitude because you are going to use this along with levering back onto the ski to pop the skis off of the snow.  When the skis come off of the snow, you should change edges in the air and dive the tips back into the snow using a flexion of the knee joint.  Diving and landing on the tips softens the landing and allows the skis to hook up and engage the snow rather nicely.

Be careful not to over cook the landing to much.   I have had a few jumps off of moguls where the tips were vertical on landing and my body continued forward over the handle bars!   Since this is usually directed down the hill you are falling that extra distance.   Trust me,  you only do this a couple of times, because it does hurt!

This movement pattern feels great, and really mimics getting air born!  It is a great movement to get you forward when you want that optional air off of a jump, roller, or mogul.  It also helps with mogul skiing by giving you the movement pattern to keep your skis perpendicular to the snow surface most of the time.  Adding dolphin turns to your repertoire will add a degree of fun and versatility to your skiing that will keep your skiing fun and playful!

It took me several months of focused effort to get this movement pattern down, so be patient, keep practicing, and have fun with it!