I often go downhill skiing (aka alpine skiing) in Colorado. In fact I just got new skis and bindings.
Wow that sounds exciting, I've never done skiing before. Is the equipment expensive?
Alpine skiing equipment is a little expensive but the bigger cost is lift tickets. Because alpine skis don't have free-heel bindings like cross-country skis, you can't easily move uphill with them and a chairlift is necessary.
Oh I wouldn't like sitting on those chair lifts, I don't do well with heights. Is the goal of alpine skiing basically to just get to the bottom as fast as possible?
Norheim first began the trend of skis with curved sides, bindings with stiff heel bands made of willow, and the slalom turn style. Sondre Norheim was the champion of the first downhill skiing competition, reportedly held in Oslo, Norway in 1868. Two to three decades later, the sport spread to the rest of Europe and the U.S. The first slalom ski competition occurred in Mürren, Switzerland in 1922.
Technique.
A skier following the fall line will reach the maximum possible speed for that slope. A skier with
skiing uses a specialized type of equipment. Generally, Telemark skiers use flexible Alpine skis with specially designed bindings that fix only the toe of the ski boot to the ski, thereby creating the "free heel". Oftentimes the heel is attached to the front of the binding by a hinged cable, which holds the ski boot firmly in the binding. These bindings are often non-releasable.
Telemark racing.
Originally made popular as a mode of backcountry transportation, Telemark skiing is now a World Cup sport focused on