After passing the indoor ski slope in northern NJ so many times I was just wondering if that may be an option before (if) next season starts. I was thinking it would be better to have one built on an existing hill to make logistics easier unlike the one in NJ that is built on flat ground.
now I see Fairfax county has a potential plan for one of the longest indoor ski slopes in the world on the old landfill in Lorton.
building a ski hill on a landfill has been done before such as Mt Holly Michigan.
Vermont wrote:
After passing the indoor ski slope in northern NJ so many times I was just wondering if that may be an option before (if) next season starts. I was thinking it would be better to have one built on an existing hill to make logistics easier unlike the one in NJ that is built on flat ground.
now I see Fairfax county has a potential plan for one of the longest indoor ski slopes in the world on the old landfill in Lorton.
building a ski hill on a landfill has been done before such as Mt Holly Michigan.
280 feet of vertical at the Lorton one if/when it gets built: SKI LORTON?! AN INDOOR SKI SLOPE MAY BE COMING TO NORTHERN VIRGINIA
Vermont wrote:
After passing the indoor ski slope in northern NJ so many times I was just wondering if that may be an option before (if) next season starts. I was thinking it would be better to have one built on an existing hill to make logistics easier unlike the one in NJ that is built on flat ground.
now I see Fairfax county has a potential plan for one of the longest indoor ski slopes in the world on the old landfill in Lorton.
building a ski hill on a landfill has been done before such as Mt Holly Michigan.
For BigSNOW at American Dream in NJ, depends on how long it would take you to get bored with a 5-10 min lift ride and a <1 min run. I'd have to look to remember the vertical and slope length. There is space for 3-4 terrain park features. The idea was to have a slope for beginners that was close to lots of people, meaning NYC. Not only for locals but also for international travelers looking to do something unique. American Dream has stuff that makes it as much a theme park as a shopping mall. Same owner as the Mall of America.
The building with the slope being used by BigSNOW was built by the original developer years ago. The lift was installed before that developer stopped work in general. Same concept as the indoor slope in Dubai. There is a plan to build another one in Florida, although that may well be delayed.
wfyurasko wrote:
Vermont wrote:
After passing the indoor ski slope in northern NJ so many times I was just wondering if that may be an option before (if) next season starts. I was thinking it would be better to have one built on an existing hill to make logistics easier unlike the one in NJ that is built on flat ground.
now I see Fairfax county has a potential plan for one of the longest indoor ski slopes in the world on the old landfill in Lorton.
building a ski hill on a landfill has been done before such as Mt Holly Michigan.
280 feet of vertical at the Lorton one if/when it gets built: SKI LORTON?! AN INDOOR SKI SLOPE MAY BE COMING TO NORTHERN VIRGINIA
You are awesome, great write up Wfyurasko!
A few years ago when I found out the old stump dump in Great Falls was for sale knowing it was one of the highest points in Fairfax co I contacted a client/friend and we took a tour of the place we drove to the top with the groundskeeper and the idea was to keep it green like a ski slope on the north side maybe get a local restaurant and have gardens etc, just weeks later it was purchased
marzNC wrote:
Vermont wrote:
After passing the indoor ski slope in northern NJ so many times I was just wondering if that may be an option before (if) next season starts. I was thinking it would be better to have one built on an existing hill to make logistics easier unlike the one in NJ that is built on flat ground.
now I see Fairfax county has a potential plan for one of the longest indoor ski slopes in the world on the old landfill in Lorton.
building a ski hill on a landfill has been done before such as Mt Holly Michigan.
For BigSNOW at American Dream in NJ, depends on how long it would take you to get bored with a 5-10 min lift ride and a <1 min run. I'd have to look to remember the vertical and slope length. There is space for 3-4 terrain park features. The idea was to have a slope for beginners that was close to lots of people, meaning NYC. Not only for locals but also for international travelers looking to do something unique. American Dream has stuff that makes it as much a theme park as a shopping mall. Same owner as the Mall of America.
The building with the slope being used by BigSNOW was built by the original developer years ago. The lift was installed before that developer stopped work in general. Same concept as the indoor slope in Dubai. There is a plan to build another one in Florida, although that may well be delayed.
It would be more for some exercise then for the skiing I am not one to go to a gym but people pay good money for that, get the ski muscles working a little etc and of course this is only if no other options after not skiing for a while.
Vermont wrote:
It would be more for some exercise then for the skiing I am not one to go to a gym but people pay good money for that, get the ski muscles working a little etc and of course this is only if no other options after not skiing for a while.
For exercising ski-related muscles, the indoor rolling carpet at Inside Ski in Leesville would be much more of a workout. In a 1-hour session, the time on carpet is broken up in to 10-min segments. Takes more effort than you might think at first. Consider how often you ski non-stop for 10 min, meaning while making turns all the time. Once retail is allowed to open, very easy for Inside Ski to maintain social distancing.
I have friends who were doing weekly lessons at Inside Ski as a small group last summer. Not only exercise but also improved their technique. Instructor was a PSIA Level 3 at Liberty. They also work with the instructor on snow there during the season.
Vermont wrote:
It would be more for some exercise then for the skiing I am not one to go to a gym but people pay good money for that, get the ski muscles working a little etc and of course this is only if no other options after not skiing for a while.
For exercising ski-related muscles, the indoor rolling carpet at Inside Ski in Leesville would be much more of a workout. In a 1-hour session, the time on carpet is broken up in to 10-min segments. Takes more effort than you might think at first. Consider how often you ski non-stop for 10 min, meaning while making turns all the time. Once retail is allowed to open, very easy for Inside Ski to maintain social distancing.
I have friends who were doing weekly lessons at Inside Ski as a small group last summer. Not only exercise but also improved their technique. Instructor iwas PSIA Level 3 at Liberty. They also work with the instructor on snow there during the season.
marzNC wrote:
Vermont wrote:
It would be more for some exercise then for the skiing I am not one to go to a gym but people pay good money for that, get the ski muscles working a little etc and of course this is only if no other options after not skiing for a while.
For exercising ski-related muscles, the indoor rolling carpet at Inside Ski in Leesville would be much more of a workout. In a 1-hour session, the time on carpet is broken up in to 10-min segments. Takes more effort than you might think at first. Consider how often you ski non-stop for 10 min, meaning while making turns all the time. Once retail is allowed to open, very easy for Inside Ski to maintain social distancing.
I have friends who were doing weekly lessons at Inside Ski as a small group last summer. Not only exercise but also improved their technique. Instructor is PSIA Level 3 at Liberty. They also work with the instructor on snow there during the season.
Cool I just found out about that place, makes sense and smooth on the joints, thanks!
Vermont wrote:
Cool I just found out about that place, makes sense and smooth on the joints, thanks!
The folks at Inside Ski are really good. When I was at the Pro-Fit swap last fall, there was a young man who works there and uses it all the time. He could stay on the carpet for 30+ minutes at a time. Skis or snowboard.
I did a 1-hr private soon after the installation as a perk for the fundraiser to help with installation costs. You use your own boots but their skis. Skis are shorter than on the slopes, especially when learning. The carpet is very hard on bases, so wouldn't want to use your own skis in any case. By the second 10-min period, I was almost making parallel turns. Got it for during the third and last 10-min period.
Pays to wear long sleeves and long pants. Likelihood of falling at least once the first time is pretty high.
Have you ever looked at video of the outdoor plastic slope at Liberty Univ.?
marzNC wrote:
Vermont wrote:
Cool I just found out about that place, makes sense and smooth on the joints, thanks!
The folks at Inside Ski are really good. When I was at the Pro-Fit swap last fall, there was a young man who works there and uses it all the time. He could stay on the carpet for 30+ minutes at a time. Skis or snowboard.
I did a 1-hr private soon after the installation as a perk for the fundraiser to help with installation costs. You use your own boots but their skis. Skis are shorter than on the slopes, especially when learning. The carpet is very hard on bases, so wouldn't want to use your own skis in any case. By the second 10-min period, I was almost making parallel turns. Got it for during the third and last 10-min period.
Pays to wear long sleeves and long pants. Likelihood of falling at least once the first time is pretty high.
Have you ever looked at video of the outdoor plastic slope at Liberty Univ.?
Thanks again! That sounds great , I like that you wear your own boots.
I found out about the Liberty slope also but have not looked at video yet but I will soon .
years ago I tried the grass skiing at Bryce it was pretty cool.
a looong time ago friends and I trained on roller blades we used to go down rt 214 from Hunter to Phoenicia a 10 mile run that went down hill at a not so steep pace, we also did a steeper run from Windam down to Cairo.
when the ski season started my friend another instructor and I were on the chairlift at Hunter for 1st run of the season, we see Tony another coach who we talked into training on roller blades, well we look down theirs Tony on his way down he looks up seeing us he yelled out my last name and said "I can't F ing turn "! a couple times my friend and I looked at each other like whoa because Tony was a strong skier.
our skis felt like big 2 by 4's it was a bit hard to turn at 1st after being on roller blades so long.
I think the carpet skiing etc will be closer to real skiing to train on
Vermont wrote:
marzNC wrote:
Have you ever looked at video of the outdoor plastic slope at Liberty Univ.?
Thanks again! That sounds great , I like that you wear your own boots.
I found out about the Liberty slope also but have not looked at video yet but I will soon .
years ago I tried the grass skiing at Bryce it was pretty cool.
a looong time ago friends and I trained on roller blades we used to go down rt 214 from Hunter to Phoenicia a 10 mile run that went down hill at a not so steep pace, we also did a steeper run from Windam down to Cairo.
when the ski season started my friend another instructor and I were on the chairlift at Hunter for 1st run of the season, we see Tony another coach who we talked into training on roller blades, well we look down theirs Tony on his way down he looks up seeing us he yelled out my last name and said "I can't F ing turn "! a couple times my friend and I looked at each other like whoa because Tony was a strong skier.
our skis felt like big 2 by 4's it was a bit hard to turn at 1st after being on roller blades so long.
I think the carpet skiing etc will be closer to real skiing to train on
Yeah, always made more sense to me that ice skates are better than roller blades. Never was that good at ice skating, but found that once I knew how to handle edges on skis better then it was easier to be on skates. Used to try to take a kid ice skating locally before their first experience on skis. Usually they hadn't skated before either. How quickly they picked up skating was usually a good indication of how quickly they were take to skiing after the first day of ski school.
I checked out Liberty with my daughter and a friend one July. The surface was much more fun for tubing than skiing. Might be different for someone who is interested in working on tricks in a terrain park.
I stopped by Powder Ridge in CT when they had the plastic slope set up. (Was on the way to Boston and stayed close by the night before.) The SSD happened to be there that morning so I got to watch him make fast carved race turns. A lot faster surface than the Liberty Snowflex. But the magic carpet access took practically 10 min for perhaps a 20 sec run. They had Nevaplast. Same stuff that's up high in Copehagen. That slope is more than 1200 ft long.
https://vimeo.com/375910462
Do you happen to know why Bryce gave up on grass skiing? I remember skiing a few very short videos.
I live about 75 minutes from the Liberty snoflex area. I was interested in checking it out the first few years but I never did so and my desire to go there has waned...in the end it just seems to be not that exciting unless you are into terrain parks. I guess you would also want to use the area's rental skis - I hear the surface is not great for your bases.
wgo wrote:
I live about 75 minutes from the Liberty snoflex area. I was interested in checking it out the first few years but I never did so and my desire to go there has waned...in the end it just seems to be not that exciting unless you are into terrain parks. I guess you would also want to use the area's rental skis - I hear the surface is not great for your bases.
Yep, the plastic carpet really chews up bases. And if you fall, you can end up on the damp side since the plastic is being sprayed with water from little jets all the time. When it's hot outside, that's not that big a deal though.
As I remember, we had to use not only Liberty skis, but also boots. The reason for that turned out to be that the staff who give out the gear have no clue. They have a cheat sheet with a code number on a pair of boots that matches when they are supposed to do to set up the binding length to fit. So no way to get the rental ski bindings setup for a personal pair of boots. The first setup I got was completely wrong for one boot. The binding was perhaps an inch too long. Perhaps it's different during the winter, but that's what happened duirng the summer.
If I lived within an hour of Inside Ski or Liberty, I would pick the indoor rolling carper over the outdoor plastic slope for the off season based on my experience. A few sessions at Inside Ski is not only good for the ski related muscles, it requires the rent sort of mental concentration. Wouldn't necessarily go during the summer. More likely in Sept or Oct, which is when I start ski conditioning exercises in a more organized fashion.
Inside Ski is located in Leesburg, VA. It is located inside ProFit Ski shop, same owner, Brian and Nancy D. Both are wonderful, Brian D. is also a master boot-fitter, a reputable and well-respected one in DC metro area.
I started taking lessons w/ PSIA level 3 instructor at Inside Ski 2 years ago. 1st year I bought 8-lesson package. I did lesson once a month from May to December. First ski trip was to Japan in late December that year, I felt skiing has never "left me" my first day on real snow, no need to re-acquinate myself w/ the sport, I just picked up the skis and go..... feeling comfortable and confident (usually I was more cautious and timiid the 1st day after 8 months absence.)
2nd year - same arrangment, bought 12-lesson pacakge since it offers better value for the money. Lesson package does not expire, you can carry over to subsequent years. I have 4 lessons left on my 12-lesson pacakge, plan to use this year before coming season starts.
For my lessons at Inside ski, usually I worked on one thing each lesson: e.g. "feeling my boot cuffs", see myself in big mirror for instant feedback, how I engange (or should not engage) my shoulder, how to keep upper body discpliined, etc. Good thing about skiing on carpet is, it removes all variables (e.g. snow condition, terrain variance), I get to learn / improve by figuring out how I should feel w/ small movements. I learn better w/ feeling it, for this sport, at least.
I'd highly recommend this place if you want to improve / fine tune your skiing. It is money well spent.
Not sure if they are still offering free 10 minute sesson on carpet skiing or not, you can ask if you are not sure you'd like it or want to commit.
Alternatively, you can book one lesson first. You pay after the lesson ends, then you can decide if you only want to do one lesson or purchase multi-lesson package.
Besides bring your ski boots, need to bring a helmet as well (required). Bike helmet will do, as ski helmet can get hot....
I'd usually do my lessons on Saturday mornings because there is a wonderful farmers market every Sat. in that strip mall parking lot, killing 2 birds with 1 stone.
marzNC wrote:
Vermont wrote:
marzNC wrote:
Have you ever looked at video of the outdoor plastic slope at Liberty Univ.?
Thanks again! That sounds great , I like that you wear your own boots.
I found out about the Liberty slope also but have not looked at video yet but I will soon .
years ago I tried the grass skiing at Bryce it was pretty cool.
a looong time ago friends and I trained on roller blades we used to go down rt 214 from Hunter to Phoenicia a 10 mile run that went down hill at a not so steep pace, we also did a steeper run from Windam down to Cairo.
when the ski season started my friend another instructor and I were on the chairlift at Hunter for 1st run of the season, we see Tony another coach who we talked into training on roller blades, well we look down theirs Tony on his way down he looks up seeing us he yelled out my last name and said "I can't F ing turn "! a couple times my friend and I looked at each other like whoa because Tony was a strong skier.
our skis felt like big 2 by 4's it was a bit hard to turn at 1st after being on roller blades so long.
I think the carpet skiing etc will be closer to real skiing to train on
Yeah, always made more sense to me that ice skates are better than roller blades. Never was that good at ice skating, but found that once I knew how to handle edges on skis better then it was easier to be on skates. Used to try to take a kid ice skating locally before their first experience on skis. Usually they hadn't skated before either. How quickly they picked up skating was usually a good indication of how quickly they were take to skiing after the first day of ski school.
I checked out Liberty with my daughter and a friend one July. The surface was much more fun for tubing than skiing. Might be different for someone who is interested in working on tricks in a terrain park.
I stopped by Powder Ridge in CT when they had the plastic slope set up. (Was on the way to Boston and stayed close by the night before.) The SSD happened to be there that morning so I got to watch him make fast carved race turns. A lot faster surface than the Liberty Snowflex. But the magic carpet access took practically 10 min for perhaps a 20 sec run. They had Nevaplast. Same stuff that's up high in Copehagen. That slope is more than 1200 ft long.
https://vimeo.com/375910462
Do you happen to know why Bryce gave up on grass skiing? I remember skiing a few very short videos.
Makes sense, when I was 5 we lived across street from a school that flooded the school yard in winter for ice skating, that was my base for learning to ski, it is way better for skiing then blading! and your right ice skaters learn skiing easier
I like the idea of the revolving carpet to learn on as one thing I used to say is having long runs to practice turns uninterrupted bye chairlifts help some people to learn , ie continuous reps of the same thing on consistent surface
I have tried indoor skiing once and it was cool enough to return back later and try again. The resort was called Amnéville-Les-Thermes, I don't know if any of you've been there before. There was a 0.7 km of slopes and 100m long beginner slope. It was a very cool experience, we had a lot of fun with my sister while our children were spending time at the beginner slope. Next year I'm loooking to visit France again to buy apartment in Cannes and I will visit the resort again when I'm there. If you visit France and be in the area you should definitely visit this place.
I've skied a few times at Leesburg and agree it took a while to get to parallel, and even still a challenge to get back to there on next visits.
Check out this video, I can imagine carpet skiing can do a lot more for my skiing if I keep going. This guy is a master at it, and his place is for sale. Get to at least the halfway point of the video and see how beneficial this can be.
Since skating came up here, here is a skate to ski video that shows a lot of drills. I've been doing a lot of these one skate and inside skate drills. Johnny Mosely just released a couple skate/ski videos in the past week too. Sadly, skating season here is a lot longer than skiiing season
Sweet videos! I like the drills on rollerblades, skating up hill etc
my ice skating as a kid 5 to 9 years old prepared me for snow skiing big time
at Snowshoes pschocross race with skiers and snowboarders together since skiers could not use poles it was my skating out of the gate that was key to winning
I look forward to checking out carpet skiing in Leesburg when things get better
what place is for sale that you mentioned? A carpet ski machine?
Vermont wrote:
what place is for sale that you mentioned? A carpet ski machine?
Yes, that whole business in Eninitas, CA (great artsy, hippy, surf, bike town)
It's so easy to see why skaters and hockey players end up being great skiers. That ability to be centered/balanced on one leg turning in either direction at any moment and maintaining balance. No backseat on skates!
camp wrote:
Vermont wrote:
what place is for sale that you mentioned? A carpet ski machine?
Yes, that whole business in Eninitas, CA (great artsy, hippy, surf, bike town)
It's so easy to see why skaters and hockey players end up being great skiers. That ability to be centered/balanced on one leg turning in either direction at any moment and maintaining balance. No backseat on skates!
Yes no doubt about that no backseat skaters!
years ago I worked on Michael Weiss' renovation and watched him skate in between periods of a Caps hockey game, he would have been a monster on the slopes
Here is a much better video. Rollerblade and PSIA have a 4-stage video learning program. This is near the end goal.
A few years ago I took a PSIA western division course called skate to ski at Northstar CA. It consisted of roughly equal parts of Nordic skate skiing on XC trails, downhill skiing on green and easy blue trails using skating gear, and lastly, downhill skiing on one's gear of choice, either alpine or telemark. It's a great way to sharpen the basic skills of centering and balance.
