Ski Stocks (sometimes incorrectly called "poles") are used by
skiersSkiing is a group of sports using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
to improve balance, speed and acceleration. They probably evolved from
walking stickA walking stick is a device used by many people to facilitate balancing whilst walking. It may be used as a defensive or offensive weapon, and may conceal a knife or sword as in a swordstick...
s carried while traveling, and possibly from
spearA spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a sharpened head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be of another material fastened to the shaft, such as obsidian, iron or bronze...
s as well.
In the days before turning techniques had been properly developed, one long pole was normally used on sloping ground. The skier would lean or sit on the pole in order to increase friction with the ground, so slowing or stopping.
In modern skiing one stock is held in each hand, and each stock has a circular "basket" attached close to the lower end to prevent the stock sinking significantly into deep snow.
Ski Stocks (sometimes incorrectly called "poles") are used by
skiersSkiing is a group of sports using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
to improve balance, speed and acceleration. They probably evolved from
walking stickA walking stick is a device used by many people to facilitate balancing whilst walking. It may be used as a defensive or offensive weapon, and may conceal a knife or sword as in a swordstick...
s carried while traveling, and possibly from
spearA spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a sharpened head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be of another material fastened to the shaft, such as obsidian, iron or bronze...
s as well.
In the days before turning techniques had been properly developed, one long pole was normally used on sloping ground. The skier would lean or sit on the pole in order to increase friction with the ground, so slowing or stopping.
In modern skiing one stock is held in each hand, and each stock has a circular "basket" attached close to the lower end to prevent the stock sinking significantly into deep snow. At the upper end of the stock a strap is attached, which is normally slipped over the wrist to improve the grip and to prevent the loss of the stock in the event of a fall. When skiing the
backcountryBackcountry skiing is skiing in a sparsely inhabited rural region over ungroomed and unmarked slopes or pistes, including skiing in unmarked or unpatrolled areas either within the ski resort's boundaries or in the backcountry, frequently amongst trees , usually in pursuit of fresh fallen snow,...
(off piste) in trees, the wrist strap is not normally used, since there is a risk of wrist injury if the pole should catch on an unseen branch or root. You can also ski without stock as some freestyle skiers do.
Cross-country and Alpine ski stocks
When used in
cross-country skiingCross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles. It is popular in many countries with large snowfields, primarily Northern Europe, Canada, Alaska and the upper midwest United States...
, stocks enable the user to gain more speed than by using the
skiA ski is a long, flat device worn on the feet designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now primarily used for recreational and sporting purposes...
s alone, as well as offering improved balance.
Alpine skiersAlpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with nordic skiing, in which skiers use free-heel bindings...
use stock as well. While they serve the same purposes as they do in cross-country, they can also help with the timing of the more advanced ski turns. By making contact with the ground between each turn in a process known as "pole planting", Alpine skiers are given greater stability as they move their mass down the hill, creating more acceleration and a tighter turning radius, but more force can be efficiently channeled down the arms onto the legs to allow for use of hands while skiing.
A ski stock is the correct length for Alpine skiing if, when placed tip to the ground at rest, the skiers elbow forms a
right angleIn geometry and trigonometry, a right angle is an angle of 90 degrees, corresponding to a quarter turn . It can be defined as the angle such that twice that angle amounts to a half turn, or 180°....
. Longer stocks are used for cross-country to enable a longer thrust, the longest ones being used in free-style. Poles used for
ski touringSki touring is a form of backcountry skiing involving travelling over the winter landscape on skis under human power rather than through the use of ski lifts or snow vehicles. It can take place in terrain ranging from perfectly flat to extremely steep...
may be telescopic, so that they may be adjusted to suit snow conditions or the steepness of the slope.
Some racers in the high speed skiing disciplines (Giant Slalom, Super Giant Slalom,
downhillThe downhill is an alpine skiing discipline. The rules for the downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships....
,
speed skiingSpeed skiing is the sport of skiing downhill in a straight line as quickly as possible. It is one of the fastest non-motorized sports on land . The current world record is 251.4 km/h , held by Simone Origone...
) use curved stock that are bent to shape around their bodies while they are in a tuck position, in order to minimize air
dragIn fluid dynamics, drag refers to forces that oppose the relative motion of an object through a fluid . Drag forces act in a direction opposite to the oncoming flow velocity...
.
Early ski stocks were simply sticks, then bamboo (1930's), then steel (1940's and early 1950s). In 1958, Ed Scott invented the aluminum ski stock. Now, Composite Ski stocks are much lighter and stronger than aluminum stocks and account for most of the market share.
Ski jumpingSki jumping is a sport in which skiers go down an "inrun" with a take-off ramp , attempting to fly as far as possible. In addition to the length that skiers jump, judges give points for style. The skis used for ski jumping are wide and long...
and
skiboardingSkiboarding is a winter sport which combines elements of skating, snowboarding, and skiing. Skiboards are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the skiboard with use of a binding. Skiboards can be grouped into two general categories. Skiboards are generally 75-110 centimeters long,...
are the only varieties of skiing in which no stocks are used.
Ski stocks were first used to test the snow you would be skiing over. That way you could get a rough mental picture of what you were skiing over. Now ski stocks should be used as a timing device not for balance.
Stock selection
Ski stocks are an important piece of a skier's equipment. Many skiers benefit from the advantages of more technologically advanced materials. Stocks made of carbon fiber, for instance, are very light and durable.
There are also more convenient alternatives to the traditional wrist strap - for instance "trigger" or "Inter-Loc" system mechanisms that will come off of the skier's wrist in case of a crash.
There is some debate about what styles of stocks should be allowed.
SwedishSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
skier
Gunde SvanGunde Svan is a former Swedish cross country skier and auto racing driver. During his career he won a total of four gold, one silver and one bronze medals at the Winter Olympics...
added more fuel to the debate by introducing the unipole. During summer training, he sat in a
canoeA canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes usually are pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over .In its human-powered form, the canoe is propelled by the use of...
and paddled upstream using two paddles. When he became tired, he switched to just one paddle and found that it was much easier, so he tested skiing using a single long pole. At the 1985 World Championships, he brought his homemade unipole and used it on a training day. Later the same day, the unipole was banned.
Trivia
- In historic times the Finnish
The terms Finns and Finnish people are used in English to mean "a native or inhabitant of Finland". They are also used to refer to the ethnic group historically associated with Finland or Fennoscandia, and they are only used in that sense here....
hunters and warriors used long ski stocks that were also spears - there was a spearhead on the upper end of the stock.