Hamlyn Guide to Skiing [antikvár]

10 Foreword Skiing has become an immensely popular sport worldwide, and understandably so. It is exciting, invigorating and healthy, it is undertaken for the most part in beautiful natural conditions, and it has the merit of being a sporting activity which an entire family of widely differing ages can enjoy as a holiday together. My family was lucky enough to encounter Martin Heckelman at an important time in our skiing. My wife was giving serious thought to abandoning it after a discouraging accident, and the children were either putting on skis for the first time or working laboriously through the beginner's instructions. I welcome the opportunity of writing this foreword to thank Martin for the many subsequent accident-free holidays we have enjoyed and for making us a family of accomplished skiers. I hope also to encourage others to read his book and follow his methods so that they, too, may have the pleasure of skiing with confidence, safety and delight in all conditions. Martin's secret has been to analyse the fundamentals that go into the basic parallel ski turn and then to evolve a course of instruction which imparts to the pupil these essentials so naturally that he or she absorbs them almost imperceptibly and thus emerges remarkably quickly as an accomplished skier. At times I must admit that I have found some of the contributing exercises seemingly misplaced, if not comical. 'What could be the point of doing this?', I have asked myself-only to find a fault subsequendy cured or unexpected progress made. It is subsequent realization of the link between the two that has alerted me to Martin's special achievement: working out that link, analysing why it should operate and understanding how it can be imparted to the pupil. The correct basic position, control and style follow in painless sequence in the teaching system that Martin calls the 'International Parallel Technique' for beginners, and the 'Tea-for-two Ski Dance' for all others (you see what I mean by comic and seemingly pointless exercises?), but from them come quickly and naturally the effortless and stylish skill which marks the accomplished skier. If you wish to acquire this expertise and confidence, to enjoy the instruction on the way and to penetrate the simple mysteries of this thrilling sport, I can only recommend that you read on! Robin Leigh-Pemberton Governor of the Bank of England