
Title : Everything the Instructors Never Told You About Mogul Skiing
Author : Dan Dipiro
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Best and probably only book on bump skiing
I've taken many bump lessons, and have attended weekend mogul camps, and they have ranged from being taught 'mogul survival', which is not what I need, to spending a weekend with great mogul skiers, who point out a mistake or two that your making, and usually teach with the 'watch me' approach.
Dan's book breaks down bump skiing in clear consice terms. He breaks the bumps down to several basic skills, and provides drills, to help them sink in. After my first read, I concentrated on the 'Home posture' and 'rotary turn' drills, and found that I was going into the mogul field in a crouched stance and would end up launching off of the 4th or 5th bump. The rotary drills got my lower body moving more seperate from the upper. After weekend one, I was putting together runs of 10 bumps before being spit out.
Reread for Weekend two and focused working on 'Absorption and Extention'; my biggest problem. Started with the drills, which were tricky at first, since your concentrating so hard, but I started getting a better feel after the first day. Second day, they opened WildFire (killington) which had snow blown all night and was moguls top to bottom. Continued working on pulling the first three skills together, and added some better line choices. (No hops yet;) My last two runs were top to bottom with only a single stop to let my heart rate drop below 170. These were my first full bump runs, where I was the guy blowing by the people struggling on the hill, rather than being one of them.
To benefit from the book, you need to be a solid intermediate skier who skis single black diamonds; can hold a parallel with their boots together on a groomed slope; and can make it through a mogul field. (with some trepidation and fear, but still make it.) You can benefit greatly from the book. If your an advanced skier (The term 'expert' I reserve for folks who can ski bumps, ice, steeps, crud, and powder) and like me can handle most anything except the bumps, this is perfect for you.
My skiing buddy (my wife), is blown away at the transformation, and skies ahead so she can watch my runs. So, Yes this book can make you more attractive to members of the opposite sex. ;) Thanks Dan!

Title : The Athletic Skier
Author : Warren Witherell
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Learning to ski
What can I say that the book doesn't already say. A great book for beginning to intermediate skiers. Including several sections covering your equipment and proper fitting techniques.

Title : Anyone Can Be an Expert Skier 2: Powder, Bumps, and Carving (Includes Bonus DVD)
Author : Harald Harb
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Skiing with simple energy efficient movements
Book 2 picks up where book 1 left off and concentrates on refining the phantom move and teaches the foundation for skiing on the rest of the mountain (black runs, bumps, crud and powder) using simple energy efficient movements.
The author explains skiing in a straight forward manner and gives you many easy to understand drills that build the foundation for all moutain skiing. The written descriptions are accompanied by step-by-step pictures that show how to do each drill. This is an "action" book. You read the material and then practice what you have learned (there are even tear out cards you bring to the slopes to help remind you of the different drills).
The accompanying DVD is a terrific supplement to the written material but it doesn't replace the book. Think of the book as the instructor and the dvd as the ever faithful assistant putting on a demonstration.
I'm not sure why some of the other reviewers don't like this particular system...all I can say is that it has worked well for our family.

Title : Mountain Dreamers: Visionaries of Sierra Nevada Skiing
Author : Robert Frohlich
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Mountain Dreamers: Visionaires of Sierra Nevada Skiing
Fabulous pictures and fascinating information about the people who made skiing in the Sierra possible. You don't have to be a skier to enjoy this book!

Title : All-Mountain Skier : The Way to Expert Skiing
Author : R. Mark Elling
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : All-Mountain Skier
I've bought three books about skiing recently and this is the best. I'm an aspiring expert skier. This book is really helping me reach my goals. The book has a chapter each on the repertoire of fundamental skills like stance, steering, outside ski dominance, edging, pressure control, etc. The book would great for that alone. But the book in later chapters explains how to use these tools to carve, ski powder, crud, bumps, steeps and trees. I'm reading this book again and again. It's the bible for people wanting to be and expert skier.
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Title : Trail Atlas of Michigan: Mountain Biking, Hiking, Cross-Country Skiing, and Nature Trails.
Author : Dennis Hansen
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : I wish there was a book like this for every state!
This is an excellent book for anyone who lives in Michigan. We've used it for hiking and cross country skiing, and it provides excellent accurate information.

Title : All-Mountain Skier : The Way to Expert Skiing
Author : R. Mark Elling
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Great for Serious Skiers
This book is detailed and comprehensible. Just right for someone seeking to move up intermediate to higher challenges.
Warning: If you are not deeply serious about skiing this book may have too much detail for you. For example, proper boot fitting gets pages, not paragraphs.
Many of the drills proposed imply steady access to slopes and the time and discipline to spend hours working on improvement.
There are useful ideas for those of us who ski a few times a year and hope to improve somewhat, but we must treat the book like a reference-- look up what you need to work on and do that for one trip.
Still, a great book.

Title : Free-Heel Skiing: Telemark and Parallel Techniques for All Conditions (Mountaineers Outdoor Expert Series)
Author : Paul Parker
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Truly a bible of free heel skiing
Great book that all free heel skiers should read. Eye opener is that "Telemark" is just a turn - free heel skiing is hell of a lot more. Good reasoning why you should do the tele the way Mr Parker is proposing. This book changed my free heel skiing for good.

Title : Snowboarding: A Woman's Guide (Ragged Mountain Press Woman's Guide)
Author : Julia Carlson
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Not Only for Women
As the author of a site dedicated to "grays on trays" (older folks learning how to ride), I was eager to read some books on snowboarding. Most books on the subject (like most magazines and web sites) are written with the juvenile reader in mind. This book is not one of them, and the "gray" reader can be grateful for that.
The brief testimonials or stories of women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s helps point out that the sport is not limited to teens and pre-teens.
Sure, there are some "girl power" throwaway lines along the way ("With a file guide, sharpening your edges is about as difficult as shaving your legs"). For the most part, however, the women-specific information is useful for men as well, if only for providing a contrast. For example, Carlson explains how women's feet differ from men, and how that effects the choice of boots. (Not only do women tend to have smaller feet, but the proportions of different parts of the feet differ.)
The book offers plenty of reasons why learning how to ride is worth the effort. It does a good job of explaining the different types of riding (freestyle, freeriding, alpine) and how that should influence the kind of equipment you buy. The index is useful, but there should have been a glossary as well.
I have read this book twice, and Kevin Ryan's "The Illustrated Guide to Snowboarding" only once, but here's my take on comparing the two. Carlson is self-consciously appealing to women, and in general, to adults. Ryan does not, but then, it's not exactly a juvenile book, either. Carlson's book is more about freeriding, carving, and cruising; Ryan spends a fair amount of time talking about freestyle. Ryan also takes much more time with preliminaries, too. If you have a thing for zen, he's your man.
If you're starting out, read Carlson first. Then you may want to read Ryan, but you may not need to.

Title : Anyone Can Be an Expert Skier 2: Powder, Bumps, and Carving (Includes Bonus DVD)
Author : Harald Harb
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Probably the best instructional DVD available
This DVD (book) is great for any intermediate/advanced skier wanting to improve. I think that this DVD is even better than Lito Tejada Flores's DVDs. It is hard to say, I watched Lito's DVD before this.
This is way cheaper and way better than a one hour on the slopes instruction !!! And you can improve off-season just by watching the DVD |:)).

Title : Buford the Little Bighorn
Author : Bill Peet
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A Family Classic
This book was my husband's favorite book in the 60s when he was in elementary school. Now we read it to our children, along with many other Bill Peet books. We love the illustrations, plots and rhymes in Bill Peet's books. Buford is a sweet and innocent mountain goat dealing with a handicapping condition (oversized curling horns) that threatens his safety. Then when he's cornered he discovers a way to use his horns not only to escape the hunters, but to ski. And everyone at the ski resort loves him and makes him welcome. If you like this one, try Eli, Cowardly Clyde, and The Wump World.

Title : The Essential Guide to Skiing: 201 Things Every Skier Must Know
Author : Ron LeMaster
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Vital information for new skiers
This book contains a lot of information useful to new skiers. I wish I had it when I started skiing a few years ago. Worth at least the price of a few skiing lessons.

Title : The Complete Snowboarder
Author : Jeff Bennett
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Snowboarding at it purest
I really got alot out of this book, if you want to save yourself a beating on the run's this is for you!

Title : The Story of Modern Skiing
Author : John Fry
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Viva la Sport of Skiing
With ski icon John Fry as author and with a delicious poster art "cover" of spectacular ski slopes, any thoroughbred skier will find this book a gem - a fascinating 50 year chronicle of the development of the sport- its ups and downs and inside scoops. You'll feel nostalgic as you read this detailed account and thank John Fry who gives us such a unique, well researched and educated schuss down memory lane. A must for your library!
Sandra Heath
Stowe, Vermont

Title : Backcountry Skiing Adventures: Vermont and New York: Classic Ski and Snowboard Tours in Vermont and New York
Author : David Goodman
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : An absolutely user friendly outdoor guide
A superbly presented compendium of two dozen classic ski and snowboard tours throughout the states of Vermont and New York, David Goodman's Backcountry Skiing Adventures offers the best routes, equipment and backcountry riding tips; topographic maps and photos for each tour; information on avalanche awareness, winter camping, gear, safety, and first aid. This absolutely user friendly outdoor guide is a "must" for anyone planning a skiing or snowboarding excursion in Vermont or New York. Also very highly recommended is the other title in this outstanding Appalachian Mountain Club "Backcountry Skiing Adventures" series: Classic Ski and Snowboard Tours in Maine and New Hampshire.