Step Turns
You will add an elite skill to your toolkit — the ability to accelerate into a turn instead of just surviving it.
Stepping the uphill ski onto a new edge to actively redirect momentum — an aggressive, race-derived transition that generates speed rather than scrubbing it.
Watch & Learn
Not clicking? Try a different teaching style below:
Key Moments
Lifting and planting the uphill ski in the new direction before weighting it — an active, deliberate commitment
Step, then transfer all your weight onto the new ski immediately — hesitation kills the technique
Plant the new ski already tipped onto its edge — not flat and then angled
Each step should flow into the next with no pause — the rhythm accelerates as you improve
What It Should Feel Like
- ✓Like a speed skater pushing off one blade onto the next — active, not passive
- ✓A satisfying thump as the stepped ski bites into the snow and drives the new arc
- ✓More energy at turn initiation rather than less — the step adds to your momentum
Common Mistakes & Fixes
Stepping and then tipping the ski to edge
Tip the ski before you plant it — edge engagement must happen at the moment of contact
Hesitating with weight on both skis
Commit fully to the new ski the instant it touches down — hold nothing back
Using step turns on too gentle terrain
Step turns reward steeper, harder snow where the active edge set has traction to push from
Practice Drills
Skating warmup: skate along flat terrain before each run — step turns are skating applied to carved arcs, the movement pattern is identical
Single step drill: make one step turn, then ski normally for three turns — repeat down the run to isolate and feel each step clearly
Step and look back: after each step turn, glance back at the snow — a clean edge-on imprint confirms correct angulation at the moment of contact