Wedge Christie
You'll feel true parallel skiing click for the first time, cutting your snowplow dependency in half each day on the mountain.
The bridge between snowplow and parallel skiing — initiating turns with a wedge and bringing the skis parallel as the turn completes.
Watch & Learn
Not clicking? Try a different teaching style below:
Key Moments
Open the wedge to start the turn, close into parallel to finish it
Match the skis at the end of the fall-line phase, not at the top
More speed makes it easier — you need momentum to step the inside ski across
Each run try to open a smaller wedge — shrink it toward parallel
What It Should Feel Like
- ✓Opening into wedge feels like hitting pause — then closing the skis sets you free
- ✓The parallel phase at the end of each turn should feel light and fast
- ✓Like you're borrowing from parallel skiing and paying it back with the wedge
Common Mistakes & Fixes
Trying to close the skis at the top of the turn
Wait until you're across the fall line and the turn is mostly done before matching
Not actually opening the wedge wide enough
Exaggerate the opening first — big wedge, then close — shrink it later
Losing speed trying to be careful
Speed is your friend here — a gentle blue run works better than a flat green
Practice Drills
Open-close rhythm: ski the slope just thinking 'open, close, open, close' — say it out loud as you turn
One-turn focus: make one perfect wedge-christie, stop, think about it, then make the next — quality over quantity
The shrink game: each run down, consciously make the wedge opening smaller — try to wedge less than the run before