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Dry-Land Training Drills Balance and stance Good balance and stance provides the ability to perform a skilled movement pattern.  For Alpine skiers, it is very important to improve eye/foot coordination.  Balance is the ability to keep your body in an equilibrium position.  In skiing, this position always changes and requires constant repositioning of the body to get back into balance.  Walking the line (can include a balance beam) Place a 3-meter-long rope on the ground or on the gymnasium floor so that it is straight and tight. Athletes will walk along the rope, stepping in a manner where the shoe is directly over the rope.  Arms may be extended outward for balance. Place a 3-meter-long board, with approximately 5-10 centimeters (cm) width, on the ground or on the gymnasium floor. Walk along the board in a balanced position. On a balance beam 10-20 cm off the floor/ground: Walk along the beam in a balanced position. Relay drills (serving tray) With four athletes on a team, teams will compete against each other in relay drills. Each team will have a tray with four cups of water on the tray. Each team member will run or fast-walk 20 meters out and back, then pass the tray to the next team member.  Each cup must be at least 2/3 full when each athlete finishes; if the cups are not 2/3 full, the athlete will have to go again.  First team with all members successfully crossing the mark wins the race.   Dry-land race course simulation with ski poles On a hill with a gradient of 30 degrees or less, set a 20- gate slalom course or a 15-gate giant slalom course.  Make sure there is a start and a finish line. Athletes will be divided into two teams.  Each athlete will start on the proper command and run through the course with ski poles in their hands.  Each athlete will be timed, and the team with the lowest total time will win.   Hopping the line Using the same three items as utilized in Walking the Line: Athletes will hop over the item once. Athletes will hop over and back. Athletes will repeatedly hop over and back.   Sport Activities Football (Soccer) Tennis Volleyball     Agility and Quickness   Agility and quickness are closely related with coordination, strength, flexibility and balance.  It has been found that strength leads to an increase in the speed of muscle contraction; it has also been shown that there is a correlation between flexibility training and strength training to improve quickness. The ability of the body to change directions quickly and smoothly, while maintaining balance, is very important in ski racing. Agility Ladder Drills Place a ladder on the flat ground. Athletes will fast-walk, stepping one foot in each ladder space. Athletes will run, stepping one foot in each ladder space.   Side Step Drill Athletes face forward and run at an angle to the left or right. Athletes may cross one leg over the other and repeat this exercise while running sideways.   Shuttle Run Drill On a field or in a gym, mark from a starting point 5, 10, 15 and 20 meters. Athletes will run out from the starting point, touch the 5-meter mark, run back and repeat this movement out to each mark and back.   Hopping the line Same exercise as defined above, in Balance and stance.   Stair Walking/Running Designate stairs in a stadium or ice rink that may easily be run up and down. Athletes will first walk up the stairs and walk down (20-25 stairs). Athletes may run up the stairs and then walk or run down. Athletes may run up the stairs and then hop down. This exercise may be repeated 10-12 times.     Endurance   Endurance is the ability to carry out a given amount of work during a prolonged period of time without deterioration in the quality of performance. Endurance is an important facet of athletic performance in skiing simply because actions are repeated over and over.  Athletes should exercise vigorously 20-30 minutes at least two to three times a week. Hill Climbers On a hill with a gradient of 30 degrees or less, mark out 50 meters. Athletes will first fast-walk up to the 50 meter mark and back down. Athletes will then run up the hill and walk back down. Athletes will then run up and down the hill. While running, the athletes should repeat this exercise a minimum of ten times.   Distance Running Run a distance of 3 kilometers. Run a distance of 5 kilometers. Run a distance of 10 kilometers.   Fartlek Training Fartlek Training is an exercise that combines walking, jogging and running for periods of time. As an example, athletes will walk for two minutes, jog for three minutes, run for one minute, jog for one and a half minutes, walk for one minute. This sequence of exercises should be repeated so the entire training session is at least 30 minutes total time.   Mountain Biking and Road Biking also train endurance.     Action/ Reaction In action/reaction movement or training, quick changes of direction or body position are required.  Action/Reaction also incorporates quickness, agility and balance. Red light, green light This is simply a game of stop and go.  Athletes are lined up, facing forward.  The coach instructs the athletes "green light" to go and "red light" to stop.  The successful athlete has the quickest reactions to the command.   Tag games In a specific area, as an example 50 meters by 50 meters, one athlete starts out as "It" and tries to tag one of the other athletes. Whistle drills In whistle games, athletes may be instructed to jog forward, backward or to one side based on the direction given by the coach.  When the coach whistles, the coach will give an arm signal as to the correct direction.  Athletes must watch and jog the entire time.   Start Gate Drills A start gate will be set up and used on either dry land or snow.  Athletes should use ski poles.  On the correct start command, the athlete will quickly move forward out of the start gate and on to the first gate.

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