Customer Reviews

Harald Harb's Essentials of Skiing (Includes Free DVD)

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This book is a masterpiece of ski instruction and deserves to be appreciated on many levels.

At the simplest level, the book has drills, which, when practiced, will bring effective movements into your skiing. These movements give much greater control, with less effort.

For a more focused skier, cues are provided for self-coaching, to be sure you are performing the drills accurately. Review of video of your skiing, in slow motion, will disclose any movements, like stemming, steering, and skidding, that are clues that execution of the movements could be improved.

If you already ski well, but want to bump your performance up a few notches, then Harb's conceptual and technical explanations and diagrams can trigger an understanding of how even subtle movements can have a big impact. Each of the essentials has a significant interaction with the other essentials. Greater finesse in performing one essential will enhance the effectiveness of other movements. In its explanations of these reinforcing actions, the book demonstrates its greatest level of insight.

All of the above observations are based on serial readings of the book, dryland and on-snow practice of the drills, video analysis, and PMTS coaching. When the movements are done correctly, the skis just behave better!

Throughout the book, the writing is clear and the pictures and diagrams clarify the text. The included DVD complements the stop-action photos. The book is 202 pages long, not 104 as noted in the listing.

If you are serious about improving your skiing, look no further for a book to aid your development. Some suggestions about how to get the most benefit:

1. read it through cover to cover to get a good understanding of the concepts

2. practice the drills and pay careful attention to the cues that indicate whether you are performing the tasks correctly

3. spend time repeating the drills until you can easily do them accurately

4. verify your performance by analysis of your tracks, video, or a knowledgeable observer or coach, preferably Harb trained

5. alternate between drills and free skiing, but pay attention while free skiing to be sure you incorporate the movement patterns from the drills

6. The PMTS forum is a great place to get answers to both simple and complex questions and to post video for critiquing. Harb himself, as well as PMTS savvy folks, post responses. To find it, use the search terms: pmtsforum

While still technically consistent with the Anyone Can be An Expert Skier volumes I and II, the style of presentation is very different and the explanations and diagrams approach the concepts from a different angle than the earlier books.. Those who have studied volumes I and II in detail will still find new material, like dryland and on-the-snow drills. In short, Essentials is completely complementary to Harb's earlier works.

Updated review 2/12/2009:

Subsequent to the publication of the book/DVD combo, Harb published a 3 DVD set with 2 hours of additional instruction. These DVDs are available only from the harbskisystems web-site at a price of $75 for the set.

The book's DVD serves to make the many stop-action photos in the book dynamic. It provides a flavor for what the movements look like when executed in real life, effectively complementing the written descriptions in the book.

By comparison, the Essentials DVD set is more like taking a private lesson from Harb. Not only are the book's exercises more extensively demonstrated, there are a number of new drills that have been added. Plus, his demonstrations show the progression from stationary practice to incorporation into skiing in different types of terrain. He demonstrates not only the correct movements, but also shows errors that are commonly made--as though you are right there getting feedback from your last run.

The videography is superb, with close-ups showing key details and lots of stop-action shots and overlaying diagrams to highlight the specific movement pattern. Watching the DVD in slow-motion highlights the specific actions and is even better than watching him ski in person, kind of like watching a football game on TV instead of at the stadium. The chapters and exercises are also directly accessible from a menu.

The instructional content of the DVDs, like that of the book, is astoundingly good. Most in-person ski lessons seem to operate on the assumption that just a few selected tips from the instructor's bag of tricks will make all the difference. Harb offers no such illusions. On the other hand, he has laid out a detailed curriculum that in fact can completely change how one skis. With the complementing upper body movements his explication is particularly profound. The paradox is that the upper body appears "quiet," that is nearly motionless, but in reality is vigorously active, supporting the movements of the feet and legs. His explanations and demonstrations make these hidden actions completely evident and learnable. Once they are incorporated into skiing, the skis behave remarkably differently.

In short, the Essentials DVD series greatly amplifies the book/DVD content and makes it even more accessible.

December 4, 2009 Update:

At the moment, copies are in short supply on Amazon. The HarbSkiSystems web store still has them available.

I have all of Harald Harb's books on skiing. I discovered them 5 years ago. I immeditely knew that he was teaching something different. I bought his first two books (anyone can be an expert 1 and 2) and now I have this book. In my opinion, this is the best manual on how to ski ever written. It is a treatise on how to carve and on how to ski effectively and effortlessly in all conditions. The book focuses on 5 fundamental movements in skiing which Harald calls the essentals. Each one is discussed in detail and each chapter contains specific drills that will enable the reader to perform each essential correctly. Because of this, the book is of equal value to both beginners and advanced skiers.

In my opinion, these are the tools that every skier needs and without them improvement in skiing can be hard fought. This is not traditional ski instruction!!

As with any sport or disciplne, practice makes permanent!! This book give you the the movements to practice that all great skiers use. If you have skied for years yet still have a stem in steeper or more difficult terrain, this book will rid you of it forever. If you want to ski like the best skiers and racers, parallel in all terrain, in all snow conditions, buy this book. It will give you the fundamentals to make you as good a skier as you want to be.

I highly reccommend this book!!!

Harald Harb is one of the true innovators in ski instruction worldwide. His first two books "Anyone can be an Expert Skier" 1 and 2 took the ski instruction establishment and droped it on it's head. Essentials is a refinement of the concepts introduced in those books.

Harb breaks the essentials down into the following chapters by skills:

1. Tipping

2. Flexing and Extending

3. Counterbalancing

4. Counteracting

5. Complete uper body

6. Fore/aft balance

The introduction takes you through an overview of his philosophy for how you get to expert skiing and why you need this approach with the new shaped skis. Each chapter on the skills is clear and takes you through an explanation of the goals and a series of drills to get you there. This is a very concise program. The photographs and demos are excellent and give you a clear visual image. Some of the dry land training exercises are extremely helpful. With no snow here in the east, I have been doing the drills in my boots and they immediately triggered connections for me in how and why I should be making those movements.

One thing many skiers do not understand is that when skiing in all conditions and terrain there really is not a technique change. The key is to be able to execute a bomb proof short radius turn. This book is the key to that turn and with it you will unlock the whole mountain and all conditions.

There is an included DVD that is not as in depth as in his previous books but still very helpful and it says that there is more to come on the Harb website.

My background in skiing is long and I do consider myself an expert skier and this book in essence is a manual for me for my own skiing and for my working with my kids and wife. There is nothing else out there that even comes close and the only thing that I can imagine would be better would be atending a Harb ski camp. If you want to improve your skiing no matter what your level then buy this book

This is now one of the best books in my ski library, and I have nearly everything that is currently in print as well as a few things that are no longer in print.

Harald Harb's "Essentials of Skiing" approaches 6 fundamental skill areas which are applicable to all types of skiing: Tipping, Flexing/Extending, Counterbalancing(ie, angulation), counteracting, fore/aft balance and thoughts about the upper body.

A skier at any level can benefit from the insights, mental imagary and drills contained in this book for each of these skill areas. Additionally, there are dryland exercises and other conceptual exercises to help understand and feel what the body is supposed to be doing while skiing.

The pictures and diagrams are all first rate.

One thing I really like about this book is that unlike his previous two books which provided learning progressions towards expert skiing, this book instead provides a toolbox of information and drills to fine tune the skiing of any skier at any level. It focuses individually on the fundamental skills which all skiers use and will help them discover which skills they are deficient in and how to change that fact. The book not only covers what these skills are, but helps you understand the nuances to continually improve your execution of each skill.

Additionally, this book is not biased towards any particular ski method, including Harald Harb's own PMTS system presented in his earlier books(which I also reccomend heartily). Any skier, using any system, can benefit from every word in this book.

But what I really like about this book are all of the many insights and nuances presented about each of these fundamental skills. After you read the chapter on tipping, for example, you will blow the minds of your friends, fellow skiers or ski students with all of your knowledge and insight on how and why we tip our skis to turn. Reading the book I felt like Harald was giving away many of his secret coaching tricks for the price of a book.

The provided DVD is quite a bit shorter than the previous ones, but its also included for free with the book, so who is complaining? More online video content is promised. The video content is primarily a series of demonstrations showing some of the drills which are presented in the book, executed by Harald Harb himself.

In short, this is a great book on how to ski better. All teachers and coaches should own this book. I don't care who you are, if you read this book and practice the drills, your skiing will improve.

Since I started Skiing again at age 63, I have read almost every book on skiing ever written (watched most of the videos too). Simply put-this is the best book on skiing that I have ever read! No fluff-filled with great drills, and super photo montages. Harald Harb is one of the true ski innovators of all time. If you want to take your skiing to a whole new level-this is the best $20 you'll ever spend.

Patprof

Whether you ski 7 days or 100 annually, this is the book for you. Considering what I have spent in group and private lessons at top-of-the-line ski schools this book and his others are a real deal. Plus you can read them again for free unlike ski school. When you feel the powerful improvements in your skiing, you will want to attend the ski clinics offered throughout ski season. I have no financial benefit from pushing the Harb methods, rather I am trying to save anyone who will listen the time, money, and frustration of trying to improve their skiing any other way.

This book and Harld Harbs earlier Books "Anyone Can be an Expert Skier I & II" are more Revolutionary than Georges Joubert and Jean Vaurnet's book "Ski the New French Way" was in the 1960's. They finally abandon Hans Schneider's "Arlberg Technique" which has been the foundation of American Ski teaching since the 1930"s. This book is by far the best explanation and understanding of the Essential Movements of efficient skiing to date. It takes a different approach by breaking skiing down by the movements, isolating and identifying them on one hand and then showing how they integrate with each other on the other hand. This is an advanced book that addresses the movements of efficient carved turn skiing almost exclusively, that one can take and apply to skiing in all conditions. It builds on the foundation of the earlier books by Harald Harb, "Anyone Can Be and Expert Skier I & II". Since I am already familiar with those books it is not clear to me how well "The Essentials of Skiing" will be understood by readers who are not familiar with those earlier books. I would suggest those previous 2 books be read also to get a complete understanding. They also address less advanced skiing, with a progression to advanced skiing and skiing in different conditions.

I couldn't wait to get this book after having read Harald Harb's ACBES 1 & 2. I was hungry for a simpler version of those two books and I think Harb delivered.

At first read, the book is much more reader-friendly than the two ACBES books. It's great that Harb focused on movements of the whole body and not just the foot, as he grossly overanalyzed in the previous two books.

My only major problem with his books in general is that while his system is superior to any other instructional skiing methodology, Harb yet to learn the art of user-friendly explanations rather than getting too academic. But "Essentials" is the closest he's come and it feels good.

The accompanying DVD's production quality isn't as good as the previous discs. It's only about 15 min. and at the end he reveals it's basically a teaser for another set of DVDs he'll release soon. It got into topics like Counterbalancing and flexion so early on. How about basic stance? How about arm position? This is where I was disappointed in the lack of simplicity in this and many other DVDs. If you're going to title your series "Anyone Can Be an Expert Skier" or "Essentials of Skiing," you had better make sure that "Anyone" can understand how to even start the "Essentials!" (Do we have to leave simplicity to Marty Henckleman's old-school videos?)

One thing I wish all ski gurus would keep in mind is that the target market for skiing instruction is people who, yes, want to learn to ski... but first and foremost ski to have FUN. There's a huge opening for instruction that's easy and enjoyable too without being so academic. The closest I've seen to being both thorough and valuable is Harb's colleague Lito Tejada Flores-- who's taken Harb's PMTS and adapted a more Zen-like lesson for the novice skier.

I would recommend "Essentials," though, for anyone (like me) who thought Harb's ACBES books were a bit too academic for such simple, ingenious teaching technique as PMTS.

Well written and easy to understand description of the key movements needed to become a good skier. Includes descriptions of exercises you can do in your living room to help ingrain the right upper body movements to complement edging movements. Also describes many on snow exercises.

Overall, I feel like I understand skiing much better after reading this and can't wait for the upcoming DVD with training for each essential movement.

There is a photo montage in this book that beautifully shows Harald making sample turns (those sample turns are higher performance than you are likely to see any instructors on your hill making BTW). From this one montage Harald is able to show all the movemnts individually as well as how they work together to produce expert skiing. Practicing skiing like this will allow a skier to ski WELL all over the mountain. Harald does not say his method is different merely to sell books, it IS different.

Harald has developed a system that is based on balancing on one ski while using the other leg and ski for tipping, flexing and pulling back. The upper body moves to stay in balance. This can produce both carved and skidded turns while the skier is in balance and connected to the snow. All the movements are precisely described and are very deliberate. Such as "tip the inside ski to its little toe edge". Very easy to understand for those who are not looking for complications ;) .