Anticipation and technical level
Anticipating is a decisive ability to reach high skiing levels. Being harmonious skiers means to anticipate motor responses on the basis of our past experiences.
When observing different skiers, it would seem that experts have sufficient time performing their actions while beginners seem pressed for the urgency or the reaction to act. The ability to accurately anticipate events is an important feature of the expert skier. In the development stage, beginners can use anticipation casually but in advanced levels, it should be applied intentionally to dominate the proposed action.
This ability to anticipate and predict concedes us a crucial time to focus on motion and to prepare efficient actions. The difference in how we make good use of anticipating is in the appropriate processing of the information perceived from the environment (snow types, terrain conditions, spatiotemporal variables, motion speeds, etc.).
Types of anticipation
The different types of anticipation may be classified in the following:
- Extrapolating anticipation: we anticipate variables’ evolution depending on their current and past tendencies (e.g. changes in slope and snow conditions in different runs).
- Adaptive anticipation: by anticipation setting at every turn taking in view past mistakes.
- Projected anticipation: by anticipating stability in conditions variability we will act in such a way in future motions.
- Rational anticipation: refers about having good dominion of the available information and using it to make rational decisions before acting.
- External anticipation: is predicting environmental conditions.
- Internal anticipation: denotes anticipating our own movements’ execution.
Anticipating risks
Here as well the concept of anticipation is essential since to perceive a potential threat we must anticipate risks. Our brain is configured not only to receive information but also to project interpretations and predict future behaviors. At anticipating, we simulate not only possible responses adapted to the situation; but also assess the potential risks we are challenged by.
Spatiotemporal components of anticipating
Skiing anticipation processes are based on space and time components. In particular situations the two components interfere, then, it is time dominating and influencing the effectiveness of anticipating. Effective anticipation depends on its adequate application in space and time.
The temporal component is applied to adjust our actions according to the estimated duration time or the time to contact. For example, we must anticipate the time that will take in making contact with the gate running a slalom course or estimate when our skis will be in contact with the next bump on a mogul field or the landing after a jump.
Besides estimating time, we need to determine the action location, i.e., the spatial component. In the case of running a slalom course, we must calculate the inflexion point of a change of direction by spatially locating the gate to adequate our actions. The same condition happens when we must anticipate the bumps’ spatiality. Both cases refer to as spatial dependence while executing actions.
The importance of information in anticipating
It is difficult to conceive that anticipating can be accomplished without information, either sensory or perceptual, about biomechanical conditions of our own characteristics (consciousness, body schema, and posture), and motion (gravity, inertia, acceleration, and deceleration). This information will help us to anticipate the implementation of future actions.
As the environment varies constantly, stimuli appearance may provoke reactive behaviors. To achieve an active construction of the surroundings’ optimizing actions, we must constantly process different types of information. Besides perceiving it continuously, we consider prior experiences to anticipate actions and inhibit reactions. In the anticipating moment, we must filter irrelevant information since it does not provide useful evidence. Here lies the difference between beginner and expert skiers.
Anticipating and reacting
Anticipating promoting efficient skiing is based on predictions (expert skiers); it does not develop through permanent reactions (beginner skiers). In anticipating there is no space for reacting. We react when our brain does not have enough time to perceive the required sensorial information and cannot thus anticipate the given situation.
In the slopes, we must coordinate our actions in relation to others in space and time, foreseen their actions as well as our own expected effects. When our own or somebody else’s actions are not anticipated, then reaction appears. Inadequate reference recognition being analyzed during anticipation also leads to reaction. Consistent and effective anticipation allows us to decrease reactive situations.
Our actions’ mental representation
Voluntary skiing actions are planned, executed, and stored in our memory through mental representations as well as their anticipatory effects.
According to neurologist Marc Jeannerod, the representation of any action is based on the final body configuration as it emerges at the end of the action. The action goal, instead of the action itself, would be what action represents to us.
This author also argues that the difference between the current state (before the action) and the final state (after the action) isthe ‘action’. One of the differences between beginner and expert skiers is that the first one has to mentally learn to represent his skiing while the second acts directly through perception.
