Due to the fact that we sink our roots into a snowy mantle, our nature as skiers is to be subjected to corporeal vicissitudes. Our inherent tendency is to glide over the snow rather than leap and remain suspended in the air for an indefinite period of time.
As it is not feasible to maintain a continuous equilibrium, our nature is also characterized by losing it, so at some point, we will fall, irrespective of the manner in which we ski.
Our realistic conception as skiers
All theoretical assumptions regarding skiing are oriented toward our attempt to solve the real problems of our actions in the mountain environment. According to this viewpoint, the organization of our skier’s self would be determined by four fundamental principles.
- The appetitive principle responds to our physiological demands.
- The principle of determination of the skier’s self manifests itself in the need we have to resist situations that tend to annul our individuality. From the beginner’s stage, we discover that there is a physical and social environment that imposes a series of demands on our own being. We also discover that we possess certain forces inherent to our being that enable us to dominate the environment. However, we also realize that, on many occasions, the only alternative to safeguarding our existence is to submit to these external forces. As a result of this discovery, we become aware of our own free will: we become aware of our freedom and our limitations, and the recognition of this freedom implies an awareness of responsibility. We are responsibly free if our decisions are the product of rational analysis.
- The realization principle of the skier’s self manifests itself to us as a real need to do and achieve something in our skiing reality. It is constituted by the desire to express our individuality through productive and satisfying skiing actions, first effective, then, eventually, efficient.
- To understand the principle of integration of the skier’s self, it is imperative to distinguish between simple action and our progress. It is possible to engage in continuous skiing; however, if our energies are not directed towards achieving clearly defined objectives, our personality may deteriorate.
We are undoubtedly active, but we cannot say that an authentic development of our potentialities has occurred. The progress of our skier’s self requires direction, coherence, and consistency.
If we are virtuous, we will clearly establish our ideals; our ideal-skier’s-self is committed to them, and we must organize our skiing in such a way that our activities culminate in the attainment of what we consider to be good and right. We consider ourselves virtuous if we do what we believe in and if our daily skiing behavior is consistent with our ideal guidelines.
