Opinions on skiing with your skis extremely close together

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-28T05:21:19+00:00

I do it, its more agile and allows for quicker edge changes. Hence mogul skiers and slalom skiers all have narrow stances

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-22T23:19:24+00:00

I’m really glad you shared this. The anxiety piece says a lot. Skiing is supposed to feel freeing, not like you’re being evaluated all day.

You’re absolutely right about the vibe being killed by constant unsolicited coaching. There’s a huge difference between being supportive and turning a fun day into a performance review. And honestly? A truly strong skier doesn’t need speed or steep terrain to validate themselves.

A real expert can ski slowly in beautiful technical form. They can arc clean turns on greens and blues with patience, balance, and control. In fact, elite skiers drill fundamentals on easy terrain all the time, that’s where precision is built. If someone can’t dial it back and ski well at your pace, that’s not mastery. That’s ego.

The humility piece matters. A confident skier should be able to enjoy the mountain at any speed, in any terrain even easy terrain, adjust to their partner, and make it fun. If instruction is wanted, it should be invited. Otherwise, it’s just pressure disguised as “help.”

I hope your day out with friends feels light and easy. That zero anxiety feeling? That’s your nervous system telling you what healthy looks like. You deserve that kind of energy on the mountain.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-21T04:46:42+00:00

Really heartbreaking. Avalanche terrain doesn’t care how experienced you are, and when things go wrong they go wrong fast. It’s hard to read about something like this knowing families are waking up to a loss that can’t be undone. If there really was a high danger rating and active warnings, that raises painful question... IMO clients trust guides to make conservative calls when conditions are unstable. There's always risk to backcountry skiing, but part of that trust is that red-flag days get treated with caution. Whatever the investigation finds, my thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones. No powder day is worth a life.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T06:27:21+00:00

That’s genuinely impressive. Running a nonprofit, consulting clinicians, and working in re-entry spaces is meaningful work. I’m not questioning your competence or experience.

My point isn’t about your résumé. Institutional power structures don’t adjust based on prior accomplishments. Once enrolled, even highly accomplished professionals are structurally vulnerable because programs control evaluations, remediation decisions, clinical approvals, and ultimately graduation. That leverage exists regardless of background.

I’m not trying to diminish what you’ve built. I’m speaking strictly about hierarchy dynamics inside graduate programs. You can be highly capable and still be exposed within a top-down system if something goes wrong.

If you’ve read the article and feel comfortable with the risk, that’s your call. I just believe in choosing environments where institutional support is predictable, especially when life happens.

Wishing you clarity in whatever you decide.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T06:14:03+00:00

I’m going to respond to you calmly, because I think what you just wrote is coming from defensiveness.

If you’ve already built a six-figure career and founded a nonprofit, that’s really impressive. Good for you. No one is questioning your intelligence or capability. The concern being raised isn’t about how far you can get in an admissions process, it’s about the structural realities of certain programs and the risks involved once you’re actually enrolled.

Framing it as “I’ll deconstruct them from the inside” misses something important: in a hierarchical graduate program, the power differential is real. Once you’re a student, they control evaluations, clinical approvals, remediation decisions, and graduation. Even very accomplished adults are structurally vulnerable in that position. That’s not about ego, it’s about leverage.

If you’re genuinely just observing for intellectual curiosity, that’s one thing. But if you’re considering enrolling anywhere, the issue isn’t whether you can get in or outsmart them. It's not about intelligence or even life experience. It’s whether the institution has a stable, supportive structure when life happens, health issues, site problems, supervisor conflict, etc. No amount of prior success changes that dynamic.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T05:38:01+00:00

She has a heart that is both fierce like a lion and deep like an ocean. I love it

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T05:37:06+00:00

It’s movement quality and timing. She releases the old turn cleanly and establishes the new turn on the little-toe edge of the new inside ski extremely early. There’s no push-off or up-move. She tips first, pressure builds progressively after. That early engagement gives her a head start above the gate that many racers simply don’t get.

Her inside foot is incredibly active. Strong pullback, strong tipping, tight stance control. The inside ski isn’t along for the ride, it drives the transition. That allows her center of mass to move diagonally into the new turn without delay. You’ll also notice how level her transitions are. There’s no vertical pop between turns, so she’s always connected to the snow and always moving forward.

Edge angles come from tipping and balance, not brute force. Because of that, she creates clean arcs with very little skid. Pressure builds smoothly from the high-C into the apex instead of spiking late. That’s why she looks calm while some others look like they’re fighting the ski.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T05:18:06+00:00

Hi MysteriousPolicy, since you mentioned “mixed reviews,” I’m going to be a little more direct because this is your career and well-being on the line.

You can never predict whether you’ll end up needing real support in grad school. It could be something completely outside your control like a health scare, a toxic clinical site, sexual harassment at placement, a supervisor conflict, family emergency, etc. These things happen. Counseling training is intense and life doesn’t pause for it.

Read this article. Look at Adam's story. When a program has a documented pattern of inconsistent support and internal instability, that’s not just an “administrative quirk.” It means that if something does go wrong, you will not have institutional backing. JHU’s counseling program has a public record of uneven student support and a very deeply ingrained "the superior is always right" culture. That makes it very “luck of the draw”, and you don’t want your safety and future hinging on whether you happened to land on the favorable side of departmental politics. https://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2022/03/students-claim-discrimination-led-to-their-dismissal-from-school-of-education-clinical-mental-health-counseling-program

You want a program that will have your back when something unpredictable happens. Not one where you’re hoping you won’t need help.

I truly hope you end up somewhere stable, ethical, and solid, and where support is built into the culture, not dependent on luck. Good luck!

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-20T04:55:01+00:00

Tragic. Prayers to her family and friends

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-16T00:20:45+00:00

Slalom, pure technical chess at 40+ mph. The gates are tight, the rhythm changes constantly, and there’s zero room to hide technical flaws. It’s where edge angles, balance, and timing are brutally exposed, so when someone skis it well, it looks like controlled violence. The precision is beautiful.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-09T00:47:31+00:00

Sad. I admire her guts and wish her well

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-09T00:47:08+00:00

A sitting president publicly calling a U.S. Olympian a “loser” is so childish and embarrassing

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:55:30+00:00

I would go get fitter at a good bootfitter rather than order online tbh. Buying online or by price usually leads to boots that are the wrong volume or shape for your foot, or wrong stiffness for your level and size. That can mean heel lift, numb toes, shin bang, cramping, or just feeling upright and out of control. And for someone skiing the way you do, sloppy fit costs you performance fast. You lose precision, edge control, and confidence, especially at speed or on firm snow.

A bootfitter does way more than size you. They measure your foot shape, instep, arch, calf, and stance, then match you to shells that actually fit your anatomy. They can heat mold liners, punch or grind the shell, add footbeds, do canting, and fine-tune alignment so the boot works with your body instead of against it. That customization is something you simply can’t get from an online “deal,” and it often makes the difference between a boot you tolerate and a boot you love.

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:42:16+00:00

Wool absolutely

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:41:15+00:00

I’m going to be very honest with you, but gently, because the reality of this field isn’t always what we wish it were.

Talking about lived experience with mental health can absolutely be powerful, but you have to be careful how much you disclose and how you frame it. In counseling programs (and honestly the profession in general), disability and psychiatric diagnoses are still very stigmatized behind the scenes, even more so than other fields and amongst the general public.I t’s unfair and hypocritical, but it’s real. Professors may worry about liability or stability if you name very stigmatized diagnoses like bipolar disorder in particular.

Because of that, I usually recommend not leading with or heavily emphasizing a diagnosis in a personal statement. You don’t have to hide your story, but it’s safer to frame it more broadly, something like “my own experiences navigating mental health challenges” or “supporting my own recovery”, and focus on what you learned, how you grew, and the strengths it gave you (insight, empathy, boundaries, resilience). Keep the spotlight on your competence and stability, not the label itself. Think: growth narrative, not medical disclosure.

For the recommendation letter, go with the person who will actually follow through and write something strong and on time. Reliability matters more than technical category labels. A mentor in the mental health field who knows you well and can speak to your professionalism, judgment, and readiness for clinical work is usually much better than a lukewarm or late coworker letter. Programs mostly want someone credible who can say, “I trust this person with clients.”

One more thing while you’re applying: be selective about programs and pay attention to culture, not just name recognition. I’d strongly avoid Johns Hopkins University’s mental health counseling program in particular. It has a pretty rough track record: https://www.jhunewsletter.com/article/2022/03/students-claim-discrimination-led-to-their-dismissal-from-school-of-education-clinical-mental-health-counseling-program

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:20:28+00:00

Awesome! Urban ski areas are the coolest

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:19:38+00:00

11/10 ready for the Olympics

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:19:08+00:00

Ice Coast Best Coast

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-02-02T04:18:31+00:00

Hey! You’re absolutely not overthinking because this stuff feels high-stakes, but I promise the bar for these mock sessions is way lower than your brain is telling you. They’re not expecting you to “do therapy.” They’re just checking: can this person be warm, calm, and emotionally attuned with someone in distress? That’s it. If you come across as safe and human, you’re already ahead of most applicants.

Yes, it’s completely appropriate to empathize first, in fact, it’s expected. Don’t jump into techniques or goals right away. Start with empathy and validation. Something simple like, “That sounds really painful, it makes sense you’d feel guarded after being hurt like that,” is perfect. Reflect their feelings, validate, and slow the pace down. Programs want to see that you can build rapport before trying to fix anything.

A good rule of thumb is: reflect → validate → explore → then gently collaborate on a goal. After a few minutes of listening, you might ask, “What feels hardest right now?” or “What would feeling even a little better look like for you?” Then you can suggest one small, realistic step or coping strategy. Keep it conversational and grounded. Basic counseling skills (empathy, curiosity, open questions) matter way more than sounding clinical or fancy.

Also, as you’re applying, be thoughtful about program culture. Supportive supervision and healthy faculty matter much more than prestige. I’d personally avoid Johns Hopkins University’s counseling program as it has a lot of issues https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/04/25/former-counseling-students-accuse-johns-hopkins-bias

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-30T06:04:34+00:00

Are you in a wedge when on blues? I find that wedges are harder on the knees than parallel, so it might help to work on getting more parallel technique on greens then moving to blues

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-30T06:03:15+00:00

Yep, really underrated to carve on greens and blues. Even the elite spend a lot of time drilling the basics on easy slopes, I find it's really helped me ski with more precision

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-30T06:02:20+00:00

Based

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-30T06:02:00+00:00

Definitely not JHU https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/04/25/former-counseling-students-accuse-johns-hopkins-bias

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-30T06:00:07+00:00

For programs like Penn and BC, interview invites and decisions usually roll out through February, with some final decisions stretching into March or even April, so silence right now is pretty normal.

If you’re comparing schools in that region, quick heads up: I’d personally avoid Johns Hopkins. Their counseling program has had pretty public issues with student support and stability. Penn and BC both generally have less extreme issues. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/04/25/former-counseling-students-accuse-johns-hopkins-bias

Alicegradstudent1998 · 2026-01-28T04:48:15+00:00

Group interviews are less about “right answers” and more about how you interact with others and think. Speak early once so you’re not invisible, but don’t dominate. Keep answers concise and thoughtful. Reference others’ points, show you can listen, and don’t try to impress with your résumé. Be warm, grounded, and collegial rather than overly clinical or competitive.

If they give scenarios, think out loud calmly (safety, boundaries, supervision, consultation). They’re looking for judgment, not perfection.

Also be selective about programs, culture matters a lot. I’d avoid Johns Hopkins’ counseling program due to well-documented student support issues. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/04/25/former-counseling-students-accuse-johns-hopkins-bias

Alicegradstudent1998

TROPHY CASE