The Inner Glide: The Tao of Skiing, Snowboarding, and Skwalling »

Patrick Thias Balmain is a professional skier and snowboarder. In 1992, he created the first skwal, introduced the first commercially manufactured model, and established skwal races on the circuit of international competition. A ski, snowboard, and skwal instructor in Courcheval, France, he has trained countless practitioners, instructors, and competitors in Europe, North America, and Japan.

The Inner Glide presents a unique and original practice that will challenge ski enthusiasts, snowboarders, or skwallers, whether experts or beginners, to make the transition from the raw quest for sensation--itself a source of imbalance--to a more subtle and harmonious practice based on internal centering.

Acknowledgments     vii
Introduction     1
The Mechanisms of Gliding and the States of Limitation     18
In Tune with the Surrounding Environment     35
Attuning to Your Body     40
Connecting with the Ground     43
Toward More Effective Use of Your Body     53
From Combat to Harmony     81
The Katas of Skiing     107
The Katas of Snowboarding     115
The Katas of Skwalling     123
The Art of Gliding, the Art of Living     133
Conclusion     143
Bibliography     145
Index     147