Skis lock up
When the skis hold on at the end of the turn and will not let go, it is the back seat or the ski. Sitting back loads the tails so they keep carving, and a stiff or flat tail does the same from a good stance.
quads working · shin muscles working
Muscle load
Low, can hold all dayMidHighPeakTick: average through the turn
Tail at the finish
14%
The fix: 6%
Tip at the finish
4%
The fix: 11%
Showing: Your stance. 55% back.
Shown for the default skier: 92 kg on the K2 Mindbender 89 Ti at the finish of the turn, 3 mm of boot play, groomed snow.
At the end of a turn you want the ski to let go so you can start the next one. If the tail stays locked into the arc, the ski holds you in the old turn and the transition feels hard, as if the ski has a grip it will not release.
Two things cause most of it. One is you: if your hips are behind your feet at the finish, the tails are loaded and keep carving. The other is the ski: a stiff tail, or one with a flat tail and little rocker, keeps its edge in the snow even when you stand well.
You will see this described as hooky, grabby, locked in or a death grip. These are reviewers' words for a ski that holds on. Some skis are made to hold a turn, and they ask more of you at the finish.
Look at your stance at the finish of a turn. If your hips are behind your feet, the model says to sort that first. If you are centred and the ski still locks, look at the ski. The figure above shows the two stances so you can compare.
Film a run from the side, a few metres away, and pause it at the end of three turns. In each frame, draw a line straight down from your hip. If it lands behind your heel, you are in the back seat at the finish. If it lands over your boot and the tails still hold, note which snow it happened on, because a ski that locks on soft snow and releases on groomed is telling you something different from one that locks everywhere.
Some skis come with a sharp tune at the tips and tails. A shop can detune the contact points, and that makes a ski release more easily. Mount point matters as well. A mount further back gives the tail more leverage, and further forward gives it less.
The model’s first match for this symptom is you're sitting back (44% of the evidence). Here is what else it ranks, and how to tell each one apart.
Even from a good stance, a stiff or flat tail keeps carving at the finish, so the ski holds you in the old turn.
How to tell: You are centred on video and it still locks. A stiff or flat tail holds even a good stance.
Model check: From a centred stance the model's quads only average 36%, so a locked finish here points at the ski rather than your stance.
Getting the edge by leaning in rather than angulating loads the ski harder and leaves less grip in reserve.
How to tell: You lean your whole body into the turn, and the lock comes on harder snow.
Model check: Leaning in puts 1.31× body weight on the ski; angulating at the same edge angle drops it to 1.11×.
If you are centred and the ski still locks, the ski is the limit. Compare a ski with a softer or more rockered tail.
Compare skisA ski that locks suddenly can twist you. If you feel knee pain after a hooked edge, see a physio.
Pain or injury? This tool is for how skiing feels, not medical advice. See a physio.
Not medical advice. Edge Lab describes how skiing feels and why.
The model above uses a default skier. Add your weight, skis and boots and see your own numbers.
Check your own setup