Keith St. Onge's Corner

Question #1:
Please explain how to do a Toe-turn (Toe back)?  At what point in one's skiing level would you recommend learning the toe-turn.

Question #2:
You got me to the back, now how do I get back to the front?  Explain the two styles of Toe Fronts, (Toe front to your butt, and Toe front Feet-to-Feet).

Keith's Answer to Question #1:

The Toe Turn to the back can be as simple or more easily done than a front to back two foot turn. The key to these tricks like many others relies on being mentally strong! If you’ve experience a front to back before you know as well as I that the first turn is the hardest. You must commit to the turn and believe you can do it. At the same time your thinking you can’t complete the turn. How can we fix this dilemma and brain fart?

One: Of course you have to go into the trick thinking and believing that you can complete this maneuver. 
Two: The more defensive and tense you are will cause a negative point, which leads to a fall. 
Three: Don’t be afraid to fall! “I know that’s hard, but you must not be afraid!” 
Four: Commit to the trick and even if your body position isn’t correct while getting to the back try as hard as you can to fix the problem so you continue to ride the trick away. 
Five: Bring the video camera or have someone you trust in the boat to review your trick. You must know what your body position looks like. 
Six: Have the heart and soul or Sole to get back up and do it again if not successful the first time. 

Many people get confused and scared so be prepared for the trick. Dry land practice is a must along with many toe backs on the shoe skis. After many turns on the shoe skis and on the hard wood floor your confidence will rise! Many of the things I have just explained can help out tremendously but you are the only person that can push yourself along with allowing your foot’n partner to do so as well. At this level in your skiing you must take everything to the next level. 

In many ways the Toe Back was one of the scariest, mental and most physical tricks I’ve ever had to learn! For some reason it played major mind games with me. I think I was only about fifteen when I learned them but I hated them with a passion!  Over several years I’ve seen kids and adults learn this trick with ease!  It just takes some positive mind games in the boat and some pumping up and you’ll be on your way!  My dad has tough me to make every sentence a positive. Instead of saying, “I’m not going to fall!” Tell yourself, “This is going to be a stand up run!” Take “Fall” out of the sentence because that is the negative.  I’m not going to TRY this trick, I’m going to DO this trick!  Try isn’t even in my vocabulary. Little mind games played on yourself like this do make a difference! 

I would say the right time to attempt a toe turn would be when you can do a back to front on your feet, front to back on your feet or on shoes after completing every toe back on your shoe skis. Front toe-holds and back toe-holds on both feet are a must! 

I have my students ride their toe holds front and back while doing exercises. Some of the exercises that I have them complete before doing the toe back would include.

    1.) Moving their hands from side to side without falling. Front and back toe holds
    2.) Touching the top of their head with both hands. (Ballerina)
    3.) Touch the water with their hands in a back toe hold.
    4.) Pull the leg in the strap in as far as they can and stand very tall.
    5.) Also doing the Ballerina in a back toe hold.

These positions will prepare you for anything that may occur. You could possibly end up in a tall position, low position or unbalanced with your hands to the side. Work on these simple techniques before attempting to turn and you should ready to go.

There’s no rush for this trick to be in your repetrwa until you're totally confident. Professional advice and one on one coaching would be a good idea as well.
Let’s get to the Toe-Back now that the mental part of it is done! This is how your body position should feel and look.

Grocery List: Check’m off!
    1.) Relaxed to hold with hands on table just above your belly button. (Think of an invisible table with your torso directly in the middle of it.) 
    2.) Keep your eyes on the horizon with your elbows tight into your sides.
    3.) Your back should be perpendicular to the water.
    4.) Keep your knee in the strap naturally bent or straight.
    5.) Comfortable knee bend with ankle directly under knee.
    6.) Feel your whole foot on the water for ultimate glide.

I like to think of these steps as a grocery list. Start from the top or bottom of your body and check the items off as you go through it.
Make sure you feel comfortable in this body position because if your not then you must go back to the shoe skis. It’s possible that you’re cheating on the shoes and not even realizing it.

In actuality there isn’t much to a Toe-Turn as you would think!  I’ll give you some key guidelines further down. To begin the rotation, your hands must go to the opposite side as your turning too. This will help initiate the turn to the back position. While riding in a toe-hold, slide your hands across the table to start your turn to the back.  Keep your elbows close to your body throughout the turn so your arms aren’t flaring all over the place.  Most people throw their hands across their body and start to pray.  A fast motion with your hands will cause your upper body or shoulders to turn before your hips. DO NOT allow this to happen. This will make you do one of several things. 

Cause:
    1.) Foot skipping out of the water. Cause: (Can lead to a straight leg.) 
    2.) Finishing the turn with your head and shoulders down. Cause: (Head and shoulders down could possibly allow skiing foot to wash underneath you.)
    3.) Catching your foot sideways, which we don’t want at all! 

Looking at these three causes, you must realize that all of these can be a cause and effect! One mistake can cause several others. Was it the Other that nobody realized???  They are not in order by any means but people look at what happened and not what other situation caused the initial problem!  After thinking about #3 and hopefully for your own sake it will make you have a slow and controlled turn!  You can rotate much slower than you actually think! . 

I like to think about and train people to turn with their hands. How I explain this to students is as follows. As your hands start to slide across the invisible table think about stopping them directly over your lap (thigh) and let everything turn as one unit! Unit being your head, shoulders, hips and foot on the water. They must all turn as one and at the same time!

Now your foot will be sliding across the water naturally and you’ll be focusing on the horizon with your eyes. Here is a list of things to remember while sliding to the back position. 

Grocery List: Check’m off! 
    1.) Head and eyes are always up, right???? Make sure of it!
    2.) Tall upper body with a proud chest.
    3.) Arms can come away from body for stabilizing and balance.
    4.) Hands should Not drop below the table.
    5.) You can leave your leg extended in the strap or slightly bent.
    6.) Pull from the hip in the strap should be relaxed or natural. 
    7.) Knee should stay bent with a relaxed ankle.
    8.) Extremely important Not to change body position.

The toe turn can be a basic trick like I said earlier but never lose respect for a trick that possibly comes easily. At times it can bite and usually at the wrong time! I’ve seen many skiers learn this trick with ease and some even able to complete their first one on shoes and their feet. It’s a quick 350 points that can start off a trick run great or end a trick run wonderfully. I personally like to start with the toe turn so I don’t have to rush it in at the end of my run. If your trick run allows you to take your time with 2-3 seconds to spare at the end of your run it’s a for sure final maneuver that will also spark the crowd up! Good luck with the toe turn and if you need any professional help come visit me at Gliding Soles Barefoot Camp!

Keith St.Onge (KSO)

Keith's Answer to Question #2:

If both front and back toe holds were extremely solid then I’d ask you to do a toe turn feet to feet! If you learn the flop around first or complete it several times, the feet to feet toe front will be much more difficult to learn. If you’re having problems with the feet to feet turn then most definitely go to the flop around!

Toe Front Flop Around:

I’ll start with the flop around turn because most people want to get back to the front safely for another attempt on the toe back. After reading about the toe back under exercises in the toe back article, the bending down low position while touching the water will now come in affect. Bend down as low as you can. The leg in the strap will be fully extended and the ski leg will be extremely bent. The only possible thing that can go wrong while coming to the front is your foot catching on the water. Here is how we prevent that from happening.

While being as low as possible you’re going to simply fall over like a tree to the side of the foot your standing on. While doing so you must, MUST take your foot off the water! Also, make sure that your arms are close to your body so nothing catches on the water. If your arm or hand/s catch the water you could possibly hurt your shoulder/s.  As you come to the front prepare for a soft or violent bounce.  You’ll for sure skip a couple times but hang in there because if the handle pops off your foot it’ll only take off a toe or so?!?!  Just kidding.  The handle can pop you painfully in the toe or topside of your foot.  To be quite frank, this comes with the territory!!  That’s why hair doesn’t grow on the top of my foot anymore! Haha.  Don’t worry about it because pain is only weakness leaving your body!  Do your toe up and get set for another toe back.

Toe Front Feet to Feet:

Another psychological buster!!! This trick will make you think your King and then slap you around like a Joker!  If anything, I wish I could just be “Merlin the Magician!!”  Like anything, when this maneuver is done correctly with full commitment it’s the easiest trick in the book!  You hardly even have to think about it and it makes you laugh at it right in the face!  But when you are scared, tight, tense and trembling with fear you find out what the hardest barefooting falls are all about! 

Anyway, I don’t want to scare you, but I speak the truth unless you’re in my boat and I know I can play some mind games with you.  Just ask Al Morrison!  I brain washed this young rascal into doing one of the most spectacular things on the water that I’ve seen today!  We worked on toe front’s feet to feet on shoes for about two to three runs.  His toe back was perfect and I knew if he did exactly what I told him to do on his Footer Extremes he could bring it to his feet and the transition would be flawless!

Here comes Al attempting his first toe back on his feet…..oops, just a little off axis as he gets to the back?  Let’s do another because there were rollers in the course, wink, wink! BANG!  Completes his second toe back attempt! What? What? Is he setting up for a Feet to Feet toe front?  O my god he is!! Keith…(as I talk to myself)…drive straight, check the speed, watch him in the mirror, I’m running out of real estate!!??  I told this young fella that a feet to feet toe turn was easy!  Don’t worry about a thing and do Exactly the same as on the shoe skis! “OK” Al says!  SHAZAM! First attempt ever doing a Feet to Feet toe front and he skis it away clean as a whistle!  Laughing out loud with a smile from ear to ear he’s now laughing at this trick right in the face!  I’m sure Al hasn’t been laughing at this maneuver all of last summer but by golly he has done it and several afterwards!

This is what I’m talking about when it comes down to commitment, perfect position and confidence. You must make sure that every toe turn weather it’s a toe back or toe front is being executed several times in a row along with muscle memory taking over!  Now let me begin this long process of several different techniques that can be used for this beautiful maneuver that when done cleanly everyone in the boat gets goose bumps.

All skiers have there own little secrets for this trick but there’s different strokes for different folks. I have no idea what will be best for you? Are you a Tall Skier, Low Skier with a Major Knee Bend or Just Average? I use these descriptions for three different techniques.

(It’s obvious while using anyone of these techniques described you have to stay over your foot, keep you foot under your knee, make sure your shoulders stay square and have your back perpendicular to the water or forward.)

Low Skier with a Major Knee Bend Skiers

My belief for the most inconsistent style is the “Low Skier with a Major Knee Bend.” Reason being is because you must up weight and then follow that by coming forward over your ski leg. There’s a lot of movement for no reason. Do you up weight while doing a back to front two foot turn? Some may but most don’t if done correctly. If you want to experiment with this style then your position should be as of follows:

    1.) Major knee bend.
    2.) Broken away at the hips more than usual.
    3.) Hip extended out (strap leg).
    4.) Preparing with arms low.
    5.) Possibly shoulders cocked or twisted.
    6.) Good luck because it takes a perfect up weight.

To tell you the truth, I actually do my basic in the low skier position from time to time. You can put your arms to the side while riding backwards and use them to initiate the turn. This could possibly cause you to become off balance as you come to the front. As you up weight it’s important that you don’t catch air, reach forward with your hands and pull extremely hard with the hip that’s being pulled by the strap. Never worry about your foot on the water and how it’s going to slide to the front. For the most part the foot on the water will slide to the front naturally. As you get to the front you must:

    1.) Reach for your toes so you don’t sit down.
    2.) Make sure you don’t have too much of a knee bend because you’ll end up sitting down.
    3.) Pull your hip in as hard as possible. (Hip in the strap)

Since your up-weighting you’ll have a lot of pressure on your foot when coming to the front. That’s why it’s so difficult to land this trick cleanly! Try doing a surface hop in a toe hold. That’s what it could possibly feel like when coming to the front, very hard!

Average Stance Skiers

There isn’t much to the Average Stance. Everything is almost the same besides the up weight. You still have to come forward with your shoulders and stay over your foot. This next technique is the way to go for first time Feet to Feeters!

Tall Skiers:

After studying many tapes over the years and taking plenty of face plants this is the ideal way to go. I’ve done more consistent feet to feet toe turns using this technique and taught more first timers using this method than any other style. We’ll take the most cleanest, consistent and best toe turn artist ever to stand on water for this evaluation. The man and new father from France, Patrick Wiener!  I’ve studied his toe turns with my cousin/coach Gary “Swampy” Bouchard over and over to find out the easiest way to complete the toe front. 

It is a very simple style yet scary at the same time for beginners. The theory behind the position makes total sense! 

Let’s ask ourselves a couple questions:

1.) How do you want to end in the front position? 
We’re looking for a tall stance, standing over your foot with no plowing whatsoever. Ending in the front position should be as squeaky clean as possible with no stress on the foot in the strap. 

2.) Are we expecting to land hard on our standing foot? 
We want to slide the toe front to the front slowly with no position change. 

3.) How do we not change our position while coming to the front position? Pick me; pick me I know, I know! 
As hard as it may seem you must think of KISS! No, not kissing the water! Keep – It – Simple – Stupid

A wise Coach named Swampy once told me this KISS method and it works. Even though the feet to feet toe front is known as one of the hardest tricks ever with a high point value, when done correctly like anything else it is simple. Many footers today can complete this trick on shoe skis regularly! I believe in if you can do it on the shoes then you can do it on your feet. The only difference is speed, water surface and the psychological part! There isn’t any huge steps or big secrets to this maneuver besides commitment. It’s a very soft, easy, slow and controlled turn. Here are the steps and position that you must be able to put your body in before attempting.

Pull out your Grocery List for this one.

While riding in the back toe position starting from the bottom:
    1.) Relaxed natural ankle but not pushing water.
    2.) Knee bend but not exaggerated.
    3.) Hips directly over foot.
    4.) Hips square.
    5.) Knee in strap should be in tightly in and not straight out. Further in the easier.
    6.) Chest and shoulders as high as possible!
    7.) Arms out for balance comfortably but on the table.
    8.) Eyes looking at the horizon with head up and proud snobby look.

You can use your hands to initiate the turn but its wise not too. Remember what I said above, the less movement you have the better. As you come to the front it’s so important that you reach for your toes! You should be trying to exaggerate the reach because first timers will experience their shoe ski sliding out in front of them. It happens to everyone there first time. I tell my students to try and fall out the front but that usually doesn’t get them far enough forward either. Do you see what I’m getting at?? Staying over your feet is not an exaggeration!  It’s fine if your shoulders come forward and your back is hunched forward as well because it’s going to take that for the first couple ride aways. 

Grocery List for coming to the Front:

    1.) Slide to the front and don’t catch air. (Do not Up Weight)
    2.) Reach for your toes aggressively!
    3.) Come forward with your shoulders for the first couple tries.
    4.) Keep your eyes on the horizon or look straight in front of you.
    5.) Don’t look down because you’ll go down.
    6.) Use your arms for balance but try to stay square with your hips, shoulders and foot on the water.
    7.) Now do another toe back or yell out loud because the handle just popped you in the foot! Ouch! I hate when that happens!

Make sure to use a front OPEN toe handle when attempting these tricks for an easy release. Also, I would totally recommend using shoe skis that come off!!  We don’t want any knee busters or dislocated hips. I’ve hurt my hips a couple hundred times but I have also done a couple thousand toe turns as well. 80% of the time you’ll end up sliding out and the handle might pop you in the foot so you really don’t have much to worry about.

I like to use the Extreme Footers by Barefoot Central because I can stick the shoe into a regular toe strap and if I fall either one of the shoes will come off.  I also like the Extreme Footers because they feel very similar to your feet. I would recommend a larger pair of Ja Skis or even a trick ski to begin the toe turns for feeling, better balance and to build up confidence. I wish you all luck with your Toe Turns in the future and if you need some extra help please visit me at Gliding Soles Barefoot Camp in sunny Tampa, FL. Maybe I’ll see you on the road as well this summer.

Keith St.Onge (KSO) 

Visit Keith's web site at
  www.glidingsoles.com