{"id":621,"date":"2026-06-03T14:26:25","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T14:26:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lisaballardoutdoors.com\/blog\/?p=621"},"modified":"2026-06-25T21:35:06","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T21:35:06","slug":"tucking-how-and-when","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lisaballardoutdoors.com\/blog\/tucking-how-and-when\/","title":{"rendered":"Tucking - How and When"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TUCKING\u2013HOW AND WHEN<\/strong>: May 25, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go faster (not slower) by tucking the right way and at the right time.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whenever you drop into a tuck, it feels faster, but are you really going faster? It depends on whether your skis are tracking cleanly. A skidded tuck is not faster than a normal stance over carving skis, especially if you\u2019re able to bend your skis and accelerate from the rebound. This blog will explain how to tuck for maximum speed and aerodynamics, and tactically when to tuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HOW TO TUCK<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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This photo of me was taken in January 2023, at age 61. That winter, I won my 3rd overall super G title on the FIS Master Cup. The ability to get into a low tuck allowed me to be more aerodynamic in gliding sections of a course.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The basics of a low tuck include knees under your armpits, chest down, back slightly curved toward the sky, and your hands up and forward. In essence, you are trying to create an airplane wing with your body, sending air over your back, rather than catching it with your chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your hands should be together in front of your face. They can move fore and aft, and they should stay together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your ski poles should be tucked under your armpits, along your sides and hips. They should point back, not to the side, and they should not be higher than your hips, sticking up the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your weight should be forward, with your ankles flexed and your shins solidly against the tongues of your ski boots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the speed and other forces on a course are such that you can\u2019t quite hold a low tuck in a shallow turn, stay as low as you can, perhaps opening your outside arm for balance and better weight over the outside ski, while keeping the inside arm in the tuck position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If opening one arm isn\u2019t enough, don\u2019t throw open both arms, like a hunched over gorilla. You\u2019ll skid your turns, and you won\u2019t be aerodynamic any more. While your chest may be low, your arms catch the wind like anchors dragging on either side of your body. You\u2019ll end up with your weight equally distributed on both feet, leaning into the hill, which will cause your skis to skid. Instead, stand up enough to ski well<\/a>, then grab your tuck again when you can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TUCK TURNS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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This is a photo of me in a tuck turn in the super G at the 2023 Masters World Championships. You can see the clean arc my outside ski has left on the snow. Also notice the alignment of my hands toward my outside ski tip, rather than \u201csteering\u201d them through the turn.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Tuck turns\u2013turning while in a tuck\u2013are an important skill in ski racing. They can be fast if done correctly, but slow if they aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To turn in a tuck, you need to raise up enough using your legs while staying in a tuck position with your upper body to allow your skis to roll on edge. Like a normal turn, your feet need to get out from under your body, then pass under your torso as they transition to the other side for the next tuck turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a low tuck on a straightaway, your weight is evenly distributed on both skis, but in a tuck turn (like any turn), your weight transfers from outside ski to outside ski.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Some things never change! The cover photo for my book, Ski Faster!<\/em><\/a>, was taken in 2016. It\u2019s a photo of me in a tuck turn. Notice how my hands are aligned over my outside ski. My inside (uphill) hip is high, not dropped, which helps keep my weight forward and on my outside ski as my knees roll into the hill.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

As your skis start to turn, your hands align with the ski tip of your outside (downhill) ski, helping to concentrate weight on the outside ski as your knees and ankles roll into the hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also like a normal turn, be sure to keep your inside hip high, rather than dropped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If it\u2019s flat, you can create speed by \u201cpumping,\u201d i.e., pressing into the front of your ski boots as you pressure the outside (downhill) ski, causing the ski to bend in the turn then release in the transition, springing you forward a little. If you pump in a tuck turn, be sure to do it only with the legs and feet, not the upper body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHEN TO TUCK<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t tuck in slalom! Period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond slalom, an important ski racing caveat is \u201ca clean, carved turn from an upright position is always faster than a skidded tuck turn.\u201d That said, I approach tucking in giant slalom (GS) differently than in super G (SG) and downhill (DH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In GS, if a section of a course is straight, a tuck works well. Tactically, if you are in a tuck in GS, be hyper aware of how your skis are tracking. At the slightest hint of a skid, break your tuck and make good turns. Often, when I\u2019m inspecting a GS, other racers will ask me if I plan to tuck in a section of the course. Unless it\u2019s obviously straight, it\u2019s hard to tell. Tucking in a GS is often unplanned, except perhaps the last one to three gates above the finish if they are set fairly straight. Often, I grab a tuck in GS because it feels right at that moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My attitude in SG and DH is different. Whereas in GS, it\u2019s more \u201ctuck now because I feel like I can,\u201d in SG and DH, I try to tuck as much as possible. That said, at the hint of a skid, I break my tuck and make a clean turn. I also break my tuck as I approach a big direction or terrain change, anticipating the need to stand powerfully on the outside ski.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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