A simulator, the only of its kind in Spain, allows to learn to ski in midsummer and without having to set foot on snow

The facilities are located in the Instituto Mixto Universitario Deporte y Salud (iMUDS) institute, in Granada, and they are meant to revolutionize the means of learning winter sports

The new simulator consists of a rolling carpet whose speed and slope can be adjusted. Its construction has costed more than 200 000 euros

 

Learning how to ski or to snowboard without having to set foot on snow, in only a couple of sessions and without the slightest idea on how to do it, is now possible. The iMUDS showed the media its new ski simulator in July this year. It’s the only facility of its kind in Spain and one of few in Europe, and it’s meant to revolutionize the means of learning and training winter sports.

iMUDS’s Ski Simulator consists of a rolling carpet of 12,50×6,55 metres, with a skiable surface of 48 square metres. It is possible to adjust the speed from 1 to 21 kilometres per hour, and it can hold a maximum of 4 people (380 kilos). The carpet’s slope angle can be adjusted from 10º to 19º, which is equivalent to tracks ranging from green to black.

The facilities count with a big frontal mirror which allows the athletes to receive feedback about their performance with a simple glance at the mirror, additionally to the information received in situ from their teacher and/or coach. There is a laboratory at the back of the mirror, where the iMUDS researchers are, and from where they can make and control video recordings (2D and 3D) of the athletes from various angles.

Skiing in midsummer
The person in charge of iMUDS’s Ski Simulator is professor Pablo Jesús Gómez López from the Department of Physical and Sports Education of the University of Granada (UGR). During the presentation, he explained that these facilities are meant to completely revolutionize winter sports practice, «given that, in addition to allow us to ski in midsummer, it’s perfect for learning to ski and for training and perfecting our skills, for specific physical training, and even for helping athletes that have suffered some kind of injury (as part of their rehabilitation process), to ski again. 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, if you will. It’s a complement and/or alternative to the ski tracks in Sierra Nevada when they are closed out of season, due to wind, or outside their normal opening hours».

At the same time, the simulator means «a huge optimization of the useful practice time spent. In order to effectively train 30 minutes we need a whole day on the tracks, due to the time we waste in ski lifts or queuing, for example. Here, the time spent skiing is 100% well used, because we just have to put our skis and practice».

In addition to learning winter sports, the Ski Simulator allows a real-time, bio-mechanical assessment of our athletic skills through an advanced, 3D bio-mechanical analysis system, so being of use for coaches and athletes.

As explained by Enrique Herrera Viedma, vice-chancellor of Research and Transfer at the UGR, iMUDS’s Ski Simulator has been entirely funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), its construction costing more than 200 000 euros. There are very few simulators of this kind in Europe, in countries such as France, Netherlands and United Kingdom.

Assessing the skier’s performance
Moreover, iMUDS facilities can be used for real-time assessment of the forces the skiers generate and their consequences on their skills. This is useful for optimising our performance and for preventing the risk of musculoskeletal injuries. At the same time, this could be useful for evaluating certain athletic podology-related aspects, which could be of use for designing customised insoles.

Currently, the people in charge of the Ski Simulator are preparing various collaboration agreements with different athletics federations, and they hope that the facilities could be open to all kinds of public interested in practising winter sports very soon.

The people in charge that assisted to the media presentation of iMUDS’s Ski Simulator were Aurelio Ureña, dean at the Faculty of Sports Science (UGR); Víctor M. Soto, iMUDS manager; and skier Carolina Ruiz Santiago, sports manager at the Centro de Tecnificación Especializado en Deportes de Invierno de la Federación Andaluza de Deportes de Invierno winter sports centre.

 

Contact:

Pablo Jesús Gómez López

Departamentode Educación Física y Deportiva de la Universidad de Granada

Telephone:(+34) 958 244 376

Mobilephone: (+34) 608 432 028

E-mail: pjgomez@ugr.es