The motion of cross-country skiing required when crossing a traverse. It resembles a skating motion - Skiers push off with one ski while the opposite arm and pole move forward in a diagonal pattern, hence the name. Also known as "gliding".

A term used to describe skiing backwards, or in reverse, with the skier's tail ends of the skis leading and the tips trailing... You can practically smell the steez when a switch skier flies by. This technique is commonly used in freestyle skiing, particularly in terrain parks, where performing tricks, jumps, and maneuvers in both regular and switch stances is a fundamental skill.

A type of ski lift characterized by its shape in the letter "T"; a standing lift where you stick the bar between your legs for it to carry you upwards. It kind of feels good if you do it the right way (what?), but can also be easy to fall off of if you don't do it correctly. So hang on! Generally these are only going to get you up small, not-too-steep parts of the mountain.

The width at the widest part of the front of your ski. Generally speaking, the wider this is the tighter your radius is going to be.

The width at the widest part of the back of your ski. Generally speaking, the wider this is the tighter your radius is going to be.

Skiing over long distances in natural, unmarked terrain using specialized touring skis and bindings. Bring an avalanche beacon if you're doing this. Seriously.

A type of ski lift characterized by a rope that you hold on to in order to get from point A to point B. More often than not this is going to take you across flat terrain to prevent you from having to traverse across it.

A type of ski lift that takes the form of a large compartment that can carry dozens of people up the mountain at once. Almost exclusively found at ski bases in order to get a lot of people up somewhere generally deemed too treacherous to reach by a gondola or chair lift. The line usually sucks to get on one of these because there are normally only one to two trams on the line, but generally you're not going to be able to get to where it takes you unless you're a particularly masochistic breed of hiker. Worth it for the views.

A flat area where you'll typically have to either push yourself along with your poles or cross-country ski across. Nobody likes these but sometimes they are necessary to get to where you need to go.

A designation used for the difficulty of a piste in North America. Let's get this straight, these aren't the norm - most resorts you visit will not even have triple black runs.But for those that do, you better be one hell of a good skier to even think about trying to do one of these. They are generally steep - like extremely steep - icy, and dangerous. Most skiers will never attempt one of these in their life. Stay safe out there kids.

The act of getting your skis worked on in a shop to make them perform better - e.g. by getting the bases waxed, getting holes filled in. the edges sharpened, or getting your bindings adjusted. Often required after some heavy use.

This is the bread and butter of skiing. Turns are when you... turn on your skis, causing you to move down the mountain in a side-to-side manner, leaving a wave-like track behind you. The point of turns is to manage your speed and maintain control as you move down the mountain so you don't get completely wrecked by hitting an unseen obstacle and so you can stop yourself if need be. Making good turns is the core of what what makes you a good skier. If you're new, take some lessons so you can work on your form and avoid being a Jerry.

A superstitious phrase commonly used by skiers before taking their last run of the day. The idea is that you never want to say that you'll do "one more run" or a"last run" out of concern for jinxing it and getting injured... if you say it's your last run, this might be the last run of your life, not just the day.

When someone is talking about what's "underfoot", they're referring to how wide a ski is at the waist. If you're got "100 underfoot" it means your ski's waist width is 100mm wide.

The width of the ski at its narrowest point, usually where your bindings are mounted, affecting float in powder and edge-to-edge quickness.

Refers to the process of applying a layer of wax to the base of skis to enhance their performance. Waxing is crucial for maintaining the ski base, improving glide, and protecting the skis from damage caused by friction and varying snow conditions.

A term used to describe crashing, usually fairly badly, while skiing.

A term used to describe someone who has crashed so ungraciously that their skis and/or poles are scattered around them, resembling the lawn of your neighbor who thinks that people actually want to buy some crap they pulled out of their basement. As long as said crashee is determined to be ok, you are permitted to laugh at them... you should also probably help them back up too, I guess.

In Europe, off-piste runs that are still under watch of ski patrol will be marked with black-and-yellow striped poles. Generally equivalent of a double black in North America.