The
V style (aka
V technique) is the biggest
innovation
in the field of
ski jumping since the birth of the
sport.
Until 1985, all ski jumpers had used the traditional parallel
style, in which the skis are kept in line, parallel to each other,
for the duration of the jump. However, Jan Boklöv, a Swedish
ski jumper challenged convention by spreading his skis into a
V shape during the flight phase. Initially laughed at and
penalized by judges, Boklöv's idiosyncratic style was copied by
the notorious British ski jumper Edward "Eddie the Eagle" Edwards,
who is (mistakenly) often thought to have come up with the idea.
But Boklöv was not discouraged and he went on to win the 1989
World Cup, and after wind tunnel testing proved the V style
to give an extra 28% lift, all top ski jumpers hastily converted
with all medal winners using the V style by 1992.
But for Finns, the words V-tyyli (V style in Finnish)
bring back memories of another ski jumping legend, "The Flying Finn"
Matti Nykänen. While Matti was a traditional-style jumper
whose dominance of the sport ended after the 1988 Calgary
Winter Olympics (in which he won 3 gold medals) and who never
learned to jump V style, in his later (mercifully brief) career as
a pop singer Matti's biggest hit was a song entitled "V-Tyyli".
The lyrics are atrocious enough even in translation, but it is
especially worth noting that the rudest word in the Finnish
language, vittu (cunt), is often abbreviated as "V" in
polite company and the entire song is an attempt to play on this.
Without further ado...
V-TYYLI
V on aivan uusi tyyli, lisää pituutta heti sano lyyli
Ei tiennyt, edessä on kova yö, ennenkun kello kakstoista lyö
Valomerkki tuli, vedin kortin hihasta, suunnittelin lemmenhetkeä pikaista
Piikki jos loppuu, niin hitsaan lisää, unohtui mielestä neuvot isän
V is a brand new style, make it longer said the chick
She didn't know, a hard night ahead, before the clock strikes twelve
The pub closed, I pulled an ace out of my sleeve, planning a quick romance
If I run out of credit I'll get more, I forgot my dad's advice
CHORUS:
V on tyylinä toimivin, sen tietää jokainen gimmakin
Jos kundi gimmalle hymyilee, on silloin mielessä tietenkin vain... V!
V is the best style, all the girls know it too
If a guy smiles at a girl, the only thing on his mind is... V!
Pilkillä kalastin naarasolennon, ei jää pienestä kii, se varma on
Lähdetään pitämään sänkyä selässä, ei kai sitä nyt kukaan tee metässä
Profiili on oltava matala ja rento, kimman vartalo tietysti hento
Varma on alastulotyylissä V, enkä sitä varmaan selälläni tee
Fishing under the ice I caught a female being,
Let's go put the bed on our back, nobody does it in the forest, right
The profile's gotta be low and loose, the girl's body nice and soft
When going down the style is V, and I'm not gonna do it on my back
CHORUS
Ympäri mennään ja yhteen tullaan, maailma on pieni, hei tukehdu pullaan!
Yhden illan juttu sen gimmakin ties, ilmoitin sen kuin herrasmies
Pusu vielä poskelle ja sitten menoks, senhän on sanonut jo Annie Lennox
Monilla on nykyään tyylinä V, silti vielä elämässä mukavasti menee!
Go around and come again, the world is small, hey go choke on a bun!
A one night stand, the girl knew it too, so I told her like a gentleman
A kiss on the cheek and I was off, that's what Annie Lennox said
Many have the V-style now, but I'm still doing great!
CHORUS
V! V! V!
CHORUS x 3
Composed and arranged by O. Heater
Lyrics by Guzetti (NB: italianized Finnish for "fooled ya")
Translating the above was surprisingly easy, the rhymes are broken
even in Finnish and some of the bits above (e.g. "go choke on a bun")
make no sense whatsoever even in the original.