Teaching a kid to ski: get lessons?
I’m going to take my 7 year old to the mnt on Sunday for his first time on skis. I’ve skied a few times a year for the past 25 years but am FAR from an expert. I can make it a full day on the slopes without falling but that’s the extent of my prowess. Should I just rent him skis and hit the bunny hill or should I pay for an hour lesson? We are going to Shawnee if that makes a difference.
ConsigliereI would do the lesson. The slopes are so busy there. At least in a lesson, there should be a bit more room and attention. Have fun!
maja2 I went to Blue for the first time ever (25yrs old) with my old man and could not make it down the bunny hill safely and that's after taking the hour lesson. The lesson helps but it takes alot of practice to be able to go down safely.
3wbdwnj Lesson for both of you. Shawnee is a great place to start. Both my kids learned there at around the same age. After the 2nd lesson they were going to top of the mountain. Now they ride and ski in the terrain park. Sunday will be busy. Your best bet is to go mid week during the day. No lines for the lift and plenty of space to ski and ride. I was there yesterday. Conditions were great. Good times.
Lessons, a few times in the past 25 years? You would only be teaching him bad technique. But you could be like Bodie Miller, self taught...
iJay Pay for at minimum a half-day lesson. You want him to succeed, not just learn how to fall down. (speaking as a 50+ year skier, used to race competitively).
I sent my kids to lessons, not because I didn't know how to ski, but because they know how to teach. There's a big difference between saying "do it like this" and actually having teaching methodologies.
Bemused No, a few times a YEAR for the past 25 years. Ive probably been skiing between 50-75 times. Maybe my original post wasn’t clear. I would not need a lesson for myself. By not an expert I meant you weren’t going to find me skiing backwards down black diamonds or jumping off boxes at the terrain park lol
In that same time period I skied almost 1,000 days. This being said, I would not give lessons to a newby, only someone with at least 2-3 years under their belt. Teaching first-timers takes patience and you are on a bunny hill the first day which is like a flat golf course.
Damn... I can't find time to golf HALF that many days and the season is three times as long, lol.
ianimal It isn't hard to teach someone to ski. I learned by watching my brothers, going down the hill, and walking back up the hill to ski back down again. That was on quiet neighborhood hills. For a busy ski area, a lesson is better I think.
My kids joined the after school ski club and had lessons at Shawnee. That worked out for me!
Yes, from 7 years to 32 years I skied 35-45 days per year. We had a chalet at Killington. Every X-Mas week and Presidents' week plus virtually every weekend. I have skied as early as October and as late as June.
Since then it has dwindled to under 10 days and some years just 2-3 days; I probably average 5 days per year now. At this point it is about quality days not quantity. Some years I start in February and end in March. I spend as much or more time with the snowshoes and cross country skis now. Started surfing about 20 years ago, still not that good but the warm weather is where I want to end up now...
Just a follow up, we went today after he got off the bus from school and had a 5:45pm lesson. I’m amazed how well he did. I didn’t ski but just watched him from the sidelines. Very happy he liked it and hope eventually it’s something we can do together. Lesson was WELL worth it.
Consigliere, glad to hear it! Hopefully, a lifelong, shared love of the sport has begun!
Out at dinner with my sister yesterday- she gets a phone call that her son was on the side of the ski mountain with a broken arm. Ughhh.
Be safe out there guys!!
Josh That’s terrible news, Josh. It certainly isn’t the safest activity but typically, recognizing one’s own skill level and not skiing outside of that skill level is a must. I’m not saying your nephew was skiing above his skill I just mean in general. For all I know he was being safe and was plowed into by a first-timer that rented skis and went right to the summit.
Mountain biking is very similar. I see guys on the trails do things I wouldn’t dream of. Most of them can handle it. The ones that can’t are taken away in ambulances.
Get a lesson one thing most of our kids do when learning is listen to a stranger not us. Shawnee great teachers and best conditions around.
Michigan Shawnee doesn't have any real steep trails so it is a great place to learn. A little lower but a great snowmaking system makes up for it. Been known for the best school in the Poconos for quite some time.
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