What’s it like skiing with your significant other(s)?

He drags me down some trails & up other mountains, I drag him up new lifts and down other trails. If we're outside, in the woods & together we're good. He's a bit more technical and analytical about trails & skiing then I am, but all in all it's a good thing.

I found it interesting to read all of the posts about skiing with your significant other from the varying levels of skills, the places & terrain each ski separate and together, and the different places people have been to ski.

And it made me think. What about family? What are your experiences skiing with little ones all the way up to the big kids & racers?

With my daughter toddling around both my husband and I have dreams of hiking, skiing and various adventures in the woods. For what it's worth, we're a skiing family... my great uncle (80+) still skis early a.m. runs at Gore with us, cousins meet up to run together & I have been skiing with my dad now for about 15 years since I moved from more XC skiing to downhill. I couldn't image a better time on the mountain than with them.

My only experience skiing with my daughter....


But I did do a lot of lurking in the trees...

...hope to ride the Sunway chair with her this year.



Welcome to the forum, adksara.

On the eve of the 2010-2011 season, I can only think about how much work it was to put small kids on the mountain and how it seemed like I would never ski two runs back to back without some sort of issue where I was stopping to manage one of the many facets of having a pre-schooler on the mountain.  While I did enjoy myself, it was often an exercise in frustration in terms of getting any real skiing time in.  Now that my crew is completely independent I can tell you what I wish I knew 3 or 4 years ago.  1)This too shall pass.  They will grow up, they will get ski poles, I will not always have to pull them across the flats. At some point I will not have to lift them on to the chair.  2)Never get too far ahead or I WILL find myself hiking when the four year old falls, has a yard sale and has no chance of getting their snow packed boot back into the binding.  3)Always carry m&ms, lip balm and tissues. (But then again, that is just a good policy for anyone on the slopes) 4)Ski maps really are the beginning of reading.  Any 3 to 4 year old can truly "read" the colors and shapes on a map.  It is an authentic beginning of literacy. They will bring stacks of ski maps to share at nursery school.  All of their friends will "read" the maps. 5)When I am loading a high speed quad with three kids and the lift attendant takes one look at my crew and yells to see if I want it slowed down, there is a quiet pride in shaking my head no and having everyone advance with the precision of a drill team and load without a hitch.  6)When the loading of the high speed quad mentioned in #5 does not go as planned, tempers will flare, accusations will be made, blame assigned in the heat of the moment, but we will also gain a very funny story for future use. 7) The family that road trips together stays together. A family with a mutual goal of departing from the 3 pm school dismissal to head for the hills has a common purpose that unifies them like nothing else.  We will be quite satisfied when we make "good time" on the road.  When we don't, we will have a very entertaining story. Sometimes it will be dumping snow on the road and we will have a genuine adventure. These adventures will make some of the best stories. 8)The three or four year old that I am slowly skiing behind will, in a few short years push me and challenge me to ski as hard as I ever have.  They will be my guide and I will look to them for valuable information about trails and conditions.  I will trust them completely to share good information with me. 9) I will learn to let go and give them a real sense of independence on the mountain.  They will learn to be responsible about following our guidelines and following through on meeting times. 10) I have learned that above all, to ski is to be blessed.

Goreskimom wrote

(...a lot of awesome stuff...)

This is gold.

You should be our family columnist.

If they grow into skiers, you have done well.  My oldest started skiing at Berthoud Pass in Colorado, then went throught the NYSEF traning center at Gore.  Gore turned her into a ice solid skier.  She followed in my footsteps and was in Colorado a week after she graduated from college (I did the same thing).  She's been in Aspen for 4 years now and lovin' it, and is now a ripping powder skier.  The youngest, well he lived in the terrain park.  It's amazing how those elements abuse skis.  I think he has broken more skis in 18 years than I have in 55.  It is a bit disconcerting seeing him land a 540 backwards, but so far so good.  We are at the point where the entire family can ski anywhere, any run, any conditions together and we have an excuse to go to Colorado to visit.  Life is good.  

My girls are 13 and 16 . The 16yr old races for the High School . She now has the" need for speed" and smokes me down almost any run we ski. The 13 yr old almost skis as fast , it is great that we can now ski as group down any run in the east..
Life is good...
The wife, she still in a snowplow..

Mine are 15 and 17 and it is a rare treat to get to ski with them...I have actually had two full days with the younger this year and two or three half days with the older last year.  It's the EPIC days together that you never forget.
All three of us in 40+ last year at Mad River and Valentine's Day Storm with my oldest at Gore.
The wife used to (and probably still is) an awesome skier but she discovered golf (indoor golf in the winter)

Hey Kirby, is your son a Gore skier? If so what's his name?

Mine are 16 and 18 so they are less interested in a weekend skiing with the family now. But we still do get a number of days in and  it's a blast. Life can be so hectic now a days so it's really nice to get away and have nothing else to do but ski. I love the reminiscing on the lift about prior ski trips years ago.

TomCat

Harv - how old was Neve when she had her first lesson?  My daughter is 2 1/2 this year.  Wondering if they will take her for a lesson or if she has to be 3?  My daughter and I have been watching ski videos on netflix on demand to build the stoke.  She is ready for snow and to get out on the hill.  We are going to pick up her rental skis this weekend.  Its $100 bucks for the season so if she doesn't take to it right away I won't feel to bad.  The last thing I want to do is try and force it.  The weekend of 12/18 will be our first of the year.  Did you call ahead to book BJ for a lesson?

I know I said this before and I'll say it again. The best place to teach newbies is Whiteface. The beginner's chairs there make it much easier for them. They can rest their legs on the way up. Most of the time, newbies legs give out looooong before the day is over. The chair greatly helps extend their badly needed practice time.

Newbies and lil kids frequently have a hard time with Poma lifts, frustrating them and their parents. A bad day is the enemy to newbies continueing skiing. We've all seen that happen. They also learn to use the chair this way. That's always an obstacle when they they're ready to move up from the bunnyhill to say a chair like Sunway. We've all seen them struggle and be afraid of a chair. Sometimes it ends their career. The slow moving/easy to load beginner's chairs at Whiteface solves this fear of chairs.

Plus, like Tom cat said, it truly is a much more enjoyable day when you can chat on the chair on the way up. Besides that fun factor, it gives you a chance to instruct the newbie.

Sideslipping is the best technique to master for newbies. It teaches edge control much, much better than snowplow. Snowplow uses both inside edges.That's not how one will ski. Then they have a hard time switching to using one inside/one outside edge simultaineously. Sideslipping uses the inside and outside edges simultaineously. PLUS, and it's a huge plus, it teaches the newbie a solid way to stop. Not being able to stop is THE biggest fear for newbies.

I taught three people how to ski. After some experience and frustration, I realized they were afraid they couldn't stop well and were confused by the inside/outside edge thing. Once I made them practice sideslipping alot(both sides!), their confidence and ability jumped up very markedly. I recalled my newb days and remembered being concerned about not being able to stop well. Once they master sideslipping the rest is easy and they're confidant on " steeper " stretches...if they get on a stretch that they're scared to turn on( think 3b by quicksilver's junction), they just sideslip down it to a better stretch, piece of cake! They then go about their business,touring the lower mtn and having a good time.


Just saying.

My step son's name is Cameron Esser.  He was a Gore and West Mtn park rat, but is at Plymouth State now.  He'll be home on vaca in a week, so look for an orange saga jacket with bright blue pants and new Salomon Suspect skis.

Snowballs wrote

Sideslipping is the best technique to master for newbies. It teaches edge control much, much better than snowplow. Snowplow uses both inside edges.That's not how one will ski. Then they have a hard time switching to using one inside/one outside edge simultaineously. Sideslipping uses the inside and outside edges simultaineously. PLUS, and it's a huge plus, it teaches the newbie a solid way to stop. Not being able to stop is THE biggest fear for newbies.

I taught three people how to ski. After some experience and frustration, I realized they were afraid they couldn't stop well and were confused by the inside/outside edge thing. Once I made them practice sideslipping alot(both sides!), their confidence and ability jumped up very markedly. I recalled my newb days and remembered being concerned about not being able to stop well. Once they master sideslipping the rest is easy and they're confidant on " steeper " stretches...if they get on a stretch that they're scared to turn on( think 3b by quicksilver's junction), they just sideslip down it to a better stretch, piece of cake! They then go about their business,touring the lower mtn and having a good time.

In just 2 paragraphs you crushed over 100 years of instruction techniques used by millions to learn to ski.

Ah alright I know who he is. Haven't skied with him much though.

x10003q wrote

Snowballs wrote

Sideslipping is the best technique to master for newbies. It teaches edge control much, much better than snowplow. Snowplow uses both inside edges.That's not how one will ski. Then they have a hard time switching to using one inside/one outside edge simultaineously. Sideslipping uses the inside and outside edges simultaineously. PLUS, and it's a huge plus, it teaches the newbie a solid way to stop. Not being able to stop is THE biggest fear for newbies.

I taught three people how to ski. After some experience and frustration, I realized they were afraid they couldn't stop well and were confused by the inside/outside edge thing. Once I made them practice sideslipping alot(both sides!), their confidence and ability jumped up very markedly. I recalled my newb days and remembered being concerned about not being able to stop well. Once they master sideslipping the rest is easy and they're confidant on " steeper " stretches...if they get on a stretch that they're scared to turn on( think 3b by quicksilver's junction), they just sideslip down it to a better stretch, piece of cake! They then go about their business,touring the lower mtn and having a good time.

In just 2 paragraphs you crushed over 100 years of instruction techniques used by millions to learn to ski.

I know. And thanks.

I'm really surprised others don't make people do it. It works. I've gotten really inquistive looks from ski instructors as they took their group of kids past my sideslipping kids/ ol Lady.

It's kinda hard cuz the student wants to just go down the hill and not mess with sideslipping.  I made mine do both left and right sides and then when they got better at it," seesaw " back and forth slideslipping down the hill. Jamboree's headwall is excellent for this. Kid's kampus trail on the far skier's left has a spot too. Any bank will work. It " may " be too much for a 2-3 year old ( unless you make a game out of it) but slightly old kids/adults can gain from it. Sidestepping back up helps too. These are all skills they will need.

Danzilla wrote

Harv - how old was Neve when she had her first lesson?  My daughter is 2 1/2 this year.  Wondering if they will take her for a lesson or if she has to be 3?  My daughter and I have been watching ski videos on netflix on demand to build the stoke.  She is ready for snow and to get out on the hill.  We are going to pick up her rental skis this weekend.  Its $100 bucks for the season so if she doesn't take to it right away I won't feel to bad.  The last thing I want to do is try and force it.  The weekend of 12/18 will be our first of the year.  Did you call ahead to book BJ for a lesson?

Danno...Neve was 3 1/2. We tried to put her on skis when she was 2 1/2 and she just didn't get it.  She didn't understand what she was supposed to do. Last year Gore reduced the minimum age for lessons from 4 to 3 1/2.  They now have a special 1/2 hour lesson for 3 1/2 year old, which is (I think) $60. In reality, with Neve, BJ went with her until her energy was gone, anywhere from 40 mins to an hour.  By the end of the season they'd let me ride the Poma after the lesson and we stretched some sessions to 90 mins.

I don't know you daughter .. she may be ready. If they will take her at that age I totally recommend BJ. She's a great instructor and a mom (grandmom now!) .. you can't do any better IMO. One time when BJ was unavailable we had Erin and she was really good too. She has a really different style from BJ.

BTW netflix sounds like a fantastic idea. Would love to hear your flick recommendations.

Call Gail and see what she thinks.

And post pics in the Kid Stoke thread.

My son Daniel (turns 7 in March) skis with me most days at Gore.  This is his third season on skis.  First season was a learning program at Willard Mountain.  Last year he took a 6-week Mtn Adventure program at Gore.  By the end of the season he could ski with me virtually anywhere on the mountain.  He loves the fun and adventure of skiing, exploring the glades, finding fun terrain features.  Here he is yesterday, skiing around the top of that big boulder at the bottom of Tannery - you know the one, on skier's right at the top of the last steep pitch:

Kirbyvv wrote

Tele skiing is our common bond and what brought us together.  She's one of the strongest tele skiers I know and when she's on 'em and I'm not can kick my butt.  We've skied all over togther and she is my best ski buddy.  Life is Good!

This week Zelda and I made huge strides toward skiing together over the entire mountain. She's doing a better job of maintaining an athletic position, facing the fall line, and fearing little.

I saw her first fall in long time, on Hawkeye and it was a thing of beauty. She basically set it down, with her skis downhill and popped back up.  It was the kind of fall she wouldn't have had if she wasn't challenging herself.

Kirby's post really inspired me. While neither Zelda nor I will probably ever reach Martha's level (or Kirby's for that matter)... the sentiment in his post ... that's what I want.