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JayD February 11th 07 05:53 PM

First Time Kid
 
Going up to Lake Placid next weekend.
I have a bunch of skis my sister gave me for the kids -

My son is 7 y/o, 5' 2". Never really skied before, just fooled around
with a pair of "strap ons".

I've got 2 pairs of standard "skinny"/touring skis with 3 pin bindings
(she gave us all the old boots also).

One @ 140 cm looks like it would fit him perfectly based the "reaching
the bend in the wrist" method.

Another pair is 135 cm.

Which would be better for him to learn on?


JayD February 11th 07 05:54 PM

First Time Kid
 
Srrry... meant to say 4' 2" :I


On Feb 11, 12:53 pm, "JayD" wrote:
Going up to Lake Placid next weekend.
I have a bunch of skis my sister gave me for the kids -

My son is 7 y/o, 5' 2". Never really skied before, just fooled around
with a pair of "strap ons".

I've got 2 pairs of standard "skinny"/touring skis with 3 pin bindings
(she gave us all the old boots also).

One @ 140 cm looks like it would fit him perfectly based the "reaching
the bend in the wrist" method.

Another pair is 135 cm.

Which would be better for him to learn on?




Camilo February 11th 07 10:03 PM

First Time Kid
 
On Feb 11, 8:53 am, "JayD" wrote:
Going up to Lake Placid next weekend.
I have a bunch of skis my sister gave me for the kids -

My son is 7 y/o, 5' 2". Never really skied before, just fooled around
with a pair of "strap ons".

I've got 2 pairs of standard "skinny"/touring skis with 3 pin bindings
(she gave us all the old boots also).

One @ 140 cm looks like it would fit him perfectly based the "reaching
the bend in the wrist" method.

Another pair is 135 cm.

Which would be better for him to learn on?



Use the shorter ones. I always started my kids on skis about head
high or tad taller. The "reaching to the wrist" is an old wives tale,
and really doesn't even apply to adult skis, let alone a little kid
who's a beginner.

Practice putting them on and walking around a little on a carpeted
floor, just to get the hang of it and avoid problems out in the
cold.

If they're not fish scale skis ('waxless'), make sure they're waxed
properly.

Final bit of advice: besure to be very aware of the kids' attitude and
quit before the kids are tired of sking or frustrated or cold. This
could be 30 minutes or 5 minutes. The worst thing you can do is give
them any bad taste in their mouth. Don't worry if it's just a few
minutes first time - at least they'll want to do it again. If you
over do it, it could be a long time before they want to do it again
(personal experience!)

All this is to minimize the frustration the kids feel and maximize the
fun.


[email protected] February 12th 07 01:43 AM

First Time Kid
 
Best wishes! My kids have yet to take any instruction. I mean, to
accept any. I just let em play around out there as long or short as
they like. Let them ski as they like. I encourage them when I see them
having fun and help them up when they fall. They've done this a couple
years now. They're 6 and 9. They're both now getting glide for the
first time and liking it plenty. They both do the same thing but
haven't skied together yet. Maybe they've seen each other a little.
They're usually in different parts of the woody yard. But they each
give a couple little running steps then do a little double pole then
glide a bit. That's what they like. Seems fine! I tell them to swing
their arms, bend knees and keep hands in front on slight downhills---
they ignore me. I like how the boy hums and sings a little as he goes
along---good sign there. The girl makes nature observations, so the
skis aren't bothering her at all---another good sign. Both are now
liking that little bit of glide. I put em on longer skis as they seem
to get more stable. Boots that fit, a quality binding, poles to
armpits. It all seems to work! Wait---my girl did listen to how to
herringbone and now says "I remember!" and plants her poles behind her
and gets right up the hill. --JP outyourbackdoor.com



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