Boarder coach, skier student

My daughter is 3.5 yrs old and has had a couple of ski lessons this season.
For whatever reason she doesn't want to go back to ski school - she wants to
ski with mom and dad. Mom doesn't go skiing very often (long story), and dad
rides a snowboard.

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids, and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift - I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?

I'm very proud of her and what she's accomplished already, so part of me
wants to leave well enough alone and just wait for next season. On the other
hand, she's asking to go with me, her gear and pass is paid for, and I'd
love to spend the time with her on the snow...without renting skis if
possible.

Chris

If you are trying to teach her, i would say it would be a problem, but
if you just want to go skiing with her, I wouldn't think it would pose a
problem.. You can still always hold her hand and guide her off the life
on a board (well, I couldn't, but i'm not that good)

Chris J. wrote:

My daughter is 3.5 yrs old and has had a couple of ski lessons this season.
For whatever reason she doesn't want to go back to ski school - she wants to
ski with mom and dad. Mom doesn't go skiing very often (long story), and dad
rides a snowboard.

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids, and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift - I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?

I'm very proud of her and what she's accomplished already, so part of me
wants to leave well enough alone and just wait for next season. On the other
hand, she's asking to go with me, her gear and pass is paid for, and I'd
love to spend the time with her on the snow...without renting skis if
possible.

Chris

My advice is take up skiing. It's much easier to go slow
on skis than a snowboard.

The best advice for getting off a lift is look up and forward and not at
your skis. In fact, that is important in skiing and snowboarding and a
common beginner mistake.


"Chris J." wrote in message
...
My daughter is 3.5 yrs old and has had a couple of ski lessons this
season.
For whatever reason she doesn't want to go back to ski school - she wants
to
ski with mom and dad. Mom doesn't go skiing very often (long story), and
dad
rides a snowboard.

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids,
and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift - I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point
with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?

I'm very proud of her and what she's accomplished already, so part of me
wants to leave well enough alone and just wait for next season. On the
other
hand, she's asking to go with me, her gear and pass is paid for, and I'd
love to spend the time with her on the snow...without renting skis if
possible.

Chris

"Baka Dasai" wrote in message
news:slrnc1usnv.5hb.idontreadthis@yahoobb220004112 021.bbtec.net...
On Mon, 2 Feb 2004 15:37:42 -0700, Chris J. said (and I quote):
My daughter is 3.5 yrs old and has had a couple of ski lessons this
season.
For whatever reason she doesn't want to go back to ski school - she
wants to
ski with mom and dad. Mom doesn't go skiing very often (long story), and
dad
rides a snowboard.

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor
and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids,
and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't
be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting
on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift -
I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point
with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?

I've done this with my 3.5 yo daughter. There are no big problems.

As far as teaching goes, you should lower your expectations, and then
lower them some more. You won't be able to teach her much by telling
her - you need to show her, and you can't really do that on a board.
I'd limit the teaching to the very occasional, and very simple bit of
advice. The only piece of advice I remember having any effect on my
daughter was telling her to put her hands on her knees. Nearly all
kids lean back too much on skis, and that tip gets their weight a bit
more forward. But remember, you don't want to be one of those
parents that is constantly screaming advice at their child, causing
them to grow resentful and to hate skiing. Even though I was very
aware of that trap I could sometimes see myself being drawn into it
without thinking.

You'd probably be better off just playing silly games like "let's ski
like snakes!" or "let's ski like rabbits!". Fun and games, not
coaching. If you're really clever you can design the games so that
they happen to teach some particular skiing skill.

As far as getting on and off the lift goes, just make sure that she's
on your toe side, and you shouldn't have too much trouble picking her
up under one arm and riding down the ramp with her.

Thank you. "Pizza" and "french fries" will probably be the extent of my
"coaching." Good to know someone else has done this successfully.

Chris

--
A: Top-posters.
Q: What's the most annoying thing on usenet?

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids,
and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift - I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point
with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?



This might be crazy talk but how about booking a private ski lesson for her
and tagging along - if you're there it's not a ski school thing, it's still
a dad thing. Explain to the instructor you want to practice some fun drills
she can do with you when you take her out. Then you'll be confident you
won't confuse her or teach her bad habits, and she gets to copy someone on
skis the first few times so she knows what to do when it's just the two of
you.

Liz


---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.576 / Virus Database: 365 - Release Date: 30/01/04

"Chris J." wrote in message
I'm very proud of her and what she's accomplished already, so part of me
wants to leave well enough alone and just wait for next season. On the
other
hand, she's asking to go with me, her gear and pass is paid for, and I'd
love to spend the time with her on the snow...without renting skis if
possible.

From this I assume you can ski, so as og says, ski with her. You're not
going to do much challenging stuff on your board anyway and she won't be
able to follow you as you would be taking different lines to a snow plough
skier. Also when the going gets tough you can plough backwards with her
between your legs/skis.
If you decide to go the board route, you should be able to get the bottom
lift attendant to radio the top lift attendant and give you a hand.

--
David Brown )
http://kitemap.co.uk/stack

"lizbubb" wrote in message
.. .

At her last lesson she was doing really well following the instructor
and
stopping on her own. I've read up a little on ski instruction for kids,
and
can ride well enough so that maneuvering the board around her shouldn't
be
an issue, so I'm considering taking her with me.

The chairlift that services the beginner area is slow and low. Getting
on
shouldn't be a problem, but getting her off the chair with me being on a
board could be intersting. Her ski instructor carried her off the lift -
I
think I can do that but it's a concern.

So my questions are, Will I only confuse my little skier at this point
with
me trying to coach from a board? Any advice for getting her off the lift
cleanly? Anyone ever done this?



This might be crazy talk but how about booking a private ski lesson for
her
and tagging along - if you're there it's not a ski school thing, it's
still
a dad thing. Explain to the instructor you want to practice some fun
drills
she can do with you when you take her out. Then you'll be confident you
won't confuse her or teach her bad habits, and she gets to copy someone on
skis the first few times so she knows what to do when it's just the two of
you.


We are looking into this for an upcoming vacation. The plan was for my wife
to do a private lesson with her, but maybe I'll try to get involved too.

I actually did go with my daughter yesterday and it worked pretty well. We
did 4 runs together and there was only one bobble coming off the lift. My
board took a beating from her skis but I'll get over it. She did great and
we had a lot of fun together. I think I figured out why she didn't want to
go back to the ski school: she does not like to follow, she likes to lead.
I'd say Follow daddy and she'd say Follow me and then bolt! She gets that
from her mom...

Liz


Chris

---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.576 / Virus Database: 365 - Release Date: 30/01/04

"David Brown )" wrote in message
...
"Chris J." wrote in message
I'm very proud of her and what she's accomplished already, so part of me
wants to leave well enough alone and just wait for next season. On the
other
hand, she's asking to go with me, her gear and pass is paid for, and
I'd
love to spend the time with her on the snow...without renting skis if
possible.

From this I assume you can ski, so as og says, ski with her. You're not
going to do much challenging stuff on your board anyway and she won't be
able to follow you as you would be taking different lines to a snow plough
skier. Also when the going gets tough you can plough backwards with her
between your legs/skis.
If you decide to go the board route, you should be able to get the bottom
lift attendant to radio the top lift attendant and give you a hand.


I'm not sure I could ski at all at this point, let alone backwards! I never
was too good at it, and it's been many many years. The lifties were great
and we only had one little mishap coming off at the top. All-in-all it was a
success and we're planning on going together again next weekend.


--
David Brown )
http://kitemap.co.uk/stack



Chris

"David Brown \)" wrote in message ...

From this I assume you can ski, so as og says, ski with her. You're not
going to do much challenging stuff on your board anyway and she won't be
able to follow you as you would be taking different lines to a snow plough
skier. Also when the going gets tough you can plough backwards with her
between your legs/skis.

I have to bite. Og & David: you both say he should take skiing because
he won't be able to ride slow, and she won't be able to follow, and a few
other reasons.

And I say: DON'T. Based on what was said here, there is no reason
whatsoever he needs to ski. He can manage on board w/o problems:

- she made a lot of progress, so she doesn't need handholding.
He rides with her of course, but she can ski on her own,
- he can ride as slow or as fast on a board as he wishes,
- she wants to lead, not follow. So in this case he will follow,
and if he can't make the exact tracks, who cares? Besides he can
sideslip in her plough tracks.
- they're out there to have fun together. He won't be able to do
any challenging stuff regardless of sliding device(s).


Good luck Chris! So will you take her boarding when she's older?

"Sharkie" wrote in message
om...
"David Brown \)" wrote in message
...

From this I assume you can ski, so as og says, ski with her. You're not
going to do much challenging stuff on your board anyway and she won't be
able to follow you as you would be taking different lines to a snow
plough
skier. Also when the going gets tough you can plough backwards with her
between your legs/skis.

I have to bite. Og & David: you both say he should take skiing because
he won't be able to ride slow, and she won't be able to follow, and a few
other reasons.

And I say: DON'T. Based on what was said here, there is no reason
whatsoever he needs to ski. He can manage on board w/o problems:

- she made a lot of progress, so she doesn't need handholding.
He rides with her of course, but she can ski on her own,
- he can ride as slow or as fast on a board as he wishes,
- she wants to lead, not follow. So in this case he will follow,
and if he can't make the exact tracks, who cares? Besides he can
sideslip in her plough tracks.
- they're out there to have fun together. He won't be able to do
any challenging stuff regardless of sliding device(s).


Good luck Chris! So will you take her boarding when she's older?

I'm going to leave it up to her, but yeah, I'm dying to take her boarding.
I've heard that age 6 is about right for getting a child started on a board.
Any thoughts?

Thanks to everyone for the tips.

Chris