Winter is here and for many of us it’s the perfect time to indulge ourselves. For some, the most active thing they want do is wrap up warm in a blanket, eat chocolate and mince pies, and drink lots of wine and hot chocolate with marshmallows.
For others it may be an exciting time for thrill and activity seekers who love nothing more than hitting the slopes for a day of skiing or snowboarding. However, if this is you, what do you do when one of your party, probably a little one, is new to the slopes? Well the good news is that there are plenty of things you can do to prepare a first time skier, so that they can get going on their first day, with confidence and make life easier for everyone.
However, there is one thing that we do suggest from the start: stay clear of teaching them to ski yourselves. Yes, you might have the experience, or think you have, but with it you will be passing on all your bad habits and could easily miss some vital piece of safety knowledge.
Before you leave
Start them off slow and easy.
Remember this is a totally new experience for them and you want it to be positive and fun, so it’s a good idea to start with the basics. They probably will not have tried on a ski-suit, boots or even skis before, so start here.
Get the whole family involved
Get everyone together to share happy and funny ski memories, as this can really motivate, especially the young ones. Even better, if you have pictures or videos, share them too.
You can also run through what will be happening when they are there and what the rest of the family will be doing.
Take a trip to an indoor snow centre
If you can try visiting the local snow centre and better still book a beginner’s lesson. This is a great opportunity to try on any equipment and have a walk around in the boots, suits, helmet and gloves.
When you arrive
Plan ahead for the next day.
When you get to your accommodation, you will obviously be tired; however, by taking thetime to plan ahead for the next day, it will help make everything calmer and more organised. It’s a good idea to:
Make sure that you have all of your children’s clothing ready including - gloves, socks, underwear, layers etc.
Run through again what will happen the next morning; make sure everyone knows what is happening.
Don’t forget yourself, be prepared too.
Try and get an early night.
The morning of the first lesson
Leave extra time for any mishaps.
Remember to double check that their lift pass is securely zipped up in a pocket in their jacket and that you have packed a snack too.
Try and get to the ski school with time to spare so that you can ‘check-in’ your children and ask any questions you may have.
Do not hang around at the ski school as your child will only see this as an opportunity to be distracted or decide that they would rather stay with you.
So there you have it, by following our easy tips you will hopefully find that before you know it you have a real ‘snow bunny’ on your hands and any worries and fears will have become a very distant memory.
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