LESSONS INSTILL GOOD HABITS IN YOUNG SKIERS
You’ve made the decision: it’s time to bring your next generation into skiing and riding. Or, you want to start, together, from here.
How to, particularly in this unusual season? Ski pros say that while some things are unique this season, the basic concepts of learning and the important aspects of onhill lessons are still very much with us all.
At Shawnee Peak (www.shawneepeak. com) in Maine, lessons have been active at a busy clip this season, with lots of newbies getting into the sport, and plenty of new generations arriving to join the fun.
Said Resort Snowsports Director Ron Laprise, other than a somewhat time-consuming input process (temperature checks for all instructors and students, questionnaire about past weeks and some more common COVID-19 precautions), “Once past that, if feels pretty much the same.”
The resort, like many, are offering smaller classes: For kids under 6, it’s two children to every instructor. Above that age, classes run about four to five students per instructor. That means, in essence, you’re getting what is close to a semi-private lesson for the same price of regular group lessons.
Laprise and his daughter, Emma, who has taught skiing and riding there for 12 years, both feel strongly that at least one (or more) lessons are the smartest way to start.
Why? Because learning to ski the right way from the start builds a foundation for a lifetime of strong skiing and riding.
“A lot of this is about body position,” Laprise said. “We work on balance, edging, rotation and pressure. It all works from the foot up. The assessment from the pro (expert input from trained pros to get each person starting in a way that works best for them) starts as the student walks up. We can see a lot and know a lot of what we need to work on just from that.”
Emma Laprise feels lessons to start are a must; and while more lessons are a great idea, particularly in this unusual year, parents may be able to work a bit with their children on their own after that.
“A first lesson will get the kids to where they can safely stop,” she said, allowing parents to take their children out and know they can control their speed.
She has the same suggestion for teens new to the sport, who may tell their parents they don’t need a lesson because their already skiing or riding friends can show them how.
“That’s not a good idea,” she said. “Think of the teenage mind. They’ll be self-conscious and pressured to do things that may be dangerous at their beginner level.”
She suggests parents insist on at least a starter lesson before teens new to the sport join their friends on the trails.
When parents do take their newbie kids out on their own, instructors agree on one thing: Leashes are not a good idea.
Ski leashes have been popular – and controversial – for years. The leash can allow a parent to control the child as they ski ahead of them, slowing them and stopping them as they go.
Rather, Emma said, take your child on slopes they can do that on under their own power, and let them slowly advance to steeper trails.
“Using a leash encourages bad habits,” she said. “They lead a child to lean back (skiing in particular is all about leaning forward).”
They also, she said, remove much of the chance of a child learning to stop and go and control speed on their own.
“Even a two- or three-year-old can often learn that,” she said.
Ron Laprise agreed.
“It gives them (the child and the parent) a false sense of security,” he said, as well as a warped view of what skills their child may have at any point.
They sometimes get students, he said, who have been skiing on a leash for as much as two seasons on intermediate terrain. But when they take them out to learn in a class, those children often have to start at the very begging, a surprise to the parents.
“They need to learn those skills still,” he said.
Emma suggests something parents can do right away: let their little ones stomp around the backyard in their gear. It gives them a chance to get a feel for the equipment before starting, she said.
There’s another key factor to successful starter lessons.
Okemo’s (www.okemo.com) General Manger of Ski and Ride School Chris Saylor boils it all down to one overarching goal: To have fun.
“While teaching your friends and family can be fun and rewarding for some, for others it can be a trying time – for both parents and children,” he said. “Frustration levels can run high and this is definitely detrimental to a learning environment. One of the biggest factors in a successful day of learning to slide is fun.”
In other words: Sometimes someone else starting a loved one or friend out works better.
For children new to the sport, he suggests parents consider their personality and learning style. If your child is the type who can meet new people, learn and listen to them, send them off to ski school. If they need a parent around more, he said, send them off to ski school – just in a “family lesson.” Family lessons are like your own group private in which a child can learn and parents can learn how to help them learn more.
Saylor isn’t totally against tools like leashes, hula hoops and the “edgy wedgy” to help kids move along. But, he said, it’s vital to not be dependent on them, and rather to only use it some of the time.
“The key to using any tool is to remember it is an aid to help with learning. Don’t use it all the time, otherwise children rely on the tool instead of building skills,” he said.
In the end, it really is about fun. Fun on skis or a snowboard comes – as anyone who tried it without support and lessons can usually tell you— comes when you are introduced from Day 1 the right way. No matter the age, as you add more generations to your ski tribe, help them learn right.