New family Skiers. Holiday trip

[Matt Merritt]

@Matt Merritt, what length and what kind (group or private) of lessons were you thinking of when you said three days of lessons would enable never-evers to ski Homerun down from the summit?

Lessons on the OP's vacation dates will likely be sold out well in advance so ski school decisions should be made in a bit of a hurry. I obviously don't know the budget or family dynamics (Stacy sure seems nice) but I think I'd book a private for the whole group for the first three days. It would be easy to give everybody a break by taking turns between parents and kids. Also, a good instructor will help in a hundred ways to create an experience that would leave you all no choice but to become degenerate ski nuts just like us.

I hate to think what you could potentially spend to outfit a whole family with ski clothes in Park City. Here in north Texas we have a few ski shops that tend to stock more economical lines of ski clothes that would definitely help stave off the sticker shock. Hopefully you have such a place near where you live.

Don't be shy about asking questions. We LOVE beginners here and we're almost as excited about your trip as you are.

 

[stacyjh]

Thanks Again everyone! I would say as a group we are pretty cautious and are not trying to get hurt. We do not have expectations to be expert skiers or do much beyond beginner stuff. The kids actually do not know about this trip. They are very brave but also cautious. We are all in good shape. Our boy plays soccer and baseball, and girl does ninja and has done gymnastics and dance in the past. We enjoy rock climbing and whitewater rafting as a family and can hold our own.

 

[LiquidFeet]

@stacyjh, sounds like your group is in good athletic shape for a ski vacation. Fun fun fun is on its way.
And you are planning now. Do pay attention to timing. Christmas vacation is a crowded time with lessons and rentals potentially booked. Book lessons and rental gear now.

Ask clarifying questions here before you make big decisions, if you like; we do love to answer.

 

[Zirbl]

I was thinking after the kids full day and adult half day lessons we would be able to play around on our own.

You obviously all have a great athletic base and will probably pick things up quickly, and I get that you're thinking of the whole family enjoying something together, but if someone said they'd introduce you to skiing and they'd only ever skied for half a day themselves, what would you say?

 

[Bad Bob]

There is a Columbia Outlet store out in the mall by Kimball Junction towards the west end of Park City. Not a bad place to pick up budget priced ski clothes for the whole family. This stuff is 2nd tier ski ware but normally a lot bang for the buck. Buying outfits for 4 in the ski shops around PC could bruise a credit card.

Just thinking like a dad here.

 

[KingGrump]

if someone said they'd introduce you to skiing snowboarding and they'd only ever skied snowboarded for half a day themselves, what would you say?

That's SOP for a snowboard instructor.

 

[Zirbl]

@stacyjh - someone's been kind enough to message me and express doubts as to whether my question in post #24 is particularly productive. Glad they did, because if it didn't come across as welcoming to someone new to skiing, that wasn't my intention. I just consider it more pleasant to ask questions rather than say do this or do that, but it seems it might have made the opposite impression.

It should have occurred to me that having not been skiing before, you won't have encountered this scenario: in almost every ski resort you'll see sensible, cautious, safety-conscious skiers getting into all sorts of risky situations simply because they're unable to see the bigger picture due to being necessarily immersed in getting to grips with all that comes with a new sport in constantly changing conditions. At the beginner level, you're often thinking one turn at a time and oblivious to what's going on around you. If you found yourself in that position, would you be happy supervising others in a similar situation?

Again, I'm just asking questions here, because everyone has their own risk profile and it goes without saying that it's their call.

Is it a viable alternative to seek out the ski school's specialist in coaching beginners who knows the sport well, knows the equipment, knows how to progress people, and knows which spot on the mountain will offer the most conducive conditions at the right time of the day, and spend most of your week with them? And here too I can only ask the question, because I don't know anything about the cost of skiing in Park City, or how high a priority time with the family together is.

 

[Matt Merritt]

Here's a short, three-video series by Deb Armstrong, Olympic medalist and instructor deluxe that will help take some of the mystery out of what you'll experience on your first day:

 

[stacyjh]

Hello again, I booked my epic passes yesterday and planning on booking ski school today. We are staying on the Canyons side. Considering it will be busy season I was thinking it may be slightly less crowded at Canyons vs. Park City. We are on Shuttle so I am thinking we could also easily get to Park City if that is a better choice... Any thoughts?

Also, Planning on taking a break day in between skiing. We are going to rent skis. Should I bring ski's back to save on the day we will not be using them? Will that be a big hassle? What have you done? Thank you!!

 

[Mendieta]

Also, Planning on taking a break day in between skiing. We are going to rent skis. Should I bring ski's back to save on the day we will not be using them? Will that be a big hassle? What have you done? Thank you!!

Skis and ski boots, right? I would much rather rent them for the length of the stay. It won't move the needle in terms of the cost of the trip overall, and you want everything as convenient as possible.

The cost of skiing, per day, drops about a factor 20 once you get hooked, get Season Passes, your own gear ... but for now, convenience is key. Everything around skiing is annoying for the first few days (walking in the boots, just for starters, feels like a torture until you get used to it).

Best of luck!

 

[Matt Merritt]

I haven't skied over on the Canyons side since it was called ParkWest so I couldn't tell you anything about the beginner terrain there. Shuttles run regularly (and are easy to negotiate once you get your kids to figure out their terrible app) but it still wouldn't be fun to have to take a shuttle when you're already so close.

As Mendieta said above, returning your gear for that one day off won't reduce your cost enough to offset having to get fitted all over again when you go back. Just keep them in the condo for a day.

Particularly during busy season I always like to be wherever I'm going at least 45 minutes before I need to be there. There always to be something that needs to be attended to when herding spouses, kids, and all that gear.

 

[David Chaus]

On the Canyons side, you'd probably take the the Red Pine gondola to the Red Pine Lodge for lessons. The High Meadow express lift is a great learning area. There is relatively easy intermediate terrain nearby, so when you've progressed a bit there are options, and your instructor(s) can help you with terrain selection for when you're practicing after class.

Canyons does not have a long top-to-bottom green run like Home Run at Park City. My experience skiing with a young beginner family member is Home Run is a long way to go and very tiring for new skiers, who will typically stop for rest breaks frequently.

You could try taking a lesson day at each base and see which you prefer.

 

[Henry]

tromano said, "Also, slow down and take your time when getting ski boots at the rental shop. Double check to make sure the boots are not too big for each skier. You want a fit that feels supportive and like a firm handshake on your foot, not a cushy slipper."

VERY important. You want the smallest boots you can wear without discomfort buckled as tightly as you can without discomfort. Rental shops need to push the customers through to handle everyone. Either get there early on the ski day or late the day before and take the time you need to follow the advice above. I've seen new skiers in too-big boots. They try hard to make all the moves the instructor shows them to make and nothing goes right. The movement of their legs never reaches the skis. It's lost inside the boots. You can get different boots if the first try doesn't work well. You'll rent skis and poles as well, and maybe telephone the ski school office and ask if you should take poles for the first lesson. Some instructors feel that they just get in the way at that time.

My thought on lessons is for an all day lesson on the first day and half day lessons the mornings of subsequent days. It's good to get the morning lesson then practice in the afternoon. Also, I suggest that you telephone Epic Pass, 970-754-0005, and ask about what discounts go with the passes you've already bought. The pass mess is quite complex and misunderstandings happen.

Yes, there is good free public transit from the Canyons base to the Park City Mountain Resort (PCMR) base (Park City Mountain Village Transit Hub) in town. https://www.parkcity.org/departments/transit-bus/routes-schedules (more routes in the winter). While there is a way to ski from the Canyons area to the PCMR area, for beginners--take the bus.

We all know about Vail Resorts lunch menu prices. Perhaps consider bringing a waist pack and bring lunches for days after the first day. A backpack can be difficult or unsafe to use when riding a chairlift.

 

[dbostedo]

Lessons on the OP's vacation dates will likely be sold out well in advance so ski school decisions should be made in a bit of a hurry.

planning on booking ski school today

Did you get your lesson plan worked out and booked @stacyjh?

 

[rcc55125]

@stacyih, as a previous resident of New Orleans (in the last century) and a current instructor at the Canyons I just had to comment. There's a lot of good advise in the above.

One item is 'slow down', not just in rental but for everything the first couple of days. You are coming from sea level and the base at Canyons is about 6800 feet. It takes time to acclimate. The beginner area is at the top of the Red Pine gondola at about 8000 ft. As has been said, drink plenty of water. The Red Pine Lodge is right next to the teaching area so taking breaks is easy.

Rental, if you are renting from Canyon Mountian Sports get there early, early. As noted, if you can do it the evening before so much the better. At that time of the season you want to be at rental an hour before your lesson time. I'm not sure what time they open during the holiday season bet I don't think it's earlier than 8 AM. You want to be at lesson check in, between the gondola and Orange Bubble by 8:45. That will be tough to do with a huge line in rental. It's not unheard of for beginner groups to go up at 10 AM due to long lines in rental.

First lesson. I'm a proponent of Mom and Dad being in one lesson and the kids in a different lesson. At Canyons you will start on Sweet Pea, a very gentle slope with a surface lift to the right of the top on the gondola. You may spend your entire first morning on this slope. You would then progress to the High Meadow lift in the afternoon. This is right in front of the Red Pine Lodge so getting around is easy. Mellow Moose is the training run off of High Meadow. It's a good training area with many different pitches so progressing to steeper pitches is easy; it's all rated Green, so considered easy. Once your instructor is comfortable with your turning and stoping ability you will progress to Snow Dancer off the Saddleback Chair. This chair is again in front of the Red Pine Lodge. This is a natural progression from Mellow Moose and not uncommon for new skiers to be on this run on their second day.

At this point you have options. The Park City base has more Green runs than the Canyons side. It's a short bus ride (free) from the Canyons base to the Park City Base and the bus drops you off right at the enterance to the lifts. There's no problem transferring a lesson from Canyons to PC you just need to let the ski school know the day before.

Transportation. In addition to the free bus there is also Canyons Village Connect, https://cvma.com/canyons-village-connect/. This is s free shuttle service for people staying at Canyons Village. It's sort of like a free Uber.

Lesson perk. If you can swing it another benefit of skiing with an instructor is using the Ski School lift line. It's usually shorter than the regular line. Also as previously mentioned an instructor will guide you to the better ways down. On the PC side Miners Camp is a great place for lunch. It's accessable from Greens and after lunch you can ski back to the base on Homerun off the top of the top of the Silverlode Express. Don't be surprised if this takes you the rest of the afternoon to get down even though it's a Green run, it's that long. Or at least you'll be ready to call it a day. That would be a lot of skiing for your second or third day.

Expectations. Don't be surprised if you can't keep up with the kids after three days. The kids sound athletic so they may pick it up quickly. However, if one of them is very cautious they may want to go slow. This can make it difficult to ski as a group. Take your time don't get frustrated if one child doesn't want to go fast. Ski short segments and regroup but let everyone ski at their own pace. Skiing can be a life long family sport. I haven't been able to keep up with my kids for 20 years but we still enjoy going out with each other and then talk about it at the end of the day.

Welcome to the wonderful world of alpine skiing, enjoy.
Should you have some specific question PM me I'll do my best to answer it.

 

[teejaywhy]

There is a Columbia Outlet store out in the mall by Kimball Junction towards the west end of Park City. Not a bad place to pick up budget priced ski clothes for the whole family. This stuff is 2nd tier ski ware but normally a lot bang for the buck. Buying outfits for 4 in the ski shops around PC could bruise a credit card.

Just thinking like a dad here.

I recommend at a minimum to pick up a pair of ski pants for each member of the family. Nothing will put a damper on the ski experience like being cold and wet.

As Amazon was already mentioned, there is a budget line of ski wear called Artix. Insulated ski pants ~$40-$60.

Another (budget-minded) Dad.

 

[dbostedo]

I recommend at a minimum to pick up a pair of ski pants for each member of the family.

As an occasional skier for many years in the early 2000's (like 1 or 2 days a year) I used to ski in waterproof track pants over thermals/long johns/sweatpants. They're Nike (I still have them!) and I think they cost me like $25.

Ski pants are a better option, but staying dry can be accomplished in other ways if you can't find ski pants easily.

 

[LiquidFeet]

Look at eBay. There are thousands of ski pants for sale.
Yes, you can bargain. Clothes are rarely sold at auction on eBay any more.
There's just a price. Many items have "make an offer" in their introduction.

 

[Lane Myer]

Highly recommend the Twisted Fern if you can get reservations. Our family also really enjoyed the lobster rolls at Freshies which is a great non-reservation option for busy times. Have fun! Your kids are gonna love it.

 

[Matt Merritt]

Davanza's pizza! On Park Ave. just below Main St. The Philly cheesesteak sandwich...