13 - no one in my family skied but our township ran bus trips pretty much every weekend in the winter. so many memories...
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Poll How old were you when you started skiing?
- Thread starter Philpug
- Start date
I was in kindergarten when my parents dropped me off at the tow rope and left me for 3/4 of a day.
They showed back up and my dad and neighbor carried me to the green lift. I took off down the hill and they started yelling "plow". Of course, I started poling, since nobody had taught me the first thing about skiing.
The next day was spent skiing blues with my neighbor's kids. Our technique involved skiing straight down the mountain and laying on our backs at the bottom to stop. We never hit anyone, and I'm told were a source of amusement for many.
They showed back up and my dad and neighbor carried me to the green lift. I took off down the hill and they started yelling "plow". Of course, I started poling, since nobody had taught me the first thing about skiing.
The next day was spent skiing blues with my neighbor's kids. Our technique involved skiing straight down the mountain and laying on our backs at the bottom to stop. We never hit anyone, and I'm told were a source of amusement for many.
My goodness, only five votes over 50! Only newboots has me beat. Not counting a disaster at Red River, where family spent a Christmas vacation when I was 52 (and on my one attempt to ski, fell my way down the long green there - including one memorable tumble off the trail and down the mountain; my brothers, good skiers both, abandoned me at the top, telling me I'd figure it out; I didn't, and turned my skis in when I finally got down), I was 58. I drove to Wolf Creek in March, 2015, determined to either learn to ski or never give it another thought. A wonderful instructor there, about my age, had me going in half an hour. He took me directly to the top of Bunny Hop, bypassed the stupid wedge, and he had me making beginner parallel turns before we got to Caution Corner. For the next two days I felt more carefree and child-like than I had in many years.
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- Apr 24, 2017
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I had a two stutter starts prior to, what I consider, my official start:
- Sometime in elementary school, I went to Big Bear, CA with my aunt and uncle for a short trip. All I really remember is not having poles. I'm fairly positive I didn't go beyond the dedicated beginner lift. I remember the house we stayed at more clearly. It had multiple levels and my room was on the bottom. It was really stormy and kind of spooky.
- Mid-twenties. For my birthday, we did a family vacation to Tahoe. Skiing wasn't the main draw, but while we were up there I wanted to try it. My husband had skied frequently as a teenager, and remembered it fondly. I signed up for a beginner lift-lesson-rental combo at Sierra-at-Tahoe. The ticket was limited to the beginner slopes, but that was more than enough. I got the hang of it and soon was away from the magic carpets and ready to tackle the chair lift. I had a lot of fun.
- Age 30. 2015-2016- Two days at Snow Summit, Big Bear CA. Three days at Sierra-at-Tahoe, again for a birthday trip (a ski week has become my defacto birthday present
) This time I took a 3-day lesson combo and gained confidence. Mostly, I caught the bug.
- 2016-2017- 29 days. Got the Cali4nia pass and haven't looked back.
1967 I was 10 years old and we had just moved to Denver. We all got skis for Christmas (leather boots, cable bindings, Lund Blazer wood skis with screw-in metal edges). Started by climbing up the small hill at the golf course, then graduated to the lifts at A-Basin and Loveland.
Have skied every year since 1967. Colorado based 1967-1980. Oregon based 1980-present.
Have skied every year since 1967. Colorado based 1967-1980. Oregon based 1980-present.
I cast my vote in the 50 plus.
Though I first skied (bumming at Vail in '71 SnowBird in '72 etc ) I gave it up, for a long while...
At age 50+ With Kids 16 years old and wanting to work (at the local ski mountain)
I tested and was accepted to the ski patrol. (I was hot that day)
That was 15 years ago. Now, I can say I've started to ski. Any trail, any conditions. The better you get, the better IT gets. ;-)
OH! I "started" playing rec soccer the same year ;-)
ETA
I went "pro patrol" last year. 'plan to do it again this winter. Something about the mountain....
Though I first skied (bumming at Vail in '71 SnowBird in '72 etc ) I gave it up, for a long while...
At age 50+ With Kids 16 years old and wanting to work (at the local ski mountain)
I tested and was accepted to the ski patrol. (I was hot that day)
That was 15 years ago. Now, I can say I've started to ski. Any trail, any conditions. The better you get, the better IT gets. ;-)
OH! I "started" playing rec soccer the same year ;-)
ETA
I went "pro patrol" last year. 'plan to do it again this winter. Something about the mountain....
I checked 20s. I did have one year in 1st grade with the school ski club where I learned how to "pizza." But then my parents decided it was too expensive. Didn't really ski again until the 2008-2009 season (and then didn't take a lesson for 3 more yrs). I was 29 in late 2008.
First time on skis Garmish Bavaria in 1962, age 3. There is 8mm film evidence I skied a few feet on my own. My dad was stationed in Schweinfurt, Germany. He bought wooden skis for me and my sister, which we used for about 10 years in various parts of the USA when it snowed. No edges, cable bindings, no control.
First time I really skied at a resort- Bogus Basin, Idaho in 1973, age 14. Even on crap rental gear, it was such a light year jump in technology that I was hooked. First set of gear was Fischer Red Masters and leather boots with buckles procured at a ski swap. The aluminum Scott poles from that swap I still have, and used until a couple of years ago when I switched to carbon Komperdell poles to ease wrist pain.
First time I really skied at a resort- Bogus Basin, Idaho in 1973, age 14. Even on crap rental gear, it was such a light year jump in technology that I was hooked. First set of gear was Fischer Red Masters and leather boots with buckles procured at a ski swap. The aluminum Scott poles from that swap I still have, and used until a couple of years ago when I switched to carbon Komperdell poles to ease wrist pain.
Don't I wish.
Interesting results! Didn't realize I would be such a minority in the 40+ category. For those of you who also started skiing on the later side, what advice in hindsight would you give to yourself, or to a never-ever 40+ person getting on the slopes for the first time?
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Be ok with falling down. Work on control before speed. Take private lessons as often as you can afford them. Practice and perfect drills.
Three.
I was in elementary school and like almost everyone else in Michigan I ice skated and played hockey, so skis felt like ice skates that could go faster and “hockey stops” were natural even in those lace up boots I wore and the straight long skis.
To a never-ever adult of any age I would say just have fun!
Kids know how to do that naturally and they learn in the process, and generally faster than adults not cause they are more athletic but because for them skiing is an opportunity to play, so be a kid again! So much is going to depend on your outlook, even more than your fitness levels, don’t stress over equipment just be comfortable and seek out lessons, as that will advance you in leaps and bounds in your first few days.
And oh yeah did I mention just have fun!
Advice?
Stick to trails you are comfortable with. There is no learning going on when you are scared.
Skiing is supposed to be fun and enjoyed! Don't be in a hurry to get to the bottom. The view up high is the best!
I started somewhere between 5 and 10 years of age, but didn't really get into it until I was in my teens. Once I hit 16 and could drive myself to the ski hill I also skied a lot more. There was a decline in the number of days when I was a starving student in my late teens early 20s, but it picked back up later. I'm currently 57 and skiing about 40 (full) days per year. I would ski more, but the season here in Ontario Canada is short, and I can't afford to fly out west too often.
I started at 27 with a group trip to Holiday Valley in New York. I found that shifting weight like an ice skater translated really, really easily to basic groomed slopes that aren't too steep. It however took lots of practice and experimentation to deal with variable conditions and terrain but 14 years later I still absolutely love it.
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Same! I was 5. My Dad and Uncle took me to Pine Bend, near MPLS, MN (long since gone) and put me in a lesson. Apparently, the first time they skied by, I left the lesson and followed them to the bottom of the "hill".
Hockey FTW!!!
I started skiing the winter of 2009 just after turning 50. I had gone once to Elk Mountain back in 1989 and did not like it much. Something about being out there with my wife and kids sliding around made it so much more fun and worth the PITA factor to make those 2+ hr trips to the Poconos. My wife skied growing up in Wisconsin and had made her HS and college trips to the UP, Colorado, and Utah, so she was very happy I finally took to skiing. I started at Jack Frost and then added Blue Mountain over the next few years, and still hit those places plus Elk. I've visited most of the other Pocono hills, but these three are my favorites. It took me awhile to get comfortable enough on skis to start taking trips to VT and Maine. I now consider myself a solid (perpetually advancing) intermediate, but struggle with moguls. I don't have a fear of falling or steep runs, even at my size (6' 6", 230 lb), but something about moguls just throws me off. Perhaps this is one downside of starting so late in life.