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Youngest that a child can have (private) ski lessons?

Hi

Starting to think ahead, but what is the youngest that a child can benefit from time "on the snow" with a ski instructor?

Boo Boo Jnr was born on 25th Jan 2010 and so will be JUST 2 this season. Am trying to work out if we can book any private lessons for him and, if we did, if he would actually benefit.... (have fun).

Jnr was walking by about 12.5 months (2 days after we returned from Steamboat this past year!) and is completely fearless and is a real "rough and tumble" boy (normally laughs if he falls over, rarely cries...). He has been swimming (once a week) since 14 weeks old: we love to introduce him to new physical experienced.

We definitely plan a lot of "snow play" regardless, but wondering if there is a point to letting him experience skis (with an instructor) too.

Thanks
Boo

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Permalink Reply by skisteamboat on August 6, 2011 at 7:02am

I have seen the "strap on" plastic skis at various places in the US. They are just simple skis that strap to a kid's snow boots. They are pretty cheap.

My suggestion is see how he likes those long boards on his feet before you leave and if it works, go for the lesson (if the ski school lets you). I have a suspicion he would have to be potty trained.

Cheers and hope to see you this season.

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Permalink Reply by SteamboatRider on August 8, 2011 at 3:46pm

Hey Boo!

Kinda relevant for me too...we had our 1st little one 6 weeks ago!

afaik, ski school won't take any kids until they're 2.5 years old and thats just mainly for childcare rather than skiing (although iirc, they do get an hr per day of private tuition included within the childcare aspect....I'm thinking mainly just putting them skis and dragging them round a bit?).

Other than that, I don't think you can actually book privates until they're 3yrs although that seems a bit weird if they can get an hr as part of childcare at 2.5yrs?

Basically, I'm not entirely sure....! Hopefully an official ski school rep will chime in with better advice!

Good to hear Boo Jnr is doing well and you're priming him for a ski career.... atm our little one still likes to shout/scream/cry more than anything else....still, I'm sure he'll turn out to be an Olympian yet!!! ;-)

Cheers!

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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Butler on August 26, 2011 at 9:14am

Hi,

I am a Supervisor in the Kids' Vacation Center. I thought I would attach a list of our programs for our youngest skiers to inform you of your options when your child is old enough for our programs. In our experience, these programs best suit the majority of young skiers. Unfortunately, it will be a few more months before your son is ready for a professional program, but this way you can plan for next year :) Best of luck and enjoy the coming winter!

Buckaroos

2½-4 years

The best first experience for your child on skis. Buckaroos participants enjoy all-day childcare as well as a one-hour private ski lesson provided by specially-trained instructors

Childcare available from 8:00am-4:00pm. Ski equipment & lunch included. No lift ticket required.

Mavericks

3½-4 years

Leave the teaching to us for little ones! The Maverick program is a full-day group lesson and operates in a similar fashion to Sundance Kids, with smaller group sizes, a little less ski time (two one-hour sessions) and a lot of fun! All Mavericks must be willing to ski and be fully potty-trained.

Lunch included. Helmet required. Equipment is not included. No lift ticket required.

KVC opens at 8:00am. Pick-Up at 3:00pm

Whippersnapper Private

3-4 years

The perfect opportunity to learn to ski for young whippersnappers! Experienced staff will instruct your child in a one-hour private lesson. This is a great option for your child to first try skiing or if they'd like a little extra attention as they improve their skiing skills.

Helmet required. Equipment is included.

Palomino Pals

3-3½ years

All day Kiddie Coral Child Care with Lunch, plus an on-snow group ski lesson for 1.5 hours. Lunch included. Ski equipment & helmet is included during lesson time only. No lift ticket required.

KVC opens at 8am. Pick-Up at 4pm

Kim

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Permalink Reply by Boo Boo on August 27, 2011 at 2:05pm

Thank you very much, everyone.

I have sent a seperate message to SteamboatRider with my congratulations :-)

Thank you Kimberly, Jnr will be JUST too young for those programs when we visit - he will be about 2 years and 1 week old when we get to Steamboat. We will consider either Buckaroos or Whippersnapper Privates for the 2013 season (when he will be 3 years old).

Thanks SkiSteamboat - looks like we will try your suggestion :-)

Boo

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Permalink Reply by Amy (Skibaby) on August 30, 2011 at 9:00am

Hi Boo Boo!

We put our daughter in a private lesson last year when she was 3 but our son skiied with us on preview when he was just 19 months old! We had to search a few shops for boots small enough but it was a great experience and one we all enjoyed and loved. I have great pictures of him snowplowing on his own following his daddy down the mountain.

We did like the private lesson for our daughter since I wanted her to do it on her own and was really amazed at what they did for her in an hour. They had her turning her skis, french fries and pizza wedge, but it was a great experience that I would do again. We also saw them working with one of the little ones from the child care lesson and they were using the magic carpet and working on turns and stops. Amazing since the girl was so little!

We are excited that this year she will be old enough for big ski school since she will be 4 when we go in Feburary. Our newest olympian will still have to wait a little bit longer though since he will only be 4 months old when we get there!

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Permalink Reply by Boo Boo on September 5, 2011 at 7:56am

Hi Amy

Thank you :-)

That is amazing! 19 months?! That must have been so cute.

I think that I will wait until Alex is 3 - and able to ski with a proper instructor. He is a bit of a "no caution, no fear, dare devil": I think that he would be a lot better off in professional hands ;-). The isntructors at Steamboat are amazing and that is definitely where I want him to learn.

4 months old? Is that your third? Born just now or not arrived yet? How exciting!!! Do you plan to get much skiing in yourself? I know where to come for advice on family ski vacations :-)

Boo

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Permalink Reply by Brandon Fisher on November 14, 2011 at 3:41pm

Where did you find the boots/skis for the 19 year old? My family will be coming for our vacation in feb 2012 and will have our son with us. He has been walking well now for several months, and will be 18 months at the time of our vacation. Would love to let him give it a try around the base area for picutre purposes. If you remember the name of the shop you found the boots/skis at please let me know.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Sjoblom (live2ski) on November 15, 2011 at 9:19am

Hi Brandon!

When my oldest daughter was 17 months we put her on skis. But it was only in our driveway, and they were the skis that attached to her winter boots - so the sizing on the "binding" was changeable. I know that One Stop Ski Shop has those skis in stock. I still amaze people with the super-cute pics of her posing and sliding around our (almost) flat driveway. (She's 7y.o. now and skis like a little champ! So fun!) They are great little skis at a reasonable price, and no ski boots are required.

Have a great visit to Steamboat!

Laura

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Permalink Reply by Brandon Fisher on November 15, 2011 at 12:35pm

Laura:

Thank you very much. That is exactly what I am looking for. I will look for that ski shop when we get in town and hopefully we can find some skis for him. We are all looking forward to our trip. This is my first time to colorado, so I am anxious.

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Permalink Reply by Boo Boo on November 17, 2011 at 2:48pm

Thank you very much, Laura, I will check this out too.

Boo

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Permalink Reply by Kimberly Butler on January 22, 2012 at 11:28am

The youngest lesson we do is called a Buckaroo and they start at 2 and a half years old, so he's still a little young for it. This program constitutes a full day of childcare with a 1 hour private lesson. Thank you for asking.

Please call or email with any other questions,

Kim Butler

KVC Supervisor

970-871-5223

kbutler@steamboat.com