No snowboarding on school ski trip

[Gentillie]

This is so frivolous I know!

My DD is Y8 she has two very close friends and they are all going on the school ski trip in January. Today one of the friends dad has complained in our group chat non stop about how they aren’t allowing his daughter to do any Snowboarding, he claims he’s offered to send her with equipment etc.
Now when it comes to it, it’s because his daughter is better at snowboarding, she’s been going on a trip with her dad every half term since she was a child and always doing private snowboarding lessons. He keeps making it clear she can ski but isn’t as advanced.
He’s now asked a slightly larger group chat of parents 7 kids worth, to join him in complaining to the school as it’s unfair she won’t get to snowboard.
One of the parents has pointed out that it will be because for lessons they will split into ability groups and even if they made a snowboard group she’d probably be too advanced as it would be a small minority who would pick it.
Others have agreed it’s very unfair and will be joining him in complaining.

AIBU to think he’s being very precious and his DD can ski with everyone else for 5 days? Is this normal in your kids school or do they let them ski or snowboard.

He sounds nice.

What a shame for her that he’s completely lost sight of what school trips are all about. The best fun, laughs and memories will be made by all the kids titting around in the beginner and intermediate groups!

And staying up all night shrieking in the dorm 😆

Why is it showing off? I'd be embarrassed if my reading comprehension of the initial trip letter was so poor I didn't realise that snowboarding wasn't available.

I don't think he's being that ridiculous. Snowboarding is pretty standard. We live near the mountains & my kids go on ski days with school pretty regularly & and snowboarding, snow showing & tubing are the norm alongside sking. Maybe that's what he's used to?.

Presumably because they’ve only booked group leason for skiers. You can’t mix skiers and snowboarders in the same lesson.

He's showing off that his daughter is a competent snowboarder who regularly goes on snowboarding holidays and/or his daughter wants to show off her snowboarding skills on the trip.

To me it would be better all round for the school to have planned some snowboarding sessions as part of the trip. That would give the DC a richer and more varied experience and wouldn’t cost more as ultimately the number of overall sessions wouldn’t be changing.

Sounds like a class A Bellend

It depends ..is it lessons all day or do they have some free time in the afternoon? Do they have to be supervised by an adult at all times. I understand his point. I didn't know any snowboarders in my time in a ski society who found it easy to shift from snowboarding onto skis. Your body is used to moving a certain way on the slopes. It's a bit facetious to say 'its a ski trip' when all ski slopes have a mixture of skiers and snowboarders. They just happen to be called ski slopes out of convenience. It's like telling someone who uses a skate park with a BMX as their go to equipment, that they should only use a skateboard.

I would have presumed both were on offer as well. Lots of people say they’re going skiing as shorthand for ‘a week in the mountains sliding down there slopes with one or more planks stuck to my feet’. But having seen the explanations by PP I understand why they would only do one or the other. But if my DC was a keen snowboarder I can see why they’d be disappointed.

If you go as a family you can do whatever activities you want. If you go on a school trip you have to do what has been arranged for the trip. Like when you go on a school trip to the Museum you can't slope off to the pub after an hour because you are bored but you could if you went with your family.

But they haven't planned for that. Do you expect them to replan the whole trip and possibly charge everyone more just to please one rude arsehole?

Unless there is a certain number wanting to snowboard then they all have to ski. It is to do with the ratio between learner and instructor.

I think if you live near the mountains and the school regularly take people for the day you can't really compare it with a one off week long trip.

I know when I go to the Alps I see French kids skiing in the afternoon and they're not even always with a teacher or instructor. Guess it's like a PE afternoon and then they meet at the main lift a x time and get back on a mini bus. Suppose the kids are of a better standard where they don't need such close supervision.

DD could ski really well from a young age, was doing the horrible black at Val d'sere at 7yo no problem. She went on a ski trip with school when she was about 14yo. I knew the chances of her having the opportunity to ski blacks were pretty much non existent. But she was happy to go with her mates and ski blue runs.

What a wanker of the highest order. I’m almost hoping he does take his DD out to do snowboarding and does get a fine which they enforce him to pay.

And if she’s the only experienced snowboarder then she’d probably rather ski with the intermediates than snowboard on the nursery slope for a week.

Out of curiosity, others who have kids who have done ski trips, have both skiing and snowboarding been offered?
The school runs the trip annually so while he’s being a total A-hole this year he might have a point asking for it to change next year if this is something that actually is possible.
It’s about 50/60 kids a year but I don’t know how many are in the lessons.

Oh wow, he sounds wonderful.
It’ll do them both good for her to learn to ski and in all fairness she will want to be with her mates which is half the point of going. Just sit back and enjoy watching him highlighting how much of a tit he is

Now avidly following!!!

Anyone got popcorn?🍿

Except those poor, poor teachers having to deal with that shit.
And if they fine him, they'll fine the mum too 😢

For a beginner it's too much to pick up in 5 days. Whereas if they ski every day for 5 days they should be ok at snowploughing steadily and even going a bit parallel on green and blue runs. If they did 3 days skiing and 2 days boarding they'd just be still fairly shit at both by the end.

@ParkBench5 I would be very dubious about providing snowboarding lessons on a school ski trip. A bunch of excitable 12 year olds first time snowboarding is a recipe for a coach load of broken wrists heading back to Calais.

It’s a shame as her mums lovely and staying pretty quiet as he makes a tit of himself.
The DD spends all the time with her dad as she’s very sporty while her older brother is always at their mums. I feel bad for his DD every morning she has training for one sport or the other at 6am, mum has told me in the past that she doesn’t know if DD enjoys anymore or if she does it to please her dad.

I might reply that the trip isn’t just about skiing/snowboarding. Surely a big part of it is the kids sleeping in a big dorm and going away together?

I’ve never been skiing and neither have my kids, but it doesn’t sound like there’s anything to “win”? Why would he care what group she’s in 😵‍💫.

How else will he show what a talented DD and what a great dad he is if all the kids don’t come back chanting on the coach is the best is the best?