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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To let my 7yo ski on his own?

10 replies

MrLSG · 13/02/2009 04:12

He's a brill skier. So no problems there.

He's seeking independence - and knows that he must earn responsibility. And if messes up, he knows the consequenses.

The resort is pretty safe (few cliffs, obvious base).

OP posts:

toomanyprojects · 13/02/2009 07:40

Mr LSG,
We are just back from La Ros and my 8yr old also enjoyed her independence - we did this by letting her lead the way and sometimes letting her go say three of four markers down the piste and waiting for us there.

We did once let her do a couple of nursery runs on her own and then follow us in to the chalet (you could see the run from the chalet) but that was as much as I was happy with. Even through she is a fab skier she still falls over and needs help (snow down her back etc!). Also the weather can change so quickly - the clouds were very low and visibility was changing by the minute. There was no way I would let her go up and down the mountain on her own but to be honest she didn't ask - she saw the fog herself.

Have a great time.

laweaselmys · 13/02/2009 07:47

Are there no other children he could ski with in a group? (best solution IMO!)

Otherwise TMP's ideas are good. Let them go ahead and catch them up etc, but I am a kiwi skiier I am naturally nervous of changing weather and getting isolated in the mountains. I don't really think anybody should ski totally on their own.

snickersnack · 13/02/2009 10:49

I agree with laweaselmys - I don't really think solo skiing is a great idea, but I am naturally quite cautious. But I assume you're not talking about packing him off in the morning with a lift pass and seeing him at lunch time?

If you really want to, what about a short run where you can sit at the bottom in a cafe and watch him come down? Then you'll know exactly how long he should be gone. Or a run that splits in two, and you go one way and he goes the other?

LilyBolero · 13/02/2009 10:51

I used to ski on my own from about age 8 or 9, would go off for the morning, meet my parents for lunch, then back off for the afternoon. Could go where I liked on the mountain.

MyNameIsInigoMontoya · 13/02/2009 11:00

Unless it is a teeny tiny resort I think even adults should be cautious when skiing alone - not saying they shouldn't do it at all, but that they should be careful about where they go etc. Mainly due to risk of bad weather/getting lost in a whiteout, or what happens if they have an accident and nobody sees - for example ending up over an edge where they might not be found.

So a 7-year-old I would no way allow to go off properly alone - only the sort of thing TMP said.

Alibabaandthe40nappies · 13/02/2009 12:24

I would never ski solo as an adult, not really. TMP has good ideas, this is the kind of thing my parents used to do with us as kids.

Is ski-school not the best option though? The freedom of being away from parents, but also totally safe, not to mention a brilliant laugh.

LilyBolero - I have never met/spoken to anyone else who would ski that solo, not even an adult! What would have happened if you had fallen over an edge on your first run and your parents hadn't even sent a search party until you didn't turn up for lunch??

pingviner · 13/02/2009 13:02

hmm, I used to ski solo all the time or with sister from about 6 and 10 onwards but it was a small resort, everyone knew us and all the lift guys kept an eye out for us - but that was only on our local slopes: if we were elsewhere we had more supervision. BTW we got up to all sorts of stuff! but had a few safety lessons drummed into us early re weather, conditions and what to do in an emergency

laweaselmys · 13/02/2009 13:16

I think if you lived in the area/went to the same resort all the time it might be a bit different. (Just outdoor play really)

The more I think about this though, the more I'm convinced it's not a great idea! When I was 7 skiing alone usually meant - with my sister. On the odd occasion that I was genuinely alone and my Mum was waiting at the bottom of the runs for me I broke my nose really badly and had to get myself back down on my own. It was a really unpleasant experience, and my dad was really pissed off when he found out she'd let me go on my own! (He'd taken my sis off-piste)

LunarSea · 14/02/2009 02:51

Actually MrLSG's (and my) ds really is a good skier - not your typical 7 year old (pic here from a couple of days ago). And he's only allowed do do one run on his own without checking in, and not that if the weather/visibility isn't great. It's a really easy resort to navigate - just keep the lift he goes up in sight and he can't get lost as all the runs end up back at the village.

He's been to ski school, but he's been in a "group" on his own as they didn't have anyone else to keep up with him!

Original poster

MrLSG · 14/02/2009 05:16

Thanks for the sensible feedback - MrsLSG has filled in some of the gaps. And yes we've let him do it again this morning before ski school (loverly sunny morning, and inch of fresh on top...). Tomorrow he's skiing with us - and I am expecting a very hard day.

The quesion arose because of many of the responses to another AIBU post of a much older child seemingly being kept under much closer supervision and us thinking "what would they say if they knew about ds1's solo sking exploits??"

OP posts:

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