Learning to ski before you go (as in: I did this yesterday and it was fab)

[crosspelican]

Going skiing for the first time (Spain) for half term. We're having a private coach for the 4 of us for the week (3hrs in the afternoons for 5 days) but I risk being the worst of our group so I went for the the full day ski course at Snozone yesterday to get a head start, and can honestly HUGELY recommend it.

I can now snowplough my way down the slope confidently and with control, experimenting with parallel turns about half the time, and then going back to snowploughing if I get nervous. I had a few runs where I lost control and just zoomed down in horror but after a couple of teary moments, got my mojo back and finally learned how to control it.

At one point I was crashing into a lady in the next class yelling "I CAN'T STOP!" and she was yelling back "I CAN'T MOVE!" so I just skied into her and then used her whole body to pull myself back up while her husband cracked up. I also had a snowboarder crash into me yelling "I'M SO SORRY I CAN'T STEER!" while I was like "I CAN'T STEER EITHER!!" We could see for ages that we were going to crash, but couldn't fix it.

If anybody is wobbling at adding even more cost to a £££ holiday, the £159 sounds a bit horrific, but I feel a lot more sure of myself now and it was fun. The people doing the half day didn't really get very far. It's only in the afternoon that you get to practice actual skiing and build up some, well I wouldn't say CONFIDENCE precisely, but a basic ability to look like you know what's going on.

In the afternoon there were loads of hugely confident and accomplished 4 year olds zipping about at terrifying speeds doing heads shoulders knees and toes for their coach.

There was a thread a couple of weeks ago about a husband refusing to pay for a course like this on principle (!) and I think he gave in in the end and is going for it, so I thought this was relevant!

I'm a bit achey today, and have massive bruises on my shins from the boots - this is something I'm going to have to sort out next week. - how though?

Get some really thick socks! Some ski socks have extra cushioning on the shin area.

Get some really thick socks! Some ski socks have extra cushioning on the shin area.

Do not do this. Get thin socks and well fitting boots so that there is no movement to cause the bashing in the first place. Thick socks in well fitting boots cut off circulation and give you cold feet, thick socks in sloppy boots give you blisters as they don't hold your foot well and move around in the sloppy boot. You probably want at least a size smaller than your street shoe. My ski socks are some of the thinnest socks I own!

That’s good advice for someone good at skiing getting fitted for ski boots but in my view maybe a bit ambitious for a beginner in presumably hired kit? I would aim for ski socks somewhere in the middle - neither thick woolly ones nor super thin expert/racing socks! I am a huge fan of the snow domes but their boots and kit are generally in appalling state so hopefully your rental boots will be a better closer fit. Also make sure your base layers aren’t tucked into the boot.

Pay more than the basic cost for hiring boots.
When I've hired the basic boots I get sore shins. When I pay a bit more it's less pain.
Bit it does mean your position is probably good!

I suffered from really bad shin blisters from boots a few years ago and bought some shin protection pads in resort.
Even though my boots have now ‘moulded’ to my legs, i still wear the pads as they are so comfortable.

The ski school we're using recommended the intermediate level hire kit, rather than standard, and the rental shop that we're using has a great reputation for taking the time to fit you properly, so I'm hoping that it means it will fit well.

After posting this, I did some research and found out about shin bang and realise that although my boots were snug around the foot, there was heaps of room for movement around the top of the boot - I could definitely rock back and forth in them, which I now realise was 100% the problem!

blog.columbia.com/how-to-prevent-shin-bang-2/

@crosspelican

It was my husband who didn't want to pay the extra cost but in the end we just had a morning lesson on a dry slope as we don't have a snow one anywhere near us. All it really taught us was how to get our boots and skis on, which actually, now we're here, was really useful on that manic first morning where we had to hire everything, and get the DC to ski school.

We've had private tuition for three mornings here and have learned so much. I was howling at your description of hurtling down in horror. Our instructor took us on blue runs yesterday. Not gentle easy blues, bloody great hills blues. I could really relate to everything that you wrote. We finished yesterday feeling battered and bruised and not sure we'd ever face those runs again.

Today I braved them (DH jarred his ankle yesterday on one of his falls so has had a rest day), and I'm pleased to say that I made it down the two evil blues from yesterday completely in one piece and without falling over once! The first time I did it, I got to the bar at the mid point and cried, I was so overcome with the emotion of achieving it.

Re socks and boots.

We went for the Premium set and have had no issues at all with rubbing or pain. I had a painful calf on the first day but that's because I'd done my boot too tight. The other leg was fine. The next day I did them a little looser and now I have no pain. They're still fitted, but they're not digging.

I have socks from Decathlon that have done me an absolute treat. I brought plasters with us on a recommendation from MN, and no-one has needed them.

@TeetotalKoala That's amazing!! I'm so impressed! I had a couple of group classes but then 2 1:1 classes at the end, and was able to do a green and a gentle blue, and then at the weekend do those on my own with the kids which was amazing. Can't wait for next year!

Had shin bang for the first day, went back for different boots, fiddled with the buckles loads til I got a comfy combo, and was fine thereafter.