Learning to ski as an adult

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Hoping someone has some experience/insight.

We are planning our holidays for next year and I would really like to do a skit trip. It would me be me, husband, and 2 boys 3 and 6 years old. Husband is a fairly good snowboarder and can ski competently (mostly because he has no fear) but I have been skiing only twice. Once for a long weekend and once for a week but that was about 10 years ago . By the end of the week I could get down most blues but definitely not reds.
Ideally I would like to get to the level of being able to ski and enjoy it. I don’t need to be bombing down black runs but have an image in my head of a leisurely ski holiday involving long lunches and a few relaxing runs.
We live about 5 hours from the nearest ski field so realistically can only go for a week or so once a year. How likely is it that I can get to the point of enjoying skiing within a year or 2. I am 35 and reasonably sporty but also am a bit of a scaredy cat.
We will probably go no matter what as I would like the boys to be able to ski and husband is keen, but I want to have realistic expectations….

I did 4 years of beginners lessons . But in that time, I saw lots pick it up quickly, lots be able to enjoy it after a while... and me the only one to be completely unteachable.

Thats a lie really... apparently I'm technically good. But I have no faith and panic too quickly. And panic attacks aren't exactly a relaxing holiday. I couldn't ski with DH and DDs as I can't keep up.

Were just back from a ski holiday. I didn't put skis on once and had a fantastic time. I read, went for walks, drank coffee, met them for lunches... it was wonderful. And admired the videos in the evening of my 8&10yos doing jumps, and off piste and salom courses etc. (Insert proper technical terms here...). DH thinks 8yo will give him a run for his money soon, 10yo is more laid back and like me (but can ski)

Personally, I would say it’s fairly likely you can get to the stage of enjoying skiing within a year or two, and achieving the leisurely holiday you envisage. Your 6 year old will pick it up quickly and can do lessons this year for example; your 3 year old may be too young for formal lessons eg in France they have to be 4 or 5 to join group lessons I think. Once the younger one can join group lessons, you could do the same eg mornings only, and then ski together in the afternoons. Kids will probably need a few years of lessons to be reasonably safe on the slopes, and you can do the same (but join an adults class!). My brother took his girls aged 5 and 7 a couple of years ago: on the last couple of days we all skied together in the afternoon and they were faster than me after one week of lessons, so be prepared for kids to quickly overtake you in terms of ability.

I’ve skied for many years but have found my confidence has dwindled as I’ve got older - happy with blues and easy reds but not fussed about blacks any more. Love the fact I can ski with my kids - now 17 & 20 - it’s really the only activity we do together as a family. They can do all the challenging stuff - eg if there’s a choice between a blue and a black, or an opportunity to mess about in the off piste stuff alongside a slope, or do the boarder-cross run while I choose an easier one, I leave that to them. We still have a great time - I console myself in the knowledge my technique is better than theirs - but it’s a really enjoyable family holiday. When your kids are teens, you’ll be glad you did it.

Quite possibly it will take you a bit longer than that - a year or 2 is what up to 2 weeks on snow, it’s not much. But if you keep at it with enthusiasm and resolve (and take some lessons!) then you will definitely get there!

I think a lot comes down to attitude, confidence and how much you want to learn to ski. It’s also much easier to learn on modern skis than on the old style skinny planks I learned on. 30 years ago I did a week in beginners class doing snow ploughs, then the following year a ‘class 1’ in France learning stem turns, then a few years in a class 2 with the odd private lesson thrown in trying to perfect parallels before moving into class 3 to start tackling moguls. It seems that you can learn so much more quickly now and beginners can make progress much faster (well, a lot faster than I did ). We skied with friends a couple of years ago who had only had one week of skiing previously: they are all very sporty and did lessons in the mornings but joined us to ski in the afternoons. They were all amazingly good given less than 2 weeks’ skiing experience, but they all loved it, and were really keen and prepared to stretch themselves, so that helped hugely.

A friend of mine became a very competent skier within a couple of years. I do highly recommend getting lessons, to ensure your form is correct, but if you have already got to the point of being fairly comfortable on blue runs, then I would say another trip, with some lessons thrown in, and you'll be in a pretty good place.

It can help to pick your destination carefully, some resorts are better than others for developing beginners. I found it easier to step up to the next level on runs that were really wide so there was plenty of room to manoeuvre.

It really depends what level you want to get to. The sad fact is that your DCs will progress much quicker than you, so there may never be a point at which you're fully confident skiing together, unless they go slowly for you.

But if you get lessons within another couple of trips you should be able to do most reds - if you want to.
I have been regressing since my mid 40s and now much prefer sedate Blues to anything else.

Ah thank you I am feeling a little bit more encouraged.
I was planning on taking lessons possibly a mix of group and private. I did this the second time we went and it worked well. The first weekend we were with a friend who was a ski instructor so he very kindly gave me some tuition.
Yes I think I would just like to get to the level where I am comfortable going out and don’t have any restrictions. So can choose most ski in ski out chalets, go to most of the restaurants up the mountain etc.
Even if I don’t get on we will most likely go as I really want the boys to learn. I grew up an hour from whistler and regret not learning when I was younger. Glad to hear there are lots of other activities.

I think it's all about the confidence! I skied my first black run in my third week of ski-ing and I'm not what you'd call sporty, just listened to the instructors and did a lot of practising. Kids always seem to pick it up instantly so there's always the embarrassment factor too! So it's possible, but as a PP said, if it doesn't work for you you can take a pile of books and sit in cafes instead!

@Bussinbussin we were planning on going to baquiera beret. We live in Spain and the flight connections are not great in the winter so we’re planning on driving. Would probably consider Andorra if it’s better as that’s not too much further.

Also - don’t get hung up on the classification of runs and what you managed before. A black run with good snow cover on a bluebird day is far easier to ski than an icy blue in a white out. It’s all about conditions. Just focus on how you feel putting in the turns - skiing the same run multiple times will do no end for your confidence!

We just had a lovely week in Andorra. Apparently this year was exceptionally quiet, but DH was amazed by the lack of queues. (The instructors spoke very good English which is probably a lesser concern for you, but DDs have been in mixed language ski classes before which did make it more complicated in their early years as they learnt in a language which they only had basic understanding of)

I think I've just done my 4th week of ski school and can now ski with the whole family. It's possible and worth it!

I learnt aged 45. Had group lessons on holidays. DH and the teens are MUCH better than me. I was getting ok after 2 years but had a nasty fall, tearing knee ligaments & took a huge dent in confidence. Another 3 years on and I’m still having group lessons but this year I did enjoy skiing with the family. Enjoy being the critical word. I’m sure you’ll be fine as it’s very much about attitude and confidence.

@abricotine

Also - don’t get hung up on the classification of runs and what you managed before. A black run with good snow cover on a bluebird day is far easier to ski than an icy blue in a white out. It’s all about conditions. Just focus on how you feel putting in the turns - skiing the same run multiple times will do no end for your confidence!

Hear hear to this. I skied for the first time in February 2020. DC were in ski school and DH dropped out with a bad knee partway through the week so I wound up skiing alone (only had lessons for three days, but had private one so intense tuition). I did the same 3 runs over and over. It didn't get boring because I was so focused on practicing my technique and my turns. It suited me to not need to worry about what was round the bend as I already knew. I would say that I vastly improved over the course of the week due to that.

I first learned to ski at 45, and continued until I was 72. Many happy holidays, some with the DSs and later the GDCs and others just as a couple.

Like NotDonna, I had a serious ligament injury on our third holiday (entirely DH's fault of course ).

We are going to a ClubMed hotel next Sunday along with the rest of the family. We have stayed there before and I know I will have a lovely time in the pool and drinking the included cocktails on the terrace. The rest of them will be out with the (also included) ski schools and guides.

I miss not being able to ski, but I did get 32 years of it so I can't complain.

You are wise to be looking for a ski-in ski-out accommodation. Nothing worse than trekking long distances to the slopes. I had my boys trained to carry my skis, which helped a lot as I got ever more aged.

We had two holidays in Andorra at Pas de la Casa. Just about the best ski school we have ever been in. At the start of the week the instructor said 'now you ski like tourists but I will turn you into racers'. I would not go so far as to say that he did achieve that but we did improve massively.

It is a lovely thing to do as a family, and worth spending 30 years without an ACL.

You will have a lovely time.

Like others have said, a lot of it is down to confidence. My husband learnt as an adult and took about 3 weeks to really love it (but he was fairly gung-ho!) If you were happily skiing blues last time though, it's likely you'll only need a week or two to enjoy skiing reds. Often it's the snow conditions, rather than the run classification that matters though. I've been skiing for years and will still freak out if it's very icey! Crowds make a difference too - often it's better to take the quieter red run down at the end of the day (with better skiers), than a very busy blue filled with overtired novices.