My sister, her husband, and daughter are getting into skiing and they want to go with my family, but they are very much beginners. She asked me how long it takes me and my kids to get down from the summit and she was surprised it was 6-8 minutes. She said it takes them 20-30 minutes. She has said several times it would be really fun to all go together. Any ways to make this fun for everyone? Maybe a couple runs together and then split up and reconvene for lunch?
I know that she will want everyone to be together and will likely be put off by the suggestion of splitting up. I spent the past 3 years getting my kids skiing and now they can fly, so no way I want to go back to beginner level.
I do the split up and meet up for lunch or a break after 2 hours or so. For xc skiing. Friends have broad range of paces, endurance, and skill. Works well enough for nordic. We will see each other on trails, chat a bit and then separate as conditions dictate.
My take is that 1/2 the fun of ski trips are post or apres ski. Whether at the cabin or in town.
Maybe she meant the trip aspect, and not - lets be in sight of each other all day. As an introvert, yeah, no thanks.
Get breakfast together in the lodge and ride up on the first lift together. Maybe one easy green/blue to warm up with the whole crew and then split up. Agree to meet for lunch at a certain time. If you want to ski with the less skilled people, do it in the afternoon. It will give you an excuse to have a few drinks at lunch and not worry about killing yourself. Skiing isn’t fun when people are holding you up, but you can still all have a good time and socialize at mealtimes. Also, all this goes out the window on a pow day. Every man for himself when it’s nuking.
My sister, her husband, and daughter are getting into skiing and they want to go with my family, but they are very much beginners. She asked me how long it takes me and my kids to get down from the summit and she was surprised it was 6-8 minutes. She said it takes them 20-30 minutes. She has said several times it would be really fun to all go together. Any ways to make this fun for everyone? Maybe a couple runs together and then split up and reconvene for lunch?
I know that she will want everyone to be together and will likely be put off by the suggestion of splitting up. I spent the past 3 years getting my kids skiing and now they can fly, so no way I want to go back to beginner level.
Thoughts on how to handle this?
We just find a lift that serves widely varying terrain. Do a black diamond while they do a green. Hanging together in the liftline and on the lift keeps the sense of togetherness.
It’s kind of like a group ride or run, the slowest person controls everything if the goal is to stay together. I, personally, find it to be really annoying to stand around waiting on people all day, in the cold. I think splitting up for sessions is the best for all involved, getting together for meals and social times.
If your sister doesn’t like that, do as Moonrocket suggests.
We just find a lift that serves widely varying terrain. Do a black diamond while they do a green. Hanging together in the liftline and on the lift keeps the sense of togetherness.
My wife and I used thy technique recently with our kids. Ride the same lift, one of us takes the black or double and the rest take the blues and meet at the bottom. And we would all arrive at the base at the same time.
But it doesn’t work if the green people take forever which it would.
Take them down something that makes at least one of them cry. Then they will appreciate the split up option more.
That reminds me… my best friend also keeps asking to tag along with me when I go to snowbird. He’s asked the past few years. But I do the steepest (brag) and he stops a bunch of times on the way down because he isn’t in great shape. I’d love to go with him but I have no patience for waiting.
We used to ski a lot together 10 years ago. Back then in our early 30s he would ski a minute, stop at the next junction, recollect, pick a trail, and do it all over again3-5 times down to the bottom. It drives me nuts.
Me, I go top to bottom without stopping if I can help it. I love that feel of uninterrupted flow.
Yes, make a game of it, Let them go up about 2 min before your family. You each get 1 point for each of them you tag, before they get to the bottom, sounds like you should have 3 maybe 4 shots at them. It will be fun for all.
Socializing on ski trips is done 10% on the mountain, 45% during apres and 45% in the hot tub in my experience. Rolling with a huge group is going to make nobody happy. The fast skiers won’t like being slowed down. The slow skiers won’t like feeling like they’re holding the group up and also won’t like being led into more advanced terrain. After a few runs, it might become clear to everyone that splitting up and meeting for lunch/Apres is the best way to go.
However newer skiers really appreciate recommendations on where to go on the mountain for their skill level, so I would brush up on the trail map and be ready to recommend something. They might even want a lesson in which case you’ll be able to go off when they do that.
As a last resort you can intimidate them by pointing at some scary looking thing on the mountain and saying you’re gonna ride it that always works for me.
On a more serious note. If you can find a lodge that has easy access to terrain you like and good beginner stuff- use it as a base camp. Beginners tend to get tired super easy. So do a run with them then go do two on your own while they take a break. Emphasize how important hydration is and they will drink and pee a lot.
I had a college buddy bring his beginner girlfriend up and I had a blast doing a run with them then doing a few bump runs while they re-grouped.
But I live in CO so it wasn’t my one ski vacation - it was just a weekend hanging out with good friends- so skiing was never the point of it.
A lot of trails here have bumps on half and groomed on half those are good for mixed abilities too.
Maybe a couple runs together and then split up and reconvene for lunch?
Definitely this. It doesn’t do anyone any favours to ski together if you are of wildly different levels. If you are skiing at about a third of your preferred pace, or spending two thirds of available ski time waiting, then you can’t help but get frustrated. It is just as bad for slow skiers, though - having the stress of knowing that they are holding others up, feeling pressure to ski faster or on more aggressive runs than they are comfortable with, wiping out more badly and more often than necessary. One or two runs together, offer encouragement, then agree when/where you’ll check back in.
They may benefit from a morning lesson while you ski what you want. Regroup after lessons, try a run or two with them, then reassess. Maybe you do laps using the same lift they are and regroup when they get to the bottom. You could get a couple runs in for each one of theirs.
First, you will need to discuss the personality of the resort that you are going to.
If it is a small East Coast resort or Midwest local bump it probably will workout ok as there is not much terrain. However a big resort especially an aggressive resort Palisades, Mammoth, Crested Butte, Killington, Jackson Hole etc. will be different than Steamboat or Northstar which are a bit more family oriented and have more beginner terrain.
You are definitely going to have to communicate about splitting time and then split that time as discussed.
I do not know how to navigate this with kids as I do not have them. But I am a pretty advanced skier, and my girlfriend is not. When we go on trips together, we ski together part of the day and then we go our separate ways for part of the day. We both exercise patience when we are together. When we are with friends we again spend time together and then separate and spend time with the appropriate risk and ability group. My girlfriend wants nothing to do with the places I like to ski, and I get bored where she likes to ski. However, we like to spend the time together though.
The kids will figure out, but the advanced kids will take the beginner kids places they probably should not go. But that will make the other kids better skiers.
So the adults will need to moderate that.
Oh yeah, mandate that lessons need to be taken for the newer kids as a non negotiable.
Get breakfast together in the lodge and ride up on the first lift together. Maybe one easy green/blue to warm up with the whole crew and then split up. Agree to meet for lunch at a certain time. If you want to ski with the less skilled people, do it in the afternoon. It will give you an excuse to have a few drinks at lunch and not worry about killing yourself. Skiing isn’t fun when people are holding you up, but you can still all have a good time and socialize at mealtimes. Also, all this goes out the window on a pow day. Every man for himself when it’s nuking.
I like this. My motto is no hard things after 2:30 so this would work great.
that always works for me.