MummySkier 0 Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Hi I was wondering to ask the people with small children here what age you started taking them out in the snow - to slide rather than just play? You see some really young ones out there on skis and they look like they are having fun. Mine are 1 and 3, so still very small. Link to post Share on other sites
shadowtec 0 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Your kids must be lovely so please forgive me for saying this. But if they can behave themselves at the lodge you are staying at then go for it. Learning to board or ski at a young age would be great for them (when they are young they are made out of Chuck Norris material and bounce off anything) I am only winging cause they put 6 little @% where I am staying and being woken up at the crack of dawn with them screaming is not cool Link to post Share on other sites
Schneebored 0 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Wouldn't recommend putting under 6s on a snowboard, it can put undue stress on developing bodies. Ski all the way....but unsure the youngest you can start skiing. Hopefully others can advise..... Link to post Share on other sites
iiyamadude 6 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 I saw a really young kid on skis last week in Myoko, they were on like reins and the tips of their skis were connected together. Don't know much about that perhaps it's common here. Very cute she looked as well. Link to post Share on other sites
gerard 6 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Hi Mummyskier. Mine are 1 and 3 too (just turned 3 yesterday in fact) so I'm in the same boat as you. I'll be taking the older boy to a resort in Nagano for some sledding soon. As for actually skiing, I imagine the equipment/boots would be more hasstle than it's worth and we want to keep it fun and light for now. But surely other ppl have more experience than me with this (living on Shikoku, as I do) Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Hi, my parents put me on skis when I was 3. Basically mountaineering boots and bamboo poles and wood skis that went over your head and crazy daddy getting loud at me. I see lots kids at that age here in Europe and they ski much better than I did. To be fair (comparing with me), they have shorter skis, instructors that are properly trained for teaching kids, slopes only for kids with there own little lift (moving walkway) etc... all the goodies to make it more fun! Don´t know about snowboarding, but when you see 5 year olds having a go at skateboards and snowboards, you wonder how young they started. Let them have a go if they are excited about it IMO. Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Talk with Dan an instructor in Hakuba. His kid is way young and on the mountain. Think he is 2?? Link to post Share on other sites
MummySkier 0 Posted February 9, 2011 Author Share Posted February 9, 2011 How old were you when you started? I was in my late teens. Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Early 20's! Link to post Share on other sites
panhead_pete 27 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Mid 20s but Im still a kid. Have seen a dad with a young kid on 1 snowboard where the kid was standing between the bindings and dad was holding him. We also saw another dad this season carrying a young boy down the mountain. This was planned as we got on the gondy just after them. Boy was maybe 3? Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 I still have vivid memories of my very early days. What I can say about my experience as a 3 year old is this: There were no other 3yo skiing in Japan at that time. So I had no realistic idea about what a kid that age can do. All I saw was some really good dudes skiing in powder doing paralell turns. I expected myself doing that and was frustrated I couldn´t. That my parents were frustrated as well and wanted to go on their own. Everyone was giving me praise when clearly I was not good but a token and parents being proud of themselves. So the message is this: If your kid is not an independent type who can get into playing with other kids - not ready No you (most parents) are not good enough to coach kids sports and kids have a natural desire to please parents. Back off and give them breathing space and put them with other kids with an instructor. Link to post Share on other sites
echineko 1 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Quite a few years ago. But I am still young. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Too much risk of whiplash for snowboarding with little uns, I reckon. My daughter started skiing at four, but she's getting into it more now she's five. Two hours is about all she can hack though. The sledging and tubing on the Sakka side of Happo is free from this season. Its a lot of fun, so top marks to them for it. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Started my kid at 6. Had been thinking of taking up skiing again (and introducing the kid to it) before that, but the years slipped by, and didn't get act together sooner. I first skied at around 4, plus or minus one year, I guess, and was an avid skier for a couple of years in elementary school, but then quit until a few years ago. Which explains why, while I have some kind of in-built feel and love for the sport, I'm not particularly graceful at it. My interest as a kid was merely in going as fast as possible and taking the occasional jump, no interest whatsoever in style or technique. But even so, the primal joy skiing gives me now I attribute to that early exposure, which I wanted to pass on to my kid. Start your kids as soon as you can. Someday, perhaps decades from now, they will be grateful. Link to post Share on other sites
MummySkier 0 Posted February 9, 2011 Author Share Posted February 9, 2011 Thanks folks, interesting. Do you remember much of it back then Metabo? Link to post Share on other sites
Saitaman 1 Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 Not about kids but I only started a few seasons ago. Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 We started our daughter at about 3. Dump her off at ski school at 10 and have a couple hours to ourselves to ummmm......ski.. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 don't have kids.....I first started snowboarding at 19 Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 Originally Posted By: MummySkier Do you remember much of it back then Metabo? The elementary school years I remember reasonably well. Before that, mostly a few vivid snapshots in my mind. But when I tried skiing again decades later as an adult, my body remembered, which was a wonderful discovery. Of course the sight of an overweight, middle-aged guy bombing the hill like a 10-year-old is not a fair sight to inflict on the innocent, so I have been trying to work a bit more on technique of late. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 My daughter first started skiing around 3, just for fun at first and she loved it, so she continued. If the kids like it then go for it, if they dont seem to like it just let them play in the snow until they are a year or two older, then try again. Link to post Share on other sites
shadowtec 0 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 I started boarding at about 28 Link to post Share on other sites
RobBright 35 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 Originally Posted By: shadowtec I am only winging cause they put 6 little @% where I am staying and being woken up at the crack of dawn with them screaming is not cool Alarm clock for first tracks - what could be better? Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 Not sure, I hate alarm clocks in whatever form. Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted February 10, 2011 Share Posted February 10, 2011 Actually, no there is one kind I like come to think of it Link to post Share on other sites
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