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Jnr FD will be going on his first ski holiday this year being just under 5.
We have already got him a jacket and salopettess in the sales, along with thermals. Need to get goggles and gloves (daft question, mittens or gloves).
What other stuff is essential/good to have?
Ta
At least 2 of everything for when one gets wet/ dropped in the snow etc.
Mittens are easier to get on / off cold hands than gloves. Get them larger than you think to avoid too much wrestling.
Helmet if actually skiing?
Hand/Boot warmers are useful as they can also be shoved in jacket pockets etc for extra warmth.
I'm no expert, but I imagine skis might come in useful.
Ask the ski school what's expected?
Some form of buff / headover? My 4 year old loved her Hello Kitty buff / fleece neck warmer; presumably there's a boy equivalent.
Couple of pairs of decent warm wool socks - surprising hard to find we found.
Sunglasses - you can buy in resort fairly reasonably if you can't find anything suitable in UK, arguably more useful than goggles.
Skis, boots and helmet are normally provided by the ski school.
Worth putting his name in all of his kit and we found some bungy cord attaching the gloves / mittens through jacket help prevent dropped gloves and cold hands.
To understand that very soon you will be following him and struggling to keep up... Also taking ours for the first time this year.
To understand that very soon you will be following him and struggling to keep up... Also taking ours for the first time this year.
I doubt it, I used to be one of the best ski racers in the country 😛
County?
I doubt it, I used to be one of the best ski racers in the country
Ah; but how are you in the terrain park? In a stright(ish) line gravity is my friend but I'm rapidly discovering that shorter skis and zero fear means I'm falling behind in trees or the terrain park.
Cool!
If your that good why are you you asking about skiing with kids on a mountain bike forum?
Whatever you do, don't put the GoPro on him; when you view the video later it will scare you to death and you'll never let him ski again.
FD - definitely 2 pairs of mits, if you can find second hand it would be worth it. Kids grow out of the stuff so quickly so most s/h has had very little use. The little ones tend to spend more time sitting down / on the ground than we do (part of the fun) so tend to get wetter. You'll spend a decent amount of time just playing in the snow anyway. Other than that make sure they have a few home comforts as its a tiring holiday for them so they need their R&R.
BTW My kids have been skiing since they where 5-ish now in their 20's, they never really took to it and I'm still a lot better skier than them. Only commenting re the generalization above
If your that good why are you you asking about skiing with kids on a mountain bike forum?
Because he is asking a question about being a parent, not about being a skier.
Yep, two of everything, possibly three pairs of gloves. A ruck sack on your back to keep everything in including treats to keep them going. Patience, from you. Remember how hard it is for your kids. They will be tired by lunchtime and maybe a little scared by it all, or not!
Take plenty of snacks as they run out of energy fast.
When and where are you going? If it's mid winter where there's wind goggles, mitts face and head cover. If you can get the mitts and coats that join so when jr takes off his mitts they don't get dropped that's good. If he's in ski school try and choose a jacket that has sufficiently large pockets for things to go in if it warms up during the day. Also sunglasses are not a bad idea if it's really warm as the little guys tend not too like the sweaty goggles! Don't put two pairs of socks on. But if it's cold under gloves could be beneficial. Expect to lose things that are not attached! If you are cold so is he, sounds obvious but the number of kids that got left for lessons with me in a t shirt and jacket, when it super cold, suggests that people don't always realize! Sunscreen.
Good advice from all above, remember small people feel the cold more (more surface area vs body mass). I have to say we found skiing much more enjoyable when the kids where closer to 10 than 5
Cheers for all the good advice.
As said above this is my first time being a responsible adult with a 5 year old. I know exactly what I need in the mountains, not a clue about a 5 year old !
Howsyour - Yorkshire, why are you ex too ?
Like Andy said: lots and lots of patience. You'll be spending a lot of time carrying child or child's gear. We used a Nippergripper which is good but had most use just towing her around the flat bits of the slopes when getting to/from lessons. You can also drag'em along easily with a couple of poles.
