J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by andymol2

Getting up quickly is the most important task for any new skier to perfect.

With practice you can be back on your skis befor your friends or children have spotted you on your back side thus minimising their oportunities for micky taking!

With further practice you can combine getting up with rapid dusting off of the snow.

Joking aside, Ally is right in suggesting you practice getting back to your skis & if you can get a bit more practice in before you go & you'll enjoy your holiday so much more. Your first skiing holiday is always memorable. Don't be put off by the overwhelming sensation that skiing on a real mountain if beyond you. The first few days are usually a huge laugh but if you take it too seriously you can get put off before it clicks.

Seriously don't wear good kit to a dry slope.
Snowdome's fine on your kit because it's artificial snow.

I'd be tempted to book yourself in for a few more lessons before you go or do a "learn to ski in a day session"

You will get so much more from your holiday if you have got a grip on the basics.

As for snow dome clothes - I'd suggest wearing your salopettes & ski jacket - I suspect you will be too warm for a fleece or thermals (learning to ski is hard work). Gloves are essential.

You can wear jeans and a jumper but you are likely to park it (my daughters' term for falling) & an hour in damp clothes is miserable!
(Different on a dry slope where you might prefer your £3 Asda jeans to get a friction burn than your nice ski gear!)

You can

Looking at the statement doesn't it suggest the risk is level 2.

The first bit is giving advice that if you don't have a shovel, transponder & probe you should not be venturing off piste even if the risk is low. (isn't the scale 1 low - 5 high?)

Presumably this means the risk is pretty low but not minimal.

If your wife can handle blues I wouldn't get too hung up looking for resorts with greens - they are often so slow that it can be hard to practice your technique. Often they are flat areas that link other pistes & involve hiking.

I would reitterate what others have said about the Granvalira resorts (like Soldeu & El Tartar) in Andorra - the blues there don't have hidden horrors & the ski schools are highly regarded. (It's got plenty of skiing for intermediates too).

We had our second week on snow there & loved it. The mountain cafes were a little uninspiring but that's as far as the negatives go. Even in a year of little snow they had the snow cannons working hard to keep the pistes well maintained. (Some of the reds high up beyond the canons were a little thin)

For a real cheapie similar to the Muvi it might be worth considering this one http://www.ebuyer.com/product/183959 for less than £20.

Wanderer wrote:

'Fraid not Emma. I did have a romper suit for my first two ski trips nearly 20 years ago (in a rather awful olive green!). It was the cheapest thing I could find at the time. It had to go after letting me down on the slopes following a fall when the rear split. My fellow skischool classmates reckoned I was leaving a trail of polyester stuffing in my tracks that day! Not a pretty sight!!! Never wore one since and I don't think I have any pictorial evidence of that one - possibly destroyed to help me get over the trauma of that experience!!!

It still does not stop me "admiring" the cheesy seventies look of some skiers who still strut their stuff in such outfits!!!!

Brings to mind the filler they've been showing on Europsport lately - mainly ski & bob crashes but in amongst the mayhem one of a womens' 2 man bob who split the rear seam of her cat suite at the start & both cheeks popped out!

My wife nearly wet herself laughing and my 14 year old daughter told us off for being immature!

I trust your underwear was more suitable than the bob sledders!

The key thing is why the orthopaedic consultant doesn't want your wife to ski. If there is a very specific reason then Ok, but if it's merely because there is a statistically increased risk of a fracture then that's not an entirely convincing reason.
I'd suggest you go & see your GP - they deal with more osteopaenia than the hospital sector specialists and will also (if needs be) be able to steer you in the direction of a specialist who will give you a balanced opinion.

(Many, but not all, orthopaedic surgeons, view skiing as a dangerous sport and the cause of a lot of work. Particularly those who don't ski)