Starting skiing later in life

[Cygnet]

I've always wanted to ski - but only started in my mid 50s (I'm now in my early 60s) and have found it so difficult. Being really scared in my first few days of lessons and significant injury quite early on didn't exactly make a good foundation. But I love snow so I've kept at it despite very low self confidence. Last year was the final straw. I signed up for a 6 day course early season but it didn't work out. I was asked to leave the group I was originally assigned to because I wasn't confident/fast enough. When I told the instructor in the new group that I didn't like going 'this fast' his response was 'this isn't fast'. My fragile confidence was shattered. What was even worse was this week's experience blighted my holidays (for me and my family) for the rest of the season. I quickly got into a negative downward spiral of 'That was a rubbish turn, I'm a rubbish skier, I'll never be able to do it' etc etc and was unable to appreciate what I had achieved.

The good news is that this was a wake up call!! I realised that I could not afford to think and live like this. I had to do something about it. And so, over the summer I have been reading books, posts on this website and generally trying to understand why I think and feel the way I do, and learning coping mechanisms and techniques to become the skier I want to be. And the good news is that it's working! I've just come back from a week in Austria. There were times when fear got the better of me and I had to side slip down rather than ski, when that negative voice started whispering destructive comments - but I refused to listen to them. I didn't panic when the snow was rough and bumpy and I didn't criticise myself when my turns weren't perfect. There were times when I skied well. I am beginning to believe that I can be a good skier.

So, thank you ladies, for all your posts over the years of your ups and downs, of your successes and failures, of your fears and achievements, and especially to that someone who said that learning to ski when you're older is hard!

 

[VickiK]

How wonderful for you to be discovering this sport and yourself, @Cygnet . Keep at it. Side slipping, taking a measured approach, and ignoring the doomsayer voice that is truly a mean little s.o.b.--I think we all find ourselves using these coping mechanisms from time to time (I certainly do) and we're skiers, so that means you are too.

 

[Jenny]

Good for you!

 

[bounceswoosh]

There were times when fear got the better of me and I had to side slip down rather than ski

That's good. That's a sign that you recognized you were over your head, and you solved the problem.

Watch movies of the craziest skiing in the world - they still need to sideslip sometimes to get where they're going.

 

[newboots]

@Cygnet, I have struggled with that sort of insecurity all my life, although I'm happy to say it's improved a lot as I've aged. I'm 63, and only a couple of weeks into my upcoming stellar skiing career. I heard my internal critic starting up just a bit, and I shouted it down. I just think, "You're a beginner and of course you can't do this as well as you want."

I also discovered myself looking at the deep tracks in the powder that I was trying to cross (working on my turns) and saying, "That's the sort of bump that made you fall down before." I immediately decided to stop thinking that!

Good luck. The inner critic puts up a big fight when you try to get rid of it. We would never talk to our loved ones the way our inner critic talks to us!

 

[Powgirl]

Cygnet...I started skiing at age 52..this is my 5th season...it has not been easy for me...I've taken some rough falls...some moments of total paralysis...a couple of tantrums with tears, too...it hasnt always been pretty...downright humbling, too

I think it's difficult to learn to ski at our age...brave, too...maybe even a little crazy, lol.

But, like you, I love the snow...love to ski. I have learned to keep the negative chatter out of my head...I slide slip, pick up a ski, and wedge when I need to get thru some tougher terrain...and I am sooooo ok with that because once I get going, I find myself returning to connecting turns, carving...I am skiing more difficult and steeper terrain than I ever thought was possible for me...I remain commited to the skiing and enjoying the pure joy of being there.

I ski what I want to, when I want to, at the speed and pace I want to...maybe one of the benefits of being over 50 is we have that luxury of not caring what everyone else thinks we should be doing. I have invested in lighter equipment...boots, shorter and narrower skis...it may not be the 'coolest' equipment, but it is less tiring...and I am skiing better than ever this year.

Keep doing what you're doin...I have no doubt you've got your mojo this season!

 

[Albertan ski girl]

@Cygnet - I absolutely admire taking up this sport as an adult. I think anyone who has done so is to be commended. I learned to ski as an adult, and I have to concur that fear and confidence were and continue to be the biggest hurdle for me. The love of being outside with the snow though allows me to keep at it, but also set for myself what exactly I want to be doing. I'll pick the runs and go at the speed I want to. There are days I will want to challenge myself, and others, I won't. Keep at it! And have fun!

 

[Mary Tee]

@Cygnet
I am another that started skiing later in life. I had that same voice inside my head that said "you're too old, you're too slow, you're not good enough ". But one day when I was water skiing, and all my water ski friends are expert skiers, and that is another sport I came to at age 50, I realized that I was having just as much fun at my level as they were having at theirs...and fun is the ultimate goal, right? It changed my mindset about both kinds of skiing. So when that voice gets in my head, and sometimes it still does, I tell that voice to go "F" itself! And when I feel bad that I am so much slower than the rest of the group that I am snow skiing with, I tell the group I am going to ski by myself for awhile, and off I go...some days that is so much more enjoyable for me than the stress of trying to do things that are outside my comfort zone.
If you're having fun, keep at it...it gets better...we old gals rock!!!!

 

[ski diva]

I think one of the hardest challenges in skiing is overcoming the voices in your head. I mean, think about it: we're strapping sticks onto our feet and hurtling down the mountain at high speeds! Kudos to you for taking steps to get beyond the fear.

 

[newboots]

Fear of hurtling down mountains at high speeds is hard-wired. Nobody chooses to be scared. I think probably only practice (and confidence in turning and stopping) can change that. Speaking as a psychologist, not as someone who has gotten over the fear yet!

 

[ski diva]

BTW, @Cygnet, I am so delighted to hear that this forum was of help to you. It's a wonderful community, and I love the way our members support one another..

 

[Christy]

I'm glad this forum has been of help. I have a similar-but-different thing. I learned 10 years ago at 37 and have taken SO many lessons and have long felt that I should be better than I am. I've had so many frustrating days, especially in less than ideal conditions--if it's the nice soft Cascades snow I'm used to, great! Any harder or scoured surface, or if my boots aren't feeling right, or a number of other princess and the pea type issues, I ski very poorly. And then I would feel terrible about how poorly I skied, and I'd think about all the money I'd spent on lessons and feel even worse. Then at a clinic a couple years ago the instructor was noting some of my body issues (the way my right ankle can't roll, the ways my long femurs make it so easy to get in the back seat, the way my crooked legs make my turns funny--she said she'd never seen anyone turn like me before) that make things harder for me and I suddenly felt very freed to stop wanting to be a great skier. My goal now is to have fun. Period. On crappy days fun might mean skiing easier runs and having a great lunch with good wine, and that's fine. I started skiing because I love being in the mountains and wanted to be in them in the winter, not because I wanted a gold medal for skiing gnarly steeps or whatnot. I do wish I could be a prettier skier but I'm fairly certain that isn't going to happen, and that's okay as long as I have fun.

And I really do think that some people pick it up more naturally, and some of us don't. We have a friend from India who had never been on snow until last year when my husband and his work friends went night skiing after work, and this guy picked it up in no time. His third visit to Crystal Mountain he was skiing runs it took me years to ski. He didn't look that great and he fell, but he wasn't unsafe, and he got it done.

 

[newboots]

@Christy What a good point! Or, points.

I spoke with a co-worker who said he "went skiing twice" as a medical student but stopped because it was too expensive, but he "loved it!" Twice? I mean, I guess I love it too, but I'm definitely still learning how to get off the chair lift without getting whacked in the butt. He's a natural athlete. I once "taught" a friend how to ice skate but it wasn't long before he could skate circles around me. And despite my trying for AGES to lift the puck, I couldn't do it, and he did it maybe the second or third time he hit the puck. Grrr.

But the best point, skiing for fun! What a concept! I am going to try to remember that. Even though I think skiing through the woods could be so much fun . . . I know I need wicked skills for that. Or never mind all that and get cross-country skis!

 

[vickie]

I think it's difficult to learn to ski at our age...brave, too...maybe even a little crazy, lol.

I can relate. First time I touched a ski was at age 49, 9 years ago. I've been off skis for most of the past 3 seasons, so I'm going back to basics to shore up what I knew and to fix what I wasn't doing well.

Congratulations, @Cygnet ... and welcome to the world of adult learners!

 

[jellyflake]

Cygnet, just do what you enjoy and what is good for you.
If other people think that your speed is "not fast" or whatsoever: and?

I am pretty confident at skiing but every now and then there is a situation that I need to side slip or so.

Plus: I know what you are going through, at least to a certain amount. I started MTBing last year. I love it but I am really really slow compared to the twentysomethings on the downhill trails. But I don't worry and I don't let them or anyone to negatively impact my mood.

So: go for it and enjoy yourself! At your pace!

 

[mojo]

I've been skiing for 40 years, now 64, and there are still days when I feel like my skills are rubbish and my confidence isn't great. And there are days when I feel like I do have those perfect turns and could be an Olympic downhill racer! I would put money on it that Lindsey Vonn has both of those kinds of days, too, it's part of the challenge of skiing which is the beauty of the sport. Keep skiing, I want to see more of my 60-plus year old ladies out there with me!!!!!! Love your post, you are an inspiration.

 

[newboots]

@marzNC - Thanks for pulling us back to this thread! It's definitely a keeper.

 

[DvR]

I wish I had read this post last year as my feet first touched the snow at 65 and my first season was spent in fear and anxiety about skiing. After a horrific day locally at Mt High, Ca and telling the ski instruction I'm done after 1 hour I knew I couldn't give up on the sport so I book a solo trip to Deer Valley, Utah and it changed my life. Luckily I was assigned wonderful ski instructor who helped me over the course of 3 days work on my fears. Believe me I was a wreck each night thinking about going on the hill but I knew I had to squash those negative voices in my head. Now at 66 I've got 4 trips booked (3 solo) there and skiing with same instructor. Do I still hear those negative voices? Yes, but I keep at it.

 

[marzNC]

I wish I had read this post last year as my feet first touched the snow at 65 and my first season was spent in fear and anxiety about skiing. After a horrific day locally at Mt High, Ca and telling the ski instruction I'm done after 1 hour I knew I couldn't give up on the sport so I book a solo trip to Deer Valley, Utah and it changed my life. Luckily I was assigned wonderful ski instructor who helped me over the course of 3 days work on my fears. Believe me I was a wreck each night thinking about going on the hill but I knew I had to squash those negative voices in my head. Now at 66 I've got 4 trips booked (3 solo) there and skiing with same instructor. Do I still hear those negative voices? Yes, but I keep at it.

Good for you!

Reminded me of Deer Valley blog entries I found a while back. Written by the wife of a man who started skiing at age 65 because he wanted to ski with his granddaughter. The girl was starting at age 3.

https://blog.deervalley.com/learning-to-ski-at-65-better-late-than-never/

https://blog.deervalley.com/learning-to-ski-at-65-starting-the-season-with-a-lesson/

 

[DvR]

Thank you so much for these Deer Valley blog posts. I have a little pig tailed granddaughter who will be joining me when she's 3 in 2019! Can't wait to share this awesome sport with her!