Tips for intermediates over 40 planning to ski until 70+

[marzNC]

Develop the love of skiing in your children as early as possible.

Well, it's essentially "Ski as many days as possible". But it has been like Mission Impossible to me for many years. For those of us who are moms know this very well that our time is not in our control when we have kids in the nest.

The fact that my daughter loved skiing from Day 1 at age 4 was the only reason I started skiing regularly. Of course the first few years that was <10 days a season. But it was enough. Helped a lot to find a friend to invite for a ski weekend since we live 4 hours from our home mountain.

What helped my skiing the most was to find a friend who didn't have kids, was a very good skier, but loved to ski with kids on groomers or wherever they were capable of skiing as they improved. Staying at Alta Lodge for spring break trips also made it easy to make friends with other families who are willing to make the effort to travel to ski during school breaks.

 

[snowski/swimmouse]

@EdithP I love your approach! If it helps, one of my ski buddies has had two hip replacements, a knee replacement and a reconstructed ankle. She can still out ski me!

 

[EdithP]

@EdithP I love your approach! If it helps, one of my ski buddies has had two hip replacements, a knee replacement and a reconstructed ankle. She can still out ski me!

This is exactly the kind of info I am interested in

 

[marzNC]

This article is from several years ago, but I only came across it recently. The author grew up in Stowe and worked there but for assorted reasons didn't decide to give skiing a try until 2014 . . . when she was 34. Fair to say she got hooked and had an amazing first season.

68 Days: A Story About Skiing's Life Changing Power

 

[MissySki]

This article is from several years ago, but I only came across it recently. The author grew up in Stowe and worked there but for assorted reasons didn't decide to give skiing a try until 2014 . . . when she was 34. Fair to say she got hooked and had an amazing first season.

68 Days: A Story About Skiing's Life Changing Power

Great article!

 

[Mary Tee]

Kind of inspirational, and I am hoping that is a bit of what next winter will be like for me. Last week I put a help wanted ad in the paper to find my replacement at work. Retirement is in the near future! If I am not entirely retired by the start of ski season, I should be down to working only 2 days a week. And I have committed to being a better skier! Commitment!!! I have invested in an Ikon Pass. Commitment!! I am going to Diva East and Diva West...even though Diva West scares me. I am hoping to get on a ski safari in the east with some of the east coast Divas. Commitment!! I have started looking around for a cheap apartment for ski season. I was toying with Whiteface as I have friends there, but then started thinking about Vermont...New Hampshire...there are so many choices! I'm not sure where to begin, but begin I will, and hope to WILL figure it out by the fall. I can't wait for the next adventure!!!

 

[marzNC]

I have invested in an Ikon Pass. Commitment!! I am going to Diva East and Diva West...even though Diva West scares me. I am hoping to get on a ski safari in the east with some of the east coast Divas. Commitment!! I have started looking around for a cheap apartment for ski season. I was toying with Whiteface as I have friends there, but then started thinking about Vermont...New Hampshire...there are so many choices!

Good for you! I'm sure it will be a great season no matter where you choose to ski. JH has nice long blue runs. It's not all expert terrain that hard chargers talk about all the time. Even when it's "icy" at JH, it's nothing like northeast ice like on the groomers at Stowe during a Diva East when we skied together during a rain/freeze cycle. Really rare for any rain during mid-season in the Rockies.

 

[marzNC]

As a general recommendation for intermediates who would like company during their first trip out west, consider joining a Diva West. If going to Jackson Hole in late January works, check and see if an Ikon pass would be helpful.

If that timing doesn't work, it's worth learning about the multi-resort pass options. In general, prices for season passes increase as the season gets closer. Some fall cut off dates are as early as September. Early bird deadlines can be any time from April to June. For trips that require flying, planning ahead can save money too. More importantly, you will have more options for which day/time to fly.

Multi-resort passes for 2019-20: Ikon, MCP, Epic, Freedom, Indy, Peak, etc.

 

[marzNC]

Haven't watched it yet, but this movie recommended by @alison wong sounds like a good one for adults of any age planning to keep skiing well past the usual retirement age.

https://www.theskidiva.com/forums/i...ry-film-snow-day-lift-death-and-skiing.22821/

Documentary film on Amazon: Snow Day - Lift, Death and Skiing

Description:
Hit the slopes with a charming group of senior citizen skiers whose stories unfold along with the ski day. Set in the Colorado Rockies, join 6 skiers as they embrace both the joy and adversity that accompanies a long life lived well. You'll be inspired by their stories of love, loss, and personal growth that play out in high contrast to the freedom and athleticism they exhibit on the mountain.

Genres Fitness, Documentary, Sports
Director Erica Milsom
Starring Betty Meyer, Phil Mathews, Clark Milsom

If you have an Amazon prime account, please consider watching this movie. I enjoyed it so much. The mtn featured in the film is Copper and this group meets every Wednesday.

Highly recommended!

 

[liquidfeet]

Haven't watched it yet, but this movie recommended by @alison wong sounds like a good one for adults of any age planning to keep skiing well past the usual retirement age.

https://www.theskidiva.com/forums/i...ry-film-snow-day-lift-death-and-skiing.22821/

It's a wonderful film.

 

[marzNC]

Video from Jan 2019 taken at Sugar Mountain in NC. The man skied a little in France as a student over 20 years ago. He gave it another try because his children like skiing. Gives a feel for what it's like to ski in the southeast when snow guns are on. Sounds like he's going to go again.

 

[marzNC]

Not about an intermediate, but the idea of the need to face and conquer fears and the advantages of taking lessons, and having a supportive spouse/friend applies to any level.

April 19, 2016, Forbes
How Learning To Ski At 40 Is Like Running A Start-Up
" . . .
Step Out Of Your Comfort Zone: Fear is instinctual. But it’s most valuable lessons come from repelling it. In business, the joke around our office is that I will cold-call on anyone. The worst I will get is a “no”, and I can live with that. So why can’t I apply the same fearlessness of rejection and failure to the personal things I fear most in life? Learning to ski required me to reject fear on many levels. My husband knew I was going to try to strategically wiggle out of it all at 6:00 am when I woke up. I beat him by a half an hour with my first excuse at 5:30 am that I was suffering from an eye infection (which I was). This was one instance that I was grateful for my husband’s persistent intolerance. Three hours later I was carving groomers down the bunny slope and loving every minute of it. I didn’t fall once. It turns out skiing is no different than cold calling a prospective game-changing client if you just have the courage to do it
. . ."

 

[marzNC]

One of the oldest skiers these days is George Jedenoff, who recently spent a day skiing at Alta. He's been skiing there or at Snowbird since he started skiing at age 43. He's still hunting powder of the edges of groomers from the SkiUtah videos in the last couple years.

Look here for a few pics of his day at Alta recently:
https://www.alta.com/stories/102-year-old-powderhound

 

[Inoffensive Nickname]

Hubby and I were in the UP (Big Snow Resort) the first weekend in February where we met an 80 year old world class ski racer. I wish I could remember his name. He had been participating in a ski race at Big Powderhorn that day.

 

[snowski/swimmouse]

Hubby and I were in the UP (Big Snow Resort) the first weekend in February where we met an 80 year old world class ski racer. I wish I could remember his name. He had been participating in a ski race at Big Powderhorn that day.

More power to him! Our hero!

 

[OleTimeRiverGuide]

More inspiration.

92-Year-Old Granny Skier in Argentina

92-Year Old Skier in Maine
Returned to skiing at 88 after stopping at 65
https://bangordailynews.com/2013/01/17/outdoors/holyoke/92-year-old-skier-still-heeds-the-need-for-speed/

MarzNC, are you in the Bangor area? I grew up there.

 

[marzNC]

MarzNC, are you in the Bangor area? I grew up there.

Nope, no personal connection to Maine other than skiing at Sunday River with Divas a few times. Posted that video back in 2013 because I happened to come across it. As you may notice later, my home mountain is Massanutten in northern VA because I live in North Carolina. But being retired, I ski more out west than locally.

Where are you skiing the most now?

 

[OleTimeRiverGuide]

I live in L.A. We have a 120 mile radius order in place during covid. My family has been shut in since March but we are going to Big Bear for a week -- lots of knuckleheads there. (I got a bad concussion from one who followed me into a half pipe last year.) If things open up we are planning to go to Deer Valley in Utah for some skiers-only bliss.
Weirdly, I never really skied much in Maine. Well... not that weird. We could never have afforded it. I am coming to it very late in life - and so loving it!

 

[marzNC]

If things open up we are planning to go to Deer Valley in Utah for some skiers-only bliss.
Weirdly, I never really skied much in Maine. Well... not that weird. We could never have afforded it. I am coming to it very late in life - and so loving it!

I know of other people who grew up near ski areas but didn't try it until much later when they lived in other states with no skiing. I had a chance to learn in middle school but didn't really have the time and money to ski more regularly until after age 50.

I go to Alta in April and don't miss snowboarders at all. Lots of them on the short slopes the southeast.

 

[OleTimeRiverGuide]

Alta - yes! That's what I should have said! I'm super excited to see it. The virus thing is getting crazier every day though. I hope we get to go.