 Poster: A snowHead
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So earlier this year my daughter had a few lessons on snow and really loved it (she has been on ski's before, but only messing around, not actually with an instructor before).
She kept asking to go again, but the nearest dry slope to us doesn't start lessons until aged 4 (she was 3 at the time), she's now 4 however and has just started dry slope lessons.
Now, the first week was fine, but this week they had run out of small skis, so she ended up with 100cm skis and seemed to struggle (she's about 100cm high, possibly 1-2cm less)....however I'm not sure whether this was the skis themselves or just the walking / sidestepping up the slope etc and having to carry the skis herself (on snow she's had the luxury of magic carpets when learning).
So, that made me think, if they run out of anything under 100cm that quickly (we were about 5th in line I think so they must only have a couple of pairs), is it worth getting some for her, so she doesn't have to have skis that are way too long?
It really comes down to whether 100cm is likely to massively cause problems whilst learning, as if we buy it probably makes sense to buy 90cm, rather than 80cm and they seem easy enough to find in an actual resort.
So a 2 part question...is it worth getting skis for a dry slope or just sticking with what they have?
We won't get out on snow much sadly this year (just a couple of days in December and hopefully 7-10 days in Feb or April) and can obviously hire in resort, hence I'm less worried about that (unless having her own for learning will be a massive help to her of course).
If so, has anyone heard of Nevica (I think it might be Sport Direct's own brand), as they are currently doing kids ski's with bindings for £50 including delivery...which assuming they aren't ridiculously bad sort of seems like you can't really go wrong, but I'd never heard of them so thought I'd better hear from those in the know 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Kids seem to cope OK in very casually fitted ski boots but for a little learner to have skis as high as herself is definitely going to hamper her - almost anything in the right size (about chest height) will be better. 80 cms probably better than 90!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@vjmehra, where abouts do you live? Is there another dry ski slope you can reach?
Snowtrax near Bournemouth even has a magic carpet on their smallest nursery bit now. I never had them give wrongly length skis due to stock issus!
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Unfortunately not, we don't have a car, so we're pretty much restricted to an Uber-able distance 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Quote: |
Kids seem to cope OK in very casually fitted ski boots but for a little learner to have skis as high as herself is definitely going to hamper her - almost anything in the right size (about chest height) will be better. 80 cms probably better than 90!
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Yeah I did think that, but then by Feb/April they could be too small...whereas 90 would be okay.
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@vjmehra, what size skis did she have before? Would be marginal difference between 90 and 100 but if going from 70 or 80 it could have been an issue.
I presume you get no discount for using your own skis so no benefit financially?
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With children that age in my view the number one (and arguably only) goal should be "is she having fun?". If she's enjoying it, regardless of what skis she is on or what surface she is skiing, then there's no need to change anything. If the length of the skis hampers her enjoyment then it might be something to consider. As parents its very easy to want to remove all obstacles we perceive but sometimes they aren't affecting the child in the way we think they are. Likely as not she'd have struggled getting used to not having a magic carpet regardless of the skis, but they soon master that. It's natural to want to see them progress as quickly as possible, and having the right equipment will definitely help that, but if you change the goal to "having fun" rather than "improving" does that affect your decision to buy the skis?
If you do decide to buy them I'm sure the Nevica ones would be fine - the only thing worth worrying about that might vary between brands at that end of the market is the weight. For young children struggling with side stepping etc I'd argue that a light ski is more important than having the perfect length ski. I'm sure you'd be able to sell them on to another family in a year's time for not much less than you paid for them (or donate them to the club) once she's grown out of them.
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@vjmehra, what size skis did she have before? Would be marginal difference between 90 and 100 but if going from 70 or 80 it could have been an issue.
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I think she was on 80cm before, so going from 80 to 100 could have made a difference.
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I presume you get no discount for using your own skis so no benefit financially?
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Correct, however given the price point and the fact I can probably stick them on ebay afterwards anyway, not too fussed.
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With children that age in my view the number one (and arguably only) goal should be "is she having fun?". If she's enjoying it, regardless of what skis she is on or what surface she is skiing, then there's no need to change anything. If the length of the skis hampers her enjoyment then it might be something to consider. As parents its very easy to want to remove all obstacles we perceive but sometimes they aren't affecting the child in the way we think they are. Likely as not she'd have struggled getting used to not having a magic carpet regardless of the skis, but they soon master that.
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This is what the tricky part is. Was it the move up from 80cm - 100cm? Was it the walking around? Was it carrying the skis (which she never liked anyway of course, but I do that for her on snow), especially as the 100cm ones will be that bit heavier?
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It's natural to want to see them progress as quickly as possible, and having the right equipment will definitely help that, but if you change the goal to "having fun" rather than "improving" does that affect your decision to buy the skis?
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That was the motivation in all honesty, after the lesson, for the first time ever she said 'Daddy I don't like skiing' and this is from someone that has been going on about it all summer and telling all her friends about it since her first dry slope lesson the other week. So thats what worried me. There's no rush for her to improve (actually if she stays in ski school forever it means we get free mornings when we go away  But its important she is having fun, otherwise she'll just lose interest.
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If you do decide to buy them I'm sure the Nevica ones would be fine - the only thing worth worrying about that might vary between brands at that end of the market is the weight. For young children struggling with side stepping etc I'd argue that a light ski is more important than having the perfect length ski.
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Yes, she really struggles to carry them (mind you that was the same with the 80cm, or seemed to be, but I presume the 100cm ones weigh a bit more so that could be the tipping point).
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I'm sure you'd be able to sell them on to another family in a year's time for not much less than you paid for them (or donate them to the club) once she's grown out of them.
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Yep, I'm sure that won't be a problem, the price point is low so I'm more worried about her having something that she is comfortable on....well that and pink. Its quite important they're pink!!!!
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If £50 isn't a big deal for you then go for it. They might get a little trashed on the dry slope though, so I wouldn't expect to get much ££ after, maybe just give them away. At least it will save you going early to queue up, and keeps the wee one happy
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If £50 isn't a big deal for you then go for it. They might get a little trashed on the dry slope though, so I wouldn't expect to get much ££ after, maybe just give them away. At least it will save you going early to queue up, and keeps the wee one happy
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Tbh if they last a year then she'll have outgrown them anyway, so my only real concern was whether it would make a difference. I agree on the queuing up...and at least at the dry slope you don't have the dread of seeing everyone else's bags coming off the plane and not yours!
Just one more question if I may...is the consensus that 80cm or 90cm would be better (she is 98-100cm tall...tricky to get her still enough to be more precise)?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I'm no expert, but I think for absolute beginners its chest high, or 20cm below height? So if you're not expecting them to last 80cm?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'm no expert, but I think for absolute beginners its chest high, or 20cm below height? So if you're not expecting them to last 80cm?
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Well if we could get 2 seasons out of them that would be fantastic, thats why I was considering 90cm, but if thats unlikely (especially considering Dry Slope usage) then I'd rather they were easier / lighter for her.
So thats one vote for 80cm, any other views?
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80. She'll not suffer if they are a little too short later, but overly long now will make it harder and then the fun stops. Kids' muscles are not as strong nor as coordinated as adults.
Look at it another way: I ski pure piste skis around 160-165, which are 10-15cm shorter than me. I would not want to be on something 25% longer, that would be around 200 cm. Aside from the old school skinny ski enthusiasts, most people would laugh at me if I suggested the longer length was even vaguely appropriate.
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You know it makes sense.
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@vjmehra, Nevica are primarily a ski clothing brand. I didn't even know they made skis tbh. Actually they probably don't, they are probably just branded Nevica made by someone else.
Looking on the Sports Direct website there are a pair of 70's for £33.50, 80's for £63.99 and 90/100/110 for £74.99. Which are pretty good prices. As a comparison I bought some K2 Juby 129's 3.5 years ago for £100 - and that was a good deal IMO.
How good they are is anyone's guess, although there isn't much you can get wrong with toddler ski's like that.
One thing to bear in mind is the servicing - and I seem to recall others saying skis get scraped and need rewaxing more frequently on dry slopes.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| vjmehra wrote: |
| So thats one vote for 80cm, any other views? |
I'd vote for 90 personally. She's already ~100 and they grow pretty quick. I've just bought 170 skis for my son, which is virtually his current height but they will now be with him for two seasons.
Sure, when they are little I wouldn't be doing that but 90 for a growing 100 girl is a good compromise between now and the next couple of years. I don't believe the difference between 80 and 90 ski's will make life so difficult for her.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I'd go shorter (i.e. 80cm). Longer skis are going to offer zero benefit on a dry slope. If it's all the walking and carrying she doesn't like then why not ask if the club would like some parents to help the children with that part. Although side stepping is an important skill to learn it's more important that they enjoy themselves and want to come back. I was in exactly that situation 10 years ago and it was that conversation that started my journey to be a ski instructor, so with hindsight very glad I asked!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Kids hate carrying their skis and generally make a hash of it. Wouldn't matter if they were 50cm or 150.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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If only I could find a pair of 85cm, ha!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| vjmehra wrote: |
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One thing to bear in mind is the servicing - and I seem to recall others saying skis get scraped and need rewaxing more frequently on dry slopes.
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Was tempted to use these as a practice to teach myself how to self service (on the basis if I mess it up at least its not a pair of £200+ skis down the drain |
That is a great idea.
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| vjmehra wrote: |
| If only I could find a pair of 85cm, ha! |
TBH I wouldn't knock yourself over it - kids grow a 5 to 7.5 at that age. 80's probably ideal now. 90 will be ideal in a years time. But they can still use them even when less than optimal.
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