 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm off to Ischgl first week in April with my partner (a teacher, hence April) and she is again booked into beginner lessons all week (11.15am to 2.15.pm) and I'm wondering what I should do all week while she has lessons.
Often there's a group of us, but this year it will just be us two. I'm more than happy to ski on my own and explore (I did that for a week in Les Arcs), but I wondered whether this year I should try something different?
I've skied once or twice a year since 2016 and can get myself around the mountains pretty well, skiing black runs fine e.g. Le Face in Val d'Isere, but nice intermediate reds are where I'm most at home. I'm not bothered about off piste, but then again I've not really done much of it.
I've never had ski lessons and I wonder whether this is the year I should get some? Perhaps it would be good to book a couple of days in an intermediate / advanced group at the start of the week - maybe I'd meet some people to ski with later in the week too? Has anyone ever done similar? Or would a few hours of private lessons be better? Less chance to meet people, but maybe better to have one-on-one coaching and improve?
Also, as the lessons go over lunch time what happens about food? The ski school says lunch stops are "on request" but surely that would eat into the 3 hours?
Coming back to meeting other people to ski with, what do other people do? I'm fairly easy going and happy to chat to people in the hotel, but it's a bit weird to say "oh hey, can I come and ski with you tomorrow?" 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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From how you describe yourself I would hazard a guess that you'll get more out of a few private lessons than you would out of a week of group lessons.
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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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Do an adult beginner snowboarding course. Then you and your partner can be on more of a level playing field, rather than you being so much more confident and competent.
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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When you say "I've never had ski lessons" - do you mean Any Lessons at all, or Private Lessons?
Anyway, a good Instructor should make a dramatic difference over a few Private Lessons.
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| Old Fartbag wrote: |
| When you say "I've never had ski lessons" - do you mean Any Lessons at all, or Private Lessons? |
I switched to skiing after going snowboarding and deciding that I loved the mountains but didn't really love snowboarding. I remember once reading that skiing was easy to pick up but hard to master and that it was the opposite learning curve to snowboarding (hard at the start, still hard in the middle, not quite so hard as you get better).
So I had a day at Tamworth where they explained about snow plough etc and I realised skiing was much more my thing. I guess that counts as lessons I suppose, but really I was just doing my thing while the instructor taught the others in the group how to not fall over... I think I picked it up more intuitively because I could already snowboard.
I then booked myself onto my sisters ski holiday to Obergurgl and in preparation I went to Castleford every Sunday night for about six weeks to practice. By the time I got to Austria I was happy to ski blues and by the end of the week I could get down an easy black (not that I particularly enjoyed them!)
Since then I've just tried to get better by watching others ski and the odd youtube video. I'm keen to get lessons this time because I think it's a great opportunity as I'll be on my own without the pull of family / friends to ski with.
My fear of group lessons is that I'll be stuck with people that (in my view) are a bit rubbish and I'll be frustrated. But maybe that's unfounded? Maybe everyone on an intermediate course (or am I advanced?) would actually be the same level as me. Could be good fun.
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Group lessons 100%. That's my opinion anyway. Will mean you meet some like minded folk and can have a beer or bumble around the mountain with afterwards.
Private lessons will help with the skiing more but is that all you're are bothered about?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| buzzub wrote: |
| Old Fartbag wrote: |
| When you say "I've never had ski lessons" - do you mean Any Lessons at all, or Private Lessons? |
I switched to skiing after going snowboarding and deciding that I loved the mountains but didn't really love snowboarding. I remember once reading that skiing was easy to pick up but hard to master and that it was the opposite learning curve to snowboarding (hard at the start, still hard in the middle, not quite so hard as you get better).
So I had a day at Tamworth where they explained about snow plough etc and I realised skiing was much more my thing. I guess that counts as lessons I suppose, but really I was just doing my thing while the instructor taught the others in the group how to not fall over... I think I picked it up more intuitively because I could already snowboard.
I then booked myself onto my sisters ski holiday to Obergurgl and in preparation I went to Castleford every Sunday night for about six weeks to practice. By the time I got to Austria I was happy to ski blues and by the end of the week I could get down an easy black (not that I particularly enjoyed them!)
Since then I've just tried to get better by watching others ski and the odd youtube video. I'm keen to get lessons this time because I think it's a great opportunity as I'll be on my own without the pull of family / friends to ski with.
My fear of group lessons is that I'll be stuck with people that (in my view) are a bit rubbish and I'll be frustrated. But maybe that's unfounded? Maybe everyone on an intermediate course (or am I advanced?) would actually be the same level as me. Could be good fun. |
https://www.skischule-ischgl.at/en/adults/group-allocation/
I'm assuming you'd fit into the blue/red group rather than the black..?
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Oh yes, hadn’t seen that I would be a red I think
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| buzzub wrote: |
| Old Fartbag wrote: |
| When you say "I've never had ski lessons" - do you mean Any Lessons at all, or Private Lessons? |
I switched to skiing after going snowboarding and deciding that I loved the mountains but didn't really love snowboarding. I remember once reading that skiing was easy to pick up but hard to master and that it was the opposite learning curve to snowboarding (hard at the start, still hard in the middle, not quite so hard as you get better).
So I had a day at Tamworth where they explained about snow plough etc and I realised skiing was much more my thing. I guess that counts as lessons I suppose, but really I was just doing my thing while the instructor taught the others in the group how to not fall over... I think I picked it up more intuitively because I could already snowboard.
I then booked myself onto my sisters ski holiday to Obergurgl and in preparation I went to Castleford every Sunday night for about six weeks to practice. By the time I got to Austria I was happy to ski blues and by the end of the week I could get down an easy black (not that I particularly enjoyed them!)
Since then I've just tried to get better by watching others ski and the odd youtube video. I'm keen to get lessons this time because I think it's a great opportunity as I'll be on my own without the pull of family / friends to ski with.
My fear of group lessons is that I'll be stuck with people that (in my view) are a bit rubbish and I'll be frustrated. But maybe that's unfounded? Maybe everyone on an intermediate course (or am I advanced?) would actually be the same level as me. Could be good fun. |
Thanks for the detailed reply.
I suspect you will get a lot from lessons. Personally, I think Privates will home in on your faults better due to individual attention. If a sociable person, then a Group might be more fun, but unlikely to bring your skiing on as quickly.
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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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This^^. For a social life, group lessons. Don’t expect to learn much. For real lessons, go private.
I was immediately thinking “Private lessons to break you out of all the bad habits you’ve picked up by self-teaching” 
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A quick update on this. We got back on Saturday after a great week of skiing in Ischgl. Lots of fresh snow and it only started getting slushy low down by the end of the week.
My partner enjoyed her group lessons and felt like she made a lot of progress. Essentially she started learning from scratch and said she "felt like a skier" by the end of the week. She was happy taking blue 6 down from Pardatschgrat on her own. The quiet slopes and fresh snow most days were a real bonus.
Still no desire from her to ski reds, but she has mentioned that she would like only 3 days of lessons over New Year as she wants to have more time to practice on her own. I really think private ski lessons would help her increase her confidence and progress faster, but they're expensive and she doesn't really have much desire to move outside of her comfort zone. She still worries about how steep the runs are (something I remember from when I spent a year being a nervous snowboarder).
After finding my ski legs on the Sunday, I had a private ski lesson on the Monday morning. After a quick run down blue 8 I got some immediate feedback - "stand up straighter, lean forwards more" and then we ventured down some steeper slopes. I followed Thomas' tracks, following instructions like "drop the shoulder as you turn". It all felt very similar to what I already do.
After that he declared that I needed steeper slopes so we headed down black 14b and then black 33 (Thomas' favourite). The snow was fresh and the pistes very quiet. We did shorter turns and again following was no problem.
The lesson was over fairly quickly but the instruction was good and it gave me a good confidence boost for the rest of the week. After that I skied every black run (except the 70% 14a!) and had a blast. I did think the Austrian blacks are quite soft though.
As for skiing on my own... well, that's exactly what I did and it was fine. The 11.15 - 14.15 group lesson time worked out well as it meant that we could ski a couple of runs together at 09:00ish, then I could leave my partner to practice for an hour or so before her lessons started at 11.15. I then went off to ski all around the resort, having the odd beer / hot chocolate / strudel if I fancied.
We then met up after the lesson at 14.30ish, skied some more together, before getting a late lunch at 15:00. After lunch we either skied more, or if the weather was closing in like it did on a few days, we'd head back for an early steam / sauna and a drink. Also, my legs were pretty tired by the end of the week - on the Monday alone I skied 61km (+ 40km of lifts for 101km total distance).
I did consider booking into a group lesson for a couple of days, but in the end I was quite happy with what I was doing. The independent woman streak was clearly strong last week.
So even though the private lesson was expensive, ultimately it was quite nice having someone take you around and share their favourite runs with you. Maybe I'm more suited to booking a guide next time. However, over New Year I might book a private ski lesson for a few of us as in Obergurgl and share the cost. It will have been three years then since some will have skied.
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You know it makes sense.
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FAQ
)
. Even something like the Swiss Wall in the PdS is easy when it's a fresh powder field, it's when it's a mini-sized ice mogal field it's hard.