 Poster: A snowHead
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Anyone have any experience or know where there are any sensible reviews for kids skis? Done the usual searches but can't spot anything on here.... though I entirely accept that I may be a blithering idiot and could have missed an entire forum named 'Skis for Kids'!!!
Our little one is 7 this year and has had the past 2 seasons out in Chamonix, she's pretty good (although not always super confident for the first few days) and can cheerfully tackle Blues and the odd easy Red.
To my shame I have absolutely no knowledge about what to get her... very poor considering how much research me and my wife did when getting our kit.
She'd love to join us on the 'big mountain' this year and fancies some off piste practice. I'd like to make sure she has something half decent in her kit bag.
Any help, pointers etc greatfully received.
PS: I reckon most of her time (80%) will be on piste and something in the region of a 120 ski would be about right (if you go by grown up measures).
Cheers... Mr Bad Dad! 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Right, so no replies...
Well 6 months on and we've done loads of skiing, My daughter is now mini queen of the snow park and a cracking all mountain skier... now need to improve my off piste ability!...
We tried allsorts of kit for her and after a good chunk of research we settled on some K2 Missy twin tips.
In essence the majority of kids skis don't have the same complex multi layer construction as the grown up versions. So in reality there is very little difference between any of them.
We simply went on weight, design and length and we picked a twin tip as she loves the snow park.
In short budget and style are pretty much all you need worry about, an adjustable track binding means you can get a good couple of seasons out of the ski's. Market price seems to be around £90 for new skis and bindings with lots of choice from reputable outlets. There also is a very healthy market for buying and selling kids skis on ebay.
If you look at the costs of hiring these days and that fact that it's so easy to sell the skis when the nipper outgrows them, buying looks very sensible especially if you get several weeks/months in each season.
Hope that helps any of you who have kids.
Cheers
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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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I thought I'd bump up this thread from three years ago. Robotdancer, are you still around?
The reason I'm bumping is that the questions are really valid. I'm buying my 7-year old daughter her second pair of skis and since this season is her fourth and she is confident, I'd rather not just buy the cheapest pink ones.
Apart from length, how much does a skiing kid's abilities affect the options you have? Are there a lot of options for kids who may not be racing, but are no longer beginners? Most shops around my area seem to narrow the requirements down to length and colour.
Cheers
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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As a father of 3 mountain goats I don't understand why you'd want to buy skis for children until they stop growing or become semi- pro. They grow so fast that by the time the skis have arrived and been used for 1 season they have grown out of them anyway. Unless you're UK based and money is no object and you can afford to ski more than 4 weeks a year, then hiring must be cheaper and more flexible. Our experiance of 3 Alpine based seasons was to go and hire for the season at roughly 100-150 Euros per child for boots, skis and helmets. As they are all such fickle beasts they tend to change their minds during the season and shift from racing to park to off-piste, at which point we just go back to the shop and change gear accordingly. On no occassion did any of them retain the same skis for more than one season and 1 broken ski and binding was replaced at no charge. Don't forget the carriage charges on skis when you fly too.
I get many parents asking me this question when I teach and my advice is always that above. If you really want to spend money then don't buy in the UK. Get an instructor to watch your child ski over a couple of days. We can identify their strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes and point you in the right direction. Most Brit kids are not really ready for their own skis until well into their early teens. Thereafter they start to develop a taste for certain types of skiing. Park Skis come in all shapes and sizes and they'll probably know what they want better than you. Think designer trainers! On piste, length is a factor, but Carvers vs GS, All Mountain or bumps, there is no right answer. Generally my only real piece of advice (without seeing them) is don't buy anything that is too wide. Children usually don't have the strength to angulate enough to get the benifits from wider skis.
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panaga52, I started hiring skis for my two kids, and then started buying. I buy unisex skis slightly on the long side - get two seasons holidays out of them, then hand the largest ones down down to the smallest child and get another season holidays out of that pair. I look after them as well as possible then sell them off on ebay or SH's for a very reasonable price. At a starting price of around £150 per set (I buy bargains in the summer) and a sell on price on a previously new well looked after set of around £70 average I am quids in on the costs of hiring. However, I have a friend that services them for me, and travel by car so carriage costs me nothing.
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We are pretty much in the same boat as Megamum.
Two kids so can hand them down.
Service them myself.
We drive so no carraige costs.
Plus the in-laws in southern Germany are well in with their local ski shop so we've tended to get stuff at good prices from there.
But I can understand how in most cases it makes more sense to hire. And I suspect that is part of the reason why there isn't much discussion on the subject. And as pointed kids are fickle beasts.
On the point about kids ski's being of simpler construction. I don't know if that is true, though wouldn't be surprised. But it makes me wonder if there is a lot of hype and boll0cks on the adult ski market. I am "told" things have advanced massively in the last 5 years but I'm not totally convinced. I think there was a big leap from the straight ski's to "carvers". And certainly there are cheap ski's and better made ski's. But as I say my instinct tells me there is a lot of hot air aswell (and I don't think this is anything new).
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Layne, From those last comments I assume that you read the thread I posted that I linked to! LOL
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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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Megamum, yes. My reply was connected to both that and what you said on this thread 
Unfortunately my kids are younger so can't comment on the transition from kids to adult gear. Would be interested in the discussion though. If there was one!
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FWIW, mine now 12 and 9 have just outgrown K2 Juvy twin tips which they had great fun on and I can recommend them. However, their last instructor said that to benefit their technique they wouldn't harm spending some more time on conventional shaped skis so they have just had sets of racing skis for Christmas and we wait to see how they fair on those.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| panaga52 wrote: |
| Most Brit kids are not really ready for their own skis until well into their early teens. . |
Well littleh is british-ish and I had to splash out on his second pair of skis this weekend, he's 3. Fortunately the shop does a half back scheme so there's really not much point renting.
He requested some big powder skis, but Volkl RTM Jr's had to suffice
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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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We started renting skis for kids but found it cheaper to buy them use them for 2 yrs sell them on. Usually lost £20-£50 on purchase cost over the 2 yrs. As we would have had to rent for 3 weeks each year so a couple of waxes at the shop and a service and sell them on we have not lost.
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Not only have we clearly not lost, but assuming that the kids also have boots and us grown-ups have all our own gear, we have not wasted valuable hours queuing in the ski hire shop for kit of possible dubious quality.
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You know it makes sense.
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SkiingDad, on your question, kids options really start to increase approaching the 130 mark, more wood core options etc. and considerably more options in the race department for more/less aggressive skiers, unless your little one is going to spend all day going backwards I'd steer away from twin tips.
To add there's nothing wrong with going for race orientated skis even if not going to be used for racing, depending on the length you are looking for will largely dictate your options.
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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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AAAGH, Managed to incur the wrath of Megamum which usually means an ignominious and undignified end for any Snowhead!! If I may refine my comments MOST British Kids who require instruction are usually 1 or 2 week package skiers only, MOST will fly, MOST will only ski between 4-8 weeks in a four year period and MOST do not have a requirement for their own skis. MOST do not read Snowhead for the excellent advive provided by MM and others. I concur that for Infants (3-7ish) buying can be a good option if you're committed to the sport or you fall outside any of the above comments. Am I forgiven?
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Hi panaga,
PS I composed my long winded reply whilst you were posting your short one so yes I'd agree with your last remarks... plus I'm sure Megamum is a very forgiving person!
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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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Me? Oh, I'm a big softy I am. What works for one person might not work for another - that's fine isn't it? I am Ms Average - single mum, not much cash, kids ski one week a year, two if they are lucky as our main holiday - it still works out cheaper for me with their own skis and boots. Another consideration if you buy aiming to last through and pass onto kids with growing feet is to get skis with rails on so that you can easily adjust between boots - also a good selling point when passing on second hand. We have just got Fischer RC4 comp jrs for my pair - currently 12 and 9 - they have had their own skis and boots since about age 7 and 4 and I am categorically in pocket on the deal. Mostly I buy new gear for them, but occasionally will pick up a second hand item in really good nick. I've been to resorts where it's £80 per week for ski hire, it doesn't take long to recoup that sort of cash with a little effort and half an eye on ebay. In addition the kids think its neat to have their own gear. Mind you up until Christmas my pair thought they were on hire skis this year as I had sold their old Juvy's in the autumn. Mine are skiing the whole moutain and outskied me years ago - now I buy them a private instructor and send them off for a couple of hours to do 'exciting' stuff.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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gatecrasher, that's basically what the guys in the shops have been telling me. But I'm a suspicious person, so I'm afraid they're probably saying anything to keep me from checking the other shops. As for racing skis, I don't think my daughter is quite ready for the really stiff skis and the racing skis come at significantly higher price.
panaga52, you bring valid points about rental skis, but I have made the calculations. We ski often enough for it to be cost-effective to buy, even for just one season. (Hiring is really expensive where I normally ski.) Besides, as Megamum pointed out, not having to waste time on queuing and fitting is really worth it, even if I might lose a tenner or two per season. (Which I don't, even this season, which is particularly bad around here.)
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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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Hi Robotdancer,
Well good things come to those who wait and all you need is a little patience ... three years worth of it! And of course, you need to provide the answers yourself, eventually.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Just to add ours is 7 going on 8 - last 2 years he has had a set of fisher race carver skis ( from ebay - 3 trips)
This year he had a pair of K2 Juvy's from Ebay too - and they will last 3-4 trips so its easy to recover costs.
also find that you only need to get the skis serviced once when you get them, and they last OK
Selling tham back on ebay - usually you get what you paid too.
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I'll make a thread to review kids skis. We might not be able to comment on how they ski - unless we have kids clever enough to be able to tell and then tell us, but we can comment on cost, perceived build quality/longevity, binding type, what possible age/height/build/ski experience relating to the child used them. This might be useful to other parents. Hopefully those that are contributing here can help start out with their own experiences - I'll start the thread and add mine tonight when I've more time.
Thread started here: http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=1948981#1948981
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Megamum, I will put something on the new thread in due course.
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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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Layne,
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| Quote: |
I don't think my daughter is quite ready for the really stiff skis and the racing skis come at significantly higher price.
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SkiingDad,
Sorry I was really referring to entry level race “badged” skis, the main differences between these and the “cool twin tips” are the geometry and binding position, the stiffness will be similar being foam cored.
At the end of the day it all depends on what your child or you as a parent want to gain from them, if say they go a year between trips and really just want to have fun and are not overly bothered about improving technique then any ski the right length that’s nice and forgiving will be fine including twin tips I guess, in this instance it would not really be worth spending heaps, but.... if they ski all year round, have regular lessons and want to step it up a bit then the money is well worth spending on the appropriate kit, equally important- having the right boots!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Hi Megamum,
Spot on, happy to contribute our info.
Gatecrasher,
I honestly don't think style of ski affects good technique and progression. I genuinely believe that has more to do with good coaches and instructors. Hannah might not slalom amazingly but giver her jumps, bumps, powder and trees and she's great...
As I said before as a parent I'm more keen on making sure she has fun and does things that hold her interest than worrying too much about race or freestyle skis... the kids will ski anything you give them. 
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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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| Robotdancer wrote: |
Hi Megamum,
Spot on, happy to contribute our info.
Gatecrasher,
I honestly don't think style of ski affects good technique and progression. I genuinely believe that has more to do with good coaches and instructors. Hannah might not slalom amazingly but giver her jumps, bumps, powder and trees and she's great...
As I said before as a parent I'm more keen on making sure she has fun and does things that hold her interest than worrying too much about race or freestyle skis... the kids will ski anything you give them. |
Robotdancer, yep I definitely agree about the fun part, also agree that kids will ski anything they are given.
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Hi, this is my first post. So on this same thread, my 10 year old daughter has been skiing since she was 4 and just attempted (and failed) the ESF Gold Star level.
She skis really well but was too slow on the slalom. I'm not too concerened about this as the only point of doing these really is so they become better skiers and can spend more time skier more interesting things with my wife and I in the afternoons.
I'm about to get her a new set of 140cm skis and was going to go for the K2 Remedy 75 Jr. however, having read this thrread and the comments on technique, I'm wondering whether something like the Rossignol Diva might be better.
I'm a bit reluctant to go any more 'racer' than this as she'd never going to be a competition skier or speed demon and I think will end up being more an off-psite or park skier.
Anybody have thoughts or experience of of the K2 Remedy or Diva, or others?
Thanks
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You know it makes sense.
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My kids are now 16 and 19, like many others I have always bought new skis, used for both of them over a 3 or 4 year period and then sold on ebay. On many occasions, especially when they were very little I even made profit on them.
Kids are really adaptable and skied on pretty much anything I bought for them, from Salomon and Head when they were under 10 through to K2's as they got older, they loved them all. They both raced a bit as well and I couldnt see any difference in pace from when they trained (often on a pair of twin tips - son hated the colour of his race skis lol) to when they raced.
Width does make a difference if you are going off piste, but at that age they are so light and agile they could probably ski and old school straight ski and get away with it.
In answer to your question, K2 have been making kids skis for ever, there line up is usually just a slight tweek and colour change to the year before, they are good skis. So are the Rossi's,either make will work.
I'm currently doing my 1st season after 35 years of skiing, I brought a full quiver out with me, GS, Piste, All mountain and Off piste, but I have realised something -practice, fitness and tuition make the most difference, not the skis.
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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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Hi, you're right about the fitness and thanks for the advice b
I found a pair of Atomic Vantage Girl III skis for her. They are more piste oriented, than the K2 Temedys that she wanted but not wood core. However, given modern tech, I don't know whether this matters much.
Like you say, I'm sure she'll be fine on anything but hopefully it'll help her technique.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Would be great if this thread could be resurrected with people's reviews, it would be really helpful to know what the collective experience are with kids skis as many seem to buy them and there is need to change as they grow and get better.
http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=2685388
Have just posted one on a pair recently bought to help it along.
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