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Toddlers Ski Equipment - Advice

gnardawg

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Jan 25, 2017
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need a little help friends - My wife and I want to get our daughter on skis this year. She will be 21 months as of January. Any recommendations on where to get skis/boots? I'd do a season lease or buy used. Thinking play it again sports but i'm not really sure.
 

shwilly

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Apr 13, 2006
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I'm not sure. I would keep your expectations low on several fronts:
-You may have a hard time finding boots small enough.
-Don't expect to do much more than pull her back and forth on flat ground this year. She may make it down a bunny slope, but I wouldn't bet on it.
-I don't know if any ski school would take a kid that young.
-Kids get cold fast and like hot chocolate.

We started our younger daughter at 3, and she was the smallest kid around most days. She only really got going last season at age 5. By the end of the season she and her sister found their first unmarked tree shots off the trail. I was so proud!

That said, maybe your daughter will take to it right from the start. If you know a community with a lot of locals and ski bums raising kids, they might have good advice. Our VT friends helped us out in that regard.
 

gnardawg

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Jan 25, 2017
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Ha yeah my wife and I plan on skiing until 1 - lunching - then taking her out to pull her back and forth just to get used to being on snow. We have no expectations at all! Most ski schools won't take kids until 4.
 

SkiMom80

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Sep 1, 2016
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Try some ski swaps. You can get some good stuff cheap.

I second this. Get the shortest ski's you can (we started with 70cm, but I've seen smaller) and boots that will last a couple years. All 3 of my kids have been on skis since they could walk. Their progression looked something like this:

1.5 years - plastic boots that went directly on ski boots (this might be a good option for you too)
My youngest totally rebelled at this age. Don't force it...it should be fun, not torture.
2.5 years - real skis/boots, take on bunny slope between legs
My youngest did really well at this age...could go on his own, but not turn or stop
3.5 years - Real skiing/lessons (depending on where you go)
All of my kids were skiing at least the bunny slopes by this age. My youngest was a rockstar and skied most of Bretton Woods and good portion of Cannon at this age.

Good luck! Skiing with kids can be so much fun. Pro tip, though - take them out in the morning. When they are cranky and tired in the afternoon, your chances of them (or you) having fun goes down exponentially!
 

DoublePlanker

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Dec 20, 2010
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Taught both my sons at age 20/21 months. Highly recommend Pats Peak. FREE magic carpets for both adults and kids. Great lodge. We rented skis for 1 day with our oldest. After the first day, we rented for the season for like $150. They have all necessary equipment. $0 for lift tix. We went like 8 times. We bought skis next season at Mcintype ski swap. Last year my oldest was 3.5 years old skiing from the top of Pats Peak. My younger boy went like 6 times on the carpets. I had to help him each time.

Some days we would only do 2 runs. But without paying for lift tix, we didn't care.
 

drjeff

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Killington has (or at least used to have) programs for 2 year olds, where it was mainly daycare, but with some on snow lessons 1 on 1 with an instructor on the carpets outside of the Ramshead Lodge. Both of my kids had their 1st days on skis there in those programs when they were 26 months old.

The instructors/staff are all about making sure the kids are having fun and being aware of the child's attention span and interest. So as I was told when I dropped my kids off there... "we're going to do our best to get your child out on skis, but if they are having way more fun playing inside and throw a large temper tantrum every time we try to see in they want to go outside, then they may not get on skis today." (They also said that over 95% of kids DO get on skis every day)

The key is to find a day when it's comfortable outside. A snowy, cold, windy, drizzly day isn't the best for a young child, even if that's what mother nature throws at you and your schedule availability. Teaching a young child to ski is WAY more about putting your ego and wishes and wants in check and making it all about the child having fun outside...
 

bdfreetuna

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keep the faith
Taught both my sons at age 20/21 months. Highly recommend Pats Peak. FREE magic carpets for both adults and kids. Great lodge. We rented skis for 1 day with our oldest. After the first day, we rented for the season for like $150. They have all necessary equipment. $0 for lift tix. We went like 8 times. We bought skis next season at Mcintype ski swap. Last year my oldest was 3.5 years old skiing from the top of Pats Peak. My younger boy went like 6 times on the carpets. I had to help him each time.

Some days we would only do 2 runs. But without paying for lift tix, we didn't care.

Good to know! I'm hoping in a couple years Pats Peak is my local hill. Planning on a move to Concord/Hopkinton area. My daughter would be hopefully ready to start trying some skis not long after.
 

tumbler

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Lease her equipment until she's 10 or so.

Lease until she stops growing, esp boots. Get in with a good ski shop and pony up for the brand new lease equipment as opposed to new when she gets to early teens. Used equipment is more than adequate for them to learn on.
 

Mailman

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Lease until she stops growing, esp boots. Get in with a good ski shop and pony up for the brand new lease equipment as opposed to new when she gets to early teens. Used equipment is more than adequate for them to learn on.

I’m sure leasing is the right choice for a lot of people, but buying new has worked out better for our family. If you have more than 1 child, it can definitely be the better way to go.

When my son was 2.5, I picked up some K2 Indy skis with bindings on sale during the summer for $120 and a pair of Roces adjustable boots for $80. I generally shop for kids ski equipment in the summer - there are always good deals to be had.

He got 2.5 seasons on the K2s before graduating to longer skis, at which point they went to his younger sister who also got 2 seasons out of them. We had the same progression with his next set - 2 seasons for my son and then 2 seasons for my daughter.

So we’re getting 4 seasons out of a pair of skis putting us at about $30 per season. I’ll likely give the skis away / donate them when both kids have outgrown them, but if I was inclined to sell them, I could probably get, say, $60 for them, which would take the cost down to about $15 per season.

For the boots, they were a little big when my son first got them at age 2.5 (despite being the smallest size) and he just now is getting to the longest length of the adjustment range for them. I may need to replace them this year or he may get another year out of them, so 4 or 5 seasons total. Depending on when I replace them, the boots have cost me $16 or $20 per season.

So by buying new, my cost is a max of $50 per season, and could be as low as $31 per season if I choose to sell the skis and my son gets another year out of the boots. I guess you could add on a couple of bucks for poles now that he’s using them, but it’s not much more.

Leasing is probably going to work better in some cases, but you should at least do the math on buying. It’s worked out great for us.
 

xwhaler

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I’m sure leasing is the right choice for a lot of people, but buying new has worked out better for our family. If you have more than 1 child, it can definitely be the better way to go.

When my son was 2.5, I picked up some K2 Indy skis with bindings on sale during the summer for $120 and a pair of Roces adjustable boots for $80. I generally shop for kids ski equipment in the summer - there are always good deals to be had.

He got 2.5 seasons on the K2s before graduating to longer skis, at which point they went to his younger sister who also got 2 seasons out of them. We had the same progression with his next set - 2 seasons for my son and then 2 seasons for my daughter.

So we’re getting 4 seasons out of a pair of skis putting us at about $30 per season. I’ll likely give the skis away / donate them when both kids have outgrown them, but if I was inclined to sell them, I could probably get, say, $60 for them, which would take the cost down to about $15 per season.

For the boots, they were a little big when my son first got them at age 2.5 (despite being the smallest size) and he just now is getting to the longest length of the adjustment range for them. I may need to replace them this year or he may get another year out of them, so 4 or 5 seasons total. Depending on when I replace them, the boots have cost me $16 or $20 per season.

So by buying new, my cost is a max of $50 per season, and could be as low as $31 per season if I choose to sell the skis and my son gets another year out of the boots. I guess you could add on a couple of bucks for poles now that he’s using them, but it’s not much more.

Leasing is probably going to work better in some cases, but you should at least do the math on buying. It’s worked out great for us.

Well said---with 2 boys buying the gear instead of leasing is a no brainer...I've started doing exactly what you have done. The math doesn't work to lease if you have 2+
 

DoublePlanker

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Dec 20, 2010
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I use a 20 year old pair of rusty Snow Blades instead of skis. It allows me to maneuver around my kids. Better than my long skis. I think the blades are shorter than my son's skis.
 
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