Are you self taught?

[ski stef]

learning at such a young age i was always put in lessons as well as taught by my father. usually a lesson in the morning and free ski with him teaching me some things in the afternoon. even into my teens he had me in lessons (moguls or private) to keep improving. always something new to learn and always room to improve. I still think about enrolling in a lesson every once in awhile.

 

[hammer]

First exposure was on my own as a college student. Many years later I took a lesson at Nashoba to get started again. Since then I think I've taken one more lesson as an intermediate. I've thought about getting in one lesson a season but that hasn't worked out.

 

[riverc0il]

I had lessons as a beginner and intermediate through early teens and race training on some pretty bad teams in high school and college. So I had respectable fundamentals but never skied off the groomed back then. Everything after that getting me to my current level was self coaching and watching others.

 

[Glenn]

I took lessons back in the day. I taught my wife; she's never taken a lesson.

 

[jrmagic]

I took a 2 hour group lesson my first day on skis when I was 10. We only went once a season then. When I got to college I started skiing a lot thanks to the great club we had and learned by trial and error following better skiers until it hurt lol. Eventually it didn't hurt anymore My kids have taken a few lessons but learned more following me around the hill. They have gotten pretty good. Especially my 14 y/o. Its a blast to watch him rip dowm the slope but even more fun to watch him dance through the trees like thet aren't there.

 

[planb420]

"SELF TAUGHT" Parents REFUSED to encourage such a "Dangerous" sport when I was young. I was told if I earned the money they would not stop me, so I saved for the essentials and got out on the slopes ASAP.....never felt like lessons qualified as an essential and have not looked back yet 19 years later

 

[Skier4life]

Went to Utah with a friend, he showed me how to balance on skis, a few mumbled words about a wedge and shouts from about 30 feet further down the hill like "make bigger S'es!" and that was it...i spent the whole day on the mountain, we returned the next day and I ventured [albeit very slowly] onto a black diamond. Hook, line and sinker! been skiing ever since teaching myself new tricks ans skills by watching others ski and believe it or not listening to commentary at the World Cup events.

That whole thing about lessons for bumps sounds good so I may try that one day.

 

[Smellytele]

Not sure how to answer this. I took 1 alpine lesson 30 years ago and 1 tele lesson 16 or 17 years ago. I learned alpine by skiing with people way better than me and having them push me. I learned to tele by falling 1000 times...

 

[gmcunni]

vague recollection of a lesson at Big Birch when i first started skiing. i don't recall it being particularly useful.

after a hiatus from skiing, during which time new shaped skis were introduced, i took a few lessons to "catch up" on the new fad.

 

[gmcunni]

vague recollection of a lesson at Big Birch when i first started skiing. i don't recall it being particularly useful.

after a hiatus from skiing, during which time new shaped skis were introduced, i took a few lessons to "catch up" on the new fad.

 

[thetrailboss]

I guess I would be an other on this poll. I was very lucky to have a learn-to-ski program in my school so that when I hit third grade I got to spend Wednesday afternoons at Burke Mountain for $10 with lesson. My folks bought me $10 skis, $10 boots, and newer bindings. I struggled. No lie. I remember in 5th grade struggling to get down Willoughby and being scared to death. But after that program ended, at some point in Junior High, I still skied a lot at the Lyndon Outing Club and eventually got much better gear and began reading and, most importantly, watching good skiers and learning from them.

I spent a week at Sunday River in 2005 and got lessons then as part of the deal and liked them. It helped me to carve better rather than skid. But other than that, yep, pretty much self-taught.

 

[snowmonster]

Having grown up never seeing snow, I just wanted to get a photo taken with me on skis to send back to the folks back home. So, seven years ago to this day, I went to Sunapee on a bus trip and took a lesson. Got hooked, took a lesson a week later then another lesson after a month. After that, I was an addict, bought ski books and just kept skiing according to the drills in the books. That's why every year on the first Saturday of February, I take my class to Sunapee to share the sport. It's my service to skiing. This year, I had 110 students with me. Hopefully, some of them get hooked like I did.

 

[thetrailboss]

Having grown up never seeing snow, I just wanted to get a photo taken with me on skis to send back to the folks back home. So, seven years ago to this day, I went to Sunapee on a bus trip and took a lesson. Got hooked, took a lesson a week later then another lesson after a month. After that, I was an addict, bought ski books and just kept skiing according to the drills in the books. That's why every year on the first Saturday of February, I take my class to Sunapee to share the sport. It's my service to skiing. This year, I had 110 students with me. Hopefully, some of them get hooked like I did.

Wow! 110 students? That is great! I won't forget how my jaw dropped when you told me at Burke in 2007 that it was only your third season skiing...and we were doing Fox's Folly and Ledges.

 

[〽❄❅]

As a rather young teen the rents took me along on a weekend trip with their social club to the Cats. The borscht belt resort had a small J bar hill. There was a man doing a few runs with his young kid before heading to ski Hunter in the afternoon. He saw that i could use some help and taught me to do a hockey stop showing me how it works better with some speed. He then taught me to transition that into a parallel turn left and right... reinforcing not being afraid of speed but rather to use it to my advantage. I completely skipped snowplowing and stem christies.
That was the only lesson i ever had. I latter read the ski/skiing mag pointers and tried them on the slopes, same with cable tv ski show tips latter, actually still do.

 

[Tooth]

Not sure how to answer this. I took 1 alpine lesson 30 years ago and 1 tele lesson 16 or 17 years ago. I learned alpine by skiing with people way better than me and having them push me. I learned to tele by falling 1000 times...

Another reason to think Tele is stupid. Looks like its for girls. :idea:

 

[SkiFanE]

Started after school lessons at about 6yo, 5yo was first day on slopes. My folks didn't ski then, so it was afterschool on half days at the local hill for many years. All my older sibs skied, and most were very good, so had them and their friends to learn from and try to keep up with. Haven't taken a lesson since middle school. Bumps and anything beyond cruising I've learned myself, actually plateued as a teen, and then after college really became agressive.

 

[Smellytele]

Another reason to think Tele is stupid. Looks like its for girls. :idea:

You are just not man enough to try it. I am okay with my sexuality - Are you?

 

[wa-loaf]

Kinda self-taught ... My dad took me skiing a lot when I was little. At some point he started a restaurant and we didn't have weekends free anymore so there was a big chunk of time where I hardly skied when I was a kid. Once I got to HS and College I started spending a lot more time at Sugarloaf and then I kind of self taught myself by watching other skiers and also just throwing myself down the moguls until I figured out what worked. Add in a couple years skiing the Alps while in the Army and I've gotten to be pretty good. I think I've only taken one official lesson in the last 40 years.

 

[Bumpsis]

I'm mostly self taught. I started really early - my dad gave me skis when I was about 4 or 5 but never went with me. Those skis would be best described as sort of a sturdy XC - telemark. There were no ski resorts where we lived, just some hills and we always had snowy winters. So I just learned on my own and it was pure fun.

The "true", fixed heel alpine started for me when I was 18. My univeristy (of Buffalo) had a great ski club. It was cheap and lots fun people. I just bought some used equpiment and after a couple of nights out, I was proficent enough to feel comfortable on my 200cm skis.

I would study, with great deal of attention the ski techniques as described by the "technique section" in the SKI magazine. The sequential photos or illustrations really helped me to visualize what my body should be doing. I spent a lot of time skiing "in my head". Somehow, that really helped traslating what I had in my head to the physical realm. I still do that.

Later, when I started going out west for ski trips, I'd get a lesson out there to help me with steeps, powder and to "polish" my technique. I always found that if the lesson group was small, I'd benefit more.

 

[frapcap]

My first day was 4 years ago. I was "taught" on a bunny slope at 7 Springs by a very good skiier. Unfortunately, she wasn't a very good teacher.

After a day of wedges and some burning thighs, I was determined to do it right so I wasn't so sore. 2 days was all I got that winter. Next winter I visited Stratton on a deal and was immediately in over my head with my limited knowledge. A ski patrol member came by me on the Supertrail and saw me struggling. He hung out with me for about 2 hours giving me tips. By the end of the day I was able to navigate Polar Bear on my own, though with little grace. I skied a few more days that season with tips from other skiers on the lift.

Two years ago, I was invited out west to Breck and Copper by a sales person in our company who is a phenomenal skiier; high school and college racer, past instructor, blah blah blah. After my first 6 "turns" he shook his head in dismay and spent the next 4 days teaching me to carve and honed my form by yelling
"TITS OUT, HANDS UP!"
"STOP LOOKING DOWN, THE GROUND ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE!"
"START WITH YOUR TOES, SHINS AGAINST THE BOOTS, STOP SLIDING THOSE TAILS AND MAN UP!" After that, I was hooked on what skiing actually felt like.

Then I skiied more days with him out at Burke the same season where I was told I was improving and was good enough for woods. LIES. What an awful experience.
Since then, I've had ~20 day seasons and met a consistent ski buddy. We learn from each other all the time and by skiing with anyone who is better than we are. Woods no longer bother me at all and I skied my first real, challenging chutes, headwalls, and bowls recently. On a recent trip to WA, I understood why bumps are regarded as fun. Looking back, its a lot of progress for a guy who's originally from Florida and hadn't even seen snow until 5 years ago.

There is still a ways to go to become better and more and more I'm seeing the value of a lesson- especially in bump skiing in not so pristine conditions.
Nothing compares to this sport. I couldn’t trade it for anything.