Trip to Snowplanet
In the last week of term two, our four eldest children participated in a homeschool “Have a Go” event at Snowplanet. For Grace, Alex and Jessica it was their second time, as they had given it a go once before in 2021. Nevertheless, they were still beginners, so they were assigned to a beginner group with an instructor. They absolutely loved trying out skiing last year, and were raring to go this time around!
Getting Ready
Our experience with sorting out the boots and helmets went much more smoothly this time. Last year, despite turning up super early, we were almost the last family to get in because we had to wait to borrow some snowpants and gloves. It ended up being extremely stressful and difficult trying to get all three children into their gear and fitted with the right sized ski gear. By the time the briefing started, we were still trying to do up bits of equipment.
This time however, we were able to go straight in and sign for the borrowed pants immediately. Even with four kids (and a bit of anxiety thanks to last time!) I managed to have them all ready with time to spare. Having sourced some second hand snow gear beforehand definitely made this part quicker also.
On the Snow
By the end of last year’s lesson, the three older kids had managed quite a number of trips down the learner slope, and were controlling their descent quite well. Naturally, they were looking forward to getting right into it, with a bare minimum of instruction, and further honing their skiing skills. However, they were unfortunately treated as if they were complete newbies.
For the first hour and a bit, I watched on in frustration as they walked up and down on the horizontal part, then stood in a line on the slope as the instructor gave instructions (which only the highest kids could hear), then slowly took one kid down at a time. I can’t work out why it took so long, since last time they were going down within the first 30-40 mins, and even this time the snowboarders seemed to get going right away! Finally after about an hour and a quarter (of the 2 hour time slot), I ventured out onto the snow to find out what the hold up was. Alex was incredibly frustrated at not being allowed to get going, and was on the verge of tears when I told him there wasn’t much time left. In fact they got probably only 30 minutes or less to actually ski! I think each of them went down the learner slope only about 3 times, and Sophia (the actual beginner) was taken down once or twice at the most. If the more confident skiers had been assessed and allowed to get going quickly, then the instructor would’ve had more time to devote to the younger and less experienced ones. Furthermore, about 15 minutes before the 2 hour slot was up, the kids were told to stay at the bottom of the slope because time was nearly up.
Disappointed
So all in all, it was fairly frustrating and disappointing, especially because they had progressed so quickly and well last time. I suppose it all comes down to the teachers really. Our experience last time paid off in the earlier preparation stages, but I’m not sure how to ensure a more enjoyable skiing experience for them if we sign up for the same thing again.. perhaps a trip to the mountain would be more beneficial!
