Common Questions for New Skiers
1. How much is good ski gear?
The better your ski gear the better you’ll feel up on the mountain.
You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars every year (even though others might) on the newest and best ski gear. You can find a good gortex (waterproof) jacket and pants for under $400 for both, really good ski boots for $200, and a good pair of skis and bindings for around $400 as well.
Now as you can see, that is in fact, $1000 dollars, and didn’t I say you didn’t need to spend that much for good ski gear?
So, it’s not that I lied, just starting out with nothing and then wanting a full outfit to go skiing will cost you a lot of money. What I suggest, is renting the bigger ticket items while you slowly, season by season, accumulate more gear. Start off renting your boots, skis and helmet at first and be sure to get yourself a nice warm jacket. If you’re cold on the mountain, you’ll hate everything about skiing.
2. How do I become a better skier?
You’re gonna hate my answer…
Practice
The best way to get better at skiing, is simply going. If you have good form and are comfortable making turns on the mountain, then you are a good skier. As you become more comfortable with going faster while controlling your turns, you will begin to notice that you’ll be having more fun. Once you pass that mental block, and your mindset switches from fear to exhilaration, that’s when you’ve done it. Then you’ll push yourself until you’re scared again, and the cycle begins as you continue to advance.
3. Where is the best place to learn to ski?
This mainly has to do with which ski resorts are available to you. For example, if you live in Utah there are a few resorts where the Blue and Green runs don’t actually feel like Blues and Greens. *cough *cough *Snowbird *cough
Scope out which resorts have good reviews from first time skiers. You’ll want a good resort with enough terrain that you will be able to go from a rolling Green to a steeper Blue and even Black depending on your comfort.
My suggestions for Utah are: Park City/Canyons, Solitude, Brianhead and Snow Basin.
All of these have a good variety of terrain for you to get familiar with.
4. Should I rent or buy gear?
As I mentioned earlier… it is best to purchase some of the less expensive gear first and rent the more expensive gear.
However, if you are dedicated to throwing a double back flip off of the cat track next time you’re at Brighton, then you are going to want to buy your own skis and boots and go every day. Even an hour a day will help you improve immensely.
To sum up, rent if you are going to only go a few times and are new to skiing, and purchase if you are going to master the subtle art of hucking tricks off of cat tracks.
5. What is some ski slang I need to know?
Ok, terms you do not want to be called: Jerry, Kook, Newb, and greenie. The first one is really the only one you’ll hear on the hill. Be sure to familiarize yourself with your gear and don’t do things like ski in jeans, wear your helmet backwards, or fall off the chair lift for example.
Other Terms:
Pow – Fresh powder-like snow
Face Shots – when the pow is so deep the snow sprays you in the face as you descend (hopefully you progress fast enough to get to this, face shots are a religious experience)
Pizza – forming a wedge with your skis to slow down
French Fries – when you keep your skis parallel to each other during your turns
and finally Send It – the most holy of all skier slang. This is what is yelled at friends who encourage each other to make bad decisions (or good ones depending on your point of view). When someone “sends it” they are in complete disregard to their wellbeing and will either go off a massive jump, cliff or something else large and dangerous to impress their friends.
Steve Skis 