Teaching kids to ski?

[BrownClown]

Any advice on techniques for teaching a 6 year old to ski? I'm looking for the least painful way to get him going. I learned when I was 4 behind a fishing boat, but that's been awhile, so I don't remember how well that went. The boom is not in the budget right now, so that's out of the picture.

Thanks for all the great advice that I know is coming my way.

Todd

[MoneyPity]

Do you have a pair of short training ski's where front and rear portions of ea ck ski is tied to the other. If not I am sure you can find them at a used sporting goods shop like Play it Again or mail ordered new from Bart's or Overtones.

There are two links below. I have an older pair but are keeping just in case grand children arrive 5 or more years from now.

I prefer the Obrien pair because front and reard are tied together but it is not my Money.

Use a single handle rope and teach hem to keep rope and handle in between the ski's.

Any way teach they to float with ski's on so that they can float in a sitting position before boat tries to pull them. This way they can float now its the driver who needs to slowly take out slack and gets the little one going thru the water slowly.

Once they can master this part tap throttle easily almost wake surf take off speed or slightly less pull and they should come right out of water and crash in a few feet. You need to convince them that the boat is stronger and that it can pull them out of water. Boat will always win.

Once up teach them to flex knees and hold rope freely but about half extended in arm length. When I taught my youngest daughter (5 at the time) I was in calm cove way in the back of Lake Norfolk and I would help them float and sit properly.

I sure was tired that day after swimming 100 yard free stroke to get back to kids once they crashed. One they get up and stay up for the first time is a time of pride for them and you,

It is worth the constant pull, go back and try again. We always limited riders in boat to those who had patience and encouragement. Other got to go on different boat or go swimming if second boat was out slaloming

http://www.bartswatersports.com/catalog.asp?P=58166

http://www.bartswatersports.com/catalog.asp?P=63589

Good Luck

[TRD]

I have the training skiis, they are fine but when I tried to teach my son the 1st time I was sitting on the back of the boat holding the rope and he was in the water. Wife was driving, thought this was a perfect setup. Took off slow and sucked him right under water and that was it. Took him awhile to try again. So we have a friend w/ a boom and that is the best and easiest way.

[Fit to be Tige]

Can your 6 year old kneeboard? I start all kids on a kneeboard so they get the feel of the pull. When they are that small, you can get in the water with them and have them start on their knees while you keep them upright. From the kneeboard, skiing seems to be very easy to learn next.

[jwanck11]

I taught a couple of em last year... They got the hang of it real(!) fast. Make sure you have trainer skiis... safer and easier for the kids to learn on.

We used 3 adults:

1 driver
1 holding the rope in the boat
1 in the water with the kid

Driver needs to take off slowly by edging the throttle forward. Popping thier butt outta the water takes no effort on the boats part. No need to pull them past 12-13mph

Person in the water gets behind the kid and holds onto the back of the skis keeping them straight as the boat pulls away. Once moving fast enough, person in the water tells them to stand up and lets go of the skiis.

They will be skiing in no time flat.

[TeamAllen]

Both of my kids started out on the kneeboard first. I added an aquatic hook to the kneeboard to make it easier. Then my son went to skis, using the tie together HO pair, like the obrien link Monypit gave. My daughter still doesn't ski yet. Then they both went to wake boards.

Another trick I have heard about, is using a PWC instead of the boat. Ask around, somebody might have some of the gear you need and let you borrow it? There is also a U board that is good for beginning.

http://www.aquatichook.com/
http://www.bartswatersports.com/catalog.asp?P=61785
http://www.ridewatersports.com/hoclubtrainers.html

[rushin]

Yep, the kneeboard. We got our son started this way. It introduces them to the feeling of being pulled.

[NICKYPOO]

I can still remember my father using a set of shoe laces and a couple of screws to tie my first pair of skis together. He, my uncle and my cousin then dragged me down the beach (Beach 4 Rushin) in a couple inches of water kicking mud in my eyes the whole way. Hurt like a mother but, I refused to let go of that rope and I ran those three old men into the ground.

I'd say the kneeboard is a good way to start just to get used to the pull and the feel of being behind the boat. Do not however strap them in. The first time that thing flips, they will panic.

I've been training my daughter (11 months old now) to "Hit It!" just to get her used to the feel of being pulled up. She now has perfect form and gets up every time like it's nothing. On the carpet that is.

[gstauffer]

I taught a couple of em last year... They got the hang of it real(!) fast. Make sure you have trainer skiis... safer and easier for the kids to learn on.

We used 3 adults:

1 driver
1 holding the rope in the boat
1 in the water with the kid

Driver needs to take off slowly by edging the throttle forward. Popping thier butt outta the water takes no effort on the boats part. No need to pull them past 12-13mph

Person in the water gets behind the kid and holds onto the back of the skis keeping them straight as the boat pulls away. Once moving fast enough, person in the water tells them to stand up and lets go of the skiis.

They will be skiing in no time flat.

x2: w/ my little bros 5 little boys & my 2 w/ an age range of 3 - 13 this is exactly what we do w/ them for their 1st long line attempt after they graduate from the boom. (I also think the kneeboard really helps)

Another method we used on the ski team was to do a setting dock start right next to them. If you have a dock to start from you can set right next to the kid with a pair of combo skis on and hold on to the back of their life vest as booth of you come off the dock and help them along. Just make sure your rope is about 1/2 a ft longer so that the wake from your skis does not take them out.

[jeremiah22]

I just bought this:

http://www.bartswatersports.com/cata...9C95/index.asp

I have not tried it but have been told its a great way to teach a little one. I am planning on teaching my 3 year son this summer with it. He already rides the surf board with me.

Cant wait! first lake trip for us is in 2 weeks!!!!

[Jason B]

I put my 6 yr old son between my legs and held him up. Worked like a champ.

[dogbert]

I taught a couple of em last year... They got the hang of it real(!) fast. Make sure you have trainer skiis... safer and easier for the kids to learn on.

We used 3 adults:

1 driver
1 holding the rope in the boat
1 in the water with the kid

Driver needs to take off slowly by edging the throttle forward. Popping thier butt outta the water takes no effort on the boats part. No need to pull them past 12-13mph

Person in the water gets behind the kid and holds onto the back of the skis keeping them straight as the boat pulls away. Once moving fast enough, person in the water tells them to stand up and lets go of the skiis.

They will be skiing in no time flat.

Same thing, except use a Jet Ski and stay near shore. It's a lot less intimidating than a boat. Once they get the hang of this, move up to the boat. We've taught at least 40 kids between the ages of 4 and 10 to ski and wakeboard this way. I'd start with the trainer skis before anything else just to get them used being pulled behind the boat.

[empty_boat]

We taught several kids last year and we did it a little differently.

Obrien makes a real low budget "surf board" that rope is hooked to like trainer skis. We would have them paddle out to the end of the rope and then they would lay on it and I pulled them in by hand. I could get them going good enough so they could stand up, then we pulled them with the boat. Once they got used to feel by being pulled by hand, being pulled by the boat wasn't scary anymore.
We repeated the process with trainer ski's (Connelly we sell 'em and then on a wake board, after popping them up by hand a few times they caught on almost immediately behind the boat. It helped that they are cousins and very comepetitive with each other.
Also I believe HO makes or made skis with weights you could ad to the tails of the ski's. This helped to keep the ski tips pointed the right direction and prevented the kid from rolling on his side with the skis. After seeing that we added weights to the tails of the Connelly's and I believe it helped.

[R&T Babich]

We started our kids on kneeboards. After dragging them around to get the feel of being pulled thru the water they would try getting up on their knees. They moved right up to doubles, a single (Easy-Up rope), then wakeboards.

When we take kids out from our Boy Scout troop we use a pair of training skis with diving weights screwed on the back end to help keep the tips out of the water.

The hardest part was convincing them to get up early to catch the smooth water before the wind picked up.

[MoneyPity]

I like the kneeboard Idea so they get used to the pull. I would strap them in but loosely.
I still teach them the way I described and we usually train a couple kids a year, I also have taught adults and every time as soon as the feel the boat pull they pull and 9 x outa 10 they do a few face plants before listening to the driver.

My problem is that I can teach them how to get up and stay up and to cross the wake but anything more is over 35 years since I went to slalom. A couple of years ago I tried double ski's to get up and to drop a ski which would be picked up by the chase boat bit for the life of me I could not get up. My trailing leg wanted to trail ski and all.

So I went to an O'Brien fat boy ski that I forgot the model of. It gets up very easy and allows you to get semi aggressive but no where near course running. I boughtt my Connelly F1X just before knee replacement off of Ebay and have not skied on it yet. That was four seasons ago. I am hoping the 20V and its low end will do the trick.

On training kids I have better luck in deepwater starts once I have taught them balance. Do other use deep water starts or shallow?