I'm attempting at 62 to return to skiing after 30 years, things have changed, help please.

[VickieH]

Maintain balance. Don't get so excited about feeling 30 again that you rush off to more difficult terrain and lose the family part of your family vacation. The best memories might get created on beginner terrain.

 

[James]

I’ve had two different friends visit from SoCal with 30 year old boots that didn’t survive the walk from the parking lot.

Hmmm, maybe if you ski with @mdf , his boots will disintegrate on the walk too.

 

[Big J]

Don’t think there are any mountain shops, just like there are no mountain ski schools. All private shops.

Some place might have one, but I think it’s rare. Lots of carving skis to rent, not like here. Tuning can be an issue, but that’s a different can of solyent green.

I love your reference to solyent green.

 

[Henry]

I skied Kitzbuhel last year. It was great. I agree with the comments above.
--Avoid Element3 ski rental. The skis were poorly tuned, we did not get what we reserved, we had to take sizes we didn't want, no loss insurance was offered, and when a pair of skis was stolen they tried to get more than the retail price for the loss. Find a better rental shop and get the insurance.
--Give yourself plenty of time to try on boots. You want boots that have an internal shape that is closest to the shape of your feet. Let the clerk pick suitable boots for you and try on as many as you can to find the best fit. You want boots as small as possible without discomfort.
--Great advice above about skis. And, you can exchange skis until you find the ones that work best for you.
--I like the idea of morning lessons, then free ski in the afternoons to practice what you learned in the morning. We chatted with a couple of instructors on the gondola; they were great.
--Be prepared for high winds. We had beautiful days, some days when the wind was blowing so hard that part of the mountain was closed, and one afternoon when the wind came up and the entire mountain got closed. If you're on the mountain and conditions get too bad for you to go down, the ski patrol will give you a snowmobile ride.
--You can still get a great lunch on the mountain for less than €10.

 

[Tony Storaro]

Depending on how serious you wanna get, buy boots rent skis. For now.
Go to Profeet on Fulham Rd. in London. I can absolutely guarantee they know their shit.
Just fill in the card, tell them what you want and leave it all to them.
Then go and rent skis.
Simple as...

 

[noobski]

Lots of great advice here. I took up skiing just 6 years ago when I turned 40. I have nothing to add to the above other than take a look at the soft goods forum here for clothing advice and perhaps talk with a personal trainer on muscle prep, balance, some cardio and stretching. I think that's going to be a big an eye opener for you; those muscles and joints have been sleeping for a long time and you'll want to have pre-season training, stretching and advice there.

Also, after your first big day, buy Epsom salts for a hot bath. It's a thing now and it's a game changer for after-après.

 

[Rod MacDonald]

I've skied Kitzbühel twice in the last few years. Can't comment on rental but there's a great intersport shop opposite the main gondola. I've taken lessons there with rote teufel ski school, which has its office in the gondola base.
The hannenkam run is a bit underwhelming- mostly cat-track red except for the major jumps where you'll look and say " what loon decided that was the way to go " ...? Definitely take a day to go to the Jochberg area .
Blue 26 is an interesting run " blue" with a mini "mousefalle" in the middle (black) although there's a bypass..town centre is lovely, great place for people watching.

 

[Crank]

Hi I lasted Skied when I was 31, now I’m coming up to 62 and I have lost all sense of cuation and reasoning and booked my whole family to go Skiing in Kitzbuhel In Austria over Christmas. They are all really excited and none of them have Skied before so we are planning lessons over there and some dry school lessons here too before we go.

I was average before, no off piste really, and could ski any run, so black runs included but don’t know how well I’ll do this time after so many years and a few aches.

I feel a bit out of touch and need some guidance please. I’ve heard skis have changed in the last 30 years and generally shorter skis are preferred. I am 6’ or 183cm and I have some skis that were recommended to me back then for their length for my height and they are 197cm long. It is costing me £90 return on British Airways to get my ski boots there and back which I think is crazy so I am thinking not to take my skis for 2 reason, cost and the fact I will probably be recommended to use shorter ones which I am keen to try as shorter seemed easier if I remember right, what do you think, what size should I have?

They look wider now too. Will my old Ski boots still fit modern skis, it looks like they will looking at pictures and videos online?

British Airways just seems to check everything extra to the case as another item that needs paying for. I’m sure when I used to ski they checked them in differently and cheaper. It seems now it doesn’t matter what the item, its just another case to them and so you pay for that, seems a bit greedy of them.

I never been skiing at Christmas before or even any month either side, I used to ski in March mainly for the weather, will it be ok at Christmas where we’re going, too little snow, too much snow, too cold, etc, etc?

Not mentioned, but, what may have changed in 30-years is your 62-year old bod.

My advice - don't fall, because getting up is harder nowadays.

 

[beginnerskier96]

Good luck. Find a ski instructor who can teach you properly. I recommend being patient too. Take snacks out onto the slopes.

 

[twomartinis]

those muscles and joints have been sleeping for a long time and you'll want to have pre-season training, stretching and advice there.

I will pile on even though it's almost too late - exercise! I'm pushing 50 and took 20 years off - been out twice now and my muscles are rebelling with something similar to "wtf are you trying to do to us??"

Has worked for me: lunges, take the stairs whenever possible, some cardio, "minimal shoes" (foot/ankle strength), barefoot workouts, etc.

Have fun in Austria

 

[dan ross]

I’m a bit late on this thread , the only thing I’d add is fitness. Not to make assumptions but you’re 30 years older and likely ( like most of us) not as strong as you were at 30. My feeling is that this is as important as the equipment as far as your enjoyment and safety are concerned. I’m not saying you have to be as strong as at 30, just that the muscle groups used in skiing aren’t generally taxed too much in “ everyday “ life.
If you find a boot ( and a shop) that you like and you know you’re back in the sport to stay, considering purchasing /fitting the boot during the trip if time allows so you can fine tune the fit if needed as you actually use it.
Have fun!

 

[Joe Strummer]

Why not give snowboarding a try! Just kidding. Rent modern skis/boots. Totally easier than ancient long, straight skis.

 

[eok]

I literally "grew up" on skis. But, life happened (job, relocation away from snow country, kids - basically, life) and I had to take an extended break from skiing. 14 years later (around 2013) - in my late 50s - I returned to the sport. Everything had changed. I had held onto my old quiver of skis & favorite boots through those 14 years. But I quickly found out that gear was ridiculously obsolete. I was shocked and sad because that old gear had given me great times during the, uh, "olden days".

Anyway, I rented gear for my first return ski season.

Aspects of my skiing skills were also obsolete. So, during that 1st season I shook my sense of "I'm still a great skier" pride and took a series of actual lessons to adapt my skiing skills accordingly. I'm so glad I did this, because after a few lessons I was having a blast with the modern ski gear.

With the old long skis, there was emphasis on things like unweighting, skidding, step turns, stem turns, etc. (depending on your instructor and the resort). That stuff is (for the most part) unnecessary on modern skis. Trying to apply those old techniques on modern skis just results in tiring inefficiency - which I learned (the hard way) on my 1st day of ski lessons when returning to the sport. My instructor got me sorted out after just a few days of lessons.

 

[cloudymind]

well, my experience is a bit different
i learned to ski at the end of the "classic era" took so many lessons on old straight skis "up, weight, stick, turn, look right, look left..." . i was just intermediate but had to concentrate on each turn.
then switched to more modern materials for average skiers and found them so much easier. but i wasn't actually any better than before and i noted that on steeper runs or ice.
to improve i later bought some straighter gs skis ad spent hours doing boring exercises as i did with the instructor when i was a child. now i'm ok-ish, just i feel that my heavy, racing GS are a bit wasted even if they proved useful.
in my opinion the technique doesn't really change much, just short radius skis do not like to be drifted on short turns like we did in the past. also they don't like to go straight down. obviously starting with modern RC makes it easier so it looks like you don't need a good tecnique.

 

[François Pugh]

. also they (modern shapely skis) don't like to go straight down. obviously starting with modern RC makes it easier so it looks like you don't need a good tecnique.

Yeah, keep them on edge and turning and you'll be fine. Even a very slight turn that isn't purely carved will do. Don't try going absolutely straight.

 

[Fuller]

@Happyhero hasn't responded to all our sage advice since he started this thread in October. Why does this always happen? I feel so used...

 

[François Pugh]

@Happyhero hasn't responded to all our sage advice since he started this thread in October. Why does this always happen? I feel so used...

He forgot to bookmark the website?

 

[dbostedo]

@Happyhero hasn't responded to all our sage advice since he started this thread in October. Why does this always happen? I feel so used...

Hopefully he or she has been busy relearning to ski with the family!

 

[dj61]

Rent stuff. Take some private lessons.