Breck ski lesson recommendations

[ChrisFromOC]

I'm trying to learn to ski after about 10 years or so as a snowboarder. Getting close to 50 years old and skiing just looks like more fun at this age. I was in Mammoth last month and played around for a few hours on skis and seemed to do ok on some blue runs, but I'm going to Breckenridge with two of my daughters for a few days at the end of this week and was thinking of getting some actual instruction to make sure I don't develop too many bad habits quickly.

Any input on instructors who may be good at someone my age making the transition from boarding to skiing? I have the concept of using the edges down pretty welll (I understand this but can't really figure out how to make it work on both skis at once) and hope to avoid being taught to pizza like I watched my kids do when they were little. My concern with a group lesson is that a beginner lesson may be too low level and intermediate too high, so I'd also appreciate input on whether I should just spend the $ and do a private which costs way more than group lessons.

Thanks!

 

[Ken_R]

I would get a private lesson at Arapahoe Basin. It is gonna be MUCH more mellow and significantly less money than at ANY of the Vail resorts including Breckenridge. The instructor can asses your skiing abilities and point you in the right direction of what you need to work on.

 

[Philpug]

We have @Kneale Brownson who is a Breck Instructor here. Also @Monique takes a lot of instruction there, she might have some other options if Kneale is booked.

 

[ChrisFromOC]

I would get a private lesson at Arapahoe Basin. It is gonna be MUCH more mellow and significantly less money than at ANY of the Vail resorts including Breckenridge. The instructor can asses your skiing abilities and point you in the right direction of what you need to work on.

Ken, I am staying slopeside at Breckenridge so it makes more sense to just do the lesson there.

Thanks.

Chris

 

[Monique]

@Kneale Brownson is great.

Random thoughts:

I've also been taking lessons with Pete Schmidt this season and have been very impressed with his progressions and ability to relate on different levels. I know a bunch of instructors who are great, but you could start with Kneale and Pete.

Private vs group is always a tough call. What kinds of stuff are you skiing on a board?

FWIW, there are nine levels of ski lessons at Breck, so it wouldn't necessarily be a choice between "beginner" and "intermediate." My wild ass guess is you might do well in a "five."

http://www.vail.com/ski-and-snowboard-school/assess-your-ability-level.aspx#/Intermediate

It kind of depends. If you're more focused on "I can get down blues" and that's what's important to you, you could do a five. If you're more focused on the fact that you're having trouble engaging both edges, maybe the four. Although the fives will be working on edge control, too. As are the eights and the nines. It doesn't really go away ;-)

At the price difference between a group and a private lesson, it wouldn't be crazy to try a group lesson and, if that didn't give you what you wanted, to try a private lesson. But you might not have a lot of luck choosing a specific instructor for a group lesson.

If you do a group lesson, don't be shy about talking to the various instructors and telling them your goals. It's not unlikely there will be an instructor there who has both boarded and skied and will be excited to work with you.