UKC

I've been keen to get my kids into skiing, knowing how much fun I've had doing it and hoping for family skiing holidays in the near future, where we can all enjoy ourselfs together and separately.

However, I have a nagging worry about injury - in particular, I know how easy it is to suffer serious knee injuries from which you might not make a full recovery. After all, it does involve attaching a large lever to your foot, then moving at high speed over uneven terrain! I'm worried that it's selfish of me to keep encouraging them into this.

This was rammed home yesterday when my eldest had a fall and hurt her knee - probably not very seriously, but it might be enough to prevent her from running in the school cross-country running finals tomorrow, which she has worked hard at and will be very upset if she can't at least have a proper go at.

They're 10 and 7; the best I can think is to explain it all to them and let them decide whether it's worth it, not pushing them to go skiing if, or when, they aren't keen. But I'm interested to hear others' thoughts on this.

You're right to be concerned, but I think the risk is pretty low. As you know, the binding tension will be set very low for beginners and should eject before any real damage can be done.

You might want to consider snowboarding as an alternative, which is much easier on the knees - at the risk of wrist and other injuries.

Having said that, I've injured my knee boarding and it took a while to heal but has been fine ever since.

Ask yourself, is it any more or less risky than allowing your daughter to race cross country, where she could just as easily twist a knee?

To be honest, I wouldn't mention the risk of injury - just see if they want to go and take it from there.

I can understand your concern, but also, there is a risk to everything.

Just being on this forum proves that you feel sometimes a risk is worth taking, to reap the benefits of success. 

There is many many kids on the slopes as you know. Ski schools are always (in my experience) brilliantly run, and they’re much better gaining those skills earlier rather than later. 

Let’s face it, they could always play on the Xbox in a ‘safe’ environment all day everyday. Get them out there!

Ours have skied since they were about 3 (8 and 10 now). When we hired before they had their own I'd always check the setting so knew the skis would release. 

We've also now got them back and wrist protectors depending what they are doing. I'm making the presumption that you'd consider a helmet standard. 

On slopes it was just a matter of controlling their enthusiasm, I wouldn't take them on harder slopes until they could ski them within their range of ability, rather than survival ski them. We just made the easier slopes more fun by heading off on the jumps and drops that kids (and adults) make on the margins of easier slopes. 

Go have fun, but depending on the ages, they'll tire quickly. Pace yourself for the week. 

Thanks.

I take them climbing, scrambling and hillwalking, cycling and occasionally canoeing and even some very limited caving - no worries there. It's particularly skiing and knee injuries I'm woried about, and particularly because such injuries could prevent them doing this other stuff, or limit them significantly at it.

They can play on the computer to their hearts' content, as long as they're also getting out and doing stuff!

My cousin popped his collar bone 2.5 hours into his first snowboarding holiday. He now skis and is a qualified supervisor (or whatever the title is) when he takes the kids away with his school. I know 2 other people that broke wrists and another that broke an elbow on ski/board trips. That's relatively minor considering the number of people I know that ski and the combined miles skiied. That said, I can't think of any of my mates that have had similar injuries doing anything else, but that's a relatively small sample size.

Not sure I'd overload my kids with that just yet, but then they're much younger than yours.

I wear a back protector (unless I've got a rucksack on) and padded shorts snowboarding, not usually skiing, unless we're going seriously off-piste or it's very icy.

I've been very glad of my helmet snowboarding, having bounced the back of my head off sheet ice when losing a heel edge.

If you are really worried there are a few tips on YouTube that will show them how to fall and absorb the force a bit, especially boarding. 

Careful with that... I broke a wrist and dislocated a thumb on the other hand when I was 14 because my skis came off too easily. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Unfortunately, skiing is objectively more dangerous than the alternative of not-skiing, and the risk is something that you just have to accept. But having skied since the age of four and taken my fair share of broken bones, cracked ribs, black eyes, bruised egos, and dented prides, I can safely say that the risk is outweighed quite insurmountably by the reward.

It's best just to send them off out there and hope for the best, as I'll be doing with my daughter when she's old enough to get on the planks.

While it is true you are less likely to injure a knee on a board than on skis, head and back injuries are more likely, and not all can be prevented by helmets and back protectors (particularly back injuries incurred by sitting down hard after catching an edge on the flat).  Personally, I know more people who have incurred life-changing injuries through boarding than through skiing, although that is of course anecdotal.  I am not saying don't explore it, if your kids try it and enjoy it that's great.  However, pushing them towards boarding with the idea that it is "safer" than skiing is misguided - it is just that the risks are different.

The correct setting. Obviously not popping off any second. 

I think it also depend where you ski or board. Lean conditions in Scotland can give a very unforgiving surface that is as hard as concrete. 

I think this a big part of my problem - I've formed impressions of the relative risks, but they aren't necessarily accurate.

It might be hard to find out, too - as summo points out, typical conditions in Scotland are not the same as those in more reliable skiing areas, with ice and protruding rocks frequently featuring strongly (although thankfully no trees!)