Estate Living Magazine Connection - Issue 43 July 2019 | Page 65

L I V E
people of all ages, shapes and sizes have successfully learned to ski.
While strength and fitness are obviously important, balance is the
real defining factor.
If you’re a trend-slave, you may be under the misguided impression
that skiing is old hat, and that it’s far more hip to snowboard. Well,
Take it easy
While skiing and snowboarding are challenging activities that
require some skill, a snow holiday does not have to be an exercise
in macho-ness, strength, courage and endurance. There are
other alternatives. For snow virgins of all ages there’s the far more
accessible downhill rush of bumboarding. It’s not elegant and it’s
not stylish, but it’s a huge amount of fun – and an adrenaline rush.
(And, yes, sometimes there are as many adults hurtling down
‘Bumboard Alley’ as there are kids.) And then, of course, there’s also
the creative side – snow sculpture. Okay, let’s face it, most snow
sculptures end up being somewhat amorphous homunculi that
R
Skiing or snowboarding
in some ways that is sort of true. Snowboarding is newer than skiing,
but it’s also significantly more difficult to learn as a beginner. So,
unless you are a surfer or skateboarder, rather learn to ski first, and
then switch to snowboarding next season. And – hey – skiing has
most definitely not gone out of fashion, or lost its cool appeal – it’s a
timeless classic.
Of course, the best time to learn to ski is when you’re young, and you
tend to bounce when you fall (and – more importantly – you know you
are invincible, and that you will live for ever). Tiffindell has a number
of instructors who specialise in running fun-filled ski courses for the
littlies. Most kids five and up are more than capable of learning to ski,
and even younger ones have managed – it depends pretty much on
the child. Even better, you can invest in a course of lessons before
you leave home. Tiffindell has a ‘feeder school’ in Ferndale – The Ski
Deck – where you can learn the basics on a state-of-the-art simulator
ski run, so you don’t waste valuable snow time falling on your guava.
S M A R T