Name: Introduction to Skiing
Start: 2024-02-04T08:00:00+00:00
End: 2024-02-11T16:00:00+00:00

Our Introduction to Skiing course is specifically designed for those that have both barley stepped foot on a piste, to those that may not have done so at all. Frequently put off by the cold mountain weather, high speeds, the worries of falling over and having to delicately circumnavigate, many people struggle to find a starting point that’s right for them and therefore fail to give skiing a go.

We understand this, therefore, this course has been presented to offer you both a personal and enjoyable journey in helping you take your first steps. We sensitively provide quality instruction of both the physical and theoretical fundamentals of skiing whilst providing accurate performance coaching, as you develop your skills on the pistes.

We are based entirely in Slovenia, it may not be the best-known ski destination in the Alps, but in comparison with the resorts of the ‘big 4’, France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland, it provides a significantly better learning environment. Few to zero queues, the pistes are sparsely populated and there are no unforgiving jet-set crowds. This allows you to relax, enjoy the view and concentrate on developing your technique with confidence.

The Instruction:

This course will be directed and overseen by the former Slovene National Team Member David De-Costa, one of Slovenia’s highest regarded ski instructors. David and his team have a wealth of knowledge and first-hand experience in training alpine champions.

Over the duration of the course, you’ll receive both 1:1 and 1:3 time with your instructors, benefiting from personal instruction whilst at the same time enjoying the benefits of peer learning. As you progress, you will experience more independent time on the slopes and receive a video analysis of your recent performances.

Course Content:

Apparel, equipment selection, set up and use
Mountain culture, piste etiquette, FIS rules and practices
Effective warm ups and stretching for skiing
Piste navigation and awareness of others
Correct posture and movement
Basic stopping and turning
Wide and short turns
Control of speed over various terrain
Controlled down hill sliding
Turning with greater efficiency laying the foundations for future parallel skiing
Peer leadership on blue pistes

Price Includes:

Gondola and mountain passes
5-6 days professional coaching and instruction
Breakfast and evening meals (excluding lunch)
A 3* single room in traditional accommodation for 7 nights
All transport arrangements (excluding flights)
Equipment hire upon request (hire fees not included)
Full access to resort bars and restaurants
Full access to local fitness and wellbeing centres

Lloyd Langford Expedition Training Limited provide all attendees with public liability insurance and accidental injury cover up to £5,000,000 during the course, however the risks associated with snow sports and outdoor activities are your own and through booking and accepting our terms and conditions you take responsibility for these risks. You are also advised to purchase your own travel insurance policy for the duration of the course, covering you for winter sports, personal equipment and cancellation.

This course will run at a certain times throughout the ski season, however, it is available upon request for groups simply by contacting us beforehand.

Itinerary:

Day 1:

Arriving in Slovenia, you’ll be met by the team at Ljubljana Airport, and from here we’ll take a short drive to the small town of Topolšica on the outskirts of Velenje to Turisticna Pirnat, your home for the week. Here you’ll be able to unpack, unwind and perhaps catch up on some lost sleep from your travels.

During the late afternoon you’ll be given a tour of the local area. There is a round loop from your accommodation that contains shops, restaurants and bars and an extensive spa/gym complex.

Before our evening meal, a workshop discussion will run focusing on ski specific apparel choices, weather conditions and equipment set up. These workshops also provide a great opportunity for our instructors to get to know you, share stories and discuss your goals and aspirations for the week.

Day 2:

The second day is all about suiting up, getting out on the slopes and taking part in the lessons and workshops provided on your course. Over the course of the week you’ll receive 1:1 and 1:4 time with our instructors who’ll spend a great deal of time observing you, analysing your performance and building a personal development plan for you

During the later afternoon, your time will be your own. Our instructors will remain on hand to continue instruction initially with the introductory course candidates, however a large emphasis of the afternoon is logging ‘miles’ and putting what you’ve learnt into individual and peer practice.

Day 3-7:

From day three onwards, your itinerary will vary dependent upon the pace in which you are developing. Our instructors will continue to choose the best ways to help advance your skills over the course of the week, including morning/evening photographic and video analysis sessions of your performance.

It is almost guaranteed that during an intense development week you will experience significant fatigue and muscle aches. This is not only common, but a natural process due to muscle groups being used intensively. Therefore, during the mid-week point you’ll have the opportunity to take a day off the slopes and head to Lake Bled for a change of scenery and a cultural experience. This isn’t mandatory for those on intermediate and more advanced courses but for those on the introduction to skiing, the need for this day is almost guaranteed.

Additional individual and group experiences such as ‘beer spas’, wellness and individual massages are available should anybody wish.

Day 8:

All good things must come to and end, and we’ll head as a group to Ljubljana Airport to say our goodbyes.

End Goal:

Although everybody’s aims and aspirations on this course can be considerably different, we aim to have everybody leave the course with/able to do the following:

Have a good overview of apparel and equipment set-up
Have a solid overview of piste etiquette, practice and basic FIS rules
Be able to safely navigate blue pistes independently
Be able to confidently stop in a multitude of places
Able to side step and slide down piste
Able to perform both short and long turns at varying speeds
Able to turn using ‘wedge bends’ laying the foundations for future parallel turns

Equipment:

The winters in Slovenia are incredibly cold and can be quite harsh, therefore we advise coming equipped and dressed accordingly for temperatures of 0c and substantially below both on and off the slopes. Appropriate footwear for rough terrain, deep snow and ice are also essential.

To be suitably equipped for the course you’ll need to bring thermals, a ski jacket and pants (or reasonable apparel substitutes), gloves, socks, and eyewear such as ski goggles or sunglasses.

We can provide skis, boots, helmets and poles for each member on the course, however, hire costs are not included in the overall course price. To hire equipment from us please get in contact a minimum of 2 weeks prior to the course.

Notes:

We are able to provide flexible and bespoke payment plans to meet your needs, simply get in contact to discuss your desire to do so with a member of our team.

If you wish to stay for any additional days in Slovenia, you will need to arrange it independently. Travel to Slovenia’s capital city Ljubljana can be sought from the airport during the day and takes roughly an hour.

If you are interested in booking a CLOSED ski adventure in Slovenia for a peer/family group, please click here to see our packages.

We currently have no upcoming dates for this course, however if you are interested in requesting this course as a group please get in touch to discuss this:

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Introduction to Skiing

Slovenia & Austria

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