MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Winter 2021

UPFRONT AT BLUE 23 ALLISON KENNEDY DAVIES TEACHING SNOWBOARDING: A PARENT’S POV When my daughter was not quite two years old, we introduced her to snowboarding. It wasn’t unexpected; after all, her dad is a longtime CASI instructor and evaluator and a first-gen snowboarder who honed his skills on a Black Snow Legend at the local toboggan hill, before the sport became legit. This introduction came with the lowest possible expectations. We would head to Blue Mountain, let her drag the board around the bottom of the hill a bit, strap her in and let her try to straight-run the tiniest slopes. She was mostly interested in leaning her board up against the fence, replicating what the other riders did when they went for a break. She wanted to carry it, move it, pull it and, very occasionally, ride it. But it was a start. That same year we started her on skis in the Blue Mountain daycare. Let’s be honest: If you’re wanting to get a kid moving quickly and advance to runs you can ride as a family, skiing is an easier path to take. But we always kept a snowboard handy, in case she wanted to swap boots and put in a bit of