Downhill Family

I am a downhill sports mom. I do all the things that soccer moms or hockey moms do, but for downhill athletes. During the summer and fall, I am driving our kids to downhill mountain bike parks in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. During the winter, I am driving them to the same resorts to ski and snowboard. Occasionally we fly out west to Colorado, Wyoming or Utah. We also fly to Northwest Arkansas. It’s a fun gig! I love the time traveling with my family, the anticipation of adventure and the story telling that we share on the trip home.

Downhill mountain biking and skiing and snowboarding are ruggedly individual sports. There is a freedom and an art to these sports that you won’t experience with most traditional youth sports. These sports challenge us. And they are risky. They demand a different kind of maturity and responsibility of the family. The sports are demanding of time and money, space and emotion. It has taken many years and many trips to acquire the gear and gain the experience necessary for maximum enjoyment. But, I love it. I love the particular way that these sports give our family lasting memories and bonds. I am always wishing I could be pulling out of the driveway with my kids and all of our gear, food, plans, hopes and dreams in tow. This webpage is a way for me to satiate my craving to hit the road and head into the mountains with my family. It’s also a way for me research the industry and understand the activities on a new level. I plan to share what I have learned and what I am still learning and somehow make a difference by setting up other families to maximize fun and learn and grow with me and my family.

You will find a lot of lists and brain dumps on topics that involve all of the planning and logistics of family trips to downhill resorts for recreation (not racing). The top menu bar is divided into the topics for Downhill Biking and Winter Slope Sports. The sub topics cover gear lists, packing lists, tips for traveling by car or via flights, overviews on supporting people doing the sports and choosing and orienting yourself to the resorts or parks/venues. The “Learn More” button in the menu provides very basic introduction to the sports. The Blog is a journal style blog that gives insight into the nuanced observations I make as I go through the practice of planning and implementing trips for and with my family. I hope you might find it helpful!