Fresh snow and wet weather aren’t the perfect combination for skiing or snowboarding.
- 84-year-old has been teaching skiing for 60 years
- Teaches older students in Mountain High's Senior Stars Program
- Credits his passion for skiing with keeping him young
But for Ron Parody, a 60-year snow sports instructor currently at Mountain High, he’s starting his day one ski boot at a time.
“They’re a little difficult getting into. The way they should be,” Parody said.
It can be a struggle to make his ski boots fit, but, his passion for the sport pushes him to teach anyway. At 84-years old, Parody teaches the Senior Stars Program at Mountain High, showing students how to master skiing on the mountain.
One of his students, Gary Dedo is a retired aerospace engineer looking to become a better skier.
“This is my opportunity. I have the time now to try and really get better at it so i can tackle some of the big mountains,” Dedo said.
After strapping in their boots, Parody and Dedo made their way to the slopes.
“I really enjoy helping people and get them through and improve their skiing. In particular teaching our seniors who used to ski probably 20, 30, 40 years ago and now they want to ski with their grandchildren,” Parody said.
For the last year, Dedo has been taking lessons from mountain high’s Senior Stars program. This was his first time learning with Parody out on the slopes. The course helps skiers like Dedo learn how to ski, snowboard or perfect their skills.
For this lesson, Parody showed Dedo how to keep his skis parallel as they went down the slope. It’s a skill Dedo is looking to perfect.
“You know it keeps us young so and it also keeps me involved in something that I love to do,” Parody said.
After a few tries, Dedo starts to incorporate his newly learned skill.
“That’s the first step and then after that, start doing some other things. No tricks though, probably just keep it simple,” Dedo said.
It’s a sport that Dedo will continue to perfect, until he’s confident that he can go out on his own. Until then, Parody will continue to share his passion to teach with Dedo or the next senior star every week.