Running Head: I-SEARCH SKIING

I-Search Paper:
Skiing as a Possible Hobby
Meghan OLeary
ENGL 250

Running Head: I-SEARCH SKIING

Abstract
While I have wanted to take up skiing for many years, various timing
and interest factors have prevented me from doing so in the past.
Recently I had an opportunity to learn to ski, but I was unable to do so
because I sprained my ankle twice in less than a year, and I did not
want to injure it further. This prompted me to question if I would ever
be able to take up skiing as a hobby in the future. The factors that
would affect my adoption of skiing are my ankle injury, the athletic
ability required to enjoy skiing, and the cost of taking up the sport as a
hobby. I explore my options through a combination of research and
personal interviews in order to judge the importance of these factors
and my possible future as a skier. Ultimately, I am able to make an
informed decision that skiing is a viable activity for me to try, and
continue to pursue a few times a year if my ankle remains uninjured.

Running Head: I-SEARCH SKIING

I-Search Paper: Skiing as a Possible Hobby

While some people love their childhood activities, I am more of a
hobby shopper. I might pick something up, try it out for a few months,
decide I do not prefer it, and go back to it years later. This has
happened with sewing, volleyball, knitting, and writing. However, one
hobby I have never taken up is skiing. I would not want to be a
professional skier, but the opportunity to learn and go in the winter
with my friends interested me. I knew about skiing as a sport, but it
was only something I watched in the Olympics until high school.
Suddenly, people I knew were taking weekends to go skiing, and I had
missed the memo to learn. My best friend, Julie, and I decided we
would learn to ski, and told ourselves that it would happen every
winter, but it never did. I began to think that, as a person with below
average athletic skills and a penchant for slipping and falling, maybe I
was destined never to learn to ski.
As I got to college, the fact that I had fallen while crossing the
street during freshman year and sprained my ankle did not seem like a
big deal, since I did not play any sports at the time; unfortunately, I
never really allowed the ankle to heal properly. The summer before my
sophomore year of college, as I was studying abroad in Ireland, I fell
down a flight of stairs and the weak ankle sprained again. After walking

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around Europe on this sprained ankle for weeks and coming home to
physical therapy, I officially had a bad ankle, which was
intermittently painful even when recovered. I was advised not to water
ski, run for too long, or sit pretzel style on my left foot. Over this winter
break, Julie called me to say she had finally planned a ski lesson for us
over the weekend, and all I had to do was show up and pay. When I
mentioned to my mother that I was learning to ski, she reminded me
that my bad ankle and typical college student lack of funds would
definitely prevent me from skiing that winter, and possibly well into the
future. So I questioned: Based on my ankle injury, level of athleticism,
and the cost of the sport itself, would I ever be able to take up skiing?
My first resource was research; I figured that if I could investigate
how skiing uses the legs, ankles, and feet, I could determine how much
skiing may affect my ankle. Additionally, I could look for stories,
studies, even blogs, of skiers who may have had similar injuries. I did
expect some resistance with this aspect of my research, because while
many skiers probably do sprain their ankles and return to the sport, it
may be more difficult to find an amateur who took up skiing only after
the injury.
I figured the best way to figure out if I could ski would be to talk
to people who know about both me and skiing. First up was my mom,
who was happy to help after I explained why on earth I was writing a
paper about my own skiing ability. As someone who had experienced

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my countless falls, sprains, broken bones, and general klutziness over

the years, I could trust her opinion while keeping in mind that she
would be a little overprotective. I started by asking her why she was
initially hesitant to let me ski, and her response definitely has merits.
If you loved skiing and were a big skier before, I would feel bad
telling you not to continue with a part of your life, she said. But why
risk hurting yourself over a sport you didnt care enough to pursue
before? (Laura OLeary, personal communication, March 18, 2015).
She mentioned that she has a history of knee problems, and she
remembers it paining her after she went skiing. She also remembered
the sport involving a great deal of upper body strength in order to
control the skis and push oneself back up after falling down. While she
assumes I could physically accomplish this, she thinks the amount of
athletic ability it would take in order to be enjoyable is not one that I
possess. She noted, As a parent, my opinion is always for you to play
it safe, why chance it when there are other sports and hobbies to
consider (Laura OLeary, personal communication, March 18, 2015).
According to her, with the risk to my ankle and the strength it would
take to be fun, rather than stressful, she did not recommend that I try
skiing.
When I told Julie that my mom had recommended that I not ski,
she was understandably obstinate. She reminded me that I had done
physical therapy for weeks, and that she had been skiing before and

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could help me learn. She remembered being sore all over after her first
time skiing, but not particularly in the ankles. She advised that is my
ski boots fit, the ankle should stay fairly still. Julie suggested that if I do
go skiing, like she wants me to, I could wear a brace inside the boot
and ice my ankle after skiing (Julie Burns, personal communication,
March 19, 2015). While these are good suggestions, I still worry that if I
had a bad fall my ankle could give out. During our interview, I also
asked Julie how athletic she thought a skier needed to be.
The first time I went I fell down a lot because I just had a friend
teach me, but when I went the second time, the lesson helped a lot
with my technique, Julie explained. The less you fall down the less
upper body strength you need to use, so it was easier. Maybe
averagely athletic. (Julie Burns, personal communication, March 19,
2015). Julie is a little bit more coordinated than me, so I might have
some more trouble picking up the basics of skiing and using arm
strength to lift myself up, but it seems like I could probably manage.
This idea that I could probably handle the athletic aspect of skiing was
supported by my next interview with my friend Maggie, who has been
an avid skier with friends and family for many years, and is not a part
of the Penn State ski club.
I started by reminding Maggie about my ankle injury, which she
remembered vaguely but was aghast all over again by the details. I
totally forgot you sprained it again, how horrible! Obviously, I agreed.

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She went on to answer my questions about necessity of athletic ability:

she thought that someone with a lack of coordination could easily learn
to ski and avoid injury if they were taught the proper technique, as
long as they had strong legs and some stamina. She then went back to
address the issue of my bad ankle again.
Ski boots are very restrictive. If theyre worn and tightened
properly, a skier is not supposed to be able to move their feet around
in the boots. I would see no issues with someone with a bad ankle like
yours skiing (Maggie Elinsky, personal communication, March 23,
2015).
I now had many pieces of information, from various ends of the
spectrum, relating to my ankles function in skiing. I had not found too
much to help in the research, since most blogs and information sites
devoted to how long an injury could affect a skier applied only to those
who had experience skiing. As a beginner, I would be skiing on easier
trails, lowering chance of potential injury, but with little experience,
raising it again. Therefore, there were too many different factors for me
to really apply any of those tips to my own situation. A foot doctors
website states that a skier should not be experiencing pain in his or her
feet and ankles; if he or she is, there is most likely something wrong
with their boot size or technique (PA Foot & Ankle Associates, 2014).
Livestrongs website, which contains articles on sports advice, notes
that ankles should not hurt while skiing regularly, but that ankle

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injuries are common (Roth, 2015). Combining this information with the
opinions from Julie, Maggie, and my mom, leads me to believe that
skiing might be slightly risky for my bad ankle, but a combination of
good instruction and extra care on my part should decrease the chance
of further injury and pain. I also deduced that, based on Maggies
assurances and Julies own experiences with skiing, my lack of athletic
history may be a minor nuisance but not a huge hindrance to skiing.
Physically, although I might be a little nervous, I think I would take my
next opportunity to at least try and learn to ski.
Financially? That could be a whole new problem. A lack of funds
may seem trite compared to a lack of athletic ability and ankle
strength, but it was a very real factor in my consideration of skiing.
While I would like to take up skiing as a possible hobby, depending on
how much I enjoyed it the first time, even going a few times per year
can be expensive. Fortunately, Julie and Maggie were able to give me
real examples of what they had paid for skiing, and rates are very easy
to look up online.
Maggie immediately agreed that skiing could get pretty
expensive, especially since she and her family like to go out west and
ski at least once a year. She explained that even a short weekend trip
could be more than a thousand dollars, especially when considering
airfare, accommodations, and food. Maggie insisted these types of trips
were worth the money, because the snow and mountains are simply

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better, and the slopes can be more challenging and fun. While I am
looking for fun, I am definitely not looking for challenging yet. She
assured me that local trips, which she has taken near Pittsburgh and
State College, cost about $65-80 for a day pass and maybe $20 or $30
for rentals (Maggie Elinsky, personal interview, March 23, 2015). She
was estimating the cost of rentals because she has her own
equipment.
Julie, on the other hand, does not have her own equipment, and
was able to tell me more detailed information about the costs of her
trips. By this time, she has gone skiing twice with her school,
Lycoming College, and paid low costs of around $30 for a whole trip
because her group of students got a deal through school. At Shawness
Mountain and Greek Peak, where she went on her own, she paid $80100 for an all day ski pass and rentals (Julie Burns, personal
communication, March 19, 2015).
Jack Frost Big Boulder, a ski place near my hometown, lists a
package for a lesson, lift pass, and equipment rental for $88. The
mountain also has a College Day special on Wednesdays in the winter
for $46 day pass/rentals (Snow Passes and Rentals). Spring Mountain
includes a day pass and rental for $73, or a $65 package for entrance
to the Beginners Area, rentals, and an introductory lesson (Daily
Rates).

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10

Overall, it seems like skiing is not as expensive as I feared. I

would not want to spend the money to go skiing more than one to
three times per winter, and I probably would not have the time or
desire to go any more than that anyway. If I factored a weekend or two
of skiing into my winter budget, I could easily sacrifice money in other
parts of my life in order to afford skiing, if I found that I liked it. As long
as I enjoy my initial experiences skiing, finances would not impact my
taking up the sport as an occasional recreational hobby.
My search for answers in this I-Search paper relied heavily on
conversations I had with friends and family, because this is my
preferred way to get information. I would always trust the
recommendation of a friend over an online review, or trust my moms
prediction of the weather over an app. The interviews I conducted led
me to believe that skiing does not put particular stress on the ankle,
does not require an above-average amount of athleticism, and does
not cost an unreasonable amount. My fears about my own physical
limitations could be treated through proper instruction and care, along
with a solid pair of boots. The cost of skiing is not as excessive as I
feared, and there would be no danger that I would be unable to pursue
skiing recreationally because of finances. Based on these
recommendations and some supplemental research, I have concluded
that if another opportunity arises for me to try skiing, I will take it.
Especially if I continue to save money, strengthen my ankle, and

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11

increase my stamina until winter of 2015, I should be physically and

financially able to try skiing in the near future.

References
Daily rates. (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from Spring Mountain
website: https://www.springmountainadventures.com/daily-rates
PA Foot & Ankle Associates. (2014, December 16). Do your feet and
ankles hurt after a day of skiing? Retrieved March 31, 2015, from
http://pafootdoctors.com/feet-ankles-hurt-day-skiing/
Roth, E. (2015, January 28). Sore ankles after skiing. Retrieved March
31, 2015, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/559039-soreankles-after-skiing/
Snow passes and rentals. (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2015, from Jack
Frost Big Boulder website: http://www.jfbb.com/snow-passes-andrentals.html