Rates & Equipment
The adaptive lesson price includes a ticket, rental equipment, and a two hour lesson.
We offer half and full-day lessons. The adaptive lesson price includes a ticket, rental equipment, and a two hour lesson. All students are required to complete a Student Information Form and Waiver prior to the lesson. We strongly recommend students contact their physician before a skiing or boarding lesson.
Rates
 4 Hour ticket w/ one two-hour lesson + rental: $59
8 Hour ticket w/ one two-hour lesson + rental: $74
8 Hour ticket w/ two two-hour 2 lessons + rental: $84
Lesson Times
10:00am-noon and 1:30pm-3:30pm
If the person is coming as a member of a group (i.e. Boy/Girl Scouts, church, etc.) there is a surcharge to the group price for a lift, adaptive lesson, and rental equipment. Please have your group leader contact Liberty Mountain Resort Group Sales and BRASS to make your reservation.
Each person will be required to complete a Student Information and Waiver form before the lesson. If time permits, the form will be sent to the student before the lesson. Advantage Cards and Night Club Cards cannot be used for the adaptive program's lesson.
Equipment
When we work with an adaptive student for the first time, we take a positive approach to determining the type of skiing style and equipment that is best suited for him or her. Rather than asking what the student cannot do, we ask what the student can do, and then we determine what combination of equipment and learning techniques is required to augment that level of physical and mental ability into a positive skiing experience.
Based on this assessment, a skier might fall into one of three broad categories of adaptive techniques: Blind/Developmentally disabled (DD), 3-track/4-track, and mono/bi-ski. Any one of these categories might capture a large variety of students, but that does not mean they have anything close to the same disabilities. For example, a blind person with no cognitive disability might learn to ski with the aid of a bamboo pole held between two instructors, as he or she learns what to do with the feet and legs. A developmentally disabled student might use the same apparatus, but clearly for different reasons. The following sections describe and illustrate some of our primary adaptive skiing equipment and techniques.
Blind / Developmentally Disabled
As mentioned above, it is extremely important to keep in mind that we do not consider blindness and development disabilities to be the same thing – the reason we combine these disabilities into this category is that it just happens that some of the most useful apparatus for teaching skiing to these types of skiers happen to be the same. There are, of course, specific teaching and learning tools that are appropriate for each type of disability that go beyond the specific apparatus being used.
Many developmentally disabled skiers have no significant physical impairments that would prevent them, eventually, from skiing using standard equipment. Frequently, the instructional challenge is in the cognitive abilities of the student, and the ease with which instructions (verbal or otherwise) can be translated into specific actions on the part of the student. It is commonly necessary, therefore, for our instructors to use certain equipment aids to make sure that the student is able to feel what they are supposed to be doing, even before they are able to effect these actions themselves.
 This photo shows an example of a student being “tethered.” Clearly, this student has the ability to stand and balance on their own, and he/she is wearing standard skis and boots. The instructor to the side of the student is giving verbal instructions to the student. Because of the student’s cognitive disability, it will take some practice before he or she can respond appropriately to such instructions. The rear instructor, therefore, uses tether lines attached to a device affixed to the front of the student’s skis to initiate the actions being requested. Over time, and with practice, the role of the tethering instructor becomes less, and the student is able to self-initiate appropriate skiing maneuvers.
 Many students, adaptive or otherwise, learn much better by doing and feeling than by following verbal directions; this equipment helps us provide the appropriate “mileage” to the student, in a safe and active learning environment. This technique works especially well with children, whose attention span is always short anyway. This photo shows two of our instructors using a similar technique with one of our younger students. In this case, the student needs some physical support from both sides to get accustomed to balance, and because if his light weight, one instructor can initiate movements of the student’s skis using a ski pole from the side instead of tethers from the rear.
 Some of our adaptive students do not require more equipment; they do better with less! Notice that the skier pictured here does not have ski poles (nor does the instructor behind him). Some students make better progress without too many new items that need to be coordinated, and it is best to introduce new movements one-at-a-time to maximize their concentration. A situation like this might call for two instructors: one behind to give verbal directions, and one in front to provide a “target,” which is our tongue-in-cheek phrase for a visual reference for the student to follow down the mountain.
 Using two instructors is tremendously helpful, for example, in making sure that the student fully completes his or her turns in order to maintain a safe speed down the mountain. We also have students who respond better to face-to-face interaction than to instructions coming from behind them. In this case, we might have the lead instructor ski backwards in front of the student to reassure him/her and to give directions (and occasionally act as a backstop, as in this photo) while a second instructor looks out for the safety of the entire group.
 In addition to the various training aids that might help a blind student learn to ski, there is also the additional component of guiding them down the mountain safely. This has two components: a) a seeing guide must be able to keep the skier informed of necessary turns and potential hazards to be avoided, and b) other skiers on the mountain need to be aware of the fact that the skier is blind and is working directly with another skier so as not to interfere. Notice in this picture that the blind skier wears a bright orange vest identifying him as such, while the guide wears a similar vest. With this configuration, other skiers know not to come between the skier and guide or to limit their ability to communicate.
3-Track / 4-Track
 Some of our skiers are able to stand and balance, perhaps with slight mechanical assistance, on one or two legs. This might include amputees, people with mild cases of muscular dystrophy or multiple sclerosis, any disability that effects balance, and others. What all of these skiers have in common is that some additional support and balance is necessary while on skis, which is provided in the form of handheld outriggers. These look very much like crutches, except they have small skis on the end of them.
 This photo shows one of our adaptive instructors (who happened to have a broken leg at the time) skiing with one ski and two outriggers. This is called 3-tracking. A person with two skis on their feet and two outriggers would be said to be 4-tracking. Counter perhaps to intuition, it is perfectly possible to ski on one ski, and in fact this is a required advanced training element for ski instructors. Many of them get their practice working with the adaptive equipment until they can ski on one ski without the outriggers.
3-trackers and 4-trackers have to learn how to use the outriggers to help maintain balance and strength of posture throughout the skiing maneuvers, but also to help initiate turns, plus mundane activities such as pushing themselves up slight inclines or through lift lines. The ski tips on the outriggers can be locked into an upright position so they function more like “ski crutches.” Of course, getting on and off the lift with outriggers requires some training and practice as well. The photo to the right shows a young 4-tracker learning what to do with the outriggers. Obviously, outriggers vary in length according to the height of the skier; we have sizes appropriate for all different students.
Mono / Bi-ski
The mono-ski, bi-ski, and dual ski are examples of apparatus intended for students who cannot stand and maintain balance for an extended period of time, or at all. What the equipment pieces have in common is that the student sits in them, and that they are outfitted in some way with attached skis on the bottom. We frequently use the term “sit-down skier” as shorthand for students in this category. Most often, our students who use these apparatus have double amputations, advanced forms of cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, or other disabilities that affect standing, leg strength, and/or balance.
Bi-Ski
The bi-ski is our most commonly used piece of sit-down equipment, largely because of its inherent stability. It has two skis attached to the bottom, and the student can balance himself upright with little effort. Additional balance and skiing finesse comes from either small hand-held outriggers, as shown in the photo below, or fixed outriggers. The choice of which to use depends on the level of skiing ability and upper body and trunk strength of the student.
 This figure shows a bi-ski made by Bi-Unique. Notice the two wide shaped skis mounted underneath, the tubular steel footrest, and the handheld outriggers leaning on the bi-ski. The skis are connected with a mechanism that translates a lateral motion of the chair into a simultaneous tipping (edging) motion for the skis. This is called articulation. Amazingly, this is something that stand-up skiers practice for years trying to achieve, and the bi-skier can essentially do this important motion on the first day. The skis have a hinge mechanism that allows the back end of the skis to drop for purposes of loading on the ski lift. Thus, the student can remain comfortably and safely strapped into the bi-ski throughout the lift trip, accompanied by one or more ski instructors to help with loading and unloading. Getting on and off the ski lift is one of the most important but also entertaining parts of the ski experience, and we practice extensively with each student to make sure students and instructors are working like a well-oiled machine. Once off the lift, the hinged part of the skis is locked down, with a shock absorber to make the trip down the mountain more comfortable. This can be adjusted according to the weight of the student.
 In general, the bi-ski is required to be tethered from behind by a ski instructor. While it is possible technically to ski the bi-ski alone, this is not a recommended safety practice. Furthermore, any student with the ability to ski the bi-ski alone would be better off with the more versatile and maneuverable mono-ski, shown in the next section. Of course, beginning skiers are not able to ski tethered, so the initial part of the instruction focuses on “thumb tethering,” which essentially means that the instructor holds on to the back of the bi-ski and helps physically guide the student through the motions necessary to perform good turns and speed control. In addition to teaching skiing technique, the ski instructor is responsible for the safety of the skier, which includes making sure other skiers keep a safe distance. This is obviously a very exciting piece of equipment that attracts a lot of attention on the hill, and many people would love to try it out if given the chance.
Mono-Ski
As the name implies, the mono ski differs from the bi-ski in that it only has one ski attached to the bottom. This ski tends to be longer and more narrow than those on the bi-ski – in fact, it is usually a real downhill ski with a modified binding for attachment to the mono-ski. Because there is only one ski, this device will not stand upright and remain stable on its own. Thus, a higher level of physical strength, balance, and coordination is required to operate this ski. The payoffs, however, are important: the ski is more maneuverable (really good skiers will do black diamond slopes and moguls in mono-skis), and it offers more independence, since it is not really possible to tether the ski. The student is much more responsible for their own safety with the mono-ski.
 This picture shows a mono-ski manufactured by Yetti. Notice the single ski attached to the bottom, the fiberglass seat and footrest, and the handheld outriggers leaning on the ski. It is not possible to attach fixed outriggers to a mono-ski, nor is it possible to tether it. Initial instruction is done with thumb tethering; after that, the student has to maintain balance and speed control on his/her own. Like the bi-ski, the ski on a mono-ski is hinged to allow loading onto the lift chair. There is also a lever to raise the seat bucket to the height required for the lift, which is normally operated by the ski instructor; however, a strong enough skier can actually self-load and self-unload with this apparatus. There are many mono-skiers who hit the slopes with no assistance from guides or instructors whatsoever, although it takes some time and practice to reach this level of proficiency.
 The initial instruction with the mono-ski focuses heavily on balance techniques, as shown in this photo. Clearly, handheld outriggers, while optional with the bi-ski, are mandatory with the mono-ski, as are the strength and coordination to use them to maintain balance. The outriggers have two positions – locked down for skiing and locked up for balance. In this photo, they are locked up, and metal brakes on the rear of the skis serve as spikes to keep strong contact with the snow surface. The student should be able to maintain and recover this center of balance, as well as to make the flat ski surface rotate on the snow (to a limited extent). This rotational movement becomes the foundation for learning the beginning turning movements on the mono-ski once the ski is actually moving forward.
Twin Ski
 While most of our sit-down students use either a bi-ski or mono-ski, in recent years the twin ski has become a more popular piece of equipment. Like the bi-ski, it is fixed with two skis, but in this case they are standard shaped skis. This picture shows a twin ski made by Freedom Factory. The twin ski offers more of the performance, versatility, and independence of the mono-ski (it is not tethered), with some of the stability and simultaneous edging capabilities of the bi-ski. A proficient skier can load, unload, and ski the twin ski without assistance.
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