Skiing skill levels cover the most beginner skiers all the way to the most advanced and of course, everyone in between. Below you’ll find a breakdown of each level and you’ll be able to determine where your skills land on the chart and how to improve them.
Level 1
First Time Skiers
Everybody at some point must begin at the lowly level 1, which is reserved for those who have never skied before and need to learn everything from scratch. The good news is that this is the easiest level to graduate from! You’ll likely be moving on within a day or two, at most.
Level 2
Learning to Turn
Once you’ve had a couple of ski sessions under your belt, you’re likely ready to move on to the second level. By this point, you know how to stop and perhaps have begun working on your turning maneuvers — though you may still be having some difficulty. You should also be familiarized with the chair lift.
Level 3
Building Some Confidence
At this point, you should be able to ski the green runs with relative ease and you can successfully make round wedge turns on the beginner terrain. At this point, you should be gaining some confidence in your skis and begin getting them parallel.
Level 4
Learning to Link Turns
At this level right before the intermediate stage, you should be nearly parallel on green runs and perhaps even a few easy blue runs. You’re linking turns with a greater sense of control but may still find that you don’t want to go too fast, for fear of losing your control. You can use your inner pole for timing.
Level 5
Parallel Skiing on Blue & Green Runs
You should be skiing completely parallel all of the time, with no wedge except for turns on occasion. You should be confident on all green and blue runs but may still proceed cautiously on some of the intermediate paths. You can use a pole touch to both times your turns and keep yourself steady.
Level 6
Tight Turns on More Challenging Terrain
By this level, you’ll find yourself mostly skiing parallel on even the black runs. You’ll be skiing off-piste and may even be experimenting at the terrain parks. You can handle different terrain and snow conditions, though with a healthy level of care. You should also be using your poles to make tighter turns and linking parallel turns.
Level 7
Confident on Black Runs
At this point, you should be confident in your ski abilities and be able to tackle even the less-than-ideal conditions that the mountain sometimes throws at you. You can successfully maneuver parallel turns. You stay in control the vast majority of the time and can tackle the black runs with relative ease.
Level 8
Tightening Your Technique
You’ll have a handle on all types of terrain and can execute both short and long runs. At this point, you’re mainly focusing on tightening up your technique and making a few minor changes here and there. You can ski on black slopes and possibly even extreme double-black slopes.
Level 9
Expert Mastery
At the expert level, you’ll have created your own style and have a strong mastery of all the techniques used frequently in skiing. You can tackle narrow and steep trails with confidence and even ski backward and catch major air off of jumps. You’re able to ski more aggressively while staying in control of your body and skis.
While it may be difficult to exactly determine which level you fall under due to the fact that many skiers may be especially adept in one aspect of skiing but may be falling short in another. It’s rare that a skier aligns perfectly with a single level but it should give you an idea of where you’re at and what still needs improvement.
You’ll be able to set small and realistic goals for yourself each time you strap on your boots and you may find that having a tangible goal enables you to ski with a purpose. As you improve your techniques and begin to ski more confidently, you may even need to upgrade your equipment.It’s important to ensure you’re not picking up any bad habits that may be hampering your progress. Familiarizing yourself with the above levels can ensure that you are in fact gaining skills and confidence, while not holding yourself back due to improper turning technique, for example, and being overly reliant on a wedge turn.