Through the technical development of the snow sports equipment in the last decades and the new simplicity, whit which that can be ridden, even very young children are able to learn how to ski and and rapidly improve their abilities. More and more small kids discover the snow-sport areas with skis and snowboards.

Yet the the lifts are not designed to allow the youngest to leave the beginner area. The step from the moving carpet to the first platter lift is often not manageable for our youngest skiers. For example the pull spring can be too strong, so that the lightweight rider gets lifted up. Or the track can be tilted to one side in a way that lets the kids slide aside, and in the worst case crash into a lift post or into the deep snow, without being able to detach from the lift. Often the start is too abrupt and brings the youngest to an immediate fall, or the distance to the confidant on the next platter is just too large. Such experiences are not only frustrating for the child, but can also cause serious injury.

To prevent such situations, many parents push their kids on the platter lift in front of them between the legs. That results in a very inconvenient posture for both parties and is furthermore very dangerous, should a fall happen. In that way children are also not able to develop the necessary balance ability, in order to be able to ride the platter lift on their own.

We report on our experience with “Schleppi”, a hand held platter lift. By means of this device, the ski instructor can tow a kid while using the platter lift himself and compensate for the abrupt start or help avoid obstacles, as well as immediately react in case the child falls. The child holds the platter between the legs, lets being towed and has to take care of the balance on its own.

The biomechanically advantageous power transmission at the body`s centre of gravity, allows the application of this device also in flat areas or while riding down the slope, in order to train the motion-ready ground position, or to get a feeling for the curved position and master the first turns.