Six-year-olds are pretty cute. Six-year-olds who love to be on Nordic skis? Adorable! We love that more and more parents are getting their little ones involved in the sport of Nordic skiing from a young age. We recently sat down with first grader Mesa, who’s been Nordic skiing with her family since she was less than a year old! Mesa was born in Estes Park and lives with her family in beautiful Tabernash, Colorado. She learned from her mom, who previously worked at nordic centers and taught nordic ski lessons. Mesa had her first pair of free-heel skis at age 1.
One of her favorite places to skis? Her backyard! That’s right, in addition to being surrounded by world-class Nordic resorts in Grand County, Colorado, her and her family create a Nordic ski haven in their yard each winter! Mesa's parents explained they "build" a xc ski track that is about 1/2 mile and pack in it with snowshoes as soon as 12" have fallen. After the snowshoe packing, they ski it in and typically ski on it after dinner, mostly with the use of headlamps! They make sure to have some fun obstacles and downhills for Mesa to increase the fun factor. How cool is that?
Mesa's mom also told us Mesa is a daredevil and loves to try the craziest routes. "When we are done with the loops in the yard, Mesa always skis down the 8 steps from the yard's retaining wall to get to the driveway to put away her skis in the garage."
Mesa has a spunky personality and a love for the outdoors, especially Nordic skiing. We learned a lot about why she enjoys it! Check out her adorable interview!