Taking "Away from the computer and out into the snow" to the next level

Never before have children and teenagers been physically less active than they are currently. And never before have they spent this much time looking at screens. The WHO (World Health Organization) recommends that children get at least one hour of exercise daily. But during the lockdown, very few have "made the cut" – just 16 of 100 children, according to a study from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology*. This also has a great impact on our target group: young skiers. Most clubs could not offer any courses for children or teenagers last winter, making it all the more important that we start motivating children to get back out in the snow!

Get away from the computer and out in the snow
As early as five years ago, Kässbohrer launched a campaign called "Away from the computer and out into the snow".Ever since, events for students in primary and secondary school have been held at various locations in the U.S., Austria, France, Switzerland, Italy and Germany. At times, there were more than 2000 children "getting active" per year – whether it was at the PistenBully GrundschulCup (for elementary students in Germany), the KidsCamps, in physical education classes with the PistenBully mini-skis or at the Winter Jam in New York City. Both the kids and the instructors were enthusiastic, saying, "Here, over 100 children had a ton of fun with winter sports today. Everyone was hooked. This is a brilliant way to work with kids. An awesome event!"

DSV (German Skiing Association) and PistenBully – Partners in fostering young talent
PistenBully is taking things up a notch: Future collaboration with the DSV will also include fostering young talent. The entire program of the PistenBully mini-skis, which has been devised by Philipp Rießle, an elementary school teacher from the Black Forest region, will be integrated into "DSV on tour Mobil". And all empirical knowledge gathered thus far will also be incorporated into the annual DSV campaigns with nurseries/kindergartens and clubs. All DSV instructors within the young talents' project will receive active training on the mini-skis and how to use them with children. A brochure with exercises as well as tips and tricks provides them with support. As a result, many children are being shown the "proper" way to move around in the snow and having their very first skiing experiences. This may seem like only a small push in the right direction, but the idea is that this (along with other incentives) will inspire a lot more kids to get outdoors. The recommended hour of exercise is starting to look more realistic!

* Source: Alexandra Waidner, SWR