Ski moguls: How your kids can try it at home

Ski moguls is an event at the Winter Olympics in which athletes ski down a steep course full of bumps and combine technical turns, flips, jumps, and speed. Those large bumps—called moguls—are created when the snow gets pushed and compressed into hundreds of scattered humps by the repetitive turns of all the skiers skiing the same line over a few days.

It’s a pretty incredible sport to watch! Check out two of Canadian Alexandre Bilodeau’s runs from the 2014 Sochi Olympics:

How freestyle mogul skiing started

People have skied for as long as there’s been snow, but downhill skiing didn’t become a recreational and competitive sport until around the 1920s, when people skied around gates at the Olympics. Mogul skiing emerged in Canada in the early 1970s as a competitive discipline, and it slowly became popular around the world in the following years. The first Canadian to win an Olympic medal in moguls was Jean-Luc Brassard in 1994. 

Here’s how to watch a moguls competition

• Competitors go down the hill as fast as they can, maneuvering around moguls and doing tricks in the air off of two jumps. The fastest run, with the most amazing jumps and best turns, wins!
• Five judges assess how well skiers handle the moguls and the quality of their jumps.
• A skier’s final score is determined by: 50% turns, 25% jumps, 25% speed.
• The competition starts with 30 athletes. 20 skiers go to Finals 1, then 12 skiers go to Finals 2, then six skiers go to Finals 3.

It’s fun when you have a real ski hill nearby where you can ski real moguls, but you might not live close enough to go regularly in the winter. So introduce your child to mogul skiing indoors at home!

How to DIY ski moguls at home

There are ways to transform your home into a mogul run with a few jumps—without bringing the snow inside. Follow the steps: 

1. Gather all the pillows and cushions you can find and create a mogul obstacle course by scattering them around a large, open floor space.
2. Arrange the pillows and cushions into a zig-zag path with approximately 30 cm between each one.
3. Create two “jumps” using low benches or ottomans. (Make sure they are stable!)
4. One at a time, have your kids hop, jump, and skip around the pillows and cushions in a zig-zag pattern and pretend they’re freestyle skiing moguls at the Winter Olympics.
5. When they get to the jumps, encourage them to leap high and do a “trick” in the air (like clicking their heels, forming a star, doing a full turn in either direction)
6. Encourage them to “stick the landing” by landing without falling.

Some tips for indoor ski moguls

• Carpeted floors work best for this activity. Make sure there are no sharp or dangerous pieces of furniture in the way.
• Remind your kids that a good landing is quiet. A heavy, noisy landing can hurt the knees and ankles.
• Award points for good landings, spins, and rotations.
• Time each run and award points for the fastest time going through the course. 

How to bring ski moguls outdoors—in a kid-friendly way

If snow arrives in your area, find a nearby hill at a public park, schoolyard, or golf course and take a shovel so you can make a small snow jump. Get your kids to try the jump on their skis!

Start with a small jump, but progressively add snow as your kids get comfortable jumping with style and landing quietly. No need for moguls—you simply need an inclined hill for the in-run and an inclined landing area below the jump. 

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on Feb. 19, 2014.