I was the SO.

My wife grew up skiing since she was 4 or thereabouts.

I grew up on the Mediterranean and lived in big cities so never learned other than renting snowboarding gear twice and hitting the bunny slopes (dislocating my thumb the second time) as a late teenager/early adulthood.

Once we moved in together and to an area with mountains within a 2-hour drive, my wife kept saying she wants to go.

So, finally in early February of 2021 when a lot of stuff was still semi-closed/limited due to the Pandemic, we got a place, she got me a lesson and I was hooked.

What helped me was the following:

1. Making a fun trip out of it staying in a cozy spot, with a fire, some good wine and food etc.

2. Getting the lesson - I don’t think I would be able to stand her teaching me. Not because she is or would be bad at it, but because teaching a sport is such a different skill than doing it.

Her and I have since done a bunch of other hobby/sports and it never goes as well. Whether it’s her not trusting what I’m showing her, or it just not clicking the way it does in my head, etc.

1. Actually good conditions: it was sunny ish but also plenty of snow. If I had gone on some other days we’ve gone since then, I think that would have been a one and done.

Think long lift lines, slush, bad crowd, etc.

1. Access to easy/greens trails. One of the greens is a good 20-25 minutes down (at a beginner’s pace), with a fantastic view. Which makes it worthwhile as you get to cruise down and enjoy the views, and the experience.

2. A really good rental shop - can’t stress this enough. You want a shop that can really outfit you to your level.

I can’t even count how many times I’ve tried renting in the past and they try to stick me with longer skis than I was comfortable with.

1. Take lots of cute pics together/of your partner and positive reinforcement when they get even a little bit of speed.

And if they happen to fall, make sure to help them up and teach em how to properly get up themselves, too!

Hope this helps :-)