Jess’s third Ski Instructor course blog update from Banff – Free-Skiing on Christmas day, Instructor keg parties and epic powder days. Jess is making the most on her Ski instructor course in Banff Canada with style!
Since my last update loads has been going on; Christmas, New Years, my first lessons, powder days and new skis to name just a few.
Christmas day in Banff was awesome, it was my first ever white Christmas and the first time I’ve ever skied Christmas day. AND it snowed all day! Although I was technically working, nobody really seemed to want ski lessons on Christmas day so I spent the day free-skiing and chilling out in the day lodge. Good times.
For new year’s, the EA house decided to throw yet another house party. As usual it was crazy, and we all felt very Canadian drinking out of our red cups and playing beer pong! Luckily, teaching new year’s day was just as quiet as Christmas, and I managed to get away with sitting in the lodge for a good part of the day with a big cup of coffee.
Ski School Keg Party
So I’ve been teaching skiing for a month now, and it’s getting loads easier! We were definitely thrown in at the deep end, starting our careers as instructors over Christmas which is by far the busiest time of year for the ski school. Boxing day and the week following were crazily busy, but we all picked up teaching super quickly and as a group we’ve had some amazing feedback from clients. I’ve taught 3-year olds to 50-year olds, complete beginners to parallel skiers, and every combination in between!
Now that the Christmas rush has died down, the majority of our work is with kids from the surrounding areas who come up for school skiing programs. The programs kicked off last Saturday, with 400 kids arriving at Norquay at 10am.
Obviously it was pretty hectic, but with a lot of patience and hard work everything went well, and now we’re running a tight ship on the weekends!
As a thank you for such an awesome Christmas period and start to the school programs, Gord, our ski school director, arranged a party. Again, the EA house hosted (we seem to host a lot of parties) and Gord arranged for a keg of beer to be delivered to the house, which, for people from outside North America, is 58.7 litres! Clearly the night was a good one, and everyone was on less than full form at work the next day…
The snow has been epic over the past couple of days, and I’ve been enjoying riding my first ever pair of “sensible skis” – some stiff all mountain/carving skis, rather than the super flexible twin tips I’m used to. I’ve also taught my most memorable lesson this week; ripping up the powder on blue and black runs, going through the trees, off jumps and skiing moguls for two hours – we all had a blast! And the best part is that I’ve got the same kids every week for the next month or so!
Things to look forward to now include the new terrain park which has just opened, featuring a 45ft kicker! My aim is to hit it by the end of the season, so I’ll keep you posted. We also have the “cardboard sled derby” this Friday night, as well as night skiing at Norquay, plus tomorrow is Australia day. So it’s going to be a busy week!
Naemie’s second Ski Instructor course blog straight from Lake Louise Canada. loads of ski improvement, and a tone of fun during and after the ski training.
The first part of my second week’s training was spent in agony with my still smashed up toes. My skiing seemed to be getting worse which was extremely annoying! However I’d had my boots adjusted, so at least my feet had stopped thrashing around in them so much. Customised insoles I highly recommend (even if they are on the pricey side at $130 a pair!!)! I also had the front straps changed, and had snowboard boot straps fitted to relieve the pressure on my ankles – so now they look cool as well as being comfier!
It was Kimmy’s Birthday on the Tuesday, so we celebrated on Monday night with lots of drinking and dancing. We started with a hall party, and then worked our way downstairs to the Stables bar (down stairs in the staff accommodation) for some crazy boogying! It was an awesome night! Although there were a few sore heads at training the next morning – oops!
Pat was our instructor for the 2nd and 3rd week of training; we tackled moguls, black runs, and worked a lot on the 3 competencies and 5 skills of skiing. I’ve had a fair few falls (or ‘stacks’ as the Aussies call them!); on the way down ‘Paradise Bowl’ I think I spent more time on my bum than I did on my skis! But luckily Pat and the rest of my group were there to help me up! Here’s Sambo and Pat in the gondola!
Our Third week of training started; Pat got us all boot skiing – it was very funny watching each other falling down the slope, as it’s not the easiest of exercises! We were all amazed at how fit Pat was as well – he pretty much ran back up to us after every demonstration – most of us had to crawl back up the hill – of course blaming altitude for being out of breath – not the beers we’d consumed the night before!
The next 3 days of training were indoor based, which was a complete shock to the system as we’d become so accustomed to being outside all day everyday! We learned all about Banff National Park, Safety on and off Piste and all about the Ski School and the Lake Louise Resort. So Friday was the final day of ski training, and then tomorrow our exam starts ……
Tom has completed his ski instructor level one training, passed his exam with style and is now living the ski instructors dream at Whistler including Fresh powder laps before the resort is open to the public!
“If there has been a dump of fresh powder during the night we get to ski the freshest of powder which is amazing.”
Over the past couple of days the temperature in Whistler has dropped well below zero which has made it somewhat difficult to ski and teach but it has been really good for the snow conditions.
In the mornings before the lifts are officially open to the public, the snow school instructors are allowed to upload early to check out the conditions and work on our technique with some of the most experienced pros in the Snow School. They are always a good laugh and if there has been a dump of fresh powder during the night we get to ski the freshest of powder which is amazing.
As you probably know already, making your own fresh tracks in powder is overwhelming. The morning sessions usually mean we are awake before the sun comes up and are skiing when the sun is rising.
On clear days the view of the sun rising up over the mountain range is spectacular.
One great thing about Whistler Blackcomb is the size. It has the largest skiable terrain in the whole of North America meaning there is always a part of the mountains you haven’t yet skied. This makes days off all the more fun to be able to explore the mountains to their potential!
“We found out the results of the exam which most people were delighted to become Snow School Professionals! We followed the results with an EA group meal which ultimately ended with a night out of celebrations.”
We started the exam quite nervous about being assessed but luckily it turned out to be fairly relaxed. The assessors were mostly the instructors we had for our training but switched around so we didn’t have the same ones. We had one instructor for two days and another for the remaining two. For the first couple of days the main focus was our own skiing technique and the final two were mainly focused on our teaching ability.
We found out the results of the exam on the final days’ evening, during which most people were delighted to become Snow School Professionals!
We followed the results with an EA group meal which ultimately ended with a night out of celebrations. After our partying we had a couple of days off and had one day to shadow a lesson to get a feel for teaching genuine clients.
We were then thrown into the deep end to take lessons for ourselves. This was quite daunting to start with but we soon got in to the flow of things. Teaching has been a great experience so far; it is so satisfying seeing the results of our instruction in our clients’ skiing.
A regular occurrence during the high season in Whistler is the Fire and Ice show they host on Sunday evenings. This comprises of fireworks, fire spinners and Whistler’s best skiers and riders, including Whistler Blackcomb Snow School’s finest hitting a big air jump through a blazing ring of fire. Check out the video I’ve included of some of the evenings events.
Jess’s second Ski Instructor course blog update fresh from Banff – Instructor training course, parties, hangovers, shotskis, Turkey at the Christmas work do, starting work as an insturctor. Living the dream?
“Tomorrow is my first official day teaching… Oh and the new office is still looking awesome!”
Loads has happened since my last update! The second week of training went well, and after a much-needed day off we embarked upon the four-day CSIA Level One course. The first two days focused on ski improvement, and the last two helped us develop our teaching technique. We all had to be on top form, and by the end I think everyone was suffering from alcohol withdrawal symptoms. It was worth it, though, when the whole group passed! We’re now all officially qualified ski instructors!
To celebrate, we held a small civilised gathering at our house. Highlights include an intense beer pong tournament and overuse of our newly acquired “shot ski”. Everyone was in high spirits and loads of the Norquay ski school staff came along to help us celebrate.
The following few days were spent catching up on sleep and recovering from our epic hangovers.
Excitingly, we had our first powder day of the season this week! I arrived home at about 2am on Saturday evening to heavy rain, but by the morning there was almost a foot of fresh snow in town! Needless to say, we all headed straight up to the mountain and shredded the soft stuff all day. The atmosphere was amazing; everyone was in a great mood and the skiing was incredible.
Work-wise, in the run up to Christmas the ski school has been super busy. This coincided nicely with our first days shadowing lessons; the demand was so high that some lucky new instructors jumped straight into teaching! I spent my day shadowing a four-hour “Disco”, a discovery lesson for someone who has never tried skiing before. It was a private lesson for a four-year-old boy, so I spent most of the day playing hide and seek, with a bit of skiing thrown in.
Today is Christmas Eve, and it’s been quiet as we’re recovering from the epic staff party at Norquay yesterday. All the staff from the entire mountain were invited for a turkey dinner and drinks in the day lodge, and afterwards we had a choice of house parties to go to!
Tomorrow is my first official day teaching, so it’s going to be a strange Christmas but definitely a great one. Oh and the new office is still looking awesome. (see photo above)
This is Rosie’s second Canada Snowboard instructor training course blog update, including Snowboard Instructor Training, passing CASI level one exam, and starting work for Revelstoke Mountain Resort.
“The good news is that I have pasted the level one snowboard instructor course!!! Today I picked up my new uniform”
Revelstoke has by far become the best place I’ve ever boarded at and I’m sold that I will be returning next season! After our 10 days of training up the hill with our instructor Justin (fastest man on skis in CANADA!!) We then had two days to practice to prepare for our three day exam for CASI (Canadian Association of snowboard instructing). Day one was for us to show our ability and show we can demonstrate skills that a learner can copy. Days 2-3 were days for us to take turns at teaching mock lessons with different situations, Private lessons or groups with either young children or adults. We needed to be very familiar with all the content and be able to turn the boarding lingo into understandable terms for learners. The best part was coming up with games to help kids have fun while learning new skills.
The good news is that I have pasted the level one snowboard instructor course!!! Today I picked up my new uniform ………..It’s a bright orange jacket……..we all look like funny oompa loompas on the slopes hahaa. I filled out all the paper work so I can start getting paid and my first day is tomorrow, I’m a little nervous to take my first lesson but excited to get into the swing of teaching this awesome fun sport were you can create your own adrenaline.
Living with the rest of the EA team has been a blast and we have all made friends who we will travel with in the future, unfortunately some sad goodbyes at the moment for the people who just signed up for the 4 week course and we wish them all the best and hope they visit us before the season is over.
Thanks to EA we have had a few celebration meals at a local pub with everyone which always turns out to be a fun night full of great memories and hilarious moments thankfully captured on camera!!
We have now moved into our permanent apartments as they needed some repair work due to unfortunate flooding……fortunate for us though as we spent the month in Powder Springs Hotel with many perks to go with it! But glad to be settled in and have our own kitchen and living area. Also a bonus is that we are only a 2 minute walk to the shuttle stop which is free for us as staff of the resort.
Lucky for me I’ve managed to get a second job at the Sutton Place Hotel which is a ski in ski out hotel at the base of the mountain just 10 steps from the first gondola! This is great for me as it is all within the same company as the ski school and I can stay here for the summer with a job after the winter season has melted away.
I’ll be keeping very busy with work, and in the new year those with the level one CASI will start there level two training and so the adventures will continue………….. Oh and we even got to be a part of the Christmas parade!! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
We start the course with two days of indoor theory, involving talks from instructors, a run-through of the course, talking in front of the group etc, which as you can guess dragged along. It was however very important and needed. Then the real on snow training started, this coincided with the opening of the mountain and a lot of powder! Dave was our first instructor and just took us through the trees, in the powder and getting us to enjoy the mountain which didn’t take long at all! Next we had Nitzan and Julie who did the actual work on improving our skiing to their standards and getting us use to the teaching side of things. Along the way we had a lot of laughs, a phantom pole bender and a couple of expected injuries, but we all came through it.
Exam Time
The morning comes and as we all wait for the shuttle bus you can tell that everyone has by now started to get nervous, despite not everyone wanting to show or admit it! However once we meet the two examiners they make everyone feel calmer and more comfortable for the upcoming big four days. Throughout the next four days we all feel our skiing improve and start to feel at ease with the teaching. We all still weren’t completely confident as to whether we were going to have passed the exam or not. Everyone met in the Village Idiot restaurant to have pizza and find out our results, with almost everyone passing the night became blurry from then on.
Spare Time
During our training time we were still seen as part of the team, therefore we had to partake in Revelstokes Christmas parade on the ROC’s float. We all had banners to hold in front or behind the float, candy to hand out to local kids, wish everyone a happy Christmas and just be members of the community.
Arriving in Vancouver was an exciting experience, not only because our season had just begun but because we were getting to know lots of new people, who are turning out to be some awesome friends.
After being chauffer driven to the hotel I went to explore the city with Jessie and ended up on Granville Island. A friend had told me there was a brewery on the island that was worth checking out but we couldn’t seem to find it. However, as we were walking back I got this strong scent of beer from across the road which turned out to be a Molson’s brewery. We tried to go and have a look but it was late and unfortunately was closed.
My time in Vancouver was a little different to the rest of the group because I had to go to America to get my visa because I stupidly didn’t fill out the correct form when entering Canada. After finally sorting that out I had to quickly catch up with the group. Alistair and Natalie, our EA Whistler reps, were really helpful with setting up our bank accounts, mobile phones and acquiring our SIN numbers to become working citizens of Canada.
The coach trip up to Whistler on the Sea-to-Sky highway was quite impressive. The views were spectacular and everyone was eager to get there. When we arrived we dropped some of the guys off to unload the bags at the lodge, which is quite luxurious to say the least. The Staff housing is basic, like student accommodation, but such good fun. On the first night we arrived there was a bit of a party going on in a room across the corridor. We joined in with the Canadians celebrating the opening weekend of Whistler and had a messy night which ended with Gail flaunting her onesies at the end of the night.
Whistler is such a cool place with lots of things going on all the time. The skiing here is amazing. On the first couple of days we had loads of fresh powder to play with and recently we’ve had lots of blue bird days which are always pleasurable for riding and taking in the magnificent views.
The training has been really informative and enjoyable, helping to improve our own skiing/snowboarding and teaching style. Our exam starts on Monday for 4 days so with a bit of luck we will be fully qualified level 1 ski/board instructors by the end of the week!
Ski instructor course blog from Kyle, his ski instructor course exclusive to EA has instructor training and a guaranteed job offer.
“It finally hit me; I’m living in paradise, (will be) getting paid to ski, and hanging out with some of the coolest people in the world. Man life couldn’t get better.”
I remember being so amped in the days leading up to November 27th, the day I left for San Francisco, California. It still felt like a dream when I was saying goodbye to my friends and the east coast. Finally the day arrived. I had to wake up at 3am to catch my flight to San Francisco – WHAT?! I missed my
flight, I guess that happens sometimes. I ended up arriving in California at 8pm, 17 hours late, and got a taxi to the hotel where we were staying for orientation.
Orientation was… exciting. Most of the time was spent walking around the city aimlessly for hours checking out the city. We managed to bond by fitting 26 of us into the tiny hotel rooms, quickly becoming friends with lack of personal space and by trading games from our respective countries. We all got along without a problem. On our last night in San Francisco, EA treated us to a lavish dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. restaurant – yes it is Bubba Gump shrimp from the classic Forrest Gump. After dinner we all went back to the hotel to kick it for one more night in San Francisco.
Waking up first thing the next morning, or eventually mid-morning, we headed off to Lake Tahoe, California on our giant bus. Stopping at the Golden gate bridge to say bye to San Francisco one last time. While driving through the mountains leading into Tahoe i couldn’t believe i was actually here. We arrived a little disappointed to hear that snow wasn’t going to hit the area until after Christmas, weeks away. Not really a big deal because of Northstar and their amazing snow blowers, and the sick park set up they had. Besides that, we were all still super pumped to finally get here. Over the next 5 days we spent most of our time sitting around our condos getting to know each other and familiarizing ourselves with the Northstar lifestyle. Once we got cleared through the resort, received our employee passes and started training, it finally hit me; I’m living in paradise, (will be) getting paid to ski, and hanging out with some of the coolest people in the world. Man life couldn’t get better.
