Bozeman, MT — Our friends out in Bozeman put together a movie this past season called “Make Believe”. The “Wintertime” series incudes three short films from the same crew, largely shot in hammering snow in the backcountry. We will be running two more edits over the next week, so if you like what you see from the Montana scene, check back for more in the coming days.
via www.frqncy.com
Hi, my name is Adam and I have dropped into the guys here at NONSTOP to write this blog about my experiences working and training as a skiing instructor in the Canadian skiing industry.
I completed the 11-week improvement course in Fernie, in the season of 05/06. Before I got to Canada I had a mere three weeks experience on snow and I must admit, the deep snow and challenging alpine conditions I found when I got there made me feel less than confident of my success! However, after listening to the coaches for ten minutes and learning that one instructor had been teaching for over 30 years and all the instructors had at least 15 years, I knew I was in good hands- after all there is nothing better than learning from the best!
The people on my course came from all walks of life and all had their own reasons for wanting to train with NONSTOP but my goal was to work as a ski instructor the following season. Even with only three weeks experience, I knew it was what I wanted to do.
My goal was to achieve the Canadian Ski Instructors Association (CSIA) level 1 and 2. I had my work cut out! After 5 weeks, we were all put through our paces in the level 1 exams. I had discovered that I had the touch for teaching- I would like to credit myself solely with this but I’m afraid the praise has to go to my coaches, who in the five weeks prior to the exams had become both our friends and mentors. The system they had taught me for teaching followed a simple set of rules, that when followed made instructing skiing achievable and enjoyable for all concerned.
I passed my level 1 first time- just! I was told that level 2 was not out of the question, but that I had to work hard to improve my skiing if I wanted to pass. They were very honest with me which was just what I needed, as I like to know where I’m at. I knuckled down, trained hard and by the time level 2 came around, I felt ready to take on the exams. I was ready and I passed without issue. My teaching was again my strongest area, which I was happy about as it was teaching that I wanted to do!
In addition to CSIA level 1 and 2, I also gained my level 1 race coach. It was an excellent course and it helped me stand out to prospective employers. It also meant that in my first job, I got paid a little more too!
One thing that I learnt very quickly is you never stop training in the skiing industry. I developed a thirst for self improvement and it was shared by my fellow instructors. Unlike any other job I’ve ever done, training is fun and you get a great feeling from seeing yourself develop as a skier and a teacher.
Since completing the NONSTOP course in Fernie, I have gained a host of instructor qualifications. These include my level 1 and 2 Canadian Association Snowboard Instructors (CASI), my CSIA level 3 and my level 1 snowbike instructor’s award. I am pleased to say that the coaching I received once employed in Canada, was almost always on a par with that I received from NONSTOP, which is a testament to the Canadian system.
For more information on NONSTOP ski and snowboard instructor courses check out these links-
5 week ski instructor (level 1 only)
5 week snowboard instructor (level 1 only)
3 week ski instructor (level 1 only)
3 week snowboard instructor (level 1 only)
via nonstopski.com
Amongst many Canadian resorts there is a certain day in the snow calendar that many people look forward to more than most, “Hot Dog Day”. The day represents an excuse to dress up ridiculously in highly unfashionable fluorescent 80’s ski wear and wind back the years with your on slope style.
Emanating from the ski cult classic film “Hot Dog”, the day is a favourite among locals and visitors to Canadian ski resorts. It’s basically a raucous 80’s film that uses skiing as an excuse for a storyline to show scantily clad men and women in steamy situations accompanied by some very risqué jokes.
NONSTOP Ski & Snowboard has for the past two years held a charity auction of 70’s and 80’s ski clothes to raise money for various causes in Fernie. These have included support for local Cancer causes and community days at nearby ski schools, providing lessons and equipment for those previously unable to learn.
via nonstopski.com
The CSIA Level 1 is the first of four Canadian ski instructor qualifications (CSIA) and is often simply regarded as an introduction to ski instructing and a stepping stone to higher certificates, but actually in some ways you are more employable than Level 2 instructors.
The Canadian Instructor system is widely considered more advanced, modern, client friendly and internationally recognised that any of the other instructor bodies. Level 1 will allow you to work in Canada and the US, it’s focused primarily towards developing teaching and CSIA demos, drills and general technique. You don’t have to be a hugely competent skier to pass, it’s more about developing and then demonstrating your ability to teach beginner to early intermediate skiers through spotting what they need to improve, creating drills for them and then giving them guided mileage.
When you take your CSIA Level 2 you will also have to show that you are a very competent skier in all terrain and snow conditions. It’s arguably the highest regarded Level 2 qualification; you will be qualified to work anywhere in world (with the exception of France, who almost only accept ESF trained instructors).
In the 2007/08 season we had a 44 year old participant called Sean on our 11 week course in Fernie. Opting not to take his Level 2, he managed to get a sponsored Canadian work visa to work the following season at Hemlock Valley BC (near Vancouver) with just his Level 1. He loves it so much he sometimes comes away from lessons “laughing because I can’t believe I’m getting paid for doing something so fun!”
He has been asked to come back to teach this season by the Ski School Director – and has gladly obliged…he’ll be sampling a bit of this in the next few months!
Want to find out more about Hemlock Valley? -> www.hemlockvalleyresort.com
NONSTOP run specifically designed 3 – 11 week Level 1 and 2 instructor programmes in Western Canada. You’ll get coaching from some of the most talented and experienced Level 3 and 4 instructors in country and ski the best of what the Canadian Rockies offer. With the combination of our reputation and your passion you’ll stand a very good chance of getting job offers if you want to instruct in the future. For more info why not check our new websites:
Skiers: www.nonstopski.com/ski-instructor-courses
Snowboarders: www.nonstopsnowboard.com/snowboard-instructor-courses
via nonstopski.com
Now, I am no expert on the weather but I feel pretty confident in saying that with the RECORD amounts of early snow that Canada is experiencing currently, it spells out a pretty awesome looking season!
Banff has received over 104cm of snow to date with 24cm falling in the last 24 hours! And check out the forecast for the next few days, it doesn’t look too shabby:
Fernie never fails to impress on the powder front and has seen a huge dump over the last week with 60-70cm of fresh sweet snow falling in the 72 hours! And again… the outlook looks just as good!
Red Mountain has also had 24cm of powdery snow in the last 24 hours with more on the way.
And finally, Whistler is said to have the biggest early snow fall to date. CHECK IT OUT:
Fancy getting out there yourself? Why not join us on a ski or snowboard course… If you haven’t got 6 – 11 weeks of free time, perhaps a 2 or 3-week course will surfice… check them out here:
If you ski: Click me!
If you snowboard: Click me!
And to all those lucky enough to be starting our 3-week instructor course in Banff today… enjoy the powder!
via nonstopski.com
What can I say about Jay Quintlin…He showed up at our shop back in 1990, and summited to us an impressive resume of his snowboarding abilities. He was like the east coast counter part to Jimmy Halopoff who had just won the California series. So we gave him a spot on the Shoreline team. If you recall Jimmy back in the day he was a bit wild, and would often have a little to much to drink and turn into Rocky Balboa. These antics we’re captured in the now classic “Whiskey” videos.
So if you thought the East coast Rappers vs the West coast rappers was over the top, It was East vs West Snowboarders that First went to blows. To make matters worse, poor Jay was way out numbered. There was kind of a make shift gang of South Lake Tahoe Snowboarders known as “The South Shore Posse” Just add Alcohol, and there was a good chance something stupid would happen. So being a bunch of insecure, overly competitive Snowboarders they did what made perfect sense to them at the time, They showed up at Jay’s house one day and packed up his belongings and ran him out of town. for real, this is the wild west and South Lake just wasn’t big enough for Jimmy and Jay….I only recall bits and pieces of this event, so those of you with more details feel free to add comments or correct my bad memory.
It was sometime later that Jay took on the nick name “Smokin Jay” I think it has something to do with how fast he left South Lake….or may-be women thought he was Hot! but in either case Smokin Jay continued his wild west adventure on the North shore of Lake Tahoe where the peaceful, fun loving locals excepted him as one of their own. It was there that Jay started making snowboards. Smokin Jay Snowboards humble beginnings 14 years ago started in a round about way on the Shoreline Snowboard team…..kind of…well I’m sure we helped with the nick name at least… Now simply called “Smokin Snowboards” Jay has built up his board’s demand by mirroring some of the characoristics found in boards made at the Mervin Manufacturing factory.
All kidding aside, I m very proud of Jay’s Success, American Made products are the best. I like what he has done, and we’re very happy to be selling his boards here at Shoreline of Tahoe. Let me take this time to apologes for the rough time you endured by a few locals, who didn’t realize how big snowboarding would become. The funny thing is many of those indiviguals have also made their mark in the snowboard industry, so I know forgivness is part of the Disfuctional family known as the Snowboard industry.
Mervin manufacturing has a long history of playing with words, a few years back, when Burton used the term “Carbon I beam” to describe a feature they had in some of their boards, Mervin the next year offered a whole line of price point decks under the name “Carbon High beam”. To my surprise, after selling about 100 of these boards, I found out that there was no carbon in the board. I said to the rep, how can you sell a board, called “carbon high beam” that has no carbon fiber in it? He told me its just a name, not an ingredient. Other word games from our friends at Mervin, “Tear Yea”
The Gnu Carbon Credit does nothing for the envirorment, except get you out into it for less money. Enjoy the great out doors for less on a brand new Gnu Carbon Credit, This is the best value on Banana Tech ever.
So we covered one of the most important parts about snowboarding and that’s keeping warm. Now let’s touch on what to eat while snowboarding.
When we are snowboarding we want to spend as much time as we can riding trails, glades and hitting up the park, not hitting up the lodge. So we pack snacks to eat. If your doing a strenuous activity such as snowboarding you don’t want to eat so much that you feel full because it may ruin the rest of your day. So here we are to offer ideas that you can try yourself.
First lets start with some education. During any kind of exercise your body produces an acid, called lactate acid, in your muscles. As you continue your activity this acid will continue to build and when your muscle tissue can no longer use it up fast enough, this acid causes cramping.
So the first thing you should know is that bananas are really high in potassium, about 400-450mg to be precise. Potassium has the ability to replenish what is needed to relieve cramping. The next thing you will want to know is how to keep your energy up. Apples are actually high in sugar and at roughly 20g they will have what you need to keep your energy levels up. The thing that most people don’t know about apples is that the real nutrition is in the skin of the apple which contains all the vitamins and fiber. The meat of the apple contains fiber but mostly naturally occurring sugar. You want to make sure that you eat the whole thing to get the vitamins plus the sugar. The last type of snack you will want is peanuts (unless you have allergies to them of course). Peanuts are packed with tons of protein and iron (a widely accepted replacement for red meat) and are also one of the few foods that can supply vitamin D. Overall your body really can’t do without protein. If you still need a boost in energy have a Snickers. I hoped that you find this helpful and if you have an idea of your own to share please feel free to do so.
via WhoaSnow
So it’s getting cold outside and by now I’m sure you have put your shorts away and started dressing for the weather. So I thought I would revive a past post from Boards and Decks for anyone who hasn’t read this yet. Obviously everyone knows how to stay warm by piling on the layers, but we are going to focus on staying warm by actually cutting down the layers, which in turn will increase your mobility while you’re boarding.
With one good pair of snowboarding socks and boots your feet should be warm. Don’t double or triple up the socks to keep those toes warm because it will make your feet colder. If one good pair of snowboarding socks isn’t working then try some toe warmers. If your hands get cold, hand warmer inserts are always good or a pair of GORE-TEX® gloves.
Now for your body. GORE-TEX® is perfect because it is very breathable and traps the warmth against your body while keeping you dry. The problem most people don’t know is that too much of it ruins the effect. GORE-TEX® works by creating a heat zone between itself and your body by allowing the moisture to escape while keeping you warm and dry underneath, but if you have two layers of GORE-TEX® then that barrier is ruined. The inside layer wont be able to get the moisture away from your body and in turn the wetness will start to chill from the outside temps thus making you colder. So if your jacket or pants already have GORE-TEX® in them then don’t worry about another layer, but if they don’t, then a layer against your body and a good sweatshirt will be plenty to keep you toasty warm on the coldest mountains. If you’re still cold then you probably aren’t snowboarding hard enough.
via WhoaSnow
Nothing has changed here on the east coast lately.. and by that I mean there is only one mountain open: Sunday River. A few weeks ago mother nature brought us cold temps and even some snow, but that changed as temperatures reached almost 70 over the past weekend, melting away the snow along with the hopes and dreams of boarders along these waters.
However, with 4 trails open Sunday River is still going strong since October 14th! While Bretton Woods and Mount Snow did open for a few days here and there, they have both closed again due to unfavorable conditions.
Alas.. Sunday River is 3 and a half hours away from my humble abode. I’ve been avoiding the ride, hoping other resorts were soon to follow. Days passed, temperatures rose, anticipation grew and now I am thinking of sacking up and going for a road trip. It’s hard to justify 7 hours of driving for less than a handful of trails, so we will see what happens.
Not only that, but many mountains such as Okemo and Loon that were scheduled to open this weekend have been forced to delay. The worst part is we all remember riding pow this time last year!
So for all you west coast boarders out there, sprinkle a little snow for your east coast brothers who are all twiddling their thumbs, checking the snow reports and praying for a cold breeze.
via WhoaSnow
