I've been a little slow on my reading, but Skiing Magazine's December issue has a top 50 things every skier should do in their life. A pretty interesting list, with one close to my heart; be a ski bum.
They list ways to become a ski bum and one of the big no no's is becoming an instructor. Their reasoning being that first year instructors spend their time picking 4 year old off the ground. I can only disagree with this statement slightly. I've worked in both a corporate and individually owned resort, and their behaviors are drastically different. In a corporately owned resort there is the hierarchy of teaching, which can be identified by the first year students get the 4 year old with better classes going to more senior instructors. In the individually owned resort it can be summed up pretty much as a free for all (first available teacher to student, etc).
The trick to bypassing this crunch is a little forethought. A year before you think of becoming a ski bum, work a job part time as the instructor. Use that time to achieve your PSAI or AASI Level 1 certs, which can then be used anywhere else you'd wish to teach at. This should get you past the first year newbie setup and also help you feel a little more confident if the need arises to demand different clients.
Stories from the front line of the snowsport industry
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2 comments:
I certainly remember my first year. Bear Mtn in BigBear, CA. We rotated between kids and adults. Adults had 3 - 1 1/2 hr lesson opportunities for mid to upper levels. Or 2 - 2.5 hr teaching opportunities for beginners. or 1- 6hr for kids. And what to get paid. $5.50/hr. Crazy.
Well I remember wanting to teach kids for the $32 bucks a day.
I like Alpengluhen's advise. For your first year or two teach part-time get certified and get priority.
Fortunately things are better for me these days.
keep posting,
Jon
www.mysnowpro.com/jonathanlawson
Wow, I'm not sure I could imagine handling a 6 hour lesson with children.
While the pay isn't much different at my resort, the rotations are drastically different. One or two hour private lessons with any age (5+ for skiing, 7+ for snowboarding). Group classes run at 1.5 hours with thankfully smaller groups (typically 7 students) than other resorts I've worked for (or taken lessons at).
Oh yeah there is a kids session that gets you $33 for the day, it's 3 hours with the child. A lunch, and a rest period.
We also have a "bonus" point system based upon the class type, length, and request status.
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