Red Mountain 11 Week Ski Instructor Course ‘07 – Week 6
Week 6 was the week of our level 1 examinations. We had our first real snow fall for a couple of weeks on the Sunday which was most welcome but poorly timed since we wouldn’t really get to enjoy it! The skiers started their course on Monday while the snowboarders started theirs on Tuesday.
There were endless debates as to why the skier’s course lasted 4 days while the snowboarders only took 3. Some mentioned that the skiers might need an extra day because they needed more time to take everything in. Others hypothesized that the snowboarders couldn’t mentally or physically manage an extra day. In any case, I’m reliably informed that the snowboarders spent the Monday studiously practising their level 1 maneuvers and totally not playing in the powder!
The beginning of the course was mainly learning teaching methods and ski improvement. I think that many of us found the first two days the most nerve wracking and gained confidence as the week went on.
On Wednesday we had a day off which most of us used to practice our demonstrations as well as having a bit of fun. The last two days were focused on the teaching element; with everyone teaching each other in mock lessons. We were being evaluated all week so there was a lot of serious time until Friday where we got our results.
We all passed…Yeah!
We celebrated that night with another party at…yes, Red House! As with all Red House parties it was a lot of fun as we celebrated our new qualifications: In the words of one participant when talking about the Red House parties, “its great! You can go there and get totally wasted and still be the most sober one in the house.”
At the weekend some of us went on a trip to Spokane in the US to watch some ice hockey and do some shopping. Apparently those that went enjoyed themselves immensely. The rest of us spent the weekend nursing hangovers, relaxing, skiing and building a kicker in the backcountry.
All in all a good week, the only bad thing that there’s only 5 weeks left.
