Events to look out for in March

What a month! Tahoe resorts received up to 300  inches (That’s about 25 feet) of snow in February alone, according to the Opensnow report . Not bad for the shortest month of the year.

Photo courtesy of Sierra at Tahoe, February 2019

Many resorts have broken records for biggest February in recorded history. The average February snowfall for Tahoe is 72 inches (6 feet). This year was close to triple that. Some resorts have even broken the record for the biggest snowfall month, beating out the unforgettable January 2017.

Sitting at close to 200% of our average snowfall for this time of year, we’re in for an epic spring. (if it ever stops snowing!) What a great time to earn your education credits, take an exam, or get an accreditation.

Here are some of the events to look out for in March 2019:

 

March 13th: Cross Country level 2 and 3 exams at Tahoe Donner XC center

The Level 1 is on March 17th ay Tahoe XC

March 16th – 17th: Alpine and snowboard level 1 exams at Snow Summit

March 17th: Cross Country level 1 exam at Tahoe XC

March 18th: Spring Session Education Rally in Mammoth (all disciplines)

This is a one-day education event at Mammoth. You can earn continuing education credits, work on your own skiing/riding, or prepare for an upcoming exam.

March 19th -20th : All level Alpine and Snowboard exams

This is a great opportunity to hone your skills at Spring Session the day before your test. Exams will be offered for Alpine and Snowboard level 1, ski/ride level 2 and 3, and level 2 and 3 teach.

March 20th -21st : Senior Specialists level 1 and 2 at Northstar

This accreditation is for members of all ages looking to learn the best techniques for teaching senior skiers and snowboarders. Successful Cantidates will receive a senior specialist pin.

March 30th-31st : All level Alpine and Snowboard exams

 

And remember, its never too early to start planning for Spring Convention coming April 26th -30th , at Mammoth Mountain. Look out for more information in our Spring 2019 Edge newsletter coming mid- March. You’ll find a schedule, guest clinician highlights, party information, and more!

Veteran’s Reunion Lake Tahoe 2019

Join us again this year for the weekend of March 23 & 24, 2019 at Sierra At Tahoe!

The event is a chance for veterans and active military to spend a weekend in the Lake Tahoe area. This is an opportunity for those who have served to reconnect with fellow vets from past and present conflicts. The event is designed to provide an opportunity to reconnect with first responders and rehabilitation personnel from your past in a healthy and supportive place far from the battlefield.

The mountains of the Lake Tahoe area are full of beauty that can help heal the body and spirit. There will be multiple venues for those who come to enjoy this wonderful place.

  • Free lift tickets will be offered at Sierra at Tahoe resort for all veterans or active military with ID or some kind.
  • Limited free lift tickets are available for veteran families on an individual basis. Contact event organizer Jim Cahill at jimcskiguy@gmail.com for more information.
  • Strawberry Lodge is offering discounted room rates Friday and Saturday nights
  • Snowshoeing and snow play areas at Sierra at Tahoe will also be available to families of the attendees.
  • Discount snowmobile tours and rentals from Lake Tahoe Adventures

Take the Operation Rebound Nordic Challenge on the morning of March 23rd by climbing up to Grandview over the 5 mile course then down to the ski school bell at the base. Free lift ticket with online tax deductible donation of $50 to Operation Rebound. Learn more about them here.

You will be required to present your active military ID or if you are a veteran,You will need to present your California drivers license with veterans designation, DD 214, military ID or a Veterans Administration ID to validate your veteran status.
For details on these activities and instructions for signing up click here.

Full information on the Veteran’s Reunion can be found at http://veteransreunionlaketahoe.com

NorCal Winter Rally

It’s time to rally!

The PSIA/AASI-W NorCal Winter Rally is upon us, hosted at Sugarbowl, California this January 13th-14th! Come connect with friends, earn some educational credits, and ride with our elite guest clinicians and athletes! Peek all the important information on the flyer below, and we hope to see you at Sugarbowl!

 

norcalrallyflyer

(Hover over the image to click to page 2)

PSIA-AASI National Team Tryouts

2020 maybe a year away, but it will bring with it new faces, new vision, and a new National Team!

Information on the next National Team Selection was recently released, and preparation and training for National Team doesn’t start next winter, it starts NOW.

PSIA/AASI-W will post additional Western information related to the nomination process on January 15th. If you have any interest in learning more about the National Team selection process, please fill out the form below. You may also find more information about the tryout and the application packet at the link below.

Tryout Information and Application Packet

PSIA-AASI Western National Team Tryout Nomination Application

  • Max. file size: 256 MB.
    Provide us with an outline of your motivation for advancing your snowsports journey at the Divisional or National Level.
  • Max. file size: 256 MB.
    Provide us with your Resume Highlighting your ski industry accomplishments
  • Max. file size: 256 MB.

Women’s Summit 2019

Ladies! (Ski and snowboard) This year Women’s summit is January 15-17, 2019 at Steamboat Springs, CO! Interested?

 

Graduate Assistantship in Snowsports Education

If you’ve been looking for the chance to combine a love of snowsports with academics, then take a look at this opportunity from PennState University!

PennState has been collaborating with the PSIA-AASI to create this Assistantship for graduate students seeking a Masters or Ph.D. in Recreation and Park and Tourism Management. This is a fantastic opportunity for students with a passion for snowsports to put that energy toward higher education.

Check out the attached document for more information!

GA Advert Snowsports November 2018

 

Video Series – Beginner’s Guide to Skiing

Winter is on the way, so Halley O’Brien and Eric Lipton of PSIA and Snow Operating bring you a three-part video series on learning to ski to share with your friends, new-hires, and students alike!

The first video will show you all about the gear you’ll need to to start your day of skiing right!

 

 

Continue on with the second video, where Halley and Eric show you how to stand up, climb, and glide.

 

 

Top it off with the final video to learn how to turn, how to stop, and how to ride the chairlift.

 

 

Winter is soon to arrive,  so use these videos to share the excitement of skiing with your fellow instructors and students! See you on the hill!

The Snowboard Level 1 E-learning Course

Snowboarders now have a level 1 E-learning course. It is free to members and will be a pre-requisite to signing up for the Snowboard level 1 exam.

Welcome to PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level I Certification online course. The following course is designed to be completed prior to attending the on-snow portion of the Level I Exam.

FREE TO MEMBERS. This is the PSIA-AASI Snowboard Level I Certification Prerequisite E-Learning course. The following course is designed to be completed prior to attending the on-snow portion of the Level I Exam. You must be a PSIA-AASI member to add this course to your cart and check out.

Beginner’s Guide to Snowboarding – Three Part Video Series

Halley O’Brien and Chris Rogers of Snow Operating and the AASI teamed up to create a three-part video series to show new snowboarders what to expect on their first day riding. Share these videos with your new-hire instructors, your beginner riders, or that friend or family member you’ve been begging to try snowboarding this season.

The first video covers everything a new rider needs to know about gear, from how their boots should fit to their riding stance.

 

The second video covers the basic movements of snowboarding, including skating, gliding, and standing up.

 

The last video in the series introduces how to move up and down the mountain. You’ll find in tips on how to stop, slip, perform garlands, and how to use the chairlift.

 

 

Snow will be flying soon, use this video series to set up our new riders for success!

The New Teaching Snowsports Manual

The manual is now available for purchase here

New ‘Teaching Snowsports Manual’: Q&A with Dave Schuiling

A new Teaching Snowsports Manual will be available for purchase next month. This teaching resource brings to life PSIA-AASI’s Learning Connection components of people skills, teaching skills, and technical skills.

Included is critical advice on communication, interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, effective teaching, and how people learn; as well as a practical, multi-discipline approach to presenting technical material. A perfect companion to the Core Concepts for Snowsports Instructors, the Teaching Snowsports Manual is a must-have education resources for all snow pros, regardless of the discipline you teach or lesson specialty.

Here, PSIA-AASI Director of Education Dave Schuiling discusses how this new manual will complement your teaching.

Why is the new ‘Teaching Snowsports Manual’ so important?
It is what we do! We share our passion for snowsports with others and work to create a spark for learning. The new manual is full of practical teaching applications and is framed in the Learning Connection, focusing on skills that make a well-balanced teacher: people skills, teaching skills and technical skills. It also goes deeper into a holistic approach for setting yourself up for success as a snowsports educator, with additional chapters on managing risk, sports psychology, physical fitness and conditioning, service relationships, and professional development.

How will it help PSIA-AASI members deliver a better lesson?
The Learning Connection is the heart of professional development; it’s what helps instructors develop skills that create the ultimate learning environment. Technical knowledge and ability can only get you so far in developing a deep connection with the student that ignites learning. Teaching Snowsports begins at the core of creating a meaningful connection with development of interpersonal skills. Greater trust provides the gateway for enhanced teaching skills to complement your technical knowledge. A greater awareness of the learning environment that is being created between the student, others, and you is what makes a better lesson.

How will it help snowsports school directors provide better training?
Teaching Snowsports beautifully complements the timeless resource Core Concepts, as it brings to life many of the models and concepts instructors use daily. The new manual also embodies ideals for key job skills that schools value in “creating lifelong adventures through education” with their guests. It’s a training resource and a professional development resource guide for schools to build their instructor training curriculum.

What does this add to how we, as an association, talk about teaching?
The Learning Connection identifies skills that have been developed into Fundamentals of people, teaching, and technical skills. Further development of Fundamentals of people and teaching skills ground all of us in a common foundational language that is easy to grasp and build from, with more experience and training. You’re starting to hear more and more to make sure everything you teach can relate back to a fundamental. It helps to keep the learning linked back to a purpose, and to keep the learning outcomes in sight and within reach.

Some talented people worked hard to bring this manual to fruition. What did its creation look like behind the scenes?
It was a massive effort that combined research and development from many sources and influential subject matter experts. Kudos to project managers and lead authors Ellen Post Foster and Rob Sogard who made it all happen and brought all contributions into a unified voice. They called on several writers to focus on specific chapters, and had a large group of reviewers for technical accuracy of the content. A few photo/video shoots last season helped complement the written words with awesome photos and videos that bring the content to life. As always, Wendy Schrupp, executive editor of PSIA-AASI (and celebrating 25 years with our association!) helped review, edit, prepare, and produce the manual for the designer.

How will it inform the PSIA-AASI Interski 2019 Presentation?|
It is the foundation and core of our Interski indoor lectures and on-snow workshops. As it is outlined in the Learning Connection, it will be referenced in everything we do. At Interski 2015 in Ushuaia, Argentina, we posed the question: “What is great teaching?” to our peers from around the snowsports education world. The Teaching Snowsports manual is our answer to that question following four years of countless hours of research and development of what we believe creates deeper learning. We’re excited to share it with everyone!

This information can also be found here on the National website