Week-by-week in Banff

Our 11 week instructor course in Banff gives you expert coaching across Banff’s three resorts: Lake Louise, Sunshine Village and Mount Norquay. You’ll be out on the hill every day, developing your riding and teaching to achieve your CSIA/CASI Level 1 qualification, followed by CSIA/CASI Level 2 or All Mountain Pro (AMP).

Living in Banff, you’ll spend the winter in one of Canada’s best party towns surrounded by the Rocky Mountains. To truly maximise your time here, you can get involved in everything from avalanche safety training and road trips, to bonfire campouts and heli skiing/boarding through our MORE program. Here’s a week-by-week guide on what to expect.

Part 1: weeks 1-5

Level 1 CSIA/CASI training is everyone’s focus in the first five weeks. You’ll develop both your personal riding and teaching skills, using drills, video analysis and peer-teaching to gain a solid on-snow foundation both on and off piste. Coaching sessions take place in all three Banff resorts, which we rotate between based on snow conditions and objectives. Off the slopes, you’ll be settling into life on Banff Avenue and waking up to Rocky Mountain views will feel like second nature.

Week 1

Welcome to Canada! Jump on our group transfer from Calgary to Banff and meet the whole Nonstop crew during our Welcome Dinner. You’ll discover our favourite Banff hangouts during a tour of the town, and we’ll host an equipment workshop to help you decide which kit to buy for the season ahead. On-snow, the first few days are about getting comfortable, having fun and finding your snow legs. We’ll give you a guided tour of Mount Norquay, Sunshine Village and Lake Louise, and we’ll start look at your riding and basic technique with post-session video analysis.

CSIA/CASI Level 1

• Tech talk: equipment seminar
• On-snow tour of the Big 3
• Basic technique coaching and video analysis

MORE options

• Curling – Don your slider shoes, grab a broom and go curling on Banff’s local rink. You might just get hooked on a whole new winter sport.
• Helicopter tour – Chopper over the Rocky Mountains and pick-out the backcountry lines you’ll be owning by the end of the season.

Week 2

Now you’ve settled in, it’s time to get stuck into your Level 1 training. Week two is about nailing the fundamentals, with a focus on stance. You’ll iron out other bad habits through drills and video analysis, discovering how subtle adjustments can make a big difference. We’ll also introduce you to basic CSAI/CASI techniques on easy groomed slopes. When you’re not on the snow, you could be flipping tricks in the foam pit or expanding your snow-how at this week’s tech talk on staying injury-free.

CSIA/CASI Level 1

• On-snow fundamentals – stance
• Technique drills and video analysis
• CSIA/CASI teaching approach
• Tech talk: staying injury-free

MORE Program options

• Yoga – Our weekly sessions get underway to help you to avoid injury, build strength and recover from big days on the hill. Aimed at all abilities.
• Snowmobiling – Discover nearby Panorama resort and get fully initiated into Canadian culture by charging through powder beneath the Purcell Mountains.
• Johnston Canyon Walk – Enter a world of blue ice as you crunch through this jaw-dropping limestone canyon, complete with frozen waterfalls.

Week 3

Your CSAI/CASI training really takes-off now. Get ready to challenge yourself on steeper pitches and trickier snow conditions, and we’ll begin a series of one-to-one sessions to sharpen your personal riding skills. You’ll also learn how to demonstrate correct CASI/CSIA teaching techniques for beginner turns. Our tech session on ski/snowboard tuning will broaden your technical skill set, and we’ll look ahead at your training options: CSIA/CASI Level 2, AMP (All Mountain Pro), and additional qualifications like Race Coach and Snow Park.

CSIA/CASI Level 1

• One-to-one development coaching
• How to teach CASI/CSIA beginner turns
• Tech talk: ski/snowboard tuning
• Intro to CSIA/CASI Level 2, AMP, Race Coach and Snow Park courses

MORE PROGRAM OPTIONS 

• Avalanche Safety Training Level 1 – Boost your resume and backcountry skills by getting certified in avalanche safety. Essential if off-piste is on your agenda.

Week 4

The final week before your Level 1 exam, you’ll be dialling your technique on and off -piste, and our private coaching sessions continue to get everyone up to standard. You’ll be getting as much teaching practice in as possible, with simulated lessons and scenarios. Our CSIA/CASI Level 1 theory talk adds to your knowledge-base, getting you fully ready to nail your exam. You’ll be riding with real confidence now and will be set for one of the biggest highlights of the winter – our backcountry cat skiing/boarding day at abandoned Fortress Mountain.

CSIA/CASI Level 1

• On and off -piste riding practice
• One-to-one development coaching
• Simulated lessons and Level 1 scenarios
• Tech talk: CSIA/CASI Level 1 theory

MORE Program options

• Cat skiing/boarding – Like heli-skiing/boarding but with more drops. Head uphill in a snowcat, pick your line and charge through untracked powder.

Week 5

Held at Sunshine Village, your three-day CASI/CSIA exam is challenging but a lot of fun too. Teaching and riding are assessed in two parts – pass both and you’ll be qualified to teach beginners in Canada, the UK and Australia. Nonstop has a 100% pass rate. We’ll celebrate your success with a big Nonstop end-of-exam party. Next up: choosing your focus for the next six weeks, whether that’s Level 2 CSIA/CASI training or the All Mountain Pro (non-teaching) route.

CSIA/CASI Level 1

• 3-day CASI/CASI Level 1 exam
• Level 1 Nonstop party
• Choose your next focus: CSIA/CASI Level 2 or AMP

MORE Program options

• Marble Canyon snowshoe tour – Discover a 40-metre deep gorge and look for wolf and moose tracks as you explore Kootenay National Park, just south of Banff.

Part 2: weeks 6-11

You’ll be cruising around with your head held a little higher now – you’re a qualified instructor! Coaching will take place in two groups from now on: CSIA/CASI Level 2 or All Mountain Pro (AMP). CSIA/CASI Level 2 has a bigger emphasis on teaching skills than Level 1, while AMP focuses on personal riding only. Off the snow, you’ll still be hanging out as a group and, by now, Banff will feel like a second home – you’ll know the bar staff by name, and you’ll have the inside track on all the secret pow stashes.

Week 6

You’ll have a couple of days off to freeride and relax before your CSIA/CASI Level 2 or AMP training begins. The CSAI/CASI Level 2 group starts with practical teaching sessions, dynamic performance coaching and carving techniques. You’ll also have the option to train for your CSIA/CASI Park Course qualification at Lake Louise. In the AMP group, you’ll be honing your carving skills and speed control as you explore the whole mountain. Towards the end of the week, the AMP Stage 1 ride-off goes down, assessing your drop-ins, free runs and more.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Practical on-snow teaching development
• Dynamic performance and carving
• CSIA/CASI Park Course (optional)

All Mountain Pro

• Carving, dynamic performance, speed control
• Stage 1 ride-off

MORE Program options

• NHL ice hockey – Experience the apex of Canadian ice hockey when we take a road trip to cheer on the Calgary Flames.
• Dog sledding – Mush through the wilderness, passing iced forests and soaring peaks as you’re pulled by a pack of huskies with names like Megatron and Thor.

Week 7

All-terrain expertise is a focus for both Level 2 and AMP this week. You’ll tackle steeper pitches, narrower chutes and deeper powder, ready for our weekend trip to Revelstoke. For Level 2s, teaching and riding go hand-in-hand as you learn the best practice for moguls, off-piste and short radius turns, before teaching these skills yourself. You’ll complete a Teaching Children module and our ‘Working as an Instructor’ workshop gets you thinking more about your future in snowsports. For AMP-ers, your riding reaches new heights as you hone your short radius turns and backcountry skills through focussed coaching, video-analysis and expert feedback.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Moguls, off-piste and short radius turns
• Teaching Children module
• Tech talk: Working as an Instructor

All Mountain Pro

• Moguls, off-piste and short radius turns
• Exploring the whole mountain

MORE Program options

• Revelstoke weekend trip – Put your steep and deep skills to the test as you shred through legendary Selkirk powder on America’s longest lift-serviced vertical.

Week 8

This week adds to your arson of on-snow skills by developing your all-mountain expertise, ready for the Nonstop heli trip. In the Level 2 group, you’ll expand your knowledge of CSIA/CASI teaching methodology and refine your all-terrain prowess. Skiers with a thirst for speed can complete the CSCF Race Coach Level 1 qualification. In the AMP group, you’ll focus on trees and glades, choosing your lines tactically and developing a better awareness of your personal performance.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Developing your CSIA/CASI teaching methodology
• All-mountain expertise and thinking like a teacher
• CSCF Race Coach course (optional)

All Mountain Pro

• Trees and glades
• Personal performance development

MORE Program options

• Heli skiing/boarding – Chopper over the Rockies and let loose on Banff’s virgin powder. This is the moment you’ve been waiting for all winter.
• Cross-country skiing – Ditch the lifts, tune-in to nature and glide silently through the snow as you discover a whole new discipline.
• Hot springs social – Lie back in 38°C waters, gaze up at the Rocky Mountains and let the natural minerals work their magic in Banff’s historic springs.

Week 9

You’ll feel competent on a huge range of terrain types and snow conditions by now, and our one-on-one sessions will maximise every opportunity for personal progression. In the Level 2 group, you’ll be fine-tuning your demonstration technique, student feedback and communication skills, getting your CASI/CASI teaching approach right up to scratch. Bumps and jumps are the AMP focus for week nine – you’ll be picking the best lines and perfecting your landings. By the end of the week, everyone will be ready to take on some of Canada’s most extreme terrain on our Kicking Horse Mountain Resort trip.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Teaching skills, including student communication
• One-to-one development coaching

All Mountain Pro

• Bumps and jumps
• One-to-one development coaching

MORE Program options

• Kicking Horse trip – This hardcore mountain has more black and double black diamond runs than any other grades, plus epic ridges, chutes and champagne powder.
• Bonfire night – But not as you know it. Take a sunset drive into the wilderness, followed by stargazing, S’mores and, of course, a very Canadian bonfire.

Week 10

One week to go before your Level 2 exam or AMP evaluation, it’s time for that final push towards your goals – whether that’s becoming a Level 2 instructor or getting big air. Level 2s will be tuning their teaching demos, while our theory talk helps to consolidate the exam requirements. For AMP-ers, it’s time to pull out all the stops as you learn to guide. You’ll be tackling tighter lines off-piste and dropping bigger than ever. Our AMP talk is a chance to review your progress and look towards the future.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Final teaching and riding practice
• Level 2 theory talk
• One-to-one development coaching

All Mountain Pro

• Focus on getting air and riding tighter lines (trees and chutes)
• AMP progression talk and review
• One-to-one development coaching (continued)

MORE Program options

• Tunnel Mountain trek – Summit Banff’s smallest peak, hiking along a switchback trail from downtown to the top of Tunnel Mountain for epic views over Banff National Park.

Week 11

The last official week of the program, it’s Level 2 CASI/CSIA exam and AMP assessment time. Level 2s can expect a two-day training module followed by two-days of assessed training. You’ll be evaluated on your teaching and riding and, when you pass both, you’ll be qualified to teach internationally in places like Japan, New Zealand and Switzerland. If you’re not quite ready for the exam, you can always take it later if you’ve extended your stay to max out the season. This week’s AMP coaching heads over to Delirium Dive – an extreme off-piste area with some of North America’s steepest lines. For the AMP Stage 2 ride-off, you’ll be riding some of the Big 3s best terrain. This epic final week culminates with an almighty Nonstop Graduation Party and Farewell Dinner.

CSIA/CASI Level 2

• Two-day Level 2 training module
• Two-day Level 2 assessment
• Graduation party

All Mountain Pro

• Extreme off-piste in Delirium Dive
• AMP Stage 2 ride-off

Sign up

Like the sound of training across Lake Louise, Sunshine Village and Mount Norquay on your way to becoming a qualified Level 2 instructor? Sign up for our ski instructor course / snowboard instructor course, or get in touch with our team.