2-Week Improvement Course Diary

I’m Ben, 32 and a skier and have recently completed the Nonstop 2 Week Improvement Course in Fernie. I’m now taking a few extra days at the end of the holiday to consolidate on what I’ve learned. This is my account of my time here...

Week One

I was attracted to the 2 Week Improvement Course as I’m passionate about my skiing but felt I wasn’t really going anywhere with my one week a year in the Alps, so I wanted to take it to the next level, with a group of similarly minded people. I didn’t want a job at the end of it so the concept of two weeks of pure skiing lessons with free time to consolidate on what I’d learned seemed ideal. I was initially nervous about how the group dynamics would play out in terms of mix of ages, abilities and backgrounds, but that was soon laid to rest as I met another member of the group at the airport and quickly settled into a few icebreaking beverages ahead of the flight. It was going to be a good couple of weeks.

The first day focused on sorting our gear, finding our legs and getting ready for lessons the following day by putting in some mileage on the astonishingly empty Fernie slopes. The group had started to bond already and we ripped around the mountain sharing stories on the lifts and hammering down the diverse range of runs in the huge ski area (or so I thought at the time). The evening welcome meal introduced us to the generously sized North American portions and the high quality food we would come to expect in the Red Tree Lodge’s restaurant over the course of the next few weeks. The group prepared admirably for the following day’s lessons by making a heavy dent in the restaurant’s alcohol stocks whilst sharing stories from our remarkably diverse backgrounds.

The first week’s lessons really took us back to basics, focusing on our balance and body position, with the impressive instructors taking us through a series of linked drills to iron out the bad techniques we’d all picked up on over time. At the end of the second day, I was already skiing tough terrain with more confidence and control. We continued to bond as a group and most evenings a large proportion of the group would head out to a Fernie nightspot to reminisce on the day and consume some of the tasty local beverages. It was a tiring week, but spirits were high and we’d all noticed some major improvements in our technique.



The weekend presented to opportunity for rest for some of the group, whilst others put in mileage to solidify what they’d learned. Everyone was looking forward to week two.

Week two

Lessons began again on Monday morning, with the groups re-cut based on ability level and desire to really attack the slopes. The second week of lessons focused on specific topics in the morning (carving, bumps, short turns), whilst the afternoons allowed you to cover terrain with the instructors to put into practice what we’d learned. The improvement in our skiing and boarding ability from week 1 was noticeable and we were now ripping down challenging runs with more confidence, control and, importantly, style.

On the Friday, several of us went Cat Skiing (think heli-skiing in a big snow-mobile) where we experienced real back country skiing in deep snow for the first time. The day was challenging, but rewarding and the feeling of skiing on virgin snow through trees is unlike anything you’ll likely experience in Europe (photos below).







The group continued to hit it off and real friendships formed over the course of the week. We continued to eat and socialise together every night and there was genuine emotion when the group split to go our separate ways on the Saturday morning.



I’m leaving Fernie in a couple of days and I will be genuinely sad to go. The people I’ve met have been an excellent bunch and I’ve had some amazing experiences in my time here. The course is both well structured, organised and facilitated by some great people and several of us will look to come back to do a longer course, maybe not next year, but in the years to come.

Want a holiday with a difference? Get in touch and we'll make it happen!