Fernie 3 week Level 1 Instructor Course Dec 2015 - Powder Days!

What an incredible 3 weeks we’ve just wrapped up with our 3 week Level 1 Instructor program in Fernie; for some of the crew it’s time to go home, but for the rest, the adventure has only just begun!

This course is a great option for those who want to improve their skiing or snowboarding, get qualified and stay on to work (or play!) for the season. One particularly lucky group of the participants arrives with a guaranteed job with Fernie Alpine Resort Winter Sports School that starts the day after the course finishes, so they are earning throughout the busy holiday period. For the rest who are looking for work once qualified, they benefit from Nonstop’s great connections with Fernie Alpine Resort and its parent company RCR that open the door to work for the season and beyond. Housing is also set up before arrival, so there’s no stress trying to find a place to live mid-season in a busy ski town.

The participants on this course get to ski and board with our top instructors; Jens, Wendy, Jono and Clarence, who ensure that the crew is over-prepared for their Level 1 exam in the third week and also provide references and connections to resorts world-wide.

The first week on-snow, our newly arrived Nonstoppers focused on their technique and started looking at some of the teaching skills they’d take into their exam and work as ski and snowboard instructors. In the time off-snow they were all kept busy with learning how to care for their new gear in tuning and waxing tech sessions, as well as how to avoid injury to themselves. There was a trip to the local Ghostriders game to experience that very Canadian sport of ice-hockey and learn some of the local chants and heckling! Winter camping provided another uniquely Canadian way to experience the mountains for those brave enough to spend a night in a snow cave!

Week two brought a massive change to the snow conditions with a week of powder snow days that was very distracting for the crew and their exam prep! The incredible terrain and snow conditions are exactly why people from all over the world come to Fernie, and our crew of Nonstoppers were not disappointed.

This week’s Canadian experience was at the curling rink where everyone donned the slippers, took up their brooms and sent the stones down the ice in a hilarious, if not heated, competition. Tristan and Victor finished the night with a spectacular display of 360 deliveries.

For those with work visas and intentions, there was a trip to Cranbrook to collect SIN cards, a necessary step before starting work in Canada. RCR also ran a tech session on the working life of an instructor, as well as a job fair for those who didn’t already have jobs.

With the Level 1 instructor exam done and dusted in week three, the newly employed instructors were straight into it with staff training, while the rest of the group celebrated with a day of cat-skiing at Fernie Wilderness Adventures! Cat-skiing is a real highlight of anyone’s trip to Fernie and for this group of lucky Nonstoppers, there was the added excitement of fresh snowfall to broaden the grins; a truly epic experience!

For those keen to continue their instructor education, there was the option to take the Children’s Module, which is a stepping stone to the Level 2 Ski Instructor exam. Taking it straight away keeps the momentum rolling, and allows the preparations for Level 2 to begin with focus.

Week three also coincided with Christmas, and the farewell dinner with Christmas dinner, where everyone celebrated the snowfall, passed exams and new ski-buddies with Christmas treats, drinks and a Naughty Santa gift exchange!

Come and join us in Canada this season for some fun, snow-filled times! Join the 3 week Level 1 Instructor Course in Fernie (ski or snowboard), one of our other instructor courses at Banff or Red Mountain, or check out our holidays and camps.