Snow Pro
WINTER 2014
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2 PRESIDENT’S REPORT 3 JAPAN CALENDAR 4 GENERAL MANAGER’S REPORT 5 TREASURER’S REPORT 9 TREASURER’S BIOGRAPHY 11 ALPINE 13 WHAT IS INTERSKI? 15 MEET THE DEMO TEAM 17 SNOWBOARD 19 APSI PARTY 23 TELEMARK 25 NORDIC 26 ADAPTIVE 27 SOCIAL PAGES 29 SODERGREN SCHOLARSHIP REPORT 31 EXAM RESULTS 33 HOW TO UPDATE YOUR INFO 40 MY TRAINING PHILOSOPHY 41 SPONSORS & PARTNERS 43 OFFICE NOTES
SnowPro is the official newsletter of the Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors Inc.
Please address all correspondence to: APSI PO Box 131 Jindabyne NSW 2627 Phone: 02 6456 1255 Email: apsi@apsi.net.au
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What a great season we’ve had, smiling faces visiting me at our new office and sunny ski days with friends! At this year’s AGM we farewelled Marty Firle (Resort’s Rep), Jason Clauscen (Snowboard TD) and Warren Feakes (Treasurer) from the board and welcomed Dive Burton, Adam Federico and Deborah Meehan in their places. A big thank you needs to be extended to these guys for volunteering so much of their time to help the association. Warren will continue on the board as Nordic TD and the new recruits have been settling in to their roles and have some great ideas for the future. We had a wonderful fundraising night for the demo team at the Wild Brumby in September. Thank you to everyone that was able to come along and help support the team and hopefully we will be able to make it a more regular event. You may have noticed a change to
the shop this season. A while back, the board tasked us with trying to find a way to limit purchasing through the shop to current members only. Well, with a background platform upgrade (thanks Greg!) we were finally able to do that. Now, if you go to the shop you can only register for courses or exams, access pro-deals and receive member pricing if you have paid your membership fees and have logged in. I would like to ask you to please update your contact details. It is important that we have your phone number in case we need to contact you urgently, there have been instances where course dates or locations have changed and I haven’t been able to get in touch with the candidates. Your mailing address is important to make sure you receive your membership card (we get a lot of ‘return to sender’ mail) but also because we have decided to return to printing a physical snowpro before each season! If we don’t have your current address, you may not receive your copy. I’ve included information on page. 41 on how to update your details. Early bird memberships ($95 instead of $120) are now available for 2015. Early bird prices will only be available until December 31, so don’t forget! Finally, a thank you to Andy and the technical director’s for their support and not getting too irritated when I ask them for something right now! Also to you, the members for your commitment to training and the APSI. I hope you all have a wonderful summer/ winter wherever that may be and I look forward to seeing you all again next year! Cheers, Lexi
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President’s Report
Mark Dixon
and everyone else who has been involved of the making and production process. A great fundraiser was held at the Wild Brumby it was a fantastic turn out of old and new APSI Members. Thanks again for everyone’s support.
Well what a winter! Very busy and lots of snow, which is exactly what our industry needed after the last couple of seasons. I hope you enjoyed the awesome snow. The APSI is in a good financial position leading into the 2015 season, this is always good news to announce and I believe the APSI Board and the Executive Board have worked well together, which makes the decision making more effective and streamlines the whole process. We also need to welcome and thank our new Board Members - Dive Burton from Mt Buller as our Resort Representative, and Deborah Meehan as our new Treasurer. It has been a very big year with the new successful Snowboard and Alpine teaching manuals. They look fantastic and are very user friendly. Big thank you to both TD`s, the Technical Committee members, Lexi and Andy
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2015 is also a Interski year to be held in Ushuaia Argentina. (starting 5th September 2015). Our APSI/Interski Demonstration Team has been skiing and training hard to make us proud to represent us for this big International Event. Please check out the Demo Team videos and we would love and appreciate all your support very much. If you wish to support the team check out the links on their website or Facebook page. I would like to thank Falls Creek and Perisher for helping out the Demo Team with their training for Interski. Finally I would like to wish all our staff and APSI members a great Summer or Winter (hopefully doing some powder turns somewhere in the world). My family and I will be back in Vail on the 21st November and we are looking forward to lots of skiing and great POW. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Alpine Calendar Japan -2015 Level One Course & Exam
28 - 31 January
$920
Level Two Course
3 - 5 February
$385
Exam
9 - 10 February
$465*
Level Three Course
26 - 30 January
$645
Exam
11 - 12 February
$465*
Level Four Exam
8 February
$650*
*Resit - $115/ unit (all levels) All prices are GST inclusive
APSI events may change or be cancelled Please check the APSI online shop for the most current information. The APSI reserves the right to reschedule or cancel events if less than 5 candidates have registered or if there is insufficient snow. Please read the conditions of use for more information. Page 4
Andrew Rae
“The trouble with a busy season is that business seems to get in the way of business” As crazy as this statement sounds each winter seems to have its own individual set of hurdles, this year was no exception and it seems the heavy snow brought a large amount of business to our resorts and kept most instructors busy throughout the winter. The sudden snowfall left the APSI with what seemed like a short training season and may potentially have had an effect on participation. Not only did these time poor instructors find it hard to attend training but it was also noted that some resorts found it difficult to schedule enough training hours, both concerns were raised at the end of winter. Second discipline participation seemed most affected by the high business demands and as a result no coach courses were run this year and Telemark participation was lower than usual. Telemark’s core business continues to be the level one, this is now the entry point for anyone wanting to hold a second discipline so should create a slow increase in participation over time. Page 5
Nordic and adaptive participation held steady and the addition of Tom Hodges as a trainer to adaptive shows there is strong interest in taking adaptive as a second discipline choice. The alpine discipline still remains by far the highest participation, running about 28 separate events, followed by snowboard with 18 events. In the included graph ‘Alpine and snowboard exam participation’ (graph 1.) you will note that the lower levels continue to grow while level three alpine has hit a slump, something we will continue to analyse to find answers as to why? However many reasons seem to be localised to each individual resort. In comparison snowboard participation in the higher levels increased slightly, I do not know if this can be attributed to Adam Federico’s happy smile alone, either way I wold like to thank him for his first year in the position of snowboard, a role he performed admirably.
Alpine 2012 2013 2014 Snowboard 2012 2013 2014
Level One
Level Two
Level Three
Level Four
Graph 1. Alpine and snowboard exam participation About 40 % of the alpine level one participants were in a public course, while 64% of snowboard came from a public product. Everyone who did manage to fit training, work and fun into their winter equation this year thank you for participating and well done whether you passed, got a resit or decided to wait until next year to sit your exam. Either way increasing your skill base for your job can only improve the products you provide to your guests. The following alpine pass rate graph (graph 2.) looks more like a heart rate monitor, analysis of this information is always a summer priority the alpine technical committee led by Richard Jameson will work hard to come up with some usable goals and training plans to help improve any weaknesses.
Graph 2. EOS Alpine Exam Pass Rate Trend Page 6
Once again thank you to Lexi for the time she puts into the daily running of the office, this year we made some improvements in the way the office interacts with you, our members through the use of email-outs, video training tips and an increased use of face book. Our website has received numerous changes over the past few years and these always seem to happen right before winter, including; backend upgrade, visual overhaul and the latest being ‘members only’ access. This new ‘members only’ access was a great success both by making sure membership was up to date when signing up for events as well as providing products at a discounted price to current members. Reminder: when using the APSI shop make sure you are logged in and have your membership up to date to receive the most out of your shopping experience. This year we produced another updated version of the snowboard and alpine manuals, “best ever” I would say and the effort put in by those who contributed is unmeasurable, in particular I would like to write a quick thank you to Jason and Richard for the hours they put into getting this completed in time for the winter. On a financial note our starts with “The APSI is position”, I believe this plans to produce more and services for you.
new treasures report in a financially sound can only help future educational products
The demo team had two great training sessions this winter and the facilities we were given were second to none (greatest training ever in falls creek, thank you!). The team
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have worked together well both on-snow and on a conceptual theme for Interski. We also ran 2 spring sessions and had a very successful party, all of which are a fun way for the team to give back to you the members. What is Interski? Interski is an international congress held every 4 years. The purpose being to evolve the snowsports industry through the interchange of ideas and industry trends among associated nations. Over 36 countries worldwide send their top snowsports demonstrators (in all disciplines) to present their country's snowsports philosophy and bring back valuable information to progress their organization. The best thing about Interski is that it is open to everyone! Whether you are a career snowsports instructor, an avid snowsports enthusiast or a friend / family member of the team, you can experience all the fun and excitement that Interski has to offer. By joining the "supporter" team, to find out more check out the website or contact the office. Finally, I am always in the office if you want a chat and happy to discuss any ideas you may have otherwise I look forward to seeing you out on slopes.
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The APSI is in a financially sound position. In comparison to the same time last year, the APSI’s financial performance has improved with net profit significantly increased – $61,185.11 although the extent of the increase in net profit year to date may be attributable to changes to accounting methods recommended by this year’s auditors. These changes support more accurate record keeping. The projected (estimated) net profit at the end of the financial year is $40,000. This estimated result indicates a profit margin of 10.2%, and the APSI will continue to work towards maintaining or improving this margin over the remainder of the year and into 2015. Of the projected net profit, 25% ($10,000) is to be transferred to the Interski account to meet the commitment to this event that was made at the most recent (2014) AGM. This suggests that retained earnings will
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increase by approximately $30,000 by the end of the year. Expenses were controlled well this year, with total course/exam expenses down by 16.47% year to date, but small increases in expenditure in office expenses (primarily rent), total bank charges (Westpac merchant fees), and total payroll expense (up by 1.25% overall) contributed to a net increase in expenses. Revision and reprinting of the manuals was a significant cost this year, at $34,782.55. A planned expenditure in 2015 is Interski, with the total estimated cost of this event around $60,000. This and other large planned and recurring expenditures, for example revision and reprinting of snowboard manuals and purchase of new uniforms, will be factored into a four-year forecast to inform strategic planning and support financial decisionmaking in the future.
Financials 01/01/2014 - 31/09/2014
ASPI has cash available to meet the significant operational expenses of the next several months that cannot be matched by revenue due to the seasonality of the business. Excluding the Interski account, the net reduction in cash in the bank over summer is expected to be around $81,000. Money in the Interski account is quarantined, as this money is a special purpose provision. This fund will be drawn down before next September as Interski approaches. During 2013 the percentage of total expenditure attributable to personnel (office and trainers) was 60.61%. Despite a small increase in the actual dollars expended, salary expenditure as a percentage of total expenditure, year to date, is 59.5 %, a good result.
01/01/14 to 30/09/14 Other 5% Manuals 11%
Exam 37%
Membership 17%
Course 30%
Other 8% Office 7%
Manuals 11% Wages 60% Course/ Exam 40%
Deborah Shaw Meehan Treasurer
“the estimated net profit at the end of this year is $40,000�
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Treasurer’s Biography Deborah Shaw Meehan
A
long, long time ago, far away from her home in New Zealand, a young occupational therapist sought adventure in Vancouver, a city in a winter wonderland known as Canada. She lived there with her prince and whenever they could they explored the new ski resort of WhistlerBlackcomb. But eventually, the young woman became tired of her work in mental health, and began a journey towards a new career. After many trials and tribulations, and not knowing which way to turn, a helpful professional career planner advised her to become a banker or a financial planner. “No way – that’s not me at all!” she exclaimed, departing the winter wonderland, with some regrets, for sun and sea in a land called Oz, downunder. Still with no vision of a future, she started a course at the university expediently located only three minutes walk from the derelict castle she shared with her prince in Newtown, Sydney. Now, in the olden days, Page 11
universities didn’t cater to individuals, so this occupational therapist eventually graduated from the university with the same degree as everyone else – a Masters of Business Administration majoring in Corporate Finance! By now, though, the young woman wasn’t as young as she used to be. She and her prince decided to have a family, and in due course, they took their three beautiful children to live in Canberra to give them a better life. But lo! Shortly after, disaster struck, and her prince died, leaving her to bring up their three children on her own.
Our now not-so young occupational therapist went back to work in mental health, but after a few years, was given the opportunity to work as the Business Manager. To her surprise, she found she enjoyed it greatly. She supported the mental health service to manage within its budget for the first time in its history. This was a revelation – to her and to the service! Years passed, and with her children all grown up, our now quite-old exoccupational therapist remarried. Her
new prince who, by his own admission, struts around thinking he’s King, is President of the Canberra Alpine Club. The spirit of adventure never left the ex-occupational therapist. She now works as a public servant in developing countries where she supports public sector reform, leadership and accountability. This work takes her primarily to Papua New Guinea, but she has also travelled to Ghana and the Solomon Islands, both great adventures. She is still interested in snow-sports, and narrowly gained a level one Ski Instructors Certificate in 2013. She also volunteers her financial and other expertise to groups in which she has an interest – previously President of Canberra Quilters, she is now the APSI Treasurer. The connection with that winter wonderland, where the adventure began, has never been broken. Her beautiful first born daughter – you may know her as Lexi has visited the winter wonderland many times in the past, to work as a ski instructor. And so it goes.
one year full membership - $95 ($125) one year new membership - $95 ($100) three year full membership - $280
pay online before December 31 2014 Page 12
One June storm was all it took to transform what was a disastrous start to the season into a really great one. I’ve never before witnessed such a quick turnaround in the Australian resorts. They resembled lush green golf courses one minute and then fully operational ski resorts the next. The few cancelations made to early season courses and events were soon forgotten once the snow came and what followed was a super busy work season for most of the ski instructors across the country. With all of the snow sport schools slammed after what was dubbed “Snowmageddon” by the Victorian news media,it was admirable to still see a large number of instructors making time to train hard and improve themselves through many different APSI products and courses. Congratulations to all of you who put your skills and knowledge on the line this season to chase after your goals/ certification in the ski industry. It’s sometimes a hard road fitting in self-improvement with such an increase in business demands like we saw this year, but I hope you found the journey to be worthwhile and I’m sure all of the hard work will pay off in the end.
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A big highlight this season was the release and implementation of the 9th edition to our alpine teaching manual. It was exciting to see this new and updated information being used by us all in our jobs on the front line and at the exams throughout the season. This educational resource came about through many hours of dedicated work from the alpine technical committee, national demo team and contributions/ideas from lots of you over the past five years. I want to personally thank all of those who were involved in getting this project to fruition and I think we now have a strong manual to help our instructors and guests over the coming years. In an effort to keep providing APSI members with value for your membership, we have multiple projects underway for next year in both member services and technical resources. The tech committee and demo teams will be hard at work this summer to provide you all with some more exciting materials next Aussie winter. If you have any thoughts or ideas on how we could better service you as an APSI member or provide you with better tools to help you in your job, please get in touch and let me know your thoughts richard.jameson@apsi.net.au. Best of luck to all of you heading overseas to continue your endless winter. I look forward to seeing you all back in our Aussie resorts in 2015. Cheers, Richard Jameson
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INTERSKI taking today’s techniques into the future
Interski is an international congress held every four years. The purpose being to evolve the snowsports industry through the interchange of ideas, snowsports methodologies, techniques and industry trends among associated nations. Over 36 countries worldwide send their top snowsports demonstrators (in all disciplines) to present their country's snowsports philosophy and bring back valuable information to progress their organisation. INTERSKI International was founded in 1951 in the Arlberg, Austria. Representatives from nations throughout the European Alps came together to share information and opinions about skiing technique and teaching methodology of the time. In the beginning the congress consisted of Alpine nations exclusively and was held every 2 years. In 1971 this changed to every 4 years and included other disciplines such as Nordic and later Telemark, Snowboard and Adaptive. The first member nation outside of Europe to hold a congress was the United States in 1971 hosted by Aspen, Colorado. Since then, the congresses
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have been held in Germany, (at the time) Czechslovakia, Japan, Italy, Canada, and Austria. The penultimate congress was hedl in January 2007 in YongPyong (Korea) and the most recent took place in the congress's birthplace, St. Anton am Arlberg (Austria) in January 2011. Information is shared through different forums including on-snow workshops, indoor lectures, keynote presentations, nightly demonstration runs and of course the less formal discussions held at the après events. Over the years, the international collaboration of ideas through Interski has been a major contributor to the growth and participation in snowsports worldwide. In 2015, Interski will make history as being the first congress held in the Southern Hemisphere. In September, the 5 day event will be hosted by Cerro Castor, Ushuaia, located at the " end of the earth" - the southern most point of Argentina. From the humble beginning in Central Europe in 1951, Interski has become a global organisation. The congress not only attracts the best technical demonstrators from every nation, but
also the international ski media, academics in sports/physics/ biomechanics, leading brands and manufacturers, international executive resort management teams, experts in snowsports and resort marketing, major corporate partners/sponsors, and of course, thousands of avid snowsports enthusiasts.
While Australia had a presence at Interski as early as 1987, the first full official Demo Team attended the St. Anton congress in 1991. This team was instrumental in developing the APSI as an organisation and evolving the snowsports schools across Australia. Over the subsequent 20 years that followed, the team represented Australia at a further 5 Interski congresses and worked tirelessly with the Australian resorts to develop Australian ski instruction to the world class level that it is today. The best thing about Interski is that it is open to everyone! Whether you are a career snowsports instructor, an avid snowsports enthusiast or a friend / family of the team, you can experience all the fun and excitement that Interski has to offer.
By attending Interski as an Australian supporter or delegation member you can access all of the on-snow technical workshops, indoor lectures, keynote presentations, nightly demo shows and of course all of the thrills of Interski Après. You also have the chance to spend the week with Australia's best technical demonstrators and be part of the Australian delegation representing the Australian snowsports industry. For information or to make a booking, please contact apsi@apsi.net.au More information is available at the APSI Interski/ Demo Team website Click HERE
YOU CAN EXPERIENCE
YOU CAN SUPPORT
INTERSKI
AUSTRALIA Page 16
Watch the video here
Andrew Rae Head Coach Home Town: Jindabyne, NSW Home Resort: Perisher
Chris Allen Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Coffs Harbour, NSW Home Resort: Mt. Hotham / Deer Valley
Paul Lorenz Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Toowoomba, QLD Home Resort: Thredbo/Mt. Hotham/Niseko
the
Tom Gellie Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Sydney, NSW Home Resort: Thredbo
Reilly McGlashan Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Belingen, NSW Home Resort: Thredbo / Aspen
Ant Hill Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Melbourne, VIC Home Resort: Mt. Buller
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Richard Jameson Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Caloundra, QLD Home Resort: Mt. Hotham / Heavenly
Richard Hocking Telemark Demonstrator Home Town: Sydney, NSW Home Resort: Perisher
Jason Clauscen Snowboard Demonstrator Home Town: Melbourne, VIC Home Resort: Perisher
team
Adam Federico Snowboard Demonstrator Home Town: Home Resort: Perisher
Tom Langtry Alpine Demonstrator Home Town: Melbourne, VIC Home Resort: Falls Creek / Myoko Kogan
Warren Feakes Nordic Demonstrator Home Town: Canberra, ACT Home Resort: Perisher
More team info here Page 18
Adam Federico
Well where do I start? What a season! For me it started at trainer’s coordination in early June sitting around with all the other trainers from all the resorts and across all disciplines, in shorts and t-shirts wondering if the cold temps and snow were coming our way anytime soon. It was an unfamiliar position to be in, facing uncertain times as Jason had stepped down as the snowboard technical director after 11 years in the job. I won’t bore everyone with the details of the process but I ended up leaving the AGM having been given the nod to be his successor. Let me start by say that’s no easy task! There aren’t many people, myself included that know just how much Jason did/ does for the APSI and for snowboarding in general in this country so I want to take a moment to say a huge thanks to Jason from the whole snowboarding community and that we will be forever indebted to you for all your hard work and commitment over the last 11 years at the reins.
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The season started on opening weekend with probably the least amount of snow I’ve ever seen to start a season. After teaching first timers all weekend on the only lift open in the country (the magic carpet on Front Valley) I found myself in a challenging spot with the first level 1 public course starting with only the 50m strip of snow next to the magic carpet to use for the 3 day course.
After a challenging couple of weeks with no snow and those miracle workers also known as snowmakers making something out of nothing the snow started to fall and didn’t it hit hard? 2 meters of snow in a week, with plenty more to come. After the school holiday craziness it was time to get started with APSI courses and exams.
First up was the midseason resits for levels two and three at Perisher. Both days were powder filled with some tough weather but favorable snow conditions. These two days saw two out of the three level two candidates be successful and some of the level three guys being successful in some of the components they were resitting. The end of July saw myself and Matt Ronald travel to Hotham to run one of the biggest level three courses we’ve seen in a long time with 14 participants. With
some amazing weather and snow conditions during the week I think everyone was able to learn a lot and have some fun along the way. After Hotham it was back up to NSW to run the level four teaching and demonstrations course at Thredbo in which can only be described as the worst weather week of the whole season! Not only was this a big learning experience for the participants but also for myself as this was the first level four course I had ever conducted. Thanks to Matt and Jason for helping me out with that one.
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Two weeks after the block A course it was time for the race and freestyle course at Perisher with Matt Ronald. A return of the fine weather saw the participants have a great week and their riding progress. I was fortunate enough to be able to tag along for a couple of days to help Matt out.
with back when we were coming through and are friends. Looking forwards there were positives to take away as there were successful components completed and improvements made so I’m sure these guys will reaps the rewards of their hard work in the future.
The beginning of September saw exams kick off with Buller hosting the Victorian level two exam. Another steep learning curve for me having never examined at Buller before, I was able to lean on the other examiners to help me out with terrain selection and snow conditions etc.
Backing straight up the following day into the NSW level two exam with an improvement on the pass rate, however lower numbers than VIC with seven out of 11 ultimately gaining their certification.
Results were not as favourable as I would have liked with seven out of 16 being successful. Next it was back to Perisher for the level four exam. After a big three days with variable weather to say the least, the presentation was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my career as an examiner as unfortunately there was nobody successful out of the eight candidates. It’s tough when some of those guys Matt and I have trained
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The following week saw the conclusion of exams for the season with the level three at Thredbo. We saw some challenging snow conditions, as it was slightly later than we usually run the exam. There was plenty of potential in the group but I think the pressure of the exam affected the results a little with only three out of the 13 being successful, it could have easily been five or six with a bit of luck.
Numbers at level one were again strong with more people than ever coming through and we had a 94% pass rate
across the resort and public exams. Hopefully this translates into more Australian certified people being hired by the resorts here and growing numbers at the higher levels. That’s a quick wrap up of my first season as TD. I spent this season trying to learn as much as I could about the job and what is expected and what needs to be done. I still have so much to learn and I’m very appreciative of all the help I have received from everyone that could possibly help. I would like to take this opportunity to especially thank (in no particular order) Jason Clauscen, Andy Rae, Lexi Colville, Richard Jameson, all the hard working trainers and examiners in particular Matt, Tareesa, Kylie, Grant and Dan for helping me out in some tight spots, all the resorts and their directors and supervisors and anyone else I may have forgotten that helped me out during the season. I have some ideas for the future moving forward but like any ideas it’s a process from conception to implementation. I look forward to getting a technical committee going again and using them to grow and develop these ideas in the attempt to keep growing and progressing snowboarding in the future.
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On Saturday 14th September the APSI Demo Team held a fundraising event at the Wild Brumby Distillery.
We started the evening with drinks and BBQ, hosted by Brad on the terrace, followed by the silent auction and raffle draw. As you can see in the photo above, Isabel was stoked to win the major raffle prize!
The “Living Life on the Edge� party was a great opportunity for members to meet up in a social environment. The night was a great success and we hope that everyone that attended enjoyed themselves.
Thanks to your generous donations and their various fundraising events the team were able to raise $8,000 this season to help them get to Argentina for Interski next year.
Thanks to Steve Cuff from the Snowy Times for some great photos o
You can check out the full album on their facebook page he and the write up in the Summit Sun here Page 23
With thanks to the APSI Demo Team Partners Wild Brumby Distillery Head Falls Creek Mt. Buller Mt. Hotham Nordica Perisher Pepper Design Snowsport Thredbo Yakima The Sport Mechanics Jindabyne Sports Harros Snowsports Serges CafĂŠ Coffee Beats Drinks
of the event.
ere Page 24
Telemark
Richard Hocking
Telemark has lost and gained a trainer this year. Justin moved to Quensland during the summer and he has been replaced by Phil Crumpler who completed his Level 4 qualification this year. Two Level 1 courses ran this year, 1 at Thredbo and 1 at Perisher with 8 candidates in total who all passed. There was one recall at the Perisher Spring Sessions and there was no demand for an examination. Once again Telemark had a lacklustre year for courses. The lack of trainers to promote courses in house at the resorts was one issue and the change to 4 levels has also yet to build enough level 1 candidates to create demand for a Level 2 course. The replacement of the crossover course with a new more rigorous Level 1 course was a success. To create demand for the higher level courses I will examine the idea of offering level 1 courses in house with the Telemark Committee at the Trainers Co-ordination next year. The Telemark Chapter of the new manual as been well received by candidates and instructors. My thanks go to Tom Gellie for his assistance in editing the manual. Intertele is being held a Snowbird again this year. I attended the last event which included representatives from Norway, Switzerland, Japan, Canada, Australia and the US. I am assisting with the review process and plan on attending again next April. I hope to learn more from other countries systems and to take advantage of the opportunity to have a dry run of the Telemark Presentation for Interski.
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Warren Feakes
Nordic
Early poor snow conditions did not really affect planned APSI Nordic activities. An early in house recall activity was conducted on limited snow on the opening weekend of the season. Recalls caused a problem this season as they have done every season in recent years. This is due to the availability of the participants. The Nordic world is one of part time employment and is not like the resort environment. The problem becomes one of coordination of sufficient recallees to run a formal APSI recall activity. I have introduced the ‘home study recall’ model to nordic this season and am continuing to look at other options for nordic instructors to keep their certification current. I was pleased with the numbers and the results of the courses this season. In particular, the final Level 1 / 2 course at Perisher as it captured several dedicated skiers who have been wanting to formalise their instructional skills for many years. The Level 1/2 course for Latrobe University Outdoor education students was again held this season. All candidates joined APSI and several have indicated that they will continue with their membership next year. As a result of my attendance at the SSA Nordic Coach level 1 Course this season, There are some minor amendments to be made to the Nordic Skills Manual, particularly regarding technique changes in Double Pole and explaining the differences in tempo of race technique versus pure technique and what changes are made as compromises when upping tempo. Amendments to the Nordic Manual will be issued as an addendum as we have several copies in stock.
The APSI office will be closed from December 20th to January 19th We wish you a safe and happy holiday season! See you again in 2015 The online shop will remain open and all orders will be processed as soon as possible when we return. Page 26
Tom Mitten “They have a vision impairment and they’re going that fast?!” was the general response by the instructors in Myoko Kogen, Japan watching the vision impaired categories in the alpine skiing at the Sochi Paralympic Winter Games in March this year.
Their appreciation for the challenges involved had intensified having just completed a day of learning to teach people with vision impairments to ski and snowboard. Sliding around with plastic bags jammed down their goggles or bits of cardboard slid in between lenses and eyes (to simulate various vision impairments) gave the instructors a better understanding of the importance of teamwork for the guide and skier when whipping by gates in excess of 100km/h. A Paralympic Winter Games preceding the Australian snow season is always a good thing, getting people excited for what’s to come. Sixteen instructors completed their Adaptive Certification in 2014. This is a good improvement on 2013 when ten completed the exam. 9 from Victoria (3 in 2013) 4 from Falls Creek (1 in 2013) 5 from Hotham (1 in 2013) 7 from NSW (7 in 2013) 4 from Perisher (7 in 2013) 3 from Selwyn (0 in 2013)
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Congratulations to all those new adaptive instructors. It is disappointing that yet again Thredbo did not have any instructors attempt the exam. Also, Mt. Buller has had only one person attempt the exam in the last two seasons. People with disabilities are a large population and one that will continue to grow. Without instructors learning ways to teach people with disabilities to ski and snowboard, we will struggle to meet the demand of these guests in the very near future and a large chunk of the market (and their families and friends) will remain not catered for. Well done to Mark Potter for training the instructors at Hotham for the first time. Thank you to Ursina Kradolfer for undertaking the training and examining at Perisher this season. And welcome to Tom Hodges who was also a trainer at Perisher and joined the examining team. Plans are already being laid for an exciting 2015. Ideas are being developed to offer some higher level adaptive training to instructors who have more advanced adaptive guests. Who knows, maybe that next adaptive guest could be representing Australia in 2022.
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Angela Pope Snowpocolypse! Storm of the century! The headlines had many names for the amazing snowfall the Australian Alps received this season. It was certainly a bumper year, and at Perisher where we opened Queens B’day with lessons going out and going right through to October, it meant an enormous time on snow. Juggling work, training, free skiing and trying to maintain some semblance of a social life this season was exhausting in itself! This was my 2nd season at Perisher, 6th as an instructor and 12th overall in this industry and I have to say it was by far the busiest I’ve ever had. I am delighted and privileged to be the 2014 Alpine Sodergren recipient. I was honoured that APSI board deemed me fit to receive the scholarship. To be recognised as having exemplified the principles of the Sodergrens’ was gratifying and I hope I did justice to the passion and dedication that these two inspiring people had. The tragic circumstances in which Mike and Mim Sodergren lost their lives and the bright legacy that lives on shows us how volatile the environment in which we work and play and what a wonderful community that we are apart of. Our community is interdependent and as an instructor starting to forge a career, it is inspiring to see the co-operation and support Page 31
people provide to one another to ensure that this hostile physical environment is made safe, accessible and exciting to all those that venture into it. A big part of what I love about the ski industry is our community. I came for a season, I started out spinning din in a rental shop and years later I’ve moved to the slopes and am privileged to be working in an environment that has always welcomed anybody with open arms. Over the years I have met some truly awesome humans, learned so much and have made wonderful lasting friendships. Our industry is small but what we lack in altitude and snowfall we make up for in magnitudes. We have a unique alpine environment in some of the oldest mountains in the world. We can ski in the morning and yet be sunbathing by the lake or hitting the surf in the arvo. We are incredibly lucky.
Not only was I attempting my Three, I also decided to study for my adaptive certification. Like I said, hectic season! Training for my adaptive was eye opening and having such passionate trainers was inspiring. The clientele, which the adaptive certification caters for, is so diverse and varied. It was wonderful to learn how to give access to people to the sport I loved and am passionate about. Congratulations to all the adaptive candidates as we all passed this year! If I learned anything this year it was to make training a priority. We all know and love the culture our ski industry has; We work hard and we play and party harder. In the lead up to the exams I had most afternoons off to train and spent 3-4 nights a week studying; special mention to Shauna Rigby for our many nights skipping the Banj & pouring over our APSI manuals. Ski. Ski everything and everywhere. Ski with as many different trainers, peers, clients and friends. As much as you possibly can. On the awesome days, on the rainy days, on the days when all you want to do is crawl back in bed. Some of my best days skiing were when I least expected them. I’d like to take the time to thank all my trainers, especially Ben J. and Mikey. B who despite the training restrictions, they were able to teach, coach, mentor and get me through what was such a high stress and exhausting season. Shout out to all my training buddies,
many a night was spent revising teaches and analysing the methods; the conversations were both enlightening and illuminating. I don’t think I would have made it through the season without your support. Finally it came to exam day and what a glorious first day of rain we had for the teaches and demos!! Day two; the sky’s cleared up and the heat descended to slush everything up. I was a wreck of nerves during the deliberation process. Let’s be honest, waiting to find out the results is nerveracking and horrible. So when my name was called out I couldn’t believe it. Passing the Three on my first attempt was AMAZING. It was such a jubilant feeling! As much as it was my effort I simply couldn’t have achieved my goals this season without the community I was apart of. Thank you. Congratulations again to all those that passed their exams this year, and for those who didn’t, keep positive, keep training and success will follow. With more advanced qualifications, you become a better instructor, being able to reach and succour more clients and continue the growth of our industry. This scholarship is a wonderful opportunity to focus entirely on your ability to teach others and learn from others involved in this pursuit. Be passionate about skiing/riding, encouraging and inspiring all future participants with the love of mountain life and its culture. Page 32
2014 EXAM
RESULTS
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Shauna Rigby Alpine Level Four
Philip Crumpler Telemark Level Four
Unfortuantely there’s only enough room to list the pass reults, but well done to everyone that participated in courses and exams this year!
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Alpine Level Three James Dixon
Simon Hutton
Nick Rankin
Jordan Elliott-Haynes
Nicholas Jones
Shauna Rigby
Nicola Evans
Jessica Koutsoumidis
Kirsty Saleeba
Shane Guest
Daekeun Kwak
Dusan Uhrin
Byron Heath
Rachel Lewindon
Gary Wong
Daniel Hewitt
Sophie Mills
Jake Woods
Angela Pope
Snowboard Level Three Sarah Beynsberger
Shane Lalor
Todd Schuiling
Alpine Level Two Sean Alexander
Emma Heron
Scott Russell
Taylor Bennie-Faull
John Hiron
Craig Scarlett
Jesse Bertram
Christine Honan
Catherine Shadgett
Hugh Brooks
Tayla Hughes
Edwina Smith
Celia Burrell
Montana Jones
Sam Smith Roberson
James Caiger
Hannah Le Blanc
Esther Stegehuis
Callum Campbell
Gregory Liechti
Cameron Stevens
Claudia Crewes
Gabrella Lowgren
Richard Stewart
Shea DeLorenzo
Karen McLachlan
Leah Strutt Smith
Ann Felthaus
Katrina Miller-Little
Peter Tamplin
Joseph Finnegan
Andrea Mills
Kevin Tan
Emily Fung
Ollie Nam
Bryan Taylor
Simone Gibson
Shannon O'Brien
Kilian Teuwsen
Jeremy Golden
Christopher Painter
Samuel Thompson
Jake Graham
Rachel Pearson
Walter Tinyow
Nicholas Graham
Jack Percy
Georgia Virgona
Jon Haering
Neil Roberts
Natasha Young
Timothy Haley
Samuel Robertson
Benny Zhang
Andrew Rugless Page 35
Snowboard Level Two Cari Ahsam
Aaron Handford
Timothy Reid
Mougli Borderie-Portet
Eleanor Harker
Adam Rigby
Scott Cairney
Jackson Holtham
Sofie Sjoestroem
Germaine Chaline
Dale Humphrys
Penelope Smith
Richard Dalkin
Justin Kennedy
Travis Tait
Hector Laiglesia
Daniel Mitchell
Nordic Level Two Ashley Howard
Tess Noble
Jane Scheer
Katherine Wilde
Adaptive Deborah Adams
James Foster
Benjamin Kaye
Angela Pope
Andrew Batley
Justin Goddard
Karen McLachlan
Rimmi Scott
David Churchill
Sean Hakam
Jamie McPhee
Chloe Stewart
Gemma Connell
Cassie Howlett
Sophie Mills
Samuel Thompson
Telemark Level One Heather Evans
Nicholas Gascoigne
Gary Simms
Rob Forbes
Bruce Hartican
Matilda Thomas
Nick Fredericks
Cameron Mitchell
Mark Travers
Nordic Level One Dan Abikhair
Andrew Hodgkinson
Thomas Rae
Julie Bourke
Ashley Howard
Karlee Rhode
Andrew Brady
Jack O’Connell
Adam Romeril
Rebecca Easton
Rosemary Oldis
Matthew Spence
Nick Gascoigne
Alex Paul
Joel Sullivan
Jessica Harvey
Deborah Purss
Mark Travers Page 36
Alpine Le Kaspar Abel
Clare Corcoran
Declan Hathaway
Michael Adams
Alex Craig
Bailey Hayes
Josh Armstead
Tony Creak
Tamarah Heath
Jack Ayoub
Patricia Darell
Catherine Heathcote-Smith
Tim Baird
Danielle Doppler
David Heina
James Barbe-Winter
Zac Duchen
Madeline Hepner
Jessica Barnes
Justine Dungan
Sonia Hilder
Nicolette Barnett
Christine Dwyer
Sue Hill
William Barton
Omar Elkadi
Amelia Hodgson
Riley Batchelor
Katherine Esposito
Alyssa Horsfield
Emma Baxter
Nicholas Fadden
Jesse Houghton
Taylor Bennie-Faull
Tim Failes
Sarah Howson
Romain Bonnardel
Kathryn Farr
Reeve Hubbard
Nicole Botterill
Ann Pi Felthaus
Tayla Hughes
Luke Bovill
Joseph Finnegan
Dale Humphreys
Jeremy Bramble
Lauren Fleming
Vincent Hungerford-Gerth
Vanessa Brockett
Jordan Fung
Andrew Hunt
Sarah Brooks
Andrea Gibson
Emma Hutcheson
Dive Burton
Eleanor Gibson
Stacee Janovsky
Scott Campbell
Kaela Glasbrenner
Tamasin Jones
Anthony Carrio
Jeremy Golden
Montana Jones
Ellen Champion
Aaron Gorrel
Rhyddian Jones
Jun Ting Chau
Nicholas Graham
Caitlin Jones
Chih Wei Chen
Jake Graham
Bobbi Kelly
Tamara Gray
Charlee Kelly
Dale Clarkson
Charli Griffith
Jamie Kibblewhite
Amy Clemenger
Doris Grosse
Greg Kierce
Esther Clements
Isabella Hackworth
Yuka Kobayashi
Tim Cole
Aliyah Hage
Triinu Kooskora
Gemma Connell
Tim Haley
Krystal Kovac
Robert Chung
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evel One Attila Kovacs Michelle Kung
Ollie Nam
Richard Stewart
Shannon O'Brien
Chloe Stewart
Bowie Kung
Zali Offord
Tareesa Straatmans
Samuel Lane
Carla Ogrizek
Graeme Summers
Thomas Langridge
Scout O'Shea
Emily Sutcliffe
Hannah Le Blanc
Owen Pearson
Will Sykes
Duncan Lendrum
Jack Percy
Wally Szymanski
Meeka Lewis
Neil Piddock
Kristin Tamm
David Liu
Fraser Pitkethly
Kilian Teuwsen
Sarsha Lloyd
Elizabeth Plummer
Hui Tzu Ting
Corrina Long
Natasha Poon
Franky Tsang
Amy Lorimer
Emma Potts
Dane Verity
Gabriella Lowgren
Nicole Raath
Emilie Vialle
Sophie Lumley
Chelsea Rae
Georgia Virgona
Adam Lutton
Timothy Reid
Megan Voigt
Nicholas Manning
Sam Roberson
David Walker
Alexandra Martin
Elsa Roberts
Geoff Warner
Nicole Martin
Sam Robertson
Jeffrey Watsford
Alistair Martin
Mark Robertson
Thomas White
Lydia McCart
James Ross
Philip Wilkes
Brittany Meers
Elliott Russell
Michael Wilkinson
Filip Mijuskovic
Craig Scarlett
Caitlin Wilson
Briar Milford
Rimmi Scott
Brittany Wilton
Katrina Miller-Little
Charles Scott
Lucie Winkler
Joshua Mills
Catherine Shadgett
Kim Winters
Andrea Mills
Conor Shepherd
Pheobe Wood
Tristan Mioni
Harinat Siriwan
Allan Woolnough
John Morrison
Sofie Sjoestroem
Constance Wright
Shane Moynagh
James Speake
Brianna Yokom
Toa Steiner
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Snowboard Level One Cameron Abbott
Andrew Grant
Stephanie Morgan
Josh Arthur
James Grebert
Shane Moynagh
Ralph Basden Blazey
Morgan Harland
Will Nelson
Chris Benisch
Declan Hathaway
Scott Nonini
Rowan Bennett
Laura Henry
Anabelle O'Hare
Mougli Borderie-Portet
Dieter Hoffman
Lucy O'Neill
Daniel Canaway
Sara Hogan
Donald Peterson
Germaine Chaline
Jackson Holtham
Dylan Pettinari-Smith
Katie Chapman
Craig Hore
Andrew Presser
Pin-Chuan Chi
Emma Hough
Martin Pukspuu
Ryan Cockburn
Cassie Howlett
Nicole Raath
Timothy Crean
Dale Humphreys
Alex Rankin
Lucienne Croft
Anthea Hung
Timothy Reid
Stephanie Dahan
Vincent Hungerford-Gerth
Jesse Rhea
Joseph Davies
David Jacobs
George Rhodes
Jessica Dustow
Arriana Keeys
Natalie Rierderich
Jonathon Dustow
Hector Laiglesia
Lachlan Robinson
Lowri Dwyer
Simone Le Bruin
Peter Robinson
Serena Edward
Isaac Lillico
Mark Saccoia
David Elphick
Chih Wei Lin
Ross Saunders
Jonathan Face
Phil Mackay
Rory Sheard
Campbell Ferguson
Conor Marshall
Sofie Sjoestroem
Scott Ferguson
Peerce McManus
Penelope Smith
James Foster
Alana Meade
Tantai Thampipop
Tegan Gentle
Chris Meikle
Mark Thomas
Antoine Georget
David Mitchell
Timothy Walsh
Jim Gibbins
Hamish Monte
Madaline Williams
Justin Goddard
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Siangyu Yang
1. Go to http://shop.apsi.net.au 2. Click ‘log in’ in the top right hand corner 3. Enter your email address and password, then click ‘log in’ 4. Click on your email address in the top right hand corner 5. Use ‘my account’ to update your contact details, reprint receipts or change your password
4.
5.
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my training philosop MICHAELA PATTON
I consider the ability to make small adjustments to your body in order to improve performance, and to convey to students how to “feel�, to be integral to ski instruction.
instruction in particular, it can be assumed that these skills would be a good starting point to help Level 2 candidates in the following four ways:
The APSI Level 2 qualification currently includes freeski, demonstrating, theory and teaching. My training philosophy for Level 2 candidates would be to improve these four areas by understanding the physiology behind skiing. Introducing a ski fitness and conditioning component into regular training sessions would help candidates improve their fitness, deconstruct the movements they make on-snow and improve the way in which they communicate this to their clients. Elite alpine skiing requires a combination of significant technical skills, leg strength, dynamic ability, coordination, flexibility, balance, aerobic endurance and anaerobic endurance. While little research refers to ski
Strength, cardio and balance training would improve the four skiing skills by creating and repeating movements associated with balance, body separation, power and recovery.
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Improve skiing and demonstrations
Research suggests that just 11 days of pre-season, high intensity aerobic interval training can improve aerobic capacity and performance. Adding balance training to exercise programs results in improvements in vertical jump, agility, shuttle run and downhill slalom skiing. Improve candidates’ ability to communicate specific movements to students
Practising yoga and pilates improves
phy strength, flexibility and body awareness. It helps control muscle contraction and relaxation, and allows people make small or isolated muscle adjustments to manipulate their body position. Introducing body awareness through yoga or pilates into a Level 2 training program would help candidates understand the physiology of skiing, and improve the way they teach their clients to ski. Prevent injury Recommendations for injury prevention in Australian skiing include raining programs incorporating endurance, flexibility, strength and skiing-specific exercises for the lower limbs, upper limbs, trunk and muscles. If instructors used their body more effectively and efficiently by activating each muscle group, they would reduce unnecessary strain on the rest of their body.
A fitness program can allow candidates to work together in a supportive environment. Studies suggest that training as part of a team, group or club increases the likelihood of attending. My philosophy behind ski instructing is to balance the candidates’ roles of athlete and teacher. While it is important to be able to do a task well, candidates should also understand how to do it – for their own knowledge and for the benefit of their clients.
It wasn’t until I reflected back on my own Level 2 experience that I realise that I did Create team morale not entirely understand what skiing More often than not, the skiing required my body to do. Later in the background, abilities, attitudes, goals certification pathway, I realised the and fitness levels of Level 2 candidates importance of ski fitness and differ substantially – arguably more so conditioning for skiing, demonstrating than a group of level 4 candidates, and teaching, and it is a skill that I would whose goals have narrowed and abilities like to see APSI Level 2 candidates learn honed over their time in the certification as early as possible in their instructing pathway. career. Page 42
APSI GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGES THE SPONSORSHIP OF THE FOLLOWING ORGANISATIONS
APSI PARTNERS
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