2010

SNOWPRO

Official newsletter of the Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors Inc . A98X

SUMMER 2010

In this issue • Technical Director Reports • Resort Updates • Interski News • and more...

Photo by Richard Hocking

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SNOWPRO

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Official newsletter of the Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors Inc. A98X – SUMMER 2010

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Office News President’s Report Spring Sessions From the Treasurer General manager Learning styles Alpine exams

Teaching Manual Snowboard Telemark Nordic Adaptive Sodergren Scholarship 2011 Membership National Team Training Perisher Thredbo Hotham Falls Courses in Japan Sponsors Page

Australian Professional Snowsport Instructors Experience the best!

Office News

I am constantly amazed by the dedication and generosity of people involved in snow sports . Over the season people have been understanding of our short comings, patient in their expectations and generous with their time and donations.

One of the highlights for me was having the opportunity to read through the applications for the 2010 Sodergren Scholarship – an educational fund that I was involved in at its inception. Returning to the industry after a five year break and reading the applications was both heart warming and inspiring.

The enthusiasm that these young snow sport instructors

Donna Jowett-Poulos demonstrated in their applications was exactly what Mike

Like all of you I was shocked and saddened to hear in late summer of this year that the APSI had been the victim of an alleged fraud.

and Mim Sodergren would have loved. I know they both would be both thrilled and humbled that their legacy is creating great, dedicated, professional and passionate instructors.

While no longer actively involved in the industry , I was a former APSI board member and still linked to the industry through my husband, Con. I was happily working as a part time journalist for Rural Press and consulting in marketing – my other non snow careers.

I would like to thank Andrew and Rebecca Rae for their generosity and professionalism in allowing the APSI to be reborn from their house. I think we have come out the other end a stronger and more vibrant entity.

The furthest thing from my mind was that I would end up working in the APSI office and helping Andrew and the board get things back on track.

I look forward to a better organised and smooth running 2011 – thank you to the board and the snow resorts for their constant support.

However, in May I signed on for what has become a really enjoyable and challenging time.

Finally a big thank you to you, the members – we are committed to providing you with first class service and products – but it is you that makes the APSI an internationally respected association and an Australian instructor just that little bit different.

It has been an interesting season – a great opportunity to catch up with some very old friends by telephone and email and a time of re building and re organising what is a great association.

Thank you and I look forward to working with you in 2011.

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President’s Report

an office (yes, the landlord checked out the legalities of running a home office, prior to agreeing). We also intend to make use of one of the bedrooms for accommodation for traveling employees and board members. So there will be a cost saving offset there.

All APSI assets will now be back in one location after a year of upheaval. We have had Marty Firle going through all the old records and culling (shredding and mulching) anything no longer required. Over the summer months we will be reinforcing the changes made and being ready and raring to go for season 2011.

Most will also have seen the rebuilt website and will agree what a vast improvement it has been. More importantly the back end of the web site is enabling us to achieve tasks that we previously were not able to. Some other items to be added to site will be members-only areas and forums.

Tony Smythe On reflection over the past 12 months we have had more than our fair share of ups and downs, but as we speak I am proud to say the APSI is in a very stable position.

There probably doesn’t need much more to be said about the alleged theft of APSI funds , but what does need mentioning is the amount of effort that has gone into making APSI an even stronger association.

All of this would not have been possible without the effort of member Greg Skrowonski, who basically spent 18 months on development in return for membership, course and exam fees. Again, thank you Greg, from all of us.

I would like to personally thank the tireless work of my fellow board members in their efforts for staying the course and bringing stability to the association. You may not be aware that most positions on the board are completely voluntary, and we accept these positions knowing that. However the past events had pushed all of us to the limits. I could not even begin to calculate the number of hours put in, especially by Warren and Andy over the past year – not to mention the strain it has placed on the personal relationships and dynamics.

Financially, we are tracking in a stable position. This has been achieved by multiple factors, but basically it gets down to everyone contributing where they can.

Membership numbers are at record levels, online recall option proved to be big hit, greater interest in the spring session and increasing numbers in Entry Level have all contributed. Added to this the considerable cost saving initiatives at work over the past seasons makes this look cautiously optimistic. With these factors in mind, the board has resolved to maintain membership dues at current pricing.

To everyone involved, I extend my heartfelt thank you for your efforts in our recovery efforts. The case is now in the hands of the Albury police and will run its course.

However we are not hopeful of any funds recovery, but will press on for a conviction and custodial sentence.

We have a very good working relationship with all Ski and Snowbaord school managers and I would like to acknowledge their support, encouragement and commitment to the ASPI. Thank you to all, and I look forward to continuing our strong relationships.

Well what else has been happening? We have a new office administrator and a new office to put her in!

As most will know from contact with the office, Donna Jowett-Poulos (yes Captain Con’s far better half) has taken over the day to day running of the office. Donna comes to us with a wealth and variety of experience, including banking, and journalism amongst other as well as experience on boards of various associations. Donna has well and truly proven to be a valuable asset to the association in her short time and we thank her for her efforts.

The big event over summer will of course be Interski!

We wish the team all the best on their big adventure to St Anton in January. It must be noted that the team has largely raised the majority of funds on their own to get them to the event, with everyone paying their own airfares. It has always been our agenda to send as strong as possible team to represent Australia, and this year should be no exception. Andrew, again, is going as team coach and I know he is excited about taking a strong and dynamic team. ASPI will asses our financial position during the following 12 months and consider a reimbursement for travel expenses based on merit and commitment.

The alleged theft aside, we had previously resolved to move the office to the Jindabynne area. I would like to take this opportunity acknowledge Andrew and Rebecca Rae and family for allowing the office to move into their own house over the past 10 months. I know the inconvenience and disruption this must have caused and on behalf of all I sincerely thank you.

We have negotiated a new contract for Andrew Rae and have him signed up until after the 2012 season. Andy will continue on with most of his current activities and will now be known as APSI General Manager. It is envisaged that Andy will undertake more management type roles

The good news is we have secured the use of a 2 bedroom apartment in Jindabyne for the primary use as 3

and delegate roles and tasks to all TD’s. We would like to see more marketing initiatives, further sponsorship deals and seek funding form grants. Good luck Andy on your new role.

stint back home then off to Colorado in February for the remainder of the Northern season .

Have a very Happy Christmas and prosperous New Year, stay safe where ever your adventures lead you. See you next year. Let’s all hope for an even better season next year.

Well , I’m about to jump on a plane to sample the fabled left handers of Manu Bay and Raglan bar in NZ, a short

SPRING SESSIONS

SPRING SESSIONS 2011

2011

Spring Sessions will be run in NSW and Victoria.

The Spring Sessions is an event like no other in the APSI calendar. Open to all members you can come for 1 or 2 days and ski/train with the best ski instructors in the country – the APSI National Demo Team.

Clinics are about having fun, improving and spending time with like minded colleagues who love and live in the mountains like you. We run 2 sessions per day on free skiing topics like Carving, Bumps, Short Turns, Racing, Park/ Pipe and relaxed clinics like – “shut up and ski”!!

There will be a silent auction during the event and APSI merchandise to purchase. All funds raised are used to directly support the national team.

Price per day approx $85 Recalls, price per day $175 plus manual included For further information contact:

Tentative Dates and Venues; Venue: Hotham, VIC Dates: 3 -4 September

Australian Professional Snowsports Instructors PO Box 131, Jindabyne, NSW, Australia, 2627 Ph: 02 6456 1255

Venue: Perisher, NSW Dates: 17 -18 September

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Email: apsi@apsi.net.au Website: www.apsi.net.au

From the Treasurer

income streams should allow us to continue trading without touching the Holding Account funds of $100,000 until at least the New Year.

As it should, the INTERSKI Account should be a zero balance by end February 2011, ready to commence its new four year cycle.

APSI will move into a permanent Office location in Gippsland St in Jindabyne sometime in the next month.

This will get us out of Andy’s house where his generosity has assisted us greatly to be in our present strong financial position. Of course, it will begin to cost us more in Administrative Expenses. I estimate (generously) we will be paying around $6000 per month after the move, to satisfy Andy’s and Donna’s wages, Rent and other office expenses.

Warren Feakes In February this year, when the fraudulent transactions in our accounts were uncovered, APSI was close to being insolvent. In basic terms we owed most of what we had in assets. We were still able to trade and your Board and the Auditors felt confident we could trade out of difficulty because we were about to enter the period when APSI income commenced its annual upward trend.

As your board, we have implemented stringent economic & expenditure control measures and by retaining these we should start off next season with a considerable operating surplus and no outstanding creditors.

We are a Not for Profit Incorporated Association but we must have an Operating Surplus at all times. This is difficult in an organisation that is as seasonal as ours but absolutely vital to maintain. The way we run manual prints and re-prints, have a three or four yearly requirement to replace capital items such as Trainers’ uniforms and have a four yearly commitment to INTERSKI make it essential that we retain a surplus. My comfort Zone amount for the APSI would be accumulated funds to allow us to operate over a four year cycle. A surplus will allow us to fund special projects, assist INTERSKI funding and in general, give something back to members by way of keeping membership and course costs reasonable and running a professional advertising and promotional “front office”.

When opening the new accounts (and closing down the old ones) we had around $19000 in a working account and around $23000 in the Interski account. We believe we owed around the same amount our cash assets as several large creditors like the ATO, superannuation and our insurances had not been satisfied and we had alpine manuals to purchase and snowboard manuals to publish and purchase.

What remained of the Board at the June 2010 AGM decided to retain the present management team as they were the ones who knew where the problems lay and were best positioned to fix them.

As at October 2010, we have cash assets of around $180,000 and have satisfied most of our major creditors with the exception of a $20,000 ATO bill and a $5000 Long Service payment bill. The members’ funds in the INTERSKI account were not broached as part of the process of trading out. Actual account amounts stand at: •

Daily Account (Working Account) $50,000

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Holding Account (Interest Bearing) $100,000

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Interski $32,000

For the more technical and accountancy minded amongst you, we now have a stable set of E-books and a very efficient manner of managing our funds which is secure and as protected against internal and external fraud as we can get it.

Quick-books is being organised so that it matches the way we operate. Expenditure and income is being tagged so that meaningful reports can be pulled from the records to assist the NTC and TDs in their management role and generalised reporting to members on the state of our financial health can be given at any time.

In closing, I must thank Andy and Donna for the effort they put into getting us to our present strong financial position. It has been a long process assisted by ready access to our accountants and the willingness of several people, within and outside the Board as well as some of our creditors to assist us in reversing what was a very bad start to the 2010 season.

So you can see that we are quite healthy. Although the ATO have given us a monthly payment plan option for our arrears, we are applying to pay this amount as a lump sum to avoid interest.

We are now entering another period of income for APSI with Andrew’s Japan trip to show its usual profit and annual membership payments coming in. These two

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General Manager’s Report

Discipline news (for further information see the individual TD reports) Alpine: Course participation was solid at all levels with in the alpine discipline while exam participation held similar to our five year average in all levels except the level three. Participants elected to wait until they were more adequately prepared for this level. It would be great to see these people attend the exam in 2011.

It was also exciting to note that Charlotte Pass held their first Entry Level course this winter. It was great to have Peter “Noddy” McDonald at the helm and we look forward to more courses and exams there in the future.

Andrew Rae It was rough start for 2010 due to financial issues in the administration area with an alleged fraud of APSI funds during the end of 09 & early 2010.

Snowboard: The awesome new snowboard manual attracted a lot of interest with its launch.

It shook us all about but with a change of staff, a change of office and a dedicated team we have managed to knuckle down and finish the winter in a far better position.

Participation in the higher level courses was slightly better then previous years, however exam participation reflected a similar result to alpine in this area.

Revenue

Nordic: An increase in participation at this year’s Level 1 was great to see and included numerous experienced athletes – including two current Olympians, however the higher levels continue to have little to no attendance.

APSI has recorded the highest membership numbers ever with more than 1000 members.

Alpine recorded the second highest number of ‘Entry level’ assessment participants (second only to 2006).

If you compare this year’s numbers to 1995/96 when the Level 1 was the entry point, we managed to exceed those big exam numbers by more then 25%.

Telemark: Good participation was recorded this year at both the Level 1 & cross over. We also had a Level 2 course & exam for the first time in many years.

Add to this an increase in manual sales for both snowboard and alpine partially due to participation in the recall/home study option.

Adaptive: Adaptive is currently going though some updating causing a small dip in participation at exams however APSI is committed to improving these courses by doing further work over the summer with Tom Liolios our new adaptive TD.

Expenses Office expenses were lower than usual due to our cost cutting measures and our production costs for trainer’s materials have been decreased by using electronic versions.

Coaching: APSI is still committed to working with SSA on a coaching pathway; current discussions with Scott Sanderson (alpine TD of SSA) have begun in an attempt to role out pilot courses for winter 2011.

Trainer to participant numbers was kept to a solid average with further cost saving with fewer examiners used at the early season resits and Entry Level assessments.

Trainer/examiner costs were lowered due shorter distances travelled as well as assistance with accommodation.

Interski: The APSI national team is made up of 15 members (10 alpine-including me, 1 telemark, 1 nordic & 3 snowboard), after a successful spring sessions & training in both Falls Creek & Perisher as well as a photo shoot in Thredbo; the team is now ready to travel to Austria.

Over the past four years we have trained at all of the five major resorts & for the first time in a long time we have at least one team member from each of those resorts.

A big thanks to the individuals who let trainers stay at their houses this year as well as both Mt Buller (through Ross Taylor) & Falls Creek (through Francis Jackson) who managed to provide further accommodation for trainers during the season.

These are just a few highlights of how we managed to turn things around. Thanks to all who helped to achieve this turn around, more in depth information can be found in the ‘Treasurers report’.

The whole team are looking forward to attending Interski 2011 at St. Anton, Austria in January. We also have quite a few committed APSI members who will be attending as 6

New in 2011:

a part of the teams support crew; these people will get to see first hand how exciting it is to be at the forefront of snowsports instruction on a world scale.

The names within the APSI qualification pathway will change to a simple numeric four levels, both snowboard & alpine will be changed in January in time for Interski with Nordic & telemark to soon follow.

So what is the best way as members to reap the benefits of a team attending Interski?

Table: Changes to Qualification Pathway Names

Upon returning all team members will write reports on their finding at Interski which will be advertised through our website. These team members are also trainers in your snowsports schools and I am confident that each resort will want to utilise their new found knowledge as apart of the in-house training programs.

Current Entry Level

But by far the most fun way to learn from the teams experiences is to attend ‘Spring Sessions’; in winter 2011 we will again be running sessions in both NSW & Victoria. If you have not yet heard about these great training opportunities the formula for the event is simple; the only trainers are APSI National team members. three hour training sessions are given over two days; the choice of sessions is left to you, and wether you attend because of the trainer or the topic.

w Changes u

As of 2011 Level 1

Level 1

Level 2

Level 2

Level 3

Level 3 (full cert.)

Level 4 (full cert.)

This will mean that all existing members will have their level status changed on file here in the office as well as your membership cards which will show this change & a new certificate or letter of status can be forwarded to you upon request.

Content within each level is continually assessed to make sure it fits the currents needs for employment.

There may even be some slight changes to the levels as a result of Interski, but the above mentioned change is simply a change of names (not content) to better reflect the steps participants are currently taking in their qualification pathway.

I would like to invite everyone to attend no matter if you are involved in the certification pathway, due for a recall or wondering ‘what is new in the world of snowsports instruction’.

I hope everyone has a great summer whether it is on the beach or overseas skiing and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me in the office on: (02) 64561255.

Mt Selwyn tops level 3 Alpine Exam with Max Cook

Andrew Rae speaking at the 2010 Annual General Meeting

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Learning Styles

Relatively recently I have been learning to surf. I sit on my board and watch a few good riders, wish I wasn’t so scared to ask them ‘how they do it’ and then off I go to practice on my own (doing). Again showing the outside world how I like to learn best. Lately I have even tried to keep up with my wife’s golfing style. Now I do not think I will ever get the hang of that sport, but when you hit the ball & it feels right it just seems to do the right thing (kind of). Trouble is I can not tell you what I did to make it do the right thing until I feel the shot again.

In explaining this to you one word stands out in bold to me, Feel. ‘When it feels right it does the right thing’.

Guess who wrote this article to win a DVD

Just last week I had a break through I am not a ‘thinker’ I am a ‘FEELER’. When I try a new movement I like to see it (from the best around) to get a clear picture in my head. But then when I ask ‘how do you do it’, what I really mean is “What does it feel like when you do it”.

Then I like to try to emulate the feeling myself until I can repeat it.

Know your learning style I have been a teacher of sport now since 1990, it is the only job I have ever really had.

But I have been a learner all my life.

Deep down I have always known the way I like to learn best, even if I could not put it into words. Let me give you an example of an early learning experience I had when training to be an instructor. These memories may give you an insight into how I learn best.

Now I am never going to be good at golf and I probably won’t become a professional surfer. But as a learner I can tell you one thing for certain, it would be a waste, if you too just sat back and let your trainers tell you how to learn. Stand up for yourself, tell them how you like to receive information and experience learning.

1. I noticed that I always wanted to watch the best skier first.

Wether it is as a Doer, Watcher, Thinker or a Feeler.

2. I would then ask ‘how do you do it?’

3. Followed by spending some time trying to perfect the movements, on my own.

This from the outside must have looked like I was a massive thinker. Holding back when an exercise was demonstrated, asking questions and moving off to practice- all traits of an analytical mind. I know that it looked like this because when ever the topic of learning styles would come up in training, my trainers would often say “You are the perfect example of a thinker”.

This would often irritate and confuse me, because I generally did not believe that I was a thinker, I thought I was at least a bit of a watcher. The trouble was every time I would bring up this point they would all keep convincing me by saying “No you are really a thinker” Was it true could I really be a thinker, the trouble was the more I thought about whether I was a thinker or not, the more it hurt my head.

What does the turn feel like?

Which trainer/Examiner wrote this article?

The first FOUR people to email the correct answer will win a copy of the alpine demo DVD. Please forward all answers to: alpine@apsi.net.au with ‘Alpine DVD competition’ in the header.

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Alpine Exams

The September exams always have their own trials and tribulations for the APSI team. I travel with a core group of senior examiners that are charged with upholding consistency throughout the country and I thought it would be exciting to get a different perspective this time around and hear from one of them. Here is Chris Allen’s thought’s; Well this year’s exam season was greeted with some excellent snow conditions after 2m of snow in august. This set the scene for our candidates to perform at their best.

The exams got under way at Falls Creek with the VIC level 1 and 2, with Richo at the helm herding us all over the mountain looking for the best places to do the demonstrations and free skiing tasks. For me a highlight was the level 1 free ski task with the candidates throwing themselves down the mountain. It was great to see the depth of talent that we have coming through the ranks.

Richard Jameson Another fantastic season of dedicated instructors training hard and putting their knowledge and skills under the microscope has blown by yet again. Congratulations to all those that attended APSI events this season, chasing their goals on the side of a mountain and improving your skills in the job that we all love.

It was a strange snow season that started slow and finished with some of the best snow seen at exams in September since I have been doing this job. Although some might argue that it’s not quite finished yet.

The level 2 highlights where the free skiing tasks, being short and long turns as well as bumps. Some excellent terrain and new heavy snow conditions made for a demanding test that all candidates took on with great courage. After a beer or two at Tom, Dick and Harry’s with our fellow ski instructors it was off too NSW the next morning.

As I type this article on the Sunshine Coast I know there are a lucky few still sliding around and enjoying the backcountry, perhaps for a few more weeks to come?

With the Forrester loaded up, Richo and I made our way through a monumentous rain storm that hit the Victorian and NSW ski fields. To say we were a little bit concerned about the snow conditions that would greet us at Perisher and Thredbo would be an understatement.

The Re-sits at Mt. Buller in mid June were challenging with this slow start and gave us some of the worst weather conditions and fog imaginable. If you can picture exam candidates at the top of a run, my fellow examiner Richard Haslau in the middle and me at the bottom all yelling at each other, “Are you ready --- Are you ready --- GO --- Here I come ---They are coming ---- Ok!...”.

This is how most of the conversations went at the Level 2 during the skiing tasks to enable our candidates to hear us through the fog. Gotta love the Buller fog! I must say that everyone on this event conducted themselves as true professionals though and made the best out of a harsh day.

Thankfully the snow was good and we had great conditions at Perisher for the level 3. What a

Once again a highlight for me is coming around to the resorts in the middle of the season and catching up with all of our new instructors and members during the Entry Level assessment days. It was pleasing to see a healthy number of participants at this level coming into our system and profession. The knowledge and skills on display at these events was definitely a reflection of all the hard work you put into your training through the first part of the season and I look forward to seeing you continue your careers in the Australian ski resorts.

Alpine Examinations, August 2010

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great 3 days with all the free skiing task’s done at Blue Cow, for me it still has the best high and low end skiing and everything in between skiing in Australia. The race, moguls and free skiing was a highlight challenging our candidates every step of the way.

test themselves each year congratulations to all that achieved their goals and those that haven’t, keep working hard it will come.

Over to Thredbo for the level 2 and again great conditions greeted us with Richo back herding us all over the hill. The exam went off without a hitch!

Chris Allen

Enjoy the next winter/summer where ever you are off too.

I would like to re-iterate some of Chris’s thoughts and thank the hard working team of our APSI examiners.

They put in a mighty effort at exam time with long days and long nights making sure everything is done right. It’s not a job we particularly love to do (as most of us prefer the training and improving side of working with you all); however, it is a very pivotal one for our association. In particular I would like to thank Matt Smith, Tim Robbo and Chris for their tireless efforts of being at all the exams and doing a great job.

Our last stop was Perisher for the level 1. This exam was quite large with 70 odd candidates and examiners to coordinate. Richo had his hands full with this one. A highlight for me at this exam was the teaching. It was great to see our teaching system work so concisely even in a set up environment like at the exam.

There are a lot of people to thank for making the exams a success but in particular I would like to thank the Falls Creek ski school (Frano, Titas, Langers) as well as their staff for their hospitality not only at the exams but through the whole winter with several courses happening there in 2010.

The APSI is always seeking to conduct the best possible training courses and exams for its members, using the most talented people in our industry. I hope you are all proud of our association and what we accomplish for such a small skiing nation and if you have any thoughts on how to improve aspects of the APSI please drop us a line at apsi@apsi.net.au.

Thanks to all the examining staff a couple of key people being Richo, Andy Rae, Robbo and Matt Smith. Also thank you to all the candidates that

Look forward to seeing you on the snow soon!

Snowboard and Alpine Teaching Manuals The latest version of the teaching manual is available to APSI members

The manual was a big hit in 2010 with clear descriptions of the ‘Performance model’, new photos and greate teaching tips from the current National Demo Team.

Manuals are available through the APSI online shop www.apsi.net.au

Purchase online for only $85.00 (Plus postage & handling) 10

SnowBoard

Looking at the season - June and July were tough snow conditions. Thank goodness for snow making! Without it we would have had a very hard time over the school holidays. Luckily, we were blessed with a great August and September!

A lot of people keep saying the seasons are just getting later and later but I’m not to sure about that. I just think Australia is so unique that anything can happen at anytime!

The APSI is currently looking at the calendar for 2011, and I can tell you know there are going to be some surprises again.

Jason Clauscen

Trainers and candidates need to be on top of what they want to do. There is a chance the level two courses could be run in late June if snow allows this, so be aware.

Regardless of whatever courses or exam you wish to do it is important you start thinking about what you need to do soon.

Now that the 2010 season has come to a close it gives me a little chance to reflect on what turned out to be an interesting season.

As most members would know by now, the pre-season turned out to be a little stressful for the board and technical directors.

That means saving some money to help with the cost and time off work, reading the manual and becoming g familiar the content at that level and staying fit.

Over the past few years a lot of hard work and sacrifices have been made by a large number of people to make the APSI what it has been.

I must say I suffered one of the worst injuries I’ve had this season and I am looking forward to riding in 2011 fit, healthy and without pain.

It’s always personally disappointing when it only take the mistrust of one person to really damage the hard work of so many people.

Last but not least, I am fortunate to be on the 2011 Interski team and we will be in St Anton’s in mid January to represent the Australian system. I’m hoping we can represent us all well and we can come back with some new information and ideas from all countries involved.

Even though the season has ended we are still looking for sponsors who are interested in helping the team.

Thankfully these people didn’t walk away form the APSI but instead stuck by us and worked just as hard as they always have.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who supported the APSI over the season and had the belief that over so many years the APSI would see its way through. Thank you all!

I hope all of you enjoy your winter of summer and stay safe.

On the snowboarding side of things the season began with a new manual. Oh joy!

There were a number of changes made in the manual and hours of work needed to be put into this.

Even though the manual is just new, I am still hoping people start having a good look at the manual and even start thinking about it improvements over the next few years.

Yes, I know there are some grammar issues and spelling but with snowboarding evolving the way it does we are always looking into new or more precise information that can then be added or replaced.

If anyone has any ideas - whether it be your first season or your twentieth - please let the APSI know.

On hill talk

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Telemark

Mike Diver in Mt Hotham was the luckiest holding his crossover course during the driest snow week I’ve ever experienced in Australia. I heard lots of good reports from the candidates and was glad to hear Mike threw them off some challenging terrain.

The level one and two were not so lucky as we had torrential rain mid week.

Despite this down pour, spirits were high and the learning levels even higher. Richard filmed his candidates everyday and has compiled “Youtube” footage for them detailing the improvements and individual focus. This is going ‘above and beyond’ and I thank him for providing such a high quality product.

Tom Gellie Hello to everyone and what a great season it has turned out to be - during August I could have sworn I was skiing in another country!

My level two guys and girls were amazing at being sponges. I can’t believe how much they soaked in both rain and technical knowledge! Francis Chen and Tim Esnouf both went on to do their level 2 exam and passed. Well done to you both.

There were lines down Thredbo I never thought existed.

I have been really stoked with the number of courses that ran during this winter. It was my goal to get the telemark scene up and jumping again and it did. There was a total of 19 people take part in courses!

The northern hemisphere winter is just around the corner and I’m off to Utah again. The most exciting event however is 2011 Interski in January. I am really looking forward to seeing what the other countries around the world are doing in terms of telemark and alpine skiing. I will attempt to bring back as much information and video from the event to share with everyone as well as show the world how we rip it up down under.

Two crossover courses ran - one in NSW which was held on Front Valley at Perisher during night skiing. This allowed instructors to keep working and not disrupt their flow of income.

Thanks very much to Tina Burford at Perisher for organizing tickets for us all and having some fantastic snow to ski on. These crossover courses are a lot of fun and I think will be hot next year so get your name in early if you would like to be involved.

On this note I would like to say thank you to all the resorts that helped out with courses this winter.

Thredbo, Perisher, Falls Creek and Mt Hotham. Without your support the courses can’t run.

Until next time.

Resort telemarking August 2010, Photo by Tony Nicholson

Backcountry telemarking August 2010 , Photo by Tony Nicholson

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Nordic

Jephcott (L3 Life member) for the work they did to get these courses off the ground.

On a disappointing note, I have still not been able to run a L2 or L3 course this year due to lack of numbers in one location. I hope to remedy this next year.

Although enthusiasm was present to run a Cross Discipline course at Mt Buller, it appears programming did not allow this to happen.

The Nordic Discipline is now operating on the 2nd edition of the Nordic Skills Manual and copies are out to some of the Tribal Elders for review with plans for a Third Edition. Added to the Manual are two new chapters but as opposed to incorporating these into a print run, they are provided as a training resource on-line on the APSI Website. They can be found as .pdf files in the Nordic Section called Section 1-Professionalism and Section 2-Teaching Theory, the latter containing aspects of Management and Safety.

Warren Feakes The 2010 season has been a successful one for the Nordic Discipline.

A Level One course was held for 7 students at Perisher at the end of June. The important aspect of this course that cannot be underestimated is that two of the students were Vancouver Olympians, Alexi Almoukov (Biathlon) and Ben Sim (Cross Country). Of the five remaining students, three were members of the NSW XC team or development squads.

On the general teaching front, Nordic, especially in the NSW resorts, continues to use techniques of ‘Nordic Cross’ picked up from the Swiss instructors at the last Interski. These methods, using mini obstacle courses made up with cones, coloured dye, chairs and natural features around the Nordic area seem to be able to enthuse the younger inter-school skiers and we have noticed a rise in skill levels brought about by the ‘skiing dexterity’ these exercises give the youngsters. As well, we seem to get ‘inter-schoolers’ after they have done a 5 hour Boarding or Moguls session and they are either falling asleep, ready to bite off the instructor’s arm with hunger, or wanting to beat their classmate, brother or sister to death with a ski pole. Any diversion helps!

A Level One course was held for 9 students at Falls Creek at the end of August 2010. There were two Victorian junior squad skiers on this course and several other school aged participants.

All students were successful candidates at subsequent exams during the season and most commenced instructional duties later in the season.

I feel Nordic is beginning to build a strong base of young instructors in both NSW and Victoria, something that has been needed for quite a while. My thanks go to Zac Zaharias (L1 trainer and L2 Instructor) and Keith

Roll on 2011, Interski St Anton and a huge dump in June.

Nordic Trainer Richard Hocking checks initial Double Pole (DP – Ha Ha) positions of students Acacia Rose and James Ashton-Maxwell, July 2010. Photo by Warren Feakes

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Olympic Biathlete “Alexi Almoukov gives corrections to fellow student Acacia Rose on the Level 1 Nordic Course”, June 2010, Photo by Warren Feakes

Adaptive Report

Season 2010 saw over 1500 hours of adaptive private lessons over the larger of the resorts nationally, with smiles on dials for our treasured guests. We were also fortunate to be able to hold an APSI adaptive exam at Smiggins this year, with nine keen (and successful!) candidates.

Well done guys, and thanks for your commitment to adaptive teaching – your guests can only benefit from your efforts, and it’s great to see. Many thanks also to Manuela Brunner, Rob Hoier and Andy Rae for working towards a smooth operation at the exam.

While I’m in a thanking mood, gratitude must go out to

Tom Liolios the hard working folks at Disabled Wintersport Australia,

As my first season in the job as Technical Director for APSI Adaptive, I knew there was a steep learning curve waiting for me, and I was not mistaken. In addition to discovering the machinations of the APSI and the snow sport schools around the country, I was particularly enamored by the support and enthusiasm I was met with in all corners of our industry.

who are the foundation stone of adaptive snow sport in this land – their increasing support at all levels year in, year out, cannot be underestimated. Maximum respect DWA!

Finally, thank you to the gang at APSI for welcoming me into my new role and providing the platform for adaptive to have a real voice. If you’re thinking of getting involved in adaptive, go for it. You’ll love it, and the rewards are immense.

There is no doubt in my mind that the adaptive snow sports movement is alive and well in our snowsport schools, our resorts, and the wider community.

See you out there.

Adaptive skiing smiles on dials

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Sodergren Scholarship Report

Receiving the letter I have to admit it made me cry with pride and all sorts of mixed emotions as I thought, “Yes, if the APSI believe in me enough to grant me the opportunity in tribute to the memory of two amazing instructors and trainers, let me at it!”

This ‘Let me at it’ attitude I have to admit was not always present. It came and went depending on my physical and mental state. As the season was drawing to an end I realised how both physical and mental strength are imperative to personal development in skiing.

Awareness of and commitment to physical fitness and strength is probably easier than the mental side, albeit not easy. I am currently getting into yoga, having realised this season that high performance skiing requires a sound knowledge of your own body and how it moves (or doesn’t).

Cassandra Sigmund Without blabbering on too much and reiterating how I gained my nickname (Rara), here is a report of my season as a Sodergren Scholarship recipient.

The mental side and getting into the right head space during the season and at exams is probably the most challenging aspect. This season I finally truly understood something a wise trainer told me the season before,

First of all I would like to thank the APSI immensely for the opportunity to pursue my level 3. Not only did it remove the financial burden but more importantly it instilled a motivation in me that came from the honour and pride of receiving the scholarship.

“You need to take ownership of your own skiing”

I have watched many people attempt year after year their remaining components at exams. While this determination is admirable I can’t help but hear Chris’ words and think,

I was not lucky enough to have known Mim and Mike Sodergren but feel that through the Women’s Program at Falls Creek and the Sodergren Scholarship that there is a continued presence and spirit among Australian ski instructors.

“No, don’t tell me what your trainer did or didn’t do or how the snow conditions effected your performance”

2 01 1 S o d e r g r e n S c h o l a r s h i p The APSI offers a scholarship fund in recognition of the rising potential of snow sports instruction within our resorts.

The Sodergren Scholarship was founded in 1997 to remember Mike and Mim Sodergren who died in the Thredbo landslide.

Both Mike and Mim epitomised what is was to be a professional snow sports instructor.

Their passion for the industry and their dedication to training and professional development were legendary.

They ignited passion for snow sports in both recreational skiers and professional instructors alike. A clinic with either of them was something that you never forgot.

The successful applicants must meet the following criteria: • Commitment to personal education, training and accreditation in the Snowsports Industry • Professionalism and image • Contribution and service provided to the industry • A current financial member of the APSI at the time of application

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To apply for the opportunity of gaining all course fees and exam costs to be covered for one season please send applications in writing to the Board of Management before the 1 April 2011.

Please send all information to: PO Box 131 Jindabyne NSW 2627 or email apsi@apsi.net.au All applicants must be a current member of the APSI with no outstanding debts financially to the association.

• The Board of Management reserves the right to seek nominations.

• The decision of the APSI Board of Management is final. No correspondence will be entered into.

The successful participant will be notified after the May Board Meeting. The scholarship is current for that season only.

If you have been trying and trying without success, perhaps you need to take ownership and change your approach. Seasons are short, and your success at exams is more important and affects you more than it does anyone else. Written and human resources are available to those who choose to take ownership of their own skiing. Good changes don’t happen in your skiing through mileage or relying on your trainer delivering skills to you on a silver platter. Time spent with other candidates or friends and sharing ideas and drills, watching each other, and spending time watching and assessing video footage of yourself and others is much more beneficial than just ‘skiing’.

your teaches, stuff up fifty times and get to a point where you feel comfortable so that it takes pressure off on exam day.

I would like to greatly thank my trainers and fellow candidates for an awesome season. Demelza, it was great to be inspired by a female trainer. Jaye, thanks for the study sessions and road trip. Brooksy, congratulations on getting the gold badge!! Come on girls, I hope to see more of us attempt level 3 next season!

If you feel passionate about following the certification pathway, and feel you would be a worthy recipient of the fund, I encourage you to apply. Whether you receive it or not, the application process in itself helps you to reflect and clarify your vision within the industry.

In addition, and something I will push more and focus more on if I make trainer, is teaching. We have all been guilty of leaving the teaching component to the last minute and then stressing about it and letting that stress affect all other components. Teaching is what our job is.

Get out there with anyone who will listen and practice

Here’s to a bumper 2011 season, Oh, one final hint I realised this season and would like to pass on – Skiing is about going DOWN the hill!!

A P S I 2 01 1 M e m b e r s h i p n o w a v a i l a b l e

Membership is based on a calendar year so a 2011 membership extends from 01 January 2011 to 31 December 2011. Your membership fees go directly to supporting the administration costs of the association. In return the Board of Management works to provide you with access to the best and information about instruction and snowsports in the world!

Members wishing to attend any APSI courses/exams or to apply for ISIA status are required to register as full members. It allows you to access to all parts of the web site, access to the APSI office, full voting rights and you even get issued a membership card.

Early bird prices available until December 31st 2010

Full year membership-$80.00 (after January 2011-$100)

3 year full membership-$215.00 (after January 2011-$240)

Associate membership-$50.00 (after January 2011-$70)

After a troubled start to 2010, APSI seems to have recovered well, thanks largely to help from you the members and the snowsports schools, therefore the APSI board of management is repaying that support by keeping membership prices at 2010 levels.

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National Team Training

up with this theme over the last 12 months, with more emails back and forth than I can remember. To quote Demelza Clay, some of the points we plan to present that make up this theme are: • Our journey, What Australia has learnt along the way.

• Our maintenance of consistency and level standard across resorts • The Simplicity of 3 performances, 4 skills. Including our Movement Analysis System.

• This Core skill development runs from early acquisition to advanced performance. And has been originated from the unique needs of our customers (the instructors) and from the needs of the guests who visit Aussie ski resorts.

Paul Lorenz St. Anton, icy, water-injected World Cup slalom run, thousands cheering from the stands in the finish area and the best technical skiers in the world expecting to see what Australia can do.

• The Performance Model/Clinic as a self diagnosis and training tool for instructors. That the simple understanding of this model can produce intrinsically motivated learners and teachers (i.e. instructors that can answer their own questions through understanding the model).

This is what we can expect at one of the on mountains ski demonstration night show events at Interski. So how do we prepare for an experience like that?

The APSI National team was selected in 2008 and since then have been coming together twice a season to train/ prepare. As the team is geographically challenged, it is very difficult in such a short season to get together. For a demonstration like the night show (mentioned above) our main challenges are to look similar when we ski or ride, not running into each other and demonstrating fast, dynamic Australian skiing and riding.

• The user friendly ‘cross over’ characteristic of our system, in that similar language, terminology and methodology is used across all disciplines to ensure consistency for instructors that become certified in multiple disciplines.

Another major task for us has been raising the money for us to physically get to Interski. We did this by organizing fundraising parties, raffles, product auctions and also by holding the ever-growing Spring Sessions. These fundraisers have been very successful and I want to thank all of you who have attended these events in support.

We started practising for this by skiing/riding in sync in pairs to learn each other’s skiing style. With many attempts and lots of feedback from our coach we gradually put these groups together to make 4’s and then eventually had the whole team skiing in sync at once.

This last season we finally got to the point where we could ski together in sync, the formations we will perform at interski. If you are interested in seeing a short video clip that Tom Gellie has put together showing the lighter side of our training sessions you can click on the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYBTKY92OSc

Anyway, I hope this has shed some light on what is involved in our preparation for Interski in St. Anton. The team and I all look forward to sharing our experience with you on our return.

The ski formations are not the only part of our preparation, we will also be presenting on-snow workshops and keynote lectures to the other countries. For this we have selected a central theme of Building great instructors – ‘The first step in delivering exceptional experiences for our guests’. Using this theme, we plan to show the Australian training system and how the APSI produce world class snowsports instructors. The team came

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Congratulation to everyone who attempted certification this season. Well done to those who passed and keep at it if you have things to finish off. It is worth it in the end.

Well that’s it from me. Safe travels to everyone for your summer adventures, be it a summer or a northern winter.

Marty Firle

I will be hanging out in Jindy recovering from LARS knee surgery and getting fit for 2011 Interski in January. Also my house should be ready to move into for Christmas, plus a lot of Dragon boating as the Nationals are in Canberra in April.

Well another season is over here at Perisher. This season was a good one even with the slow start of natural snow.

We have ended up with a base of around 150cm for the last weekend. August made for some really good skiing.

Perisher’s new snowmaking really helped out the start with all the man made areas covered in Perisher, Blue Cow and Smiggins. Even without natural snow the resort was good to ski. You just needed to have a good edge tune.

Interschools was big again this year, with the regional’s being run on Front Valley. This made for fun in the afternoon when Alpine races were being run under the V8. Div 1 and 2 used the Slope Style park for Skier and Rider X. Div 3, 4 and 5 had their Skier and Rider X course in the half pipe area.

National’s were held at Perisher in September with some wild weather.

On the Freestyle side, Perisher re named the half pipe “Bright’s Pipe” in honour of Olympic Gold Medallist Torah Bright. There was a new event this year called “King of the Mountain”. This was a 3 event series, Slopestyle, Half Pipe and Big Air. Toppa’s Dream was going strong this season as well, with the Australian Freestyle Moguls champs being held in August.

First tracks, Smiggin Holes, July 2010

Another new big hit for the season was the introduction of the Bagjump just off the lower Supertrail. A 20m x20m huge air filled cushion, comprised of six multiple chamber airbags, it allows riders to practice their tricks with a safe landing. It accommodates all landing styles and provides the perfect catch where ever you land on it.

Safety clinics where run by our snow sports instructors adding a new dimension to freestyle teaching at Thredbo.

Of course we would like to congratulate Adam and

Meta von Essen Natasha on the arrival of their baby girl, Addison in the autumn, and also Stuart and Rosanna on the arrival of their baby girl Alessia in the spring.

We had another great season in Thredbo this year. Even though mother-nature was a little slow to shower us with white stuff which arrived in the bucket loads in August.

The fully automated snowmaking system with 300 guns provided us with record breaking amounts of man made snow being made in June and early July which now allows Thredbo to boast the largest snowmaking system in the southern hemisphere covering over 70 hectares of ski-able terrain. This made our teaching, training and free skiing in 2010 all the more enjoyable for the earlier months of the season.

And further congratulations to Tareesa Straatmans and Tom Gellie who won as voted by our Snow sports instructors, consecutively Best Rookie Snowboard and Ski Instructor for the 2010 season, both APSI trainers and examiners… Well done guys!!

Hope everybody has a great summer/winter season, till next year, 18

surrounding area isolating the resort and many other local communities for a 24-hour period. Fortunately, the rain turned to snow, much of our fantastic snowpack was retained and the remainder of September brought excellent spring skiing.

Andrew Dean

Like many other Australian snowsport professionals, my season started disappointingly at APSI trainers coordination as we learnt of the crime that had been committed against our community over the summer period. However, I am very encouraged that despite this bad news we had more employees enthusiastically involved in our in-house training sessions, APSI precourses and exams in 2010 than at any stage in the past decade. Mt Hotham rewarded this enthusiasm by offering more training options and hours than ever before, something that will hopefully be expanded even further in 2011 as we look for a specialist freestyle alpine trainer to build our staffs skill base and help service this ever expanding market.

It is snowing heavily outside the house in Steamboat as I sit here reflecting on the 2010 Hotham winter season.

The 2010 winter, as with many Australian ski seasons, was divided by the period prior to and following the big snowfall.

Good early conditions allowed the resort to have lifts turning opening weekend for the first time in years but this was followed by a very dry, albeit cold, second half of June and July resulting in almost no natural snow fall.

Thanks to the fantastic efforts of the snowmakers and our 22 new snowguns, which boosted our snowmaking capability by 40% this season, the resort was able to exceed our guest’s expectations through the July holiday period. Thanks to the cold conditions and the 114% increase in man made snow over 2009, Imagine, Cornice and Blue Snake were open to the public during the July holidays on a purely man made base.

I would like to give special mention to Amy Kirk who was the Level 2 snowboard national course top, Lydia Turnbull who topped the Victorian Alpine Level 1 and Libby Phillips who was successful at the Victorian alpine level 2 after a concerted effort over a couple of seasons.

Once the holiday surge receded the snow began to fall culminating in a 47cm dump on the 26th of August, the largest since 2003, and rounding out the snowiest single month since 1992. All this snow allowed our staff and guests to take advantage of the best free ski terrain in the country with Gotcha, Orchard and Keogh’s remaining open until September 24th and Heavenly operating right through to season close.

I believe the training staff at Mt Hotham is second to none and this season was improved by the addition of Damien Stewart who brought his unique sense of humour, outlook on life and enthusiasm to our training staff. Many of our trainers go above and beyond to give every candidate, sitting exams or not, the best chance to meet or exceed their goals. I know all our staff are very appreciative, thank you again from all of us.

It would be remiss of me to fail to mention the natural landslip on the 4th of September, which demolished the Village Ticket Office but thankfully spared the Village Chair. Fortunately, all guests had been evacuated prior to the slide due to an excellent combined effort and the Village Chair was able to reopen three days later.

Finally, I would like to thank this opportunity to thank the APSI board, trainers and staff for all their hard work over the past 12 months. I know this has been a trying time for all of you but I am confident that after the success of the past season, the APSI can move on stronger than ever into the coming seasons.

The storm that caused the saturation of the ground leading to the landslip at the bottom of the Village chair dropped upwards of 180mm on Mt Hotham and the

Have a great northern winter or southern summer and we look forward to seeing you at Mt Hotham in 2011.

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development and feedback from their trainer.

I would like to take this opportunity to say well done to everyone who participated in training and attended exams this season. Congratulations to all who passed their exams. Keep up your professional development and perhaps look towards achieving your next level. I would like to also particularly congratulate Falls Creek’s Kole McFarland and Mark Bremner for topping the Victorian Level 1 snowboard and Level 2 alpine exams respectively, and to Jason Toh for passing his Level 3 alpine.

Thomas Langtry The 2010 winter season saw some great developments around Falls Creek, very good training by staff at all levels and some of the craziest weather for a long time.

Special mention all goes to Danielle Brooke for passing her Level 3 alpine. Danielle has been training towards her level 3 for a number of years and has set an excellent example to all for her dedication to achieving her goals.

The roar of applause from the staff room at Falls could be heard down in Mt Beauty when word came through of her success. Well done Brookesy!!!

With some very cold temps through the week leading up to June opening weekend, our snowmaking team created a great start for all our guests by pumping out enough snow for us to have Wombats Ramble, Main St and Tom Thumb open from the first day of the season.

The incredible amount of snow we received in August lasted us right through to the end of the season, with Summit open into the last week and good guest numbers on the hill and in lessons.

Thanks to all the Falls Creek trainers for your efforts through the season, as well as to the other APSI trainers & examiners who came to Falls Creek through the season for courses & exams. Thanks also to Andy for all his work in getting the APSI through some difficult times and to Donna for doing a great job in the administration role this year.

Our start of season hiring process ran well and we welcomed a number of new staff to our team who performed very well throughout the season.

Good luck to the National team at Interski in January and best wishes to all for your coming summer or winter.

Look forward to a cold one with you back in Aus.

In house training booklets were introduced to give all involved a good understanding of the different training & exam components and to take notes on their skills

2011 Alpine Courses in Japan Alpine courses will again be available to APSI members in Japan Location: Niseko Dates: 25 February - 6 March 2011 Courses/Exams available: ‘Entry level’ - New Level One Level 1 - New Level 2 Level 2 prep & resits - New Level Three Full course dates & costs will be available through the APSI online Shop www.apsi.net.au APSI/Japan courses supported by NBS (Niseko Base Snowsports) 20

APSI gratefully acknowledge the sponsorship of the following organisations

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SnowPro is the official newsletter of the APSI.

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Australian Professional Snowsports Instructors PO Box 131, JINDABYNE NSW 2627 email: apsi@apsi.net.au website: www.apsi.net.au