Ski Instructors: What do you love about it?

The no uniform while off the clock thing makes complete sense imho. If an employee acts like an ass (which frequently happens at ski areas) they don't want that behavior automatically representing the mountain. I think that would be standard protocol at any area without even considering lawsuits.

I think that rule is pretty universal.. Even at our little ski area it was in place way back in the day when I taught (1999-2004).  It's still in place now...

Ethan, off the clock by 15 minutes.. Sans uniform...

I have a black cycling wind vest that I roll up and put in my pocket for that purpose

I get the reason behind it but that still doesn't make it annoying.  They got us a closet next to the adaptive office where we can stash our uniforms when we are skiing off the clock this year which is helpful and a time saver.

sno i would think with you affinity for lifts and ski area management an instructors job would be a great learning experience for you in terms of cutomer relations etc.

this is my sons third year and he loves it, cleans up on tips and is now helping teach the junior moguls program that he was a student in two years ago

Hey all -

I hope you're having a great start to the season.  I wanted to get your thoughts on being a ski instructor.  

A primary goal would be to become a better skier in a reasonably economic way.  Here is my situation - I like to ski and to learn.  I consider my self to be a 7/8 level skier on the ski-school scale.  I am 36 and have a 3 and almost 6 yo, so spending time with them is important.  I am LI, and the past two seasons I've skied 15 days per year.  I am a technical learner, and am reading Ron LeMaster's "Ultimate Skiing" for the 5th time.  Next season I will likely put my 6 yo into a developmental program at Belleayre (10 weeks), with my little one to follow.  My wife is a low-level intermediate skier.  The goal is for the kids is for them to have fun and get exposed to skiing.  It looks like to teach at Belle, they want 18-24 days or so, 3 weekends a month, and some time on holiday weeks.  If the kids are in the program, I'll be there a lot.  Starting in the second season you get family passes.  I would plan to test for the Cert 1 at the end of the first season.  I could start toward the Cert II or wait until my kids want to spend less time with me.  

For me, here are the PROs of teaching:  

- I enjoy teaching
- I have really gotten bitten by the skiing bug
- It looks like Belle has a PSIA-oriented program and encourages clinics/learning.
- Related, but access to PSIA clinics.  (I know some appear open to the general public).
- Structure to learning - see above about me reading the same skiing book for the fifth time.  
-The economics of it are a slight plus.  Standing alone, it would never be worth it to me.

The CONs:

- This would be a big time commitment.
- Related, but I like to maximize my time with my kids.  If they are in Mountain Adventures, I won't see them during that time anyway.  
- It seems (at least based on posts here) there may be reason to be wary of working with ORDA
- I have no idea how ski schools are run

So what do you think?  Is there anything else that I should be thinking about?  For ORDA (or former ORDA) instructors, If you attend PSIA clinics, do those days get credited toward your day requirement?  Have you found the PSIA clinics significantly better/more effective than those available to the general public?

And thank you to anyone who made it this far into the post!

I taught for 7 years at two different major resorts, albeit about 20 years ago.  You probably want to have a conversation with the ski school director or at least some instructors who have been at that hill for a while.  I'm thinking that, for you, this should be a real interview where you are offering your value but also seeking the value of working there.  Some things you might want to find out:

- Do you want to improve your skiing or improve your teaching?  Does that ski school have clinics, possibly done by a technical director (e.g. PSIA level 3), to improve your skiing, and/or do they focus more on pedagogy?
- Can you get an opinion as to whether you would pass a level I exam; does that offer additional $ for your teaching?
- Mileage.  When you teach, you don't really get the mileage that you may want (to improve).
- Somewhat following the previous, what is the nature of skier you will likely be teaching?  Can you handle the repetitive nature of teaching skiing?  I didn't mind teaching never-evers because I could go on teaching auto-pilot.
- How do you handle the really cold?  Do you want to teach back-to-back lessons for 5 hours when it's minus a lot?  Side note: boot heaters are a fine, fine creation.
- Other pluses:  pro deals, locker, not having to pull your pass out every time you go up the lift, respect and admiration of other skiers (<--just kidding.  Really!)

Hi Dom,

I think that being a ski instructor would be a great fit for you. You love skiing and you want to get better - those things alone are worth the price of admission (and the time commitment). Add in the family considerations, and you seem like you've got a solid case.

That being said, I don't know any particulars about teaching at Belleayre. I know that people loved working there when it was under DEC control, but I'm not sure if ORDA management made it a tough place to work. I do have some loose contacts at Belleayre, though, if you're interested in talking to someone. They might be better equipped to answer your Belleayre-specific questions. For instance, Gore appreciated their mountain adventure instructors so much (because it is exceedingly difficult to find employees that will show up for 6, 10, or 18 Saturdays in a row), that they allowed a little leeway in group selection. If you wanted to ski with your kids in the afternoons, they'd try to work with you to shadow those lessons, or act as a roving substitute, who would fill in when needed.

As far as PSIA goes, I agree that it is a worthy goal. It will most definitely make you a better Skier, and if you like books about getting better, we have a ton of them. There is also a quarterly magazine and a bimonthly (close, anyway) newsletter that the eastern division puts out. Some of it might be old hat for you (LaMaster has an article in the latest magazine), but PSIA is very good about introducing new ways to think about things, and new ways to explain things to people of differing backgrounds.

Level I Certification is no problem for you. Your plan to get that during your first year is perfect - it will give you a good base to build from, some good Level 1-3 progressions, and a good idea of the kind of people you will meet in PSIA (mostly people like you: people who love to ski and want to ski better).

Level II certification is more difficult. Can you ski bumps and look smooth? Can you do pivot slips without converging your tips? Can you ski short, shaped turns without rotating your upper body? More importantly, can you teach those things to someone who is struggling with them? A lot of people get in the organization and think they'll breeze right through the certification ladder, but then are surprised to find that it's not as easy as they thought it would be. That's not entirely a bad thing. Accomplishments don't mean much if they are easy.

Gore used to count 2 PSIA days towards my 25 days, but I'm not sure if they still do that, or what Belleayre's specific policy is. Are the PSIA-specific clinics worth it? I think so, but that opinion might be biased. Like I said, if you like skiing and want to get better, I'm not sure I've ever heard bad feedback from the clinics I've attended or conducted (besides things like "I wish there was more snow"). There are also significant advantages to being an instructor that nobody mentions (gear discounts, contacts in the industry, friends with ski houses, etc.) that actually make it a pretty good deal (even if I have trouble clearing my credit card balance some months).

Okay, that's enough. TL;DR - it sounds like instructing is a good fit for you. I can't answer your Belleayre specific questions, but I have nothing but good things to say about PSIA and the goal of making yourself a better skier and teacher. Let me know if you want a name or two at Belleayre that you can email.

DBC and Matt - that is for the very helpful thoughts and replying.  I ll send a more detailed reply later.  Matt thanks for the offer of a contact.   I'll shoot you an email.  

I meant 'thanks' ....

Matt covered that pretty well.  I don't know much about working at Belleryre but given your comments it seems like a good fit for you.  

For part timers it would take at least 3-4 yrs to gain enough experience to try for Level 2.  It's a 2 part exam with 2 days testing skiing ability then another 2 days later on teaching and technical / professional knowledge.  You have to get a kids teaching event passed before you can take the exam.  Pass rates for level 2 have historically been around 60%.

Level 3 would take a part timer a min of 5-7 years to be ready for unless you had some other background like being a high level racer.  Exam set up is similair as level 2 with two day day segments.  Pass rate is much lower historically around 20 to 30% are successful.  Each part of the exam has sub segments that they now let you bank for life making it a bit easier than it used to be to pass on a retake.  I honestly think it was harder to pass my L3 than to get my MBA.

Teaching does amazing things for your skiing and it's a great group of people.  I bitch about it some as I might be getting a bit burned out after 29 years but I really do love it.

Thanks Coach