kinpa

I got a chance now to do a little bit more research.... I chose the event list for AASI/Eastern Division since I think it has the most members and the most variety of clinics offered. On the list of events, page 8 under rider update 3 two days clinics are offered titled "Corduroy & Carving" http://www.psia-e.org/ev/schedul/EventSchedule.pdf The discription for the clinic is this: Snowbd Corduroy and Carving - This course is designed for snowboard instructors refining their riding skills and working on carving and groomed terrain. During this course you will experience and discover techniques used to improve your understanding of both riding and teaching students to carve. Be prepared to learn and use terminology that will reinforce safe riding and coaching your students to switch edges with out pivot (or waiting for the board to face downhill). You will review movement analysis techniques used to determine when students are prepared move into the carving realm. Experiment with fun riding tasks that can be used to teach students to "play" to develop the necessary skills and gain experience before heading to more difficult terrain. Wearing a helmet is not required, but is encouraged at this course. copied from http://www.psia-e.org/ev/desc/aasi/ I wonder what would happen if an instructor were to show up with alpine gear to an event like this. I would try it if I was still on the east coast!

if anyone could do it, it would be you, Steve!

You must teach somewhere with a perfect beginner hill! (jealous) The place where I've taught for the last 5 years presented some unnesessary additional challenges for the beginner. Steep at the top, followed by long relatively flat section with very slight (aka hard to recognize) double fall lines going all over the place. Not only that, but I've had to deal with a rope tow, as well. NOT FUN! They finally got a chair in there this year which majorly narrowed the available terrain to use! The place I teach now also has a rope tow in the beginner area with a very gentle and wide slope. The top of the rope tow is a little steep and has a huge bottleneck issue. Even has a "bench" in the middle where many get stuck if they are going to slow. You are so lucky to have great terrain to teach on!

Cuban, wishing you a good day of sun! I'm stuck at work looking out the window today.... and I wish more sun for you (and me) for the rest of the week!

And here's my favorite picture from that trip.... I can't get good action shots with my camera, but the scenery sure is pretty...... .jpg] They were ready to go and I asked them to stop for a minute! Kind of why Dane was sliding down toward Kram! I think this was on the top part of Ridge Run

I wasn't planning on selling any, but I'll be up to Whitefish to ride on Thursday and Friday and I have a pair she could use if there is concern about something breaking.... Besides, it would be nice to have another lady to ride with!

That's what I started on too.... The 140. Once I realized that a little speed made turning so much easier, I did ok! I really don't remember any hard crashes though. I just remember the determination to be better than my brother cause it was his board I learned on! By the end of the season I could kick the tail(?) around on blues.... Linked turns? Yeah, something like that..... And back to the topic again.... Maybe if AASI didn't discourage many of the "adult" (ok, I use the word lightly) instructors with experience, maybe there would be more beginners that could have successful first days?

And how's the weather looking? Any chance for good carving? It's coming down here near Missoula!

Not so sure about that.... I think snowboarding definatly has that reputation that the first day hurts a lot... More falls than on skis. I had a snowboard examiner ask a group once, "Is it possible to teach a beginner snowboard lesson without any crashes?" I don't know, but I also think that since balance on a board is harder than on skis even if a beginner were not to crash at all, the muscles would still be pretty sore by the end of the day!

You would have lost me by the glide! Well, maybe not..... Probably wouldn't have even come for a lesson or gotten on a board to begin with! I've been teaching for 20+ years so I pretty much know the drill... You are lucky if you have prefect terrain and wide open spaces to teach on, but not always a reality. Back on topic though, does the "fear" of the first time sway people away from even attempting it?

I've never surfed.... And I'm a super weenie scardy cat! How do you feel about teaching people like me? It's amazing I ever could link turns! I was so afraid to move that I'd do maybe three feet then sit down and spend the next 15 minutes trying to get up on heel side! And that's when I was 17! Good thing I didn't try to learn when I was 40. Probably would have never happened!

See edit! But.... I am teaching on a $50 pair of skis that I got on Craigslist.... Come to find out the skis are for a beginner / low level intermediate skier... Should be perfect to teach on! The one guy there pretty high ranking (a tele examiner) is also a Rossi rep and made a comment about them.... Oh well. I thought it's better than teaching on my Fisher slalom CARVING ski! (Those skis are super fun! Might have to bring them next week!)

Hmmmm..... Oh yeah, no "like" button on Bomber! Done and did.... That's why I'm a ski instructor now! I hope they never try to tell me that I have to teach on those funny looking twin tip rockered skis! Although, I'm not sure what the response would be if I showed up on old straight skis. I wonder if a 5 year old student would notice or care much? I think I'm pretty safe that I can post here without my new ski school director reading it.... I would hate to get fired again for being too vocal! The one snowboard instructor that got hired and showed up with a hard boot setup was forced to change to a soft boot low angle (maybe duck?) stance to teach... Did I mention that my new director is an examiner with AASI?

And what would your response be, softbootsailer, if someone told you that you have to ride 15 / -15? Would you do it? I tried it and can't see any reason to do it. I like my directional stance, and I can still ride switch if I needed to.

Here, Here Steve! very well put.... how many adults even care about riding switch when it comes right down to it? I'm not sure where Earl Saline calls home, but it would certainly be interesting to see the number of adults who come back for lessons after they are able to link turns on blues.... if there is no interest in jibbing and bonking and freestyle, why should an adult waste their money on a lesson? I had a fellow carver tell me that he's yet to find an instructor that could teach him anything.... I'm sure there are some around, but where? and at what cost? perhaps all of us have given up on AASI ... too bad

how kind of you to sacrifice yourself, but is it really worth it?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!!!!! oh, should have figured..... it must be because we are in a more sparsely populated division, right???? HAHAHAHAHAA!!!! Maybe we should ask Fin or Sean or Bruce..... when was the last time you were asked by AASI to set up a demo tent at one of their events so all these so called diversified instructors can see what an alpine board is like and what some other options may be? I came to Montana from the Eastern division. I've been here 10 + years now, so maybe things have changed? Maybe we should be looking at the events schedules for the various divisions to see what is offered? That will be a project for later.... maybe if you have time b0ardski?

I think we just all have to accept diversity. No one wants to be told that have to ride a certain way. Isn't that why we started snowboarding instead of skiing like everyone else in the first place way back when? Doing something different... out of the norm... When I get time later tonight, I want to go back and read the NY Times article again. The thing that I see as an instructor, is that most of the public isn't even aware there are any other options than the baggy clothes, park riding, duck stance "kids" that are out there. If I came to a ski area for the first time as an adult, I don't know that that particular style would appeal to me either. I do ski too. And I'm happy on my Fisher slalom skis. That's my style. For one I can't afford new twin tip rocker skis, so I make do with what I have. If I tried it, I might just like it. Who knows! The new freestyle skiing doesn't appeal to me either, but I'm not going to say it's wrong. I just feel that the majority of us on this forum just would like the general public know that there are options if the mainstream "style" isn't so appealing to you. The kids always want to do something different than what their parents do. Just happens that way. Are we, as the adults, the ones to say if it's right or wrong? I've seen many competent soft boot riders. I don't have a problem with the way they ride. I DO have a problem if they insist on telling me why I should be riding like them. AASI says we need to cater to our students and they come to us with soft boot setups, right? Sure they do only because if they want to snowboard that is the only option they have. Don't fault me for showing them there are other ways. I think I can teach a pretty successful first time lesson on my hard boots on an all mountain board with lower binding angles. I've done it for years and rarely have anyone even ask why my gear is different than what they are on. And if they do? I simply state that it is a different style: more race / carving oriented and leave it at that. Most of the time they are just envious of how quickly and easily I can get into my step-ins, which in my opinion makes it perfect to teach in! Perfect to give the student the help that s/he needs for a successful lesson while minimizing the crashes... that's what it's all about. Making the first experience on any type of snowboard a good one. I'm sure many of you remember what it was like when you first learned.... why would anyone less than a completely dedicated adult want to subject themselves to the pain and crashes? I sure wouldn't do it.

I was thinking that the other day... You have been missed.... Every fall I think about making a trip to Sun Valley to ride with you... It's only about a 6 hour drive, I think.... Guess it won't be this year either

I actually heard reports that they came across the same guy.... I don't know, I wasnt with them... Maybe it's one of those "fishing" tall tales.... Steve Pro would know the story!

I posted in an AASI nation wide forum about a month ago about a preferred stance for a never-ever snowboarder. The answer I got was from a nationally ranked guy? 9 / -9 ugh. My old ski school director (one of a few reasons I teach at a different mountain now) insisted every board coming out of the rental shop is set up 15 / -15. I had even set up an all-mountain board like that to prove to him I could do it with plates and hard boots! Same guy who insisted a beginner lesson should spend as much time riding switch as regular. I'm sorry, but at some point everyone needs to choose a regular stance. I am so fed up with AASI that I have become mostly a ski instructor now. AASI refuses to acknowledge the needs of our generation! One good thing I heard last Saturday from a younger kid who is Level 3 certified is that there is not so much freestyle required for a level 2 certification. They are separating it to be a freestyle accreditation like it is for the skiing. Maybe ther is hope. In a few weeks I'm going to attend a Children's Specialist Level 1 exam... Haven't decided if I'm going to do it on skis or snowboard yet. Part of me really wants to just tell the AASI folks where to go... (Oops... Can I say that here without getting in trouble... I'm sure there are some AASI folks in our ranks). That's just how I feel though... It's hard to support an aging snowboard population when our own instructors can't recognize our needs. Oh well...

I don't know boys.... my boobs don't seem to get in my way at all! I really don't think I'm too top heavy, but the new boots are a little snug!! guess old boobs don't exactly sell the product either!

I don't go there anymore.... long story, but it is a good carving hill.... groomers are great, snow is always nice!

send an email to rekre8r (BOL Member) he used to work there and ride there a lot.... He's not here as much anymore otherwise I'm sure he'd jump in. I'm in Montana, but about 5 hours away from Big Sky... and if I wasn't so poor, I'd try to make the trip!!!! but you aren't that far from us.... wave as you drive through Missoula! Where do you usually ride? Ever go to Lookout Pass? great carving hill, I think.....

There it is! making the rounds..... he rides it well! What am I riding these days? Well, mostly skiing... I've given up on teaching snowboarding for the most part so spending much more time on my skiis! Also, trying to get my youngest (5 year old son) going on his skiis so in between teaching, I've been helping him. When I do get to ride (mostly just at events with other folks from here!), I'm riding a Hot Shine which was also a hand-me-down! It helps who you know! (www.oldsnowboards.com) or maybe I should say who the boyfriend knows! he acquired the board for me hahahahahahaa Heading up to Whitefish later this week to join some other folks from here.... it will be nice to get away. Right now, I think Whitefish is getting dumped on so I'm hoping for good groomers by the end of the week!