Seems hard to believe that the season has come to an end so quickly. It feels like it was not that long ago we were moving people into accommodation and hoping it would snow. Well the snow did arrive and even though the season is over we are still getting snow now, so not the warmest spring we have had. Every season brings different challenges and a different crew of people, this year saw signifigant changes in the snowboard staff through circumstances beyond our control fortunately all went well and the season finished with huge success.
This year saw the Rookie Academy grow to even bigger numbers, while some courses stayed consistent with other years and some course numbers are fixed due to Examining constraints it was great to see huge interest and growth in the Full Cert programs. On the skiing side we had 3 Full Cert groups training, one aiming towards BASI 2 and the others towards NZSIA 2. It was great to work with these groups as we were able to see how far Rookies had come from their original training in previous years. Snowboard had one group training during the season and with guest trainers coming in from other resorts to lend there expertise they got some great training. It would be great to see further growth in these courses so all you Ex-Rookies (or qualified instructors) out there that are looking to develop your skills further give us a call.
With the bigger numbers on course we also saw some changes in staff especially on the snowboard side. Rob Norton arrived later in the season to ensure we had a very successful BASI snowboard season, also thanks to Liz Maze, Mark Saltiel, and James Murphy who kept the snowboarders on course while personal tragedy kept Jim away early in the season. On the ski side of things we had Gherardo Gambaro join us. Gherardo is Italian and is able to examine NZ and BASI qualifications. Staying on the BASI side of the program we also had Doug Cleland join us this season. Dougie came to us from Scotland via France and certainly added to the Rookie Academy. We look forward to all these guys joining us again next season
Although many of the NZ ski fields struggled with snow this year Treble Cone was able to provide great conditions in the Saddle Basin all season, however none of the big days at Treble Cone could compare to the snow that the crew were treated to Heli skiing. Most of the courses took the opportunity to go out and although not all groups got the epic snow of a few, a great time was had by all.
With the main goal of many of our students being a qualification this year the rookie academy had one of its most successful ever. Exam Pass rates
* NZSIA CSI 98%
* NZSIA Stage 1 90%
* BASI Instructor 93%
* CSIA Level 2 100%
* CSIA Level 3 93% (60% Full Pass- 33% Partial Pass)
With great pass rates brings great job opportunities. Winter Park is taking a good chunk of our Rookies while Keystone is also taking its fair share. Other resorts in North America hosting rookies include Sierra at Tahoe, Sun Peaks, Silver Star and Mountain Creek. This year we also managed to get Jobs at Vail and Whistler for Rookies that had been through our Full Cert Courses. In total we have 42 rookies heading to North America. We also have Rookies heading to resorts in Italy, Austria and Switzerland.
With the end of the New Zealand brings a short break and then another trip north to Keystone for another amazing Rookie winter. Dean is heading back for the start of the USA courses. Myself and Beech will work with this season with the skiers, while Glen and Ritchie will work with the snowboard crew. As the course in the States grows I am sure we will see some new names amongst the trainer list.
Dan Bogue |
