Free Ski Day at 49 North

 I had a day with the Red Mountain Freeski Team at 49 North today.  Thanks 49 for the Free Lift Passes.  This was not special for the team but 49 does this for the last week of skiing every season.

Simon Hillis, Erin Flood, and Simon Impey got into the last day spirit with their skiing and with their fashion sense (see bottom photo).

Blackjack Ski Club

 I had an incredible 2 hour cross country ski at the blackjack ski club just across the highway from Red Mountain Resort.  

The club is still operating, the trails were groomed and track set this morning. 

CASI Level 2 Pass

I Passed!  A good result to my self imposed challenge, feeling good.

Thanks James Hyland and Michelle Clifford my evaluators for facilitating some big improvements through the week.

I went into today the same way I would for a ski race, intensely focused to say the least.  I started the day by watching the Level 2 standard video 6 times, went for a run, had a big stretch session and then went for it on snow.  Today was definitely the best I have ever snowboarded, so I realize that I am right on the pass level.  Although I did one "above standard" on my riding evaluation (carving).

Thanks to Matt Briggs, Patrick Ward for the inspiration and to Steve Thorne for the training last week.

CASI Level 2 Day 3

Day three, better conditions today, it was slightly overcast which slowed the melt so even though it was soft on the hill the snow was not so sticky.

We had teaching exams in the morning followed by training through the afternoon where our evaluators showed what they expect from us tomorrow.

I hope to do OK on the teaching side of things.  I guess with 29 years of teaching experience I have a slight advantage over my 21 year old peers.  I got a stellar review on my teaching today, but one never knows.  Having said this there is always room for improvement and evaluator James Hyland was able to point out areas where my teaching could have been made more effective.  It feels good to put myself out there.

My riding skills on the other hand, this could go either way and I am counting on a good focused performance tomorrow to pull me through.  I felt terrible on the board for most of the day, until I got up to the top of the whitepass chair after we were dismissed.  I managed to put together my best ever riding, I felt great on the board.  So I hope to be able to pull that off consistently tomorrow.

CASI Level 2 Day 2

Today was Day 2 of my challenge and Day 2 of the CASI Level 2 course.  It is interesting being a participant on a certification course rather than the conductor.  The challenge for me is to accept the system I am challenging for what it is and while riding not compare the two.  The CASI evaluation process differs from the CSIA process.  The most striking difference for me is the training vs testing components.  CASI separates the two with clear delineation while the CSIA blends theses two components.  I am not sure which is better in terms of instructor skill outcome.  My observation is that candidates on CASI course need to take more responsibility for their own preparation.  We have a teaching evaluation on days 2-3-and 4 these evaluations are quite formal compared to CSIA evaluation process.  Today was Novice teaching, day 3 is freeride, and day 4 is groomed terrain teaching.

The riding today was difficult, it was really warm as in seeking shade for stopping places.  The snow was very slow which made implementing changes in my the difficult.  I managed to catch a ride up the Timber and Whitepass chairs at lunch, it was great to get up there. 

I am hoping it will freeze tonight but it looks like we might see some rain, regardless I will be on snow and loving it.

30 Days

I have decided to make an attempt at skiing for 30 days starting from the day after Red Mountain's closing day.  I have done this before (successfully) and it was great for my fitness and skiing motivation.  So here goes attempt number two.  I am really not sure if I will be able to do it as I do not have the next 30 days planned, I may or may not be in Rossland for the next month but i am going to try.

Red Mountain closed on Sunday under outstanding conditions, full coverage, not a rock to be found and unfortunately very little interest in skiing from the public, I guess golfing and biking are on the move now but I find myself at the end of the 2014 season wanting more.

My self imposed rules to my challenge are:

"skiing" includes:

Skiing at a resort that is still open
Ski Touring
Snowboarding
Cross Country Skiing

Today was successful as I am in Fernie.  Fernie is open for another week.  I am here maintaining my  commitment to professional development, I am taking the CASI (Canadian Association of Snowboard Instructors) Level 2 course.  Day 1 today and I was not laughed off the mountain so a good start.  I am the oldest participant in the course by 20+ years.

Mt. Washington

 I am at Mt. Washington with the long anticipated Canadian Ski Quest Mt. Washington tour.  Mike Manara has been telling Canadain Ski Quest skiers about Mt. Washington for the past 10 years.

Curiosity finally turned into an official Canadian Ski Quest tour.




Thanks for the Welcome.



Enjoying the weather with Annette, Gail and Vivian.