No Jargon, No Ego.
From linking your first confident turns to refining expert performance in difficult terrain, each stage comes with markers you will know the second you read them.
It is worth being straight with yourself here, because your trainer will know within ten minutes. Nobody is impressed by an overstated level and nobody is judged for an honest one. Getting it right just means you land in the right group in week one.
If you have ever wondered where you truly sit, this is the reality check.
Getting going
Novice
You are properly underway. You can ski, you are improving quickly, and confidence is the main focus.
You can stop safely, but turning exactly when you want does not always happen.
Snowplough still appears when it gets steep, icy or busy.
You link turns on greens and easier blues.
Steeper blues and blacks feel intimidating.
Yep, that's me. If your plan for a steep bit is "stay calm and look casual", you are probably here.
Comfortable on piste
Intermediate
Parallel most of the time. Comfortable on piste, working on consistency when it steepens.
You are beginning to feel carving and edge control.
Snowplough only when things get serious, or when you are tired.
Happy to try light off piste or uneven snow when conditions are kind.
Confident on blues, starting easy blacks, or European reds.
Yep, that's me. If you say "I can ski reds" but quietly mean "when they are friendly", this is you.
The in-between one
Strong Intermediate
Better than intermediate, not yet advanced. Most people who cannot pick between the two belong here.
Snowplough has genuinely gone. You are parallel even when it is steep or you are tired.
You can carve on a good groomer, though it comes and goes rather than being on tap.
Blacks are a decision rather than a dare. You will pick your line and get down them tidily.
Bumps, trees and chopped-up snow are survivable rather than comfortable, and they cost you a lot of energy.
Yep, that's me. If you have stopped worrying about whether you will get down and started worrying about how it looked, you are here.
Most of the mountain
Advanced
You ski most of the mountain confidently. Now it is about smoothing things out in tougher snow and terrain.
Moguls, trees and steeps expose habits you would like to delete.
You can change the shape of your turn to suit the terrain.
Blacks are normal, and you can ski fast on groomers by choice rather than by accident.
Powder and chop are doable, but not always smooth.
Yep, that's me. If you are brilliant right up until the snow stops being polite, welcome to advanced.
Polish and precision
Expert
You can ski almost anything. Now you want precision, efficiency and control in all conditions.
You adapt quickly to changes in pitch and snow.
What you want is refinement: precision, efficiency and better control at speed.
Steeps, bumps, trees, powder, ice. You have seen it all.
Comfortable on nearly all terrain, on and off piste.
Yep, that's me. If your main complaint is "it was fine, I just hated how it looked", you are probably here.
Still not sure
Pick The One That Stings A Bit.
One of these will feel uncomfortably accurate. That is your stage. If you are torn between two, take the lower one and enjoy being the one who improves fastest.
What this means for a season
You Need Less Than You Fear.
People talk themselves out of a season because they think instructor courses are for experts. They are not.
Intermediate is the entry point
Link your turns and ride a blue with a smile and you have enough to start an internship. You will do a lot of improving out there. That is rather the point of a season.
You never need off piste to pass
A Level 1 is assessed on groomed terrain. If trees and powder worry you, that is fine, and it has no bearing on whether you qualify.
Strong intermediate is a good place to arrive
If you land in resort here, a Level 1 and Level 2 in one winter is a realistic plan rather than an optimistic one.
Once you know your level, see which of our ski instructor courses in Canada fits it.
Not sure, or sure but nervous? Tell us honestly where you sit and we will tell you honestly whether the programme you are looking at is the right one. We would rather have that conversation now than in week one on a hill.
Emma
Rik
Rik
Emma
Rob
Iain
Cass
Mike
Abbie