Do you REALLY want to be a ski instructor

The ski season has just finished and so I have a little more time to write on my blog. I have been asked many times how to go about becoming a ski instructor, and I have gone into detail about the 'hows' over several previous posts and a little bit about the 'whys' as well. See previous posts about a career as a ski instructor.

Big snowplough, looking back to count the kids and a tasteful uniform - all part of the job

If you are thinking of qualifying as a ski instructor then I would be the first to say go for it. It will improve your skiing and open the door to many opportunities. There are great part time jobs available ranging from evenings at a dry slope or snowdome to weeks in the Swiss or Italian Alps. If you want to work full time there are amazing experiences to be had all over the world, from Australia to Japan, Chile to Canada, New Zealand to Norway.

However, if have plans to make a long term career out of teaching skiing then it is worth thinking long and hard before you start. If you want to get qualified to the top level in Europe and you are not already a very competent ski racer then be prepared to spend several years and many thousands of Euros getting there. You may well find yourself putting every penny (or cent) you can get your hands on into your ski career. There is always equipment to buy, exams to take, training to pay for etc. Unfortunately there is no allowance for age either, so it can be even more difficult if you start later in life.

If you don't reach the top European level then it is still possible to make a living as an instructor, but it can be harder to make ends meet. When considering where to work there is always a balance between wages, hours and cost of living. In some countries (particularly in North America) making a viable career means building up a base of regular clients, and this takes time. In others, instructors move up the priority list with years of service, languages spoken or qualifications. There is almost always a priority list in a ski school, and those at the top will make money whilst those at the bottom may struggle in lean years. In other words, to do well in a ski school often means being there for several years.

If you have a well paid job you can do in the summer months, or another source of income then things will be easier. If your current or previous employment is something that is hard to do on a six monthly basis then it will be a good idea to look for an alternative summer career. Doing back to back seasons (i.e. Northern hemisphere winter then Southern hemisphere winter) sounds like a great way to spend the whole year teaching but until you get well established as an instructor it can be hard to break even every season. Especially when you include the cost of flights and the inevitable time not working as you find your feet in a new place.

I don't want to sound to negative, as I have had so many good times and met so many fantastic people over the last few years. I love teaching skiing and plan to do it for the rest of my life. On the other hand I have spent around 30 000 Euros on ski exams, training and equipment, and I still haven't finished. At the moment I have just one exam left to pass to reach Level 4. When I finished my Level 3 I had no idea just how far away Level 4 was, nor just how tough the Eurotest would prove.

My favourite author, Carlos Ruiz Zafón, was asked what piece of advice he would give to aspiring writers. His reply: "I'd tell them that you should only become a writer if the possibility of not becoming one would kill you. Otherwise, you'd be better off doing something else." This is pretty close to how I feel about ski teaching. Getting to the top level in this profession has been a rollercoaster ride with great rewards but also big sacrifices. With one exam to go, I hope that the ride is nearly over.

If teaching skiing is your dream then don't let me put you off. Good luck and enjoy the ride.

Ski Resort Parking

Next week I'm heading over to Val D'Isere for a course. I thought I would save some money by staying with a friend in Tignes and making the short drive to Val each day. However it looks like any savings will be more than eaten by the cost of car parking. In Tignes the parking is 15 Euros per day or 75 Euros per week, whilst Val D'Isere is very slightly cheaper. This includes the outdoor parking which used to be free in Val.

In Les Deux Alpes, where I am now, and in Andorra where I was last winter, there is plenty of free parking for both holidaymakers and seasonnaires. My last couple of visits to other resorts were to La Grave and to Hintertux, both of which had free parking. It seems there is quite a difference between resorts on this front so I am curious as to what parking charges are like in other ski resorts.

Please share your experiences of resort car parking in the comments.

Update

Those of you who have been following this blog will know that I have been trying to complete my Eurotest and BASI Level 4 exams in order to teach in France. The good news is that I passed the Eurotest last month and have only the Level 4 Technical to go. I passed the Level 4 Teach and Mountain Safety at the end of last winter.

I have moved out of Andorra and into the French Alps this winter in order to be closer to where the exams are taking place. The Alps and Pyrenees are both having a great season so far, with lots of snow.

How good do you need to be to teach skiing?

People often ask how to become a ski instructor, and I have covered this in previous posts. The next question is whether they are good enough, and this is a harder question to answer. It depends to an extent on where you plan to work. If you are going to teach beginners on a dry slope you don't need to be as good as somebody running a high level freeride clinic in the Alps, and if you want to teach in France you need to be prepared to pass some very difficult exams.

To get started, as an English speaker, you need to pass a Level 1 course, be it in the Europe, North America, Australia or New Zealand. Level 1 is quite a limited qualification, and most instructors will want to carry on to Level 2 or higher as soon as they can, but it is a foot in the door. It will also give the potential instructor a very good idea of what is required before they book the Level 2 course. Knowing whether you are ready for the Level 1 course is difficult as most proficient skiers do not really know how good their skiing actually is.

To help with this, British Association of Snowsport Instructors (BASI) have published a set of videos on YouTube showing the criteria required to pass each level. The first video shows the short and long turns required to pass Level 1. This is a great help for deciding whether you are up to it or not.

Reconaissance walks

Whilst waiting for the snow to arrive, I took a walk out into the back country yesterday to have a look at the conditions. I have some climbs and ski descents planned for the winter, and I wanted to have a good look at the terrain, as well as the current snow cover. Understanding the geography of an area is a big advantage when it comes to skiing it safely as a lot of time can be lost by taking a wrong turn. As well as that it was a pleasant way to spend an afternoon, and it is always surprising to find an apparent wilderness with few signs of civilisation only an hour's walk from an overdeveloped ski area.

Snow

After the last post on the late arrival of the snow this year, anyone planning to ski in Europe this winter will be glad to know that snow has been falling across the Alps (as well as the UK) over the weekend, and quite a few resorts have now opened. I have heard it is snowing in Chamonix and Les 2 Alpes, the Tignes webcams are showing white where there was only green a week ago, here in Andorra we have had a little snow overnight in parts of the country - up to 10cm, and the Spanish television is reporting good snow conditions in the Sierra Nevada (the Spanish one not the US one).

The weather patterns still look quite unsettled, so we may well see more snow before the end of the week. So there is a lot less reason for doom and gloom than just a few days ago.

Incidentally, this BBC Weather video does a good job of explaining why this autumn has been particularly warm and dry, and whilst it is referring to the UK, the same effects have given us a sunny, snowless November in much of the Alps and Pyrenees.

Is the snow coming?

This year the snow in Europe is running late - many resorts have postponed their opening, others have opened with a limited area. Ski races have been cancelled including World Cup races, and early season ski instructor exams have been cancelled as well. There is a lot of pessimism around some resorts, and people reading the snow reports might well be getting worried about the holidays they have booked.

On the other hand, the sun has been shining, and the skiing that is open has been pretty good. I have spent four weeks in Tignes, skiing on the glacier, and the conditions have been great - nearly every day has been sunny and clear, and the pistes have been kept in good condition. There was not a lot of off-piste but it was only November, so it would be unusual if there was.

I would post some photos, but I managed to lose my phone which they were stored in. Note to self - zip up all pockets before skiing. :-(

People tend to forget that every winter is different, that some begin early and others late. Good early snow early on does not guarantee a good winter any more than a late start means a bad one. It is still a few weeks before the season really kicks off with the Christmas holidays, so there is still time for it to snow. Here in Andorra only a couple of resorts have managed to open at all so far, so we are all waiting for the snow to come, but it is still a nice time of the year to be here, meeting old friends and new faces in the resort.