http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/ en steve@snowskool.co.uk Copyright 2013 2013-04-19T07:46:07+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-13 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-13#When:07:46:07Z Yeah yeah - we know we're a little late but we have a great excuse - WE'RE HOME and the travelers among us have been in a bit of a daze ever since!! SnowSkool Banff 2013 officially finished last weekend as the last bunch left the beautiful Rockies behind. Read on for the last installment of our season's blog. Next stop ... Wanaka, New Zealand ... where the snow is already starting to fall ... Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-04-19T07:46:07+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-12 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-12#When:04:28:38Z Here we are three months down the track. At the start, nobody on the course knew each other (with one or two exceptions) so it's amazing to see the friendships that have formed in this time. With the majority of exams out of the way and no more lessons in sight, all that was left to do were the Park Level 1 exams for skiers and snowboarders. That and a whole lot of shenanigans up on the hill! Everyone really came together for the last week and we had a super-rad time - until we had to bid farewell to half of the group as they started to make their way home ... Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-04-10T04:28:38+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-11 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-11#When:07:01:49Z So there we go, then! Level 2 exams are done and we scored some record-shattering pass rates! 97% of our skiers passed the test and while a few of the boarders had missed some serious training time due to injury, three-quarters passed both exam components and nigh on everyone passed one of the two elements. We couldn't be prouder of all of our Banff 2013 SnowSkool gang! With the great news aside, here's what went down this week …read on as it's chock full o' nuts! Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-04-01T07:01:49+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-la-finale http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-la-finale#When:22:29:46Z Bonjour for the very last time from SnowSkool 2013 in France! Sorry we’re running a little late – it’s been a busy time wrapping up what has been an been awesome 11 weeks in the Three Valleys. Course Diaries, France Course, 2013-03-28T22:29:46+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-weeks-10-11 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-weeks-10-11#When:07:10:42Z And here we are for the final time! Hard to believe another season of SnowSkool in Big White has now drawn to a close and most are making their way home or on to their next adventure. We have about 10 days worth of news to report, which included a BIG week of exams coupled with some of the nicest snow and weather we've seen all season. Course Diaries, BW Course, 2013-03-26T07:10:42+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-10 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-10#When:07:27:24Z This week has been chock-a-block full of birthdays and excitement. We had four guys doing their Level 1 snowboard exam and the Level 2 exams were looming. Everyone was really stepping up their game! Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-03-25T07:27:24+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-10 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-10#When:02:37:39Z In contrast to last week, no weddings, parties, anything! The two-week exam period kicked off here in France and everybody’s days have been jam-packed with early mornings and all day has been spent out on the hill with their new BASI examiners. Course Diaries, France Course, 2013-03-19T02:37:39+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-9 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-9#When:01:22:52Z Since last week we've had a veritable powder-fest up at Sunshine Village! The snow keeps coming and, with any luck, will continue to fall for the last three weeks of the course! The Level 2s are approaching quickly but the instructors are more confident than ever in our SnowSkool guys and gals. Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-03-18T01:22:52+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-9 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-9#When:23:57:00Z Yikes! Last week of training before the L2 exams brought us a mixed bag of weather – we’ll be ready for anything come exam time next week! Two of our lads fought back from injury to pass their Level 1, which sort of (well ... not really) made up for the smashing England received at the hand of Wales in the Six Nations Rugby final. Sigh. Course Diaries, BW Course, 2013-03-17T23:57:00+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-8 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-8#When:00:11:14Z After a week of “rest”, all SnowSkoolers were incredibly excited to get back to training and work towards the rapidly approaching Level 2 exams! With the big storm last weekend, the snow was still impeccably soft and forgiving, enabling people really pushing themselves in lessons and in the park. The rate of progression with this group of SnowSkoolers is absolutely astounding: Pat Moore has gone from linking his turns to stomping massive 360s off the kickers; Christian has progressed from beginner to incredibly advanced in the space of a couple of weeks; and Ben Kaye has stepped up from 180s to 720s in the space of just over a month. Imagine what they’ll be like by the end of the Banff 2013 course... Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-03-12T00:11:14+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-8 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-8#When:06:21:25Z A busy week here in Big White with our training but things were fairly quiet off the mountain as the next round of exams is looming large - the pace and standard has definitely picked up and the guys are well focused on the task at hand. Course Diaries, BW Course, 2013-03-11T06:21:25+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-9 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-9#When:01:15:08Z Spirits have been high this week with mornings free to shred and afternoons spent topping up on technique, what with the instructors before Level 2 exams start. On top of this, we went night skiing and riding in Courcheval, took part in the torch light procession from Meribel down to our very own Les Allues AND created a first-ever event for SnowSkool - we had our very own a mock wedding! Read on to find out just who Harry married ... Course Diaries, France Course, 2013-03-11T01:15:08+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-7 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-7#When:00:14:01Z Great news this week, everybody! It finally dumped out here in Banff! We had over 30cm overnight on Friday night followed by another 10cm on Saturday night and continuous snow throughout Sunday, which made for a very happy group of SnowSkoolers. On top of this, we used the week off from lessons to do lots of other interesting things - there was the race coach course for some of our skiers, the avalanche awareness course and a trek to the backcountry of the Rockies for a big group of intrepid adventurers. Lots to report so read on ... Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-03-05T00:14:01+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-7 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-7#When:00:52:09Z Lots of freshies this week - coupled with some trying conditions - made for a tough week. The students were pushed with steep terrain and challenging snow and viz - but what doesn't kill you makes your stronger! We all let loose at the weekend to celebrate two birthdays at a crazy "alien" party, for which we cornered the market on tin foil! Matt Child's "Cyberman" suit won best costume. 2013-03-04T00:52:09+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-8 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-8#When:23:28:43Z A week of warm and sunny weather in France that saw us at our best! We watched the Women's Downhill before challenging ourselves on the couloirs, moguls and parks. We also had a blast helping out with a version of the Harlem Shake at Jack's on Tuesday night - all before we head into our last week of training before the L2 exams. Course Diaries, France Course, 2013-03-03T23:28:43+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-6 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-6#When:08:33:13Z Lots of action this week in Banff - the training kicked up a gear or three as the guys started working for their L2 certification. We celebrated Freddie's 19th birthday by eating our body weight in baby back ribs and we took in a really bad movie - no doubt in the world that the Die Hard series should die ... hard! We played in a charity dodgeball match and put in some big effort in the park. 2013-02-25T08:33:13+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-61 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-big-white-2013-week-61#When:07:05:17Z All up, a week of contrasts – a couple of days off from training followed by even more intensive training; some challenging visibility mixed in with great fresh snow and clearer skies. It was a great start to the Level 2 training and everyone realised it's a big step up from the L1! A highlight for one group of snowboarders was a run on the boarder-cross course - with the timing system running. No arguing with the results on that particular run! Course Diaries, BW Course, 2013-02-25T07:05:17+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-7 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-france-2013-week-7#When:06:03:17Z Blue bird week here in France - not a cloud in the sky! We passed our time in the sun clocking up our hours of instructor shadowing in the morning while; in the afternoons, we mostly hit the park (especially given the superpipe had opened up); in the evenings, everyone swapped funny stories as to what the kids had got up to in lessons. We're looking forward to the coming week when the slopes will quieten down AND be topped up with the light dusting of snow that is forecast to come our way. Course Diaries, France Course, 2013-02-25T06:03:17+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/bens-banff-blog-week-5 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/bens-banff-blog-week-5#When:02:28:46Z Big week this week when all of us taking the L1 exam in Banff passed - WE ALL OFFICIALLY BECAME INSTRUCTORS! Getting my results and finding out I had qualified was the best day of my life - and it was soon followed by the most epic day of skiing I've ever had. Life is good! Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-02-21T02:28:46+00:00 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-5 http://www.snowskool.co.uk/myskool/myskool_blog/single/snowskool-banff-2013-week-5#When:10:49:07Z Week 5 has been by far our most exciting and eventful week. With the combination of L1 exams (with a 100% pass rate!) and a road trip to Revelstoke it was always destined to be an eventful seven days but the SnowSkoolers really outdid themselves and if you all gather in and listen closely, we'll tell you all about it! Course Diaries, Banff Course, 2013-02-18T10:49:07+00:00