i want to teach

[khambay]

what should i look for?any tips ?hey thats korny ,nobody, nobody hit me back about teaching.pretty lame!

[Snow Wolf]

Sorry....missed your post in the last week. Anyhow, the way it is out here in Oregon and I assume its this way pretty much everywhere....You check with the mountain you would like to teach at and see when they start the pre-hire process for the season`s instructors...go through the orientation and application process. To start, you just have to be able to ride at a good solid intermediate level and have good communication skills. Once hired, take advantage of all the free clinics and training available. After I think it was 10 hours of instructing, you will be elligible to take your Cert 1 exams to become an AASI certifed instructor. Usually this increases you wage along with other benefits. Once part of AASI, you have access to great training material to help you become a better teacher...plus it helps you to ride correctly, which makes you a better teacher also. It is a lot of fun and if you enjoy sharing your passion for this sport, it is very rewarding (it will have days...read my other thread)....but it is a great thing to be a part of. Good luck to you and if you have any questions, I will asnwer them if I can.....cheers!

[khambay]

thanks for the reply,so i have like five mountains with in a 30 min drive from each other and i live like an 1hour an 3omin from all. how should i pick which mtn to teach at,should pick the one i like to ride at or what should i consider?

[Snow Wolf]

Like anything there will likely be several factors to consider....look at the pay and see if any have substantially better pay packages or other benefits, look at the cost of season passes....if one of the places you like to ride is expensive, teaching there will give you access while you can buy a pass at one of the other places. Another thing to consider is customer base....if you really like teaching, you will want to pick the spot that gets the most people signing up for lessons. Picking the one that is close is a thought too as there may be times when you work late (if you have night operations) and have to be back in the morning. Also, look at the work environment; which has the best people to work with etc.
One nice thing about it is once you get your AASI level 1 certification and above, you will be in demand anywhere (especially true for level 2 and 3) and you can work just about anywhere...often you may work for a couple of the resorts depending on their management policies....out here all the resorts work with each other so there is not a policy against working for "the competition". It seems that the resort industry is a tight family, so if you ever find yourself having trouble with someone where you work and decide to quit, you will want to leave gracefully and on good terms so you can easily work at another one.
Just do a little shopping around and find the situation that works best all around for what you want to achieve.....

Good luck!

[khambay]

sweet! thankx alot

[JonnyBFly]

thanks for the help Snow Wolf, i also am looking into becoming an instructor soon(read this coming season), so i googled aasi and got their new homepage and they have a lot of info there. thanks again.

[Snow Wolf]

You bet....it is about the most rewarding things I have done and with regard to snowboarding specically, you will be amazed at how much better you become at riding....even a really good rider who can tear up a terrain park learns so much with regard to learning to properly ride and that helps you prevent common injuries when you do go big. Best of luck and if I can help at all just post and I will get back to you.

[zayler]

Yeah wolf thanks. I'm seriously looking into it too but don't know where to start. Now I do.

[Alford88]

Im also lookin 2 be an instructor in a season or two and was just wondering if anyone out there who is or has been an instructor what the pays like lol just wondered can u make a living off it within a season?

[DragonUSMC]

Check the other post you made... I gave you a run down there =)

[Burton Doom]

when i'm 16 i'm gonna try and be an instructor, because by then I'll be allowed to, and that will be my fourth year riding, so by then I shouldn't have a big problem passing the level 2 certification, if i go to all the clinics before that for technique. Also thanks for all the info snow wolf.

[DragonUSMC]

when i'm 16 i'm gonna try and be an instructor, because by then I'll be allowed to, and that will be my fourth year riding, so by then I shouldn't have a big problem passing the level 2 certification, if i go to all the clinics before that for technique. Also thanks for all the info snow wolf.

level 2 is not really a joke test... much more is required from the instructor and the testers are much more critical on testing itself. Years riding is not much of an issue, but rather how you can identify situations and correct them according to proper riding techniques and standards.

Get your level one and teach for a couple years... then go for your level 2... you've got plenty of time to get into instruction. I think trying to jump to your level 2 right away could be very discouraging.

[Snwpurll]

I taught for 4 years and it was prob the most enjoyable job Ive ever had. It was great to be paid to do what u love. But its not as easy as it looks. U have to be able to communicate well, and its usually with lots of teens and kids. I think the hardest part was being able to get a point across. But the exercise was great, friends were great, riding was too. The pay was decent not great though. Getting certified helped, but I def paid in taxes in the end though. U might wanna check that out too. Get certified, it def helps. And dont get your hopes too high for level 2, its actually quite hard. Good luck man!

[nico]

i think also a good way is to start as a regular instructor at a good mountain... i started at mountain creek nj.. its owned buy intrawest. since i worked for such a big company i got hook ups wich lead me to get my level 1 and 2 certification... but i started at the botom. ask the folks at the human resorces dept about when and where there might be corces for you to take to get certified. there usualy a few days at diferent mountains practicing diferent methods. like gass pedeling was i major focus on the level 1 corse. really you should just go to the mountain and get the job. dont wait for them to hire you... just show up to work!!!!

[thisisemerica01]

try to watch out for the, bigger kids.
honestly.
your most likley strong enough but, you might hurt your back.