Student Lessons

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Student lessons are taught Monday through Thursday at 5 and 6pm, and Friday from 5-8pm. Students earn a patch to control what runs they can use, they must be at least seven years old.

        

                                                                              7 Patch levels

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1- Green patch- Athletic stance, gliding wedge, turns using the feet

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2- Yellow- Athletic stance, big and small turns, turn to a stop

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3- Brown- Athletic stance, matching second half, hand to outside knee exercise

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4- Blue- Athletic stance, matching in the first half, uphill christies, introduce pole touch

                                                   

5- Red- Athletic stance, parallel turns with pole touch

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6- White- Athletic stance, bigger smoother parallel turns

    

7- Black- Athletic stance, small turns and moguls 

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                                                                    How to teach        

 

Smile, speak loud, be friendly and confident when you introduce yourself, this is fun! Some of your students may be afraid. Collect lesson tickets and know how many are in your group. Safety first, especially with chairlifts, provide instruction on how to ride the chair. Keep moving, give a lot of feedback. Finish on time, students may have to leave.  

 

Act professional with discipline problems. Imagine the parent is always there, anything you say will get back to them. This program is for kids who ski only a few times each season, it is mostly about skiing in control so they can slow down and stop. Don't be too critical when grading.

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These are lessons, and it may take many lessons over the course of several seasons to earn certain patches. Even if students were able to perform properly for the last patch, they will go back to making natural moves many times before they can execute ski moves with a degree of consistency.

 

Go back as far as necessary to review. The students can start at any level they think they can handle if they are experienced, but take much weaker or stronger students to a different group. The format is: ski warm up runs for the students in lessons beyond the yellow class and then: review, teach new content, and grade. Some will be afraid and others will be over confident. Pay close attention to your students and progress at a pace that is safe but not boring.

   

In case of an accident; shelter the injured student, send and call for help from ski patrol, don't move the student, look for any witnesses, talk about the details only with ski patrol and the ski school director.

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                                                                        Turns before terrain

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Parents are often in a hurry for their kids to ski on the chair with them. They think the kids just need a couple runs on a carpet or rope, some do not think they even need that, and then go right to the chair. Parents don't see the difference between turning with the feet, verses, leaning back, banking, and rotating, it is all just skiing to them.

Your students can be making nice turns, then go to the top of the rope and regress because it is steeper and higher. Keep reviewing athletic stance(stand on balls of the feet with their chest over toes), and turning with their feet up, not using their shoulders. This is really hard, but if they can learn an athletic stance and turning with their feet, they have an easier time handling a steeper hill. 

                                                 

                                                                Students  

 

Many of these students ski only a few times a season. The snow can be different and they may be using different gear each time. They may miss a week or two between lessons, only take one or two lessons a season, and may not have any practice time after the lesson.

 

Even worse, their parents and friends take them too high after a lesson so they lean back, ski too fast, make a wide wedge, and struggle to turn and stop. Parents, friends, and even the students are often in a rush to go high and fast too soon, and they do not realize they are creating problems that are very hard to fix.

 

Much of the brown, blue, and red lessons is getting them into an athletic stance so they get out of the wide wedge and leaning on the back of their skis. So they can turn their feet rather than turning their shoulders. To develop turning the feet use a gentle slope start in a gliding wedge with speed and make slight turns.

 

                                                                Athletic stance

 

The athletic stance is critical to constantly evaluate and work on. Every time before students start to ski, tell them to start in an athletic stance. The way they do this is to put their hands in front like they are holding a lunch tray and bounce on the balls of their feet with their chest over their toes, then stop. They need a lot of reinforcement to feel their weight on the balls of their feet and their chest over their toes. Flex forward at the ankles and back.

 

Bounce with the chest over toes in straight runs and gliding wedges. Flex ankles first and then knees, many will flex knees and waist but not the ankles. Do a gliding wedge and flex forward at the ankles and back to the start position.

 

When they stand on a slope, they will naturally lean back. So on their very first run, and every run after, especially when the hill gets steeper, constant feedback is necessary. Use verbal cues: hands up, look ahead, stand up on the balls of the feet, chest over toes, shins to boots, less knee more ankle.   

                                                                   

                                                                         Class details

                                                                    

                                                                  1- Green Patch

 

Goals 

 

1- Athletic stance

2- Gliding wedge and wedge stop

3- Gliding wedge to turns using the feet

 

Before using the lift

 

Smile, imagine they are your friends, speak loud. Check clothing and ask if boots hurt.

                                                            

 1- Warm up exercises- Walk to the flat area next to the short carpet. Put skis on, step from foot to foot like walking in place, shuffle feet forward and back, lift a ski and turn it, step in a circle, step and then slide into a wedge, do one ski at a time if necessary. 

 

2- Athletic stance- stand tall, put hands in front like holding a lunch tray and pole tips pointing back, bounce with the weight on the balls of feet and chest over the toes, stop bouncing and that is the athletic stance. 

 

Rock forward and back by flexing just the ankles, and then stop in the athletic stance. Getting into an athletic stance will be a constant challenge for them each time they: start on a slope, the hill gets steeper, they go higher, or faster, and you will need to provide verbal feedback and make corrections. 

 

3- Straight run- in front of the patrol building focusing on their athletic stance, make verbal corrections: hands up, look ahead, stand on the balls of your feet, chest over toes.

 

4- Practice walking- be sure the poles are behind their feet to push, walk in a circle, head to the bottom of the short carpet, if they are coordinated try to side step or herringbone, a diagonal traverse can also be used to go up a hill.

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Using the lifts

 

1- Load the carpet- with proper spacing. Line them up on a flat area away from the top of the carpet. Be ready to assist if they need help getting on or off the carpet, or if they fall on the way up.

Know where the emergency off buttons are on top and bottom.

 

2- Gliding wedge- do a gliding wedge (narrow wedge or small slice of pizza). If the snow is slow start with the skis parallel to build some speed. Do a demo and then stand perpendicular to them showing an athletic stance as you coach and provide feedback: hands up, look ahead, stand up on the balls of feet, and chest over the toes. They will lean back on a slope. Point the big toes at each other and push heels apart. The wider the wedge the slower you go. Shape their behavior with positive reinforcement as soon as they get it: "good that is it!"

3- Do more gliding wedges- to get them comfortable sliding on skis in an athletic stance. Tell then to always start in an athletic stance every time before they ski and correct them when they lean back. Use the short or long carpet.

 

Do a gliding wedge bouncing on the balls of the feet, then flex forward at the ankles and back to the athletic stance, go from straight run to a gliding wedge several times in a row (called wedge change ups), make straight run to wedge stop at different speeds, be sure they stay in an athletic stance and do not lean back especially when making the wider wedge to stop.

 

4- Correct common problems- like leaning back at the ankles, knees, waist, or all three. Using too wide of a wedge, skiing too slow, pushing knees together rather than feet apart, crossing the tips from unequal weight on one ski or pushing one ski into a wedge harder than the other. If they are leaning more to one side that will make it harder to slide that ski into a wedge. Check for ice on the bottom of skis if they can't slide, use one ski as a scraper to remove the ice.

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5- Rope Tow- Use the rope when they are ready. Demonstrate lining up close to the rope with the skis pointing uphill and slowly squeeze the rope, leave five seconds of spacing before gripping the rope, loosen the grip if the person in front falls, step the skis across the hill as you let go a short way up the hill. With skis across the hill point the knees toward the top of the hill to make the edges bite and keep from sliding down the hill.

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Gliding wedge turns using the feet

 

1- Turning- Once they can use the rope, go higher to work on turning. Watch as you get to the steeper part of the rope tows, students will lean back as they get onto a steeper slope. Introduce turning by skiing in a gliding wedge (athletic stance, small wedge) going straight downhill to build speed for three seconds, very slightly point the big toes one way, then point them at the bottom to go straight for three seconds, and then point them the other way. The pattern is straight, turn, straight, turn.

 

If there is time have them try the other way to turn. With a gliding wedge with speed have them push on one big toe to turn, go straight, then push on the other big toe.

 

Grading  

 

Tell each student what they should work on after their grading, they must be able to:

 

1- Use the rope tow

2- Do a gliding wedge with speed to a wedge stop

3- Link a least five turns and make a wedge stop at the end. They must be in an athletic stance and turn with their feet, not turning their shoulders.

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Grading overview for patches through red- video 

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Ending the lesson 

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1- Tell them that they must ski in control so they can stop and turn around skiers below them.

2- Brief review of athletic stance, wedge stops and turns

3- Let them know where they can ski

 

Be sure they know how to take off the skis to get up. How to put them across the hill and reset the heel of the binding to put on

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Tell them where to get their patch. The ones who did not get their green can still take yellow next time if they practice and can link turns with their feet and make a wedge stop. If they are excited, congratulations you may have just created a lifelong skier!

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                                                                    2- Yellow 

                                             

Goals

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1- Try two ways to turn, pointing both big toes, and pushing on one big toe then the other.

2- Make big turns and small turns

3- Link turns to a stop 

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Review-

 

1- Ask who has skied only one time, have they use the rope, can they make turns and stop. Statically review athletic stance (weight on the balls of the feet, chest over toes), ankle flex, and the wedge. Then review gliding wedge and wedge stops. Some may need to be moved up or down to a different class. 

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2- Review turns starting in a gliding wedge straight downhill with speed, then make slight turns. If they have problems be sure they are:

- In an athletic stance

- Using a narrow wedge

- Building speed straight downhill for at least three seconds before trying to turn

- Making just a slight turn

- Going straight downhill before turning in the other direction. The pattern is straight, turn, straight, turn

 

Not doing any of these can cause them to turn their shoulders rather than their feet.

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New stuff

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1- Two ways to turn- pointing the big toes or pushing on one big toe then the other. Some may need to combine both ways. Try pushing and pointing, then the other order, pointing then pushing. 

 

When the focus shifts to turning, they often lose their athletic stance and lean back. Be sure they have a small wedge and speed before making slight turns. They should be turning with their feet not their shoulders.

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2- Chair lift- Teach them how to use Grant's chair if they are ready. Let the lift operator know it is their first time. Pole straps off, wait for the chair to pass, walk to stand on the board, poles in inside hand, outside hand grabs the chair and sit, keep tips up to unload, poles ready in each hand, stand up on the ramp, ski off in an athletic stance, move away from the exit and wait for the class to get up. Go up last to make sure they all make it. Know how many kids you have.

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3-Two size turns- Make the moves slower for bigger turns and faster for smaller turns. Give them a specific number of turns to make, such as 4, or 6. Then change the size of the turns, so make just 3 bigger turns in a given space if they are making 6. Make 3 small turns followed by 3 large turns. Then reverse, 3 large then 3 small. Start in a gliding wedge with speed and quickly push on one big toe then the other to make very small turns.

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Touch hand to the knee when pushing on the toe. Bounce three times on each big toe to turn.

Flex the ankle when pushing on the big toe; be sure they do not move the knee in to edge it, move the hip out to flatten the ski, or bend the knee rather than the ankle. Try turning to a stop in each direction. Tell them the more they turn across the hill the slower they go. Watch as they do this they will naturally want to rotate their shoulder and bank which is leaning inside the turn.  

  

Grading

 

Tell each student what they should work on after their grading, they must be able to:

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1- Link at least five turns on a steeper part of Grant's trail

2- Turn to a stop in both directions 

3- Ski in an athletic stance using their feet, not turning their shoulders and leaning inside the turn

 

End the lesson by:

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1- Telling them to ski in control

2- A review of athletic stance, and turns

3- Tell them where they should ski (not beyond the beginner chair)

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                                                                  3- Brown

                                                       

Goals

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1- Athletic stance on a steeper slope

2- Turning with the feet on a steeper slope

3- Matching the skis in second part of the turn

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Review

 

Ask who has not been on a chair and who has not skied this season. Start on the rope or Grant's chair, give instruction to anyone who has not used a chair. If anyone is too weak send them to yellow.

 

1-Statically practice athletic stance(weight on balls of feet chest over toes). Then flexing ankles.

 

2- Review linking turns with the feet and turning to a stop. Do this on a gentle slope with speed using a narrow gliding wedge. Do several runs to use the feet rather than shoulders or leaning inside the turn. 

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New stuff

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1- Ski Woodward- if they are ready. Being higher and on a steeper slope will cause them to lean back, so have them focus on an athletic stance. combine pushing and pointing the big toe to make more completed turns until Woodward gets wider.   

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2- Matching-  Try both ways; gliding wedge start, verse deliberate matching. On a flatter section of Woodward off the top start in a gliding wedge and make slight turns. If their wedge is narrow, and they are using an athletic stance turning their feet the skis will spontaneously match. Try touching the hand to the leg when they push on their toe. Bounce on a big toe three times to make turns

3- The more deliberate way is to stand in a narrow wedge across the hill and touch the downhill knee and then actively match the skis. Do it in motion with a flat traverse and then a steeper traverse. Do it in the other direction. Then link turns.

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If hips are behind the heels in a wide wedge, matching will be hard. Be sure they are in an athletic stance, look for hips over feet and chest over toes.

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Grading

 

Tell each student what they should work on after their grading, they must be able to:

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1- Ski top part of Woodward in an athletic stance

2- Turn with their feet not shoulders

3- Match the skis so they are parallel in the second part of the turn

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End the lesson by:

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1- Telling them to ski in control

2- Review athletic stance and matching the skis

3- Tell them where to ski, up to Woodward 

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                                                                     4- Blue

                                                     

Goals

 

1- Athletic stance and turning with the feet on a steeper hill

2- Matching earlier in the first half of the turn

3- Introducing pole swing and touch

 

Review

 

Athletic stance(weight on the balls of the feet, chest over toes), ankle flex, and matching statically. Lead a run and see if they can follow to warm up and evaluate. Many may be on the back of their skis in a wide wedge.

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New Stuff

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1- Early matching- Ski on gentle slope starting in a gliding wedge(narrow wedge), and an athletic stance, ski straight downhill with speed and make slight turns. Focus on:

- Transferring weight sooner at the start of each new turn

- Turning both feet

- Touch hand to knee

- Push on the big toe and flex the ankle

-Add smooth down motion to finish and up to start

 

2- The more deliberate way is to stand with skis across the hill in a narrow wedge. Plant both poles downhill, step on uphill ski and project onto the poles. Then make the same move in motion. Start in a steep traverse, step on the uphill ski and match the skis. Do one in the other direction then link turns.  

 

Work on the finish of the turn with uphill christies exercises: with poles horizontal move the inside half forward, progressively flex ankles and tip the poles to the bottom of the hill: flex and tip. 

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3- Introduce pole use- with skis across the hill, swing the downhill pole with the wrist and touch it to the snow. Touch the right pole for a right turn and the left for a left turn. Swing touch and turn. 

 

Grading

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Tell each student what they should work on after their grading, they must be able to:

 

1 - Ski the top part of Mozart in an athletic position

2- Turn with their feet, not shoulders or leaning inside the turn

3- Match the skis so they are parallel in the first half of the turn

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End the lesson by:

1- Telling them to ski in control

2- Review athletic stance, early weight transfer and matching, flex ankles and tip to finish

3- Tell them where to ski- up to Mosart 

 

                                                                       5- Red

                                                          

Goals

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1-Athletic stance and turning with the feet on a steeper slope

2- Parallel turns

3- Pole swing and touch

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Review

 

Athletic stance(weight on the balls of the feet, chest over toes) and ankle flex. Make a warm up run to evaluate. 

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New stuff

 

1- Parallel turns- on a flatter part of Mozart ski straight downhill in a narrow gliding wedge with speed, quickly push on one big toe then the other. Then have them push and flex the ankle, push and turn, push and touch hand to the knee.

 

2- The more deliberate way is to stand with the skis parallel across the hill, plant both poles downhill, stand with the weight on the uphill ski and project onto the poles. Start in a steep traverse and make the same move. Do one in each direction then link. Focus on up to start and down to finish. Then add pole touches, up, swing, and touch the downhill pole.

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3- Do uphill christies to improve the turn finish. Focusing on inside lead, and progressively flexing the ankles and tipping (angulation) Flex and tip. Use exercise from the exercise page, including holding poles horizontal to advance the inside half, progressively flexing the ankles and tipping the poles downhill. 

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Grading

 

Watch out for high school ski racers it can be very dangerous if they are warming up. Tell each student what to work on after grading. Students must make parallel turns with pole plants on the top of White Lightning in an athletic stance turning their feet not shoulders.

 

End the lesson by:

1- Tell them to ski in control

2- Review athletic stance, early weight transfer, ankle flex and tipping

3- Where to ski

  

                                                      7- White

                                                            

Goal 

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Bigger parallel turns

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Review  

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Athletic stance(weight on the balls of the feet, chest over toes) and ankle flex. Make a warm up run to evaluate. Watch out for high school racers.

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New stuff

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1- Larger parallel  turns by slowing down the moves for a larger turn. Working on good timing with the pole touch. These are not the high speed carved turns like the high school racers make, there is more steering  

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2- Turn more across the hill to ski slower, and less across the hill to ski faster

 

3- Do a uphill christies to work on inside lead, and progressive ankle flexing and tipping. Use exercises from the exercises  page. 

 

Grading

 

Watch out for high school ski racers it can be very dangerous if they are warming up. Tell each student what to work on after grading. Students must make larger parallel turns with pole plants on the top of White Lightning or Thunderbolt in an athletic stance turning their feet not shoulders.

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End the lesson by:

1- Telling them to ski in control

2- Review athletic stance, early weight transfer, ankle flex and tipping

3- Where to ski- everything

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