Ski Club 2.0 Home
Snow Reports
FAQFAQ

Mail for help.Help!!

Log in to snowHeads to make it MUCH better! Registration's totally free, of course, and makes snowHeads easier to use and to understand, gives better searching, filtering etc. as well as access to 'members only' forums, discounts and deals that U don't even know exist as a 'guest' user. (btw. 50,000+ snowHeads already know all this, making snowHeads the biggest, most active community of snow-heads in the UK, so you'll be in good company)..... When you register, you get our free weekly(-ish) snow report by email. It's rather good and not made up by tourist offices (or people that love the tourist office and want to marry it either)... We don't share your email address with anyone and we never send out any of those cheesy 'message from our partners' emails either. Anyway, snowHeads really is MUCH better when you're logged in - not least because you get to post your own messages complaining about things that annoy you like perhaps this banner which, incidentally, disappears when you log in :-)
Username:-
 Password:
Remember me:
👁 durr, I forgot...
Or: Register
(to be a proper snow-head, all official-like!)

How to: The cheap road to BASI 2?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi! I thought that the 10-12 weeks packages for £7000+ was the only way to go until I saw someone talking about doing it myself for a much cheaper price. But how? I live in Sweden but have no problems going away for a few weeks and learn. I cant skii and a noob at snowboarding. What would be the best route for me?
snow conditions
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Work the season for Interski Smile
snow report
 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
@mrbo, learn to ski or board first.
Get lessons.
Get competent at decent carving.
Get some more lessons.
Then consider the other options available throughout the world along with BASI.
The Austrian Anwaerter will cost you about €1000 including accommodation, which is the equivalent of BASI 2.

@AndAnotherThing.., has hit the nail on the head really.... get a few seasons under your belt to rack up the experience!
snow report
 You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
The "gap courses" that cost that cost several thousand pounds give you an intensive block of ski coaching, aimed at bringing you up to the standard of a BASI L2 pass, plus course fees for the Level 1 and Level 2 courses. If your skiing is already at Level 2 there is no need to do a gap course, just do the L1 and L2 assessments. If you are not at the standard you need to improve your skiing until you are at the standard - the gap courses are one way of doing this, but certainly not the only way. What you want is good quality technical ski training, with an emphasis on effective movements, good dynamic balance, accurately steering your skis using different blends of steering elements, and some understanding of what BASI call "Central Theme" (a typical progression that beginners are taught to take them from never skied to making their first parallel turns).

If you can't ski, the first step would be to learn to ski. Do that in Sweden or wherever is easiest/cheapest for you to get good quality ski lessons. All the gap courses that I know expect their clients to be able to ski a bit before they join the course. Once you have learned to ski a bit the next step would be to ski with someone who knows the BASI system (or whatever system you decide on) to assess your standard and advise on what your options are.

For info, the cost of the L1 assessment is £425 and the L2 assessment is £650 (plus the cost of things like 1st aid, child protection course).
latest report
 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
To expand on my suggestion, working for Interski gives you a lot of time during the day skiing, and they run BASI GAP courses. Also they used to offer technical training for staff, and there are lots of instructors about the place.

Working for them gives you access to lots of the desirable elements found in gap courses, but you get paid Wink
ski holidays
 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
@rob@rar, do the L1/2 assessments also include a shorts course or is it like turning up for an exam?
snow report
 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@mrbo, why do you want to get BASI L2, when you can't currently ski or snowboard? If people know what the actual goal or driving factor is, it might be easier to point you in a suitable direction.
latest report
 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
flangesax wrote:
@rob@rar, do the L1/2 assessments also include a shorts course or is it like turning up for an exam?

Mostly they are designed as a training course. The Trainer will help you/push you to develop your skiing as much as possible during the week or two weeks that the course lasts. So if you've not reached the level at the start of the week, you can make improvements and providing you develop a consistency in your new performance level you can achieve a pass. Obviously, if you are nowhere near the standard there is a limit to how much improvement you can make during the week, so passing becomes a remote chance (although it's still a good, focused training week).

Generally on the last day (or last couple of days of a two-week course) there isn't much training going on, you just have to ski to the required standard. These runs are not all or nothing - if you have a nightmare run of longs, but all week your long turns have been above the standard then the Trainer will most probably be happy with that strand of the assessment. In that sense it's continuous assessment in which the Trainer reaches a judgment across the course as a whole, rather than just one high-pressure run on the final day. Having said that, if you have not skied with reasonably consistency across the week, the last couple of runs on the final day can be the difference between pass/fail.
ski holidays
 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
@flangesax, as @rob@rar, says, the BASI courses are quite long. Level 1 is a one-week course, level 2 a two-week course. There is a large degree of continuous assessment, but they are broadly 75% training, 25% assessment, with the need to really perform consistently on the last couple of days to pass.

How long is the Anwerter course / how much training (out of curiosity)?
snow conditions
 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Thnk you everyone for all the information and recommendations so far!

fixx wrote:
@mrbo, why do you want to get BASI L2, when you can't currently ski or snowboard? If people know what the actual goal or driving factor is, it might be easier to point you in a suitable direction.


I really love sports, the outdoors and tricking. Im currently working as a PT and parkour instructor. I recently came home from a short trip in NZ where I tried snowboarding, mostly in the park, and I was hooked. So now the idea of doing something different during the winter months hit me, and I thought that the best way to get good at it was by first learning to ride and then taking courses/certificates.

Im still a bit uncertain if I really wanna be instructing since I´ve read that it mostly involves working with real beginners, repeating the same thing over and over again, missing out on the best times to ride, while the salary is pretty low :S
latest report
 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
mrbo wrote:

Im still a bit uncertain if I really wanna be instructing since I´ve read that it mostly involves working with real beginners, repeating the same thing over and over again, missing out on the best times to ride, while the salary is pretty low :S


It's not for you then!! Think again Very Happy
ski holidays
 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
@stevomcd, about the same (although there is no L1).
But the cert. is everything you need to start teaching that season, no shadowing required and those other little bits and bobs.
They sound very similar except the last day is spent doing exams... and if you fail your teaching element or technical elements then you have to re-take them later in the year.
snow conditions
 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
@mrbo,

Think hard on what sarah, has said above.

You eigher love to teach or not. If you do you take pleasure in seeing the smile on kids faces when they manage to do something new, the realisation on an adults face when something clicks. Even the sheer joy from a complete beginner doing there first short glide without falling be it the first attempt or the 21st attempt.

I would suggest if you still want to teach find a good BASI L3 instructor have a private lesson and ask them for advice, ask them in their opinion how much work you need to do before they think you would be in a position to pass BASI L1. It will be much cheaper than paying for a BASI L1 course before you are ready. If you wish to go down the Austrian route rather than BASI do the same find a really good instructor with a lot of experience to give you help and advice rather than spend hundreds even thousands before you are ready.

Good luck and if you think teaching is for you then you will discover there is so much more to the sport than just blasting down a slope.
snow report
 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
My daughter did her L1 when she was 16. Already a very good skier she just did the week in a fridge. It still worked out a fair bit of money factoring in first aid, overnight stays, travel, etc, etc. During her shadowing she decided it wasn't for her and never used her qualification in anger.
ski holidays
 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I agree with @sarah, I think you are looking too far ahead, I really think you should learn to ski first. You don't always teach children especially if you aren't fluent in their native tongue, but as@speed098, points out it can be very satisfying.
Depending where you are the salary can actually be quite good.
snow conditions
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Very good points made!

@speed098 Nice change of perspective, that sounds wuite fullfilling.

@Swissie Will take that advice, learn to ski and then see what I wanna do after that Smile
ski holidays



Terms and conditions  Privacy Policy