 Poster: A snowHead
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i cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning..
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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?
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Don't ever let negativity stop you. (In any case negative people do seem to be more vocal than everybody else.)
As a skier - If I wanted to learn to snowboard I would want to learn from someone with a genuine interest in teaching snowboarding. If that's what you fancy doing then go for it.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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+++vibes+++
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I'm baffled by the first post but there isn't really any negativity beyond the "How many days experience do you need to be a snowboard instructor? 1 more than your students." type of jokes.
As a more modern sport its had to grapple with a lack of formal teaching infrastructure and a lot of cack handed teaching in the past including distinctive theories of the ESF that bore no realtion to actual biomechanics or how really fluid riders actually ride. It's all got heaps better now and instructors should be able to teach you proper heel/toe steering and not bizarre upper body twisting/stiff legs and other mental stuff.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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well i wasnt actually 'offended' by the jokes..'35hrs of emptying bins in a ski school' or helping carrying other instructors' boards as my first step into THE world of instructing, are the things wich worry me the most not the jokes..
i wont giv up ,but reading that made me a bit disbelieving..
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monika, I doubt the "35hrs of emptying bins in a ski school' or helping carrying other instructors' boards as my first step" would occur in Europe, indeed some years ago a friend of mine got a job instructing snowboarders in Switzerland just by asking at the village ski school, they were short snowboard instructors and having checked out his skills were happy to take him on unqualified.
Best thing is to get a formal qualification though this will (depending on level) allow you to teach anywhere
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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.
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monika, the emptying bins/carrying boards thing is partly accurate. If you do BASI 1 you have to put in 70 hours of 'ski school experience' - only 35 of which need to be shadowing lessons - before you can progress to level 2. Mr L did his course at Tamworth and 70+ hours with a ski school in 2Alpes, videoing lessons, babysitting kids on bad weather days/when their parents were late and shadowing instructors. You then do Level 2 and a load of teaching hours, and after that it starts to get difficult. If you want to get as far as Level 4 you have to notch up a load of FIS points in boardercross competition.
So .... next time some fat middle aged skier tells you anyone can be a snowboard instructor, slap him round the head. 
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| Quote: |
If you want to get as far as Level 4 you have to notch up a load of FIS points in boardercross competition.
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Which for a snowboarder is a hell of a lot easier than a couple of years back when you had to do the Eurotest. Which is why, IMO, there are so many shite snowboard instructors.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Swirly, I'm not convnced that the ability to hurl yourself down an icy slope at speed is a good predictor of teaching ability. The worst board instructors I've seen have been skiers who did it as a second discipline and don't take it seriously. Mr L spent significant parts of his ski school experience coaching supposedly qualified instructors, which was either irritating or funny depending on what sort of mood he was in.
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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.
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| Quote: |
The worst board instructors I've seen have been skiers who did it as a second discipline and don't take it seriously.
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That's what I mean, previously you had to be a damn good skier (with Eurotest) to teach boarding which made absolutely no sense, more so given there was (at some point) no requirement to be a particularly able snowboarder. At least now you can do the boardercross part and snowboard for the other modules too. As to whether or not the ability to razz down a FIS course makes you a good teacher* then that's a debate that will run and run.
* it doesn't but it stops Tarquin doing it because it's cool yah.
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You know it makes sense.
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I still don't know what's supposed to be so "humiliating"? Starting as a bit of a dogsbody is par for the course all over, isn't it? think of all those pony mad teenage girls shovelling sh*t in the stables, lads in bike shops endlessly fixing punctures for people too daft or lazy to do it for themselves, or skippers of yacht flotillas having to deal with bunged up heads.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Why does everyone pick on Tarquin. He's a really nice bloke, honest 
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Poster: A snowHead
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| pam w wrote: |
| lads in bike shops endlessly fixing punctures for people too daft or lazy to do it for themselves |
Welcome to my Saturday mornings...... 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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harrisontherabbit, You haven't got any tips for removing a seriously seized pedal have you? Thinking LBS might have a decent length spanner which will take a pipe for additional leverage.
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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?
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fatbob, "professional" pedal spanners will get most things off. Sometimes a sharp tap with a hammer is enough to get 'em started, sometimes heating the crank up with a blowtorch is necessary. Never underestimate the power of a really good penetrating oil though. [/threaddrift]
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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harrisontherabbit, well the drifted bit of the thread made a sight more sense.....
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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pam w, hmmm... probably true.... was the first post in some way related to another topic I've missed?
Anyway, in a desperate attempt to make a vaguely on-topic post that makes some degree of sense, how about the following:
What I do with my Saturdays falls somewhere between a job and a hobby. Fixing punctures was exactly where it started, as it happens. I'd usually be loitering round the bike shop drinking their coffee, eating their doughnuts and fondling their shiny things (not a euphemism), so if a customer came in with a simple 2 minute job and all the staff were busy, I'd do it for them; it seemed like the least I could do to earn my keep. I never stopped to think whether it might be "humiliating". Somewhere along the line, I found myself on the payroll. I'll lug stuff about, put the rubbish out, whatever, but I also spend a lot of time chatting to people who share my interests, sharing my knowledge, and selling them shiny new bikes and kit that I know they're going to get a lot of enjoyment from. I might be getting paid minimum wage for it, but if I wasn't, I'd do it for the doughnuts. If my boss in my normal job asked me to do anything similar, on the other hand, he'd be getting one of my hard stares (or quite a lot more). And I wouldn't be doing the same for Halfords or the like.
The point is, work's never demeaning and rarely humiliating if you care about the service you're providing and the people that you're doing it for.
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monika,
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I cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning..
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Can you tell us a bit more about these comments? Who made them and in what context.
"Snowboard Instructor" is a cool job title and if you can carve out a viable career in the mountains then you'll be the envy of about 20,000 people on this forum.
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harrisontherabbit, I did a similar thing at a record shop in Brighton. I was only in there cos it was a cool place to hang on a Saturday. They started by sending me up to the green grocer for change or to the cafe for coffees. Then the break through came: one day, when they were busy, I got to change the record! It wasn't the fact that I was allowed behind the counter so much that I was trusted to choose what the packed shop was listening to, that made me feel that I'd been elevated in their esteem. (I was only 14 though)
I was never paid but I got to take home a record or 2 each week and was on the guest list for every gig in Brighton that I could muster the train fair for.
monika, u got to face it, a job that looks cool like this is going to attract a few sorts who are rather too 'up themselves' to do it properly - a little bit of dogsbodying will filter them out and only those who are serious will remain 
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| monika wrote: |
| i cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning.. |
You don't have the staying power to achieve your dream then, and if you did achieve it then you'll cry yourself to sleep every night because the comments aren't going to change. At least you have achieved something today - you have learned something about yourself. Boo hoo, now find a real job. Like being a traffic warden or something.
If a bit of negative feedback crushes your world, you need to get some perspective. Unless you are 12, in which case you'll have forgotten all about this tomorrow.
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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.
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| jzBun wrote: |
"Snowboard Instructor" is a cool job title |
Not to people who have real jobs.
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I was never paid but I got to take home a record or 2 each week and was on the guest list for every gig in Brighton that I could muster the train fair for.
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fantastic! the way to learn (and harrisontherabbit too). My daughter did a Saturday job in a chandlers for a while. Minimum wage, but because she was keen and interested she learnt how to do wire splices etc. Coincidentally (and completely irrelevant to anything) we got a taxi transfer from Geneva to our apartment once and it turned out that the driver, who was Chamonix based, had done a Saturday job for several years in the exact same shop. He had then moved on to doing dogsbody stuff in the Alps, so he could spend time in the mountains. The usual stuff, cleaning the chalet loos, clearing the paths etc, but was now part of the transfer company. IIRC he was mostly a climber, but his OH was mostly a skier - he led the way in the summer, and she in the winter.
It's great to meet people who don't just think about the £££s every minute of the day.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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.
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Monium, what's 'unreal' about snowsports instruction? And what is it you do that's so 'real'? Do tell.
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| Monium wrote: |
| monika wrote: |
| i cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning.. |
You don't have the staying power to achieve your dream then, and if you did achieve it then you'll cry yourself to sleep every night because the comments aren't going to change. At least you have achieved something today - you have learned something about yourself. Boo hoo, now find a real job. Like being a traffic warden or something.
If a bit of negative feedback crushes your world, you need to get some perspective. Unless you are 12, in which case you'll have forgotten all about this tomorrow. |
you've learnt perfectly how to attract ones attention by posting spiteful, hatred-dripping comments thus you deserve a reply
you see Monium, i tght theres a hope in forums...but how many there ar who do nothin but post in forums...so now at least im sure that i hav to stop listening n start doing bcos for ppl like you who want to be noticed there should be a litl box u hav to tick before posting 'post only if u have direct knowledge, (not my mate did blah blah blah, or I heard such n such)'
it would be so much more informative and educated, a really helpful place..
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You know it makes sense.
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c'mon Toots, where's the spam?
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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monika, Gt a grip luv. Don't listn 2 the h8erz!
In utha newz - skool hols?
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Poster: A snowHead
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fatbob, Guvnor, we are all waiting with bated breath for the evidence of the humiliation and cruelty apparently being dished out to snowboard instructors......
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Oh goody, a tantrum-throwing illiterate 11 year old! We haven't had one of those for a while.
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cran
cran
Guest
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| Quote: |
| You haven't got any tips for removing a seriously seized pedal have you? |
Try turning the spanner the other way... 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Monium wrote: |
| jzBun wrote: |
"Snowboard Instructor" is a cool job title |
Not to people who have real jobs. |
Can you please define what a real job is?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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monika, calm down bird - if you describe that as 'hate' you're going to run out of adjectives very soon indeed. And I'm afraid you'll need to learn to write - there are workbooks to complete and projects to do if you actually want to be a board instructor.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| monika wrote: |
| Monium wrote: |
| monika wrote: |
| i cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning.. |
You don't have the staying power to achieve your dream then, and if you did achieve it then you'll cry yourself to sleep every night because the comments aren't going to change. At least you have achieved something today - you have learned something about yourself. Boo hoo, now find a real job. Like being a traffic warden or something.
If a bit of negative feedback crushes your world, you need to get some perspective. Unless you are 12, in which case you'll have forgotten all about this tomorrow. |
you've learnt perfectly how to attract ones attention by posting spiteful, hatred-dripping comments thus you deserve a reply
you see Monium, i tght theres a hope in forums...but how many there ar who do nothin but post in forums...so now at least im sure that i hav to stop listening n start doing bcos for ppl like you who want to be noticed there should be a litl box u hav to tick before posting 'post only if u have direct knowledge, (not my mate did blah blah blah, or I heard such n such)'
it would be so much more informative and educated, a really helpful place.. |
This is an early lesson most of us learn in life. Sometimes we don't agree with other people. You are clearly yet to learn this lesson, however I hope that you might actually get something from this thread if you could see things from someone else's point of view.
There is nothing hatred-driven about my post whatsoever. I'd have to give a toss to hate any aspect of what you have said or done. All I did was express how disappointing it is that people set their goals for life so low.
I didn't really post to be noticed. I thought I might get an intellectual discussion that would brighten my afternoon. So far I am still sitting here and it is raining, and my chances of that discussion have diminished a great deal since my first post.
And please use English to post. You are never going to get a job doing anything if that is how you address people in writing, you might as well get some practice in now. But then if your dream is to become a snowboard instructor then perhaps you will be ok
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| Elston wrote: |
| Monium wrote: |
| jzBun wrote: |
"Snowboard Instructor" is a cool job title |
Not to people who have real jobs. |
Can you please define what a real job is? |
One which has my respect. That is the only criteria.
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| monika wrote: |
| i cant believe how cruel some comments are about snowboard instructors..having dreamt of becoming one since i started boarding, now im pretty ...well..sceptical bout the whole idea..good to hav my world crushed down on a wed morning.. |
Thursday afternoon not looking to hot either.
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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.
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I shall speak in full English, for those that refuse to use "text speak" , my original post was in comment to a thread at which someone seemed very cynical about snowboard instruction as a whole, I shall add a link to this (my error for not having previously done so)
i use text speak because my time is limited and it is simply quicker.. perhaps many of the people whom post on here are familiar with this?
I started looking at this thread for constructive commentary and criticism, perhaps those who word things with a negative or derogatory slant might learn well from my comments.. Some, particularly the younger or less experienced members of this forum, are more likely to learn from positive encouragement and advice. Those that have children or partners I expect would understand this.
Anyhow, I started looking on this forum for advice on training to be an instructor, as I have spent a few seasons as a boarder... we shall see.. But maybe I should look elsewhere....?
M
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FAQ
