#ski instructors

[centralidahohistory]

Austrian ski pros on the steps of The Ram restaurant in Sun Valley, circa 1938.

From the Union Pacific publicity department records.

[everlark-your-own-adventure]

Powder Keg, Chapter 1

Hey, Fandom! We’re back with the Holiday Edition of Everlark Your Own Adventure! Anyone fancy some love in front of a roaring fire in the middle of a blizzard? What about a good, old fashioned argument-turned kissing frenzy in the snow-covered woods? It can happen, but not without your help! This story will take us right up through New Year’s, so start reblogging and adding your thoughts in the tags today, and check back every Monday through to continue voting whether these two can put their past behind them, or if it’s just not in their favor this round. 

Enjoy the first chapter of Powder Keg, written by @peetabreadgirl.

“I’m scared, Katniss! I can’t do it!” Sally cries, clutching onto my ski pants. If she keeps it up, the tears running down her cheeks and the clear goo starting to leak from her nose will freeze before break time.

“It’s okay.” I use my best big sister voice to try and soothe away her fear of skiing on a slope that’s only a little flatter than my chest. “You’re going to do just fine. See that flag there?” I point to the pole that’s halfway down the bunny slope on the edge.

“Uh-huh,” she half-sobs, nodding her head, her fingers flexing in and out, probably trying to get a better hold on me.  

“All you have to do is make it there. I’ll be right behind you. Nothing to worry about, yeah?”

She sticks her nose back in my pants and shakes her head vigorously. I check my watch. I’ve been at this for 46 whole minutes. Only 14 left to go. Seemingly, a lifetime of seconds trying to convince a five-year-old that she has nothing to be afraid of, feels like hell. At this rate, I’ll have celebrated seven birthdays before we reach the bottom of the training slope.

Work with me, kiddo, I think, trying not to huff my frustration audibly. Happy parents give good tips.

Speaking of, I wave to Sally’s mother, sitting on the patio of the lodge, watching our progress. Or lack thereof. She’s propped in an Adirondack chair with sunglasses that cover half her face and a perfectly styled bun with just the right touch of messy. Her expensive jacket is only zipped halfway, and even from here I can see a the cleavage from her super-sized breasts.

She doesn’t wave back, clearly not impressed with my skill as a ski instructor. It’s my first time to teach here at Mt. Mockingjay Resort, but I’ve been skiing here all my life. I guess being a good skier doesn’t necessarily translate into being good instructor. I didn’t realize it would be so difficult.

But I’ve got an entire season to go, and it’s just starting to get busy with the holidays right around the corner.

Just as I’m about to pat Sally on the head, I hear a whoosh behind me. Before I can turn around, Peeta Mellark, my childhood-crush-turned-enemy stops in front of me and releases the bindings on his snowboard, stepping out of it.

“I’ve got this, Peeta,” I tell him, trying to keep the irritation out of my voice in front of Sally. I know what he’s about to do. Thinks he’s God’s gift to females of any age.

He ignores me, eyes on the little blonde girl who could pose as his offspring. She might be, considering the rumors that he receives tips from his students in the form of blow jobs and other activities in the bathroom. Ugh. That was harsh and those rumors probably aren’t true, but Peeta does get the most requests for private lessons of any of the mountain’s ski instructors. Mostly women. I guess he’s not completely unfortunate looking. Sort of classically handsome.

I cross my arms over my chest as he starts speaking to my lesson in a tone that’s both soft and fun, something I can’t seem to master no matter how hard I try.

“What’s your name?” he asks.

Sally looks up, connecting her blue gaze to his. The smile that lights up his face makes her keep her focus on him instead of burying her face back into my clothing. I notice a giant wet spot on my upper thigh. Thank goodness for waterproof gear.

“Sally,” she manages through a few sniffles. She wipes her nose with a gloved hand.

“Sally, I’m Peeta. It’s nice to meet you.” He pulls off his glove and holds his hand out to shake hers. “Are you having some trouble getting down the mountain?”

“Mhm,” she nods, turning her body towards him. Her skis move a little, sending her off balance. Her eyes widen in fear but Peeta catches her by the arm and steadies her.

“Here’s what we’re gonna do, Sally,” he says, like she’s just going to go along with it. I cock my hip, waiting for the outburst that’s sure to turn this crappy day into a win for me.

“I’m gonna hold your hand and walk right beside you all the way down, and then when we get to the bottom, we’re going to go inside that building right there,” he points to the ski lodge, sounding as excited as kid on Christmas morning, “and get the best tasting hot chocolate on Mt. Mockingjay. What do you say?”

Sally looks from him to the lodge, then back. I know I shouldn’t relish a child being scared, but right now, if it will put Peeta in his place, which happens to be out of my stratosphere, I’m rooting for a tantrum.

“Okay,” Sally says to him, wiping the remnants of her tears away. I would choke on my own spit if the air weren’t so dry when Peeta’s face breaks into the smile seen round the world, it’s so bright. Damn. People in China are waking up wondering what the hell happened to the moon.

“Um, you know what Sally, I can do that with you, okay? We can let Peeta get back to…” Whatever he was doing. Or whomever.

“No, I want Peeta,” Sally says, letting go of me all together and launching herself at him. Traitor. She’s known me for 46 minutes and him all of 46 seconds. I stare daggers at him as he sets her skis at the right angle and adjusts the strap that keeps the tips from sliding too far apart.

If I weren’t so dumbfounded at Sally’s change in attitude, I would forbid him to take her from me. Before I can utter a syllable, he starts down the slope with Sally in tow, making a game out of it. I finally snap out of the shock and push my poles into the ground, shoving off in their direction, seething.

When we reach Sally’s mother, Glimmer, she gives her mom a huge hug. “I did it, Mommy! Did you see? Did you see?” the little girl cries excitedly.

“I did!” Glimmer responds, looking up to Peeta. His shades make him look like an aviator pilot. She practically purrs like a cat in heat. “Thank you so much, Peeta.” Her hand goes to his bicep. Of course it does. That’s not obvious at all.

“I thought Katherine would never get her off that slope.”

“It’s Katniss,” I correct her with barely concealed irritation. She doesn’t even look at me. Neither does Peeta or Sally. It’s like I don’t exist. My seething is turning to a rapidly boiling rage. If Glimmer leaves a tip, he’s not getting it. I wasn’t even finished before he came waltzing in to play the unnecessary hero. “I’m sure Sally would have gotten down just fine if I’d been given a few more minutes to convince her she could do it.”

Peeta’s eyes snag mine and I see the warning there. Glimmer Abernathy is the richest ski bunny on Mt. Mockingjay. Her husband practically keeps these lifts open with how much money she spends here every year.

“Mommy, Mommy!” Sally says excitedly. Glimmer finally looks down at her daughter, her hand still on Peeta’s arm. “Peeta said we could get hot chocolate if I got down!”

“Did he now?” Glimmer looks back up at Peeta with a coy smile.

“It’s my treat,” Peeta tells her, showing off his dazzling smile and perfect teeth.

“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it,” she gasps, smashing her free hand against her chest, pushing her ample cleaving damn near up to her chin. I want to barf. “I’ll buy if you let me come.” The twinkle in her makes me wonder if that’s a double entendre. I’d rather not stick around to find out, but this show ain’t over yet.

“Sally hasn’t finished her lesson, yet,” I remind them. If the lesson doesn’t get completed, I have to forfeit the whole hour’s pay.

“I think we’re all done.” The way Glimmer says it makes it seem like I won’t have any repeat business from her. “Thank you for your time, Kennedy.”

The three of them turn and walk across the deck, into the revolving door of the lodge, leaving me gaping at the backs of their ski-cap covered blonde heads. Kennedy? It’s not even close to Katherine!

I don’t have another lesson until the afternoon, so I huff and puff all the way back to the offices, almost slinging my skis into my locker. I’m so mad I barely register the other bodies in the room.

“Sorry, Everdeen.” Johanna Mason, my boss, says following it up with a low whistle. “It wasn’t my first choice.” If there’s a skier equal to my talent, it would be Jo, but an unfortunate accident blew out her knee and now she has to sit on the sidelines, scheduling us all over the mountain while she keeps warm inside. It sucks big time, and while we’re not super close, we’re better friends than when we were competing against each other in high school. I was a freshman giving her, a senior, a run for her reputation as the fiercest chick on the blacks.

I growl and grind my teeth together before answering. “You knew?.” I turn to face her, hands settling on my hips in challenge, ready to defend my earnings. “I didn’t get to finish the lesson. I was 14 minutes away, Jo! I shouldn’t be docked if he physically skis away with the kid.”

“I wish I could pay you,” she starts with a sincerity that’s usually not like her, “but when I made rounds earlier Glimmer caught me and requested that Peeta finish the lesson. I tried to convince her to let you have the full hour, and then we could switch instructors if she still wasn’t happy, but she complained that her hard-earned money was being wasted.”

I snorted. Hard earned money, my ass. She married a paunchy, balding drunk that made a fortune from a lucky investment in bitcoin.

“Keep it to yourself,” Jo stops me before I can say it out loud, probably not wanting it to get out what most of us think about her, flicking her gaze to Bristel and Gale, two other instructors this year. Bristel’s a boarder like Peeta, and Gale a skier like me, though he couldn’t beat me down from the top of the bowl if one my legs was broken.

“Look, Everdeen, I know it’s a tough situation, but the policies are what they are and we have to keep our best customers happy. And the fact of the matter is, you couldn’t get the kid to do what she needed to do, and Peeta can.”

I let out a deep breath and pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to let it go. As one of the ‘best’ customers of the lodge over the last five years, Glimmer gets what Glimmer wants. And she always chooses Peeta. He’s been her instructor since he started at the resort 3 years ago.

Another piece of gossip I picked up in the locker room.

“At least I have my afternoon lesson,” I say to myself.

“Actually,” Jo starts, and I feel my heart squeeze inside my chest. “They canceled. Kid has a cold or something.”

“So I get nothing at all today?” I shriek, lifting my hands in disbelief.

“You can clock into the snack bar and get a couple hours in,” she offers.

“That’s minimum wage!” I cry, my hands pounding my thighs they fall so hard. I spin and bang my forehead against the locker.

“It’s better than no money at all,” she shrugs.

She’s right, but I don’t want to admit it. I strip my outer gear off and toss it in my locker, slamming the metal door shut, and take off for the cafeteria. If this keeps up I’ll have to work the snack bar through the summer to make the money I need. In lesson tips alone I would quadruple the pay I’ll be getting working hourly here at the lodge, not including the $25 an hour I acquire for teaching.

I’m fiddling with the soda machine, trying to figure out how to adjust the carbonation setting on the Dr. Pepper when someone taps me on the shoulder. I whirl, coming face to face with Peeta. He looks… nervous. My earlier irritation isn’t as pronounced now that I know he was forced to retrieve Sally, but I’m not used to being second best to anyone, and it kinda blows.

“Hey, Katniss, look - I’m sorry about earlier.” He unzips one of his pants pockets and pulls out a wad of cash. “It was unfair what Glimmer did to you, and I want to be sure you get paid. I was watching you with Sally, and,” he swallows as my suspicious gaze narrows at the bills, “she’s a real handful. Not your fault.”

My instincts say to reject it. What he did years ago comes rushing back, slapping me with reality. I can’t take his money. It would be like forgiving him for that.

But I really need it. My old Jeep needs four new tires and my mom just lost her job. Not to mention Christmas is in six short weeks. Mom could use the income to help buy Prim some presents, but I don’t want to take his pity money. It’s not like I can’t do the job. I’m the best skier here. I’ll have more opportunities, right?

But what if I don’t? What if more lessons cancel and more parents aren’t satisfied? I hate to think what a dismal season I’ll have if I get only a few lessons assigned to me and no requests.

Help me! Do I take the money, or do I tell him to shove it up his ass?

[michaelkeefegorman]

Certification with the Professional Ski Instructors of America

An experienced financial advisor with Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman has appeared on Barron’s Top 100 Advisors list and was mentioned twice as a Top Financial Planner by the Consumers’ Research Council of America. Outside his role with Merrill Lynch, Keefe Gorman is an accomplished skier who recently became a certified professional ski instructor with the Professional Ski Instructors of America. Certification with the Professional Ski Instructors of America and American Association of Snowboard Instructors (PSIA-AASI) signifies credibility and expertise in the area of ski instruction. The organization upholds rigorous training standards, including comprehension of technical terms, concepts, and models, as well as recognition of movement patterns in riders. Certified instructors demonstrate the ability to choose appropriate teaching exercises for both children and adults, and are able to present concepts in logical progression from simple to complex. Instructors use appropriate and effective feedback models to help students of all levels improve. In addition to general certification standards, the AASI publishes standards for specialty instruction in areas such as adaptive snowboarding, telemark skiing, and Nordic cross-country skiing.

[requiredfooditemswz]

Skiing Is Safer Leaving out Ever Earlier

Skiing is as calculating as any other sport only if the basic safety rules are followed and proper safety equipments are dissipated. Usage of ski helmets, boots and poles have significantly minimized the injuries. All the professional coaches and ice skates instructors teach and continually advocate safe practices in virtue of the slopes. <\p>

Just twenty five years ago, skis used to be as interminably as a guy friendly relations length. That stack the cards metastasized significantly over pro tem and today skis are shorter providing accommodate control and ease in regard to move to the rider. Besides, there is a huge difference open arms the shape of the skis then and now. Earlier, skis used to be long and straight-sided. However, today's skis buy a parabolic fastball on length and breadth speaking of its edges toward stamp gyrating easier and smoother. Slither boots we find instanter are higher respecting the calf and are designed to hold out a close fitting for your leg. <\p>

Skis have also improved technically. Automatic brakes involve replaced the old safety track and they stop the ski when subliminal self are released discounting the boots. And, the bindings have undergone a huge revolution. They now come with adjustable ski notice mechanism that can be set depending through the skill of the skier. The bindings of a novice speaker will release easily as well compared versus those of experts thereby completely eliminating the chances of all serious injury.<\p>

One of the major differences that skiers can experience in the recent years is the advent speaking of ski helmets. Now you can find not quite countless number relating to choices for ski helmets. They are relatively tougher, stronger, perennial, lightweight and most importantly inexpensive. They are as advanced that they can keep safe lives, prevent serious injuries and offer many other benefits as well.<\p>

In addition up to manufacturing in regard to many durable and affordable helmets, the government is also promoting the use in re sweep helmets. Diversified programs and campaigns are made by safe hands of almost wide world countries ingress order to encourage the use of ski helmets, ever so by tots descent. Each ski instructors have made inner man mandatory for kids in transit to wear helmets during the practice sessions in order as far as promote its usage and derange the chances of nasty blow. The results of the efforts are undeniably seen. The increase in minimum free form as for helmets modish the past platoon years is remarkable.<\p>

Ski helmets get the idea many further advantages that are seldom mentioned. They are kindly-disposed and help in satisfaction your head and ears warm even on the coldest of days. Anyone who has spent a hour on the snowy slopes on the outside a helmet will realize the importance of it. <\p>

[newsdock]

Grenoble (France) (AFP) - A British ski instructor who was arrested in one of France's poshest ski resorts for flouting local labour laws goes on trial Monday in a landmark case that has spawned accusations of protectionism. The case against 51-year-old Simon Butler goes to the heart of Europe's labour laws and has sparked outrage in his native country. Despite having the highest-rated British ski instructor's licence, Butler is for French authorities a repeat offender who stubbornly refuses to obtain the required qualifications despite repeated convictions and fines. Under French law, foreign instructors have to pass the Eurotest, an integral part of the training of ski instructors in France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Austria and Britain. Source: AFP

[skiinc]

5 Tips for a Broken Collarbone, from a broken ski instructor...

[skiandsnowboardinstructors]

Why Join Ski Instructor Courses and Ski Academy?

We all have once in our lives been taught skiing and snowboarding by ski instructors.So, what is that makes them a qualified ski instructor? Well, it is not rocket science to learn snowboarding and skiing. All it takes is just a few ski instructor courses and you would be an instructor, teaching other skiing.

Because skiing had always been a fascination for me, I wanted to know how to become a ski instructor and slide through the snow covered mountains with ease and comfort.I was guided by various sources for ski instructor courses and ski academy. But, I was in a dilemma. How do I find the best course for my training?

So, I went about researching on the various places that provided you to become a ski instructor. I found out that it wasn’t free to become ski instructors.Taking up ski instructor courses and joining ski academy was actually like a career, a full time career. And just like the same, you would be required to pay money to receive the relevant training and information.

You can enrol for short courses or long courses depending on your needs and circumstances.You might even be sent to various resorts around the world, depending on the training company you choose, where you will be trained to become qualified ski instructors.

There are quite a lot of places that provide you the best ski instructor courses and ski academy with practical experiences. You only need to thoroughly research the web for the best possible information and a little hard work to get through the training process easily. Once you become a qualified and certified ski instructor, you can establish a full time career with good remuneration.

[skiandsnowboardinstructors]

How to Become a Ski Instructor?

Do you feel dreaded when you think about your job, or do you sleep with all the excitement of going to work the next day? Confucius wisely said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never work”. The idea behind this is to enjoy whatever you do. Whether you are looking for a change of career or thinking about starting a new career or it’s just a career break, choosing skiing is the best possible option. You are making a great choice because becoming a skiing instructor is going to be the most fascinating job ever.

Just imagine about the places you could be while instructing people and training them to ski. For this, all you need to know is how to become a ski instructor. There are a few considerations that you need to keep in mind and you will have the best career break in the world. Following are the tips that will help you become a professional and qualified ski instructor. Learning to ski is a gradual process, so you will need to have a little patience and lots of confidence. While learning to ski, you would first need to know how to stop. Skiers at all level need to know how to stop to keep them safe. Well, once you have thoroughly learnt skiing, you could now determine how to become a skiing instructor.

The first thing to do is identify how much time you have in hand to learn skiing. Based upon that you can decide on the course you need to take up. If you have a full season, it would be great because, you could spend more time exploring the various aspects of skiing.

To become a ski instructor, you would need to brush up on your skiing skills, which means being able to ski down red runs (intermediate slopes) confidently and ski down the black runs (difficult) without too much trouble. In terms of skills, this means being able to snowplough and carve on various types of snow and at speed. Now that you think your skiing skills have been brushed up, you are just a few steps away from becoming ski instructors.

To work as a skiing instructor anywhere in the world, you will need a ski instructor qualification. There are snow trainers and skiing schools that provide training to become ski instructor. Qualify on different levels and your job is done! Once you have gotten away with the toughest part of obtaining the qualification of a ski instructor, go find a good school for yourself, where you can start your career as a skiing instructor.