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Ski-buzz

5 September 2012. 18 comments

Category: News

What makes a good ski instructor?

Opinions on ski lessons, ski schools and, crucially, ski instructors is a hot topic of debate and something that is often talked about on our Facebook page.

This video looks at how BASI (the British Association of Snowsports Instructors) instructors are trained and what separates them out as being some of the very best in the business.

What are your experiences? How did you learn to ski or snowboard? Have you had a lesson with a BASI qualified instructor? Please leave a comment on the bottom of this post.

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  • David Letts

    Empathy and humour are most important. If you can put your client at ease and make them smile, they will trust you. You need to appreciate their apprehension. Keep in mind what you found difficult and how that made you feel. Then you’ll understand how they are feeling. That is the key to a great instructor, not just having a set of excersises for all and expecting everyone to copy. We all learn differently,so you need to know different ways to teach.

  • http://eurapart.com John Williams

    I had a week with an ESF instructor in Avoriaz. She didn’t speak English and I only learnt from my tiny knowledge of French. I then had lessons at Runcorn Dry Slope. The best one was a BASI qualified one. He made it all easy.

  • Katie

    The instructor has to be friendly to give you confidence on the slopes but make it fun at the sametime generally a good communicator!

  • http://www.facebook.com/MoonCakeTit Lewis Joyce

    Last winter i did a season with crystal ski. And it was most possibly the greatest moment of my life. I learnt to snowboard on my own over the 5months i was in italy. But alot of the customers that came out were instructed by some great friendly snowboarding and skiing instructors. To me i think what makes a amazing snowboard or skiing instructor is really down to how patient they are. Which i think is the main importance to learning on how to ski or snowboard. Patience is the key to most sports. Especially this sport. It takes time, Practice and going over the same thing over and over until you have it nailed. And this is what instructors are all about. Teaching you in what your good at and improving it, And learning what your not good at and doing it over and over again until your a god at it. So overall, what makes a good instructor most of all is utmost patience, friendliness, time and no rushing. And if you found that instructor you will be on your way into the powder master.
    thanks for reading.

  • http://www.facebook.com/peter.torrance1974 Peter Torrance

    A sense of humour is a must, and a few cheap jokes for the kids wins them over.
    The ability to analyse your technique and communicate back to you what you need to improve on is essential. Understanding your fears and expectations is critical to effective learning.

    We did our basic training at Xscape, which we followed up with some very poor lessons in Bulgaria. We did more Xscape lessons to prove to ourselves we could actually ski, then returned to Bulgaria and got an excellent instructor that time – shame about the equipment.

    Now confident we could do it, we went to France with our own equipment.
    We had a BASI instructor in Serre Chevalier this winter, and he was
    able to improve our techniques within 1 lesson, which gave us the best
    holiday yet. We’ve already booked the next trip and we’ll be seeing him again in 2013 to improve even more – might make it onto a black this time….

    Oh, and if the instructor has a hip flask with them too, then all the better for it.

    • Ski-buzz

      Hi Peter, thanks for your comment. It’s great to hear about both types of ski school/instructor experience. We’ve picked this as the winning comment. Please drop us an email to contact@ski-buzz.co.uk along with your address details.Thanks.

  • Stephen Barr

    It’s a positive and friendly attitude a can do mentality have had lessons with a basi instructor at chill factor in manchester and went to borovets had a instructor who thought the louder he shouted the quicker you learnt found out that he was a ex military I ended up blowing out my knee after two days of instruction on a red slope during a white out very bad expierence will not go back prefer Canada USA of France.

  • http://www.facebook.com/clairemdolan Claire Dolan

    My most memorable snow trip was when I was 21. It was the first time away and all the other members of the group had tons of experience. I did not even know how to fasten my snowboard boots! My instructor was friendly, fun and patient. Most of all he helped me stay up with the group and by the end of the holiday I was hooked. I now go on 2 trips (as funds allow) every year!

    A good instructor is one that you remember years later and inspires you to continue to return to the snow

  • http://www.facebook.com/arjun.austin Austin Arjun Kugathas

    The ability to have humour and teach you in a way that you will understand. I had an instructor in France arranged by Ski Alpine during a University Trip. He taught be the best tricks and the basics from day one. Afterwards, we went on long long runs, where we could master what we had learned without wasting time going up lifts. Also with Snowboarding, he introduced bending knees and the different positions with actions like ‘leaning over’ and ‘pretending to do a squat’. Its actions like these that really determine the great bond and value of an instructor. Austin

  • max

    the best system in the world?? this is typical british self over indulgence…all the major ski schools on the planet are using bhiomechanics studies ans sport science in their theories for teaching since ages ago! Fastest system to bring you skiing parallel?? are we sure that bring people to ski a bad parallel is better than consolidate a better base in the motorious skills of a pupil??? Respect for the frenchys cos if you can have a ski school in Courchevel it is thanks to therir democratic system. max@esf

  • max

    A good ski instructor is not the one following one system learned at basi or esf he is the one experimenting with open eye and heart

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=880880236 Kevin Brown

    As many others have identified a key element is patience but that for me is only part of the equation. Language is vital, both the actual language itself e.g. English etc. as appropriate to those being taught but also the choice of words used in order that the pupils can understand. The ability of the instructor to adapt their teaching methods to the way the pupil learns makes a huge difference. Lessons should progress as quickly as the slowest learner in the group but with exercises for those who may be progressing quicker. An instructor who does not show off his own skills or “muck about” trying to impress the group (or individuals within the group) will be respected. Friendliness and a sense of humour can make lessons so much easier. I guess what people want out of lessons will vary but isn’t the point of them to make you a better skier or boarder in order that you can enjoy (it’s meant to be fun after all) your limited time on the slopes and also to help you and those around you be safe.

  • Easiski

    Obviously a ski teacher must be patient, must be able to communicate and must be able to identify the students’ faults and help the student to correct them as simply and easily as possible.
    Even though I am BASI qualified myself, after 20 years in the alps I think it’s disengenuous to suggest that BASI instructors are better and any other nation.
    The language is a big advantage, but just as I can teach perfectly well in French, there are plenty of instructors out there who can speak english more than well enough. What is always a shame, in any of the systems, is how many ski teachers stick slavishly to what’s in the training manual instead of thinking about skiing, about all the aspects of it and of teaching, and thus giving each individual student what they NEED – not necessarily what it says int he book!
    BTW Crystal holidays in this resort use ESF as well as an British run ski school – it’s all about politics anyway!!

  • Ski-buzz

    Hi everyone, thanks for all your comments. There’s some great points being made – Easiski and Max, it’s great to have people on the inside so to speak commenting here. Patience, language and the ability to have fun seems to be the common factors. Thanks, the Ski-buzz team.

  • jodieworld

    Kindness but also the occasional bullying into getting me to actually go for it like Brian Evans
    who bullied me back onto the slope after a bad fall on my second go to
    make sure I didn’t lose my confidence. Then bullied me to go harder and
    faster each lesson!! A sense of humour helps to pass the nerves and get a
    grip!

  • Jane H

    We stayed at the Crystal Park hotel last season and had lessons from an Italian ski teacher who was OK even if he could not speak English that well

  • http://www.facebook.com/DaveCuthill David Cuthill

    “The Best in the world” ?
    Certainly, the level of the International Ski Teacher Diploma BASI ski teacher/ instructor is as good as the best ski teachers in the world. However, I don’t think it’s all that helpful to try to claim to be superior – better than other nations’ best ski teachers, because that wouldn’t be accurate.
    Are there better skiers than the top BASI ISTDs? – of course there are, but most of those will not be teaching, they will be in national teams. One of the BASI Trainers in the video is a pretty handy racer, and did well against ESF instructors in Tignes in the GS.
    I think it’s safe to say, a BASI ski school will be well run and provide a very high level of professionalism. If you want to learn, you will get a full development plan. If you are just having a laugh, you will be well entertained. (And all points in between).
    One thing I notice is that BASI teaches its instructors the same system as the instructors then teach to the public. On the other hand:I have witnessed other nations teaching an easy-skiing technique that is really dead-end. Also many of the other nations’ teachers I’ve witnessed teach a big up-unweghting phase in the crossover of the turn. This isn’t really necessary with today’s equipment and terrain. Plus, it is really tiring to do all day. It isn’t a good lead-in to racing, as the phasing is opposite there.
    I have also witnessed expert non-BASI instructors demoing what I call “magic turns”. This is where there is absolutely no visible movement made by the teacher, yet the skis turn as if by magic. The client has no chance of making these work. The deal is different for those types: “don’t expect to be able to ski like me, you are a holiday maker and I am a ski-god”. BASI instructors are humbler in this respect. They know that their client could well become a champion at some level.
    The ESF has a big reputational hurdle to overcome: The huge classes and the “Follow-Me” lesson plan! This works for kids. “Follow Me” for 7 years and you’ll probably have worked it out for yourself. The huge snaking classes are perhaps because many of the ESF instructors pay a commission to the ski school and keep the rest of the fee. In these contracts, they are not paid by the hour, they are paid by volume.
    Patience a virtue?
    I watched an overweight Italian Maestro-di-Sci, dressed up like Santa Claus in his red-and-white, poking his ski-stick into the equally overweight derriere of his private client to encourage her to snowplough a little faster on the flat. Not much patience shown there! Plus he was smoking an evil- smelling cigarette with the other hand.
    I think BASI ski teachers are well aware that most if not all Maestri and ESF Moniteurs de ski are super skiers nowadays. Their system is in some ways harder to progress through than the BASI system (fewer opportunities and they have a time-limit) but crucially, we share the Eurotest as one of the the main technical tests de capacite.
    Good for BASI. “Be the Best” – I like this confidence to cast all false modesty to the winds! It’s a pretty good movie clip, serious message, but much of it is done tongue-in-cheek.

    • http://www.facebook.com/DaveCuthill David Cuthill

      Disclaimer: David Cuthill is a BASI Ski Teacher L3 (ISIA).

      “My postings on this site are my own views and don’t necessarily represent BASI’s positions, strategies or opinions.”