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For those who have been ski instructors . . .

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switched
Posts: 417 - Karma: 10
This season my friend and I are planning on doing some private ski lessons (no affiliation with the ski resort). My friends family runs a church camp that caters to winter visiters, so we will have customers. I was wondering;
What do I charge, 20 an hour?
What is the best # of skiers to teach at one time(group size)?
What is the best age or skill level to teach?
What are the kinds of things you would teach that makes the day fun and beneficial?

If you have ski instructing experience, then please give me some advice. Thanks!
Nov 21 2006 1:36PM
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Albino
Posts: 1400 - Karma: 123
are you gtting some sort of public liability insurance. ur crazy if not. normally youre insured through ur employer, but if youre goig freelance, you wont be covered.
Nov 21 2006 2:00PM
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kristie
Posts: 1667 - Karma: 214

Um, have you ever taught people how to ski before?

Nov 21 2006 2:04PM
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mcsean
Posts: 844 - Karma: 20
I wouldn't recommend it. As the other guy said, insruance is a big issue. If someone gets hurt while under your instruction they can sue the shit out of you. Plus, if you're asking those simple questions, I doubt you'd really be ready to teach people how to ski. It's not as easy as you might think
Nov 21 2006 2:04PM
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switched
Posts: 417 - Karma: 10
I have only tought friends how to ski, but I have been very successful with them. Never instructed for the resort.
As for the insurance, I didn't think of that because I am not starting a formal business, more of a "ski with a local for 20 bucks" type of thing. Do you think I need insurance for that, or can I just have a disclaimer?
Nov 21 2006 2:13PM
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oSe
Posts: 811 - Karma: 16
hahah dude, thats the stupidest idea ive ever heard of,..
ok ill tell u this shit but like... your crazy for stying,..
if your doing this at ur local hill, and get caught,.. you can lose your pass,..
u have personal insurance through CSIA but you HAVE TO BE A MEMBER!
ive taught anywhere from 1 to 50 people at once and the higher the number DOESENT make it fun,..
dude, take the fuckin CSIA course because honestly you think u may be able to do it,... BUT FUCK NO! its way way wAAYYYYY different you need to bring things down to there level,.. bring it all back to basicas and be able to relate it to them,.. u need to be able to think how it was to have NEVER put ski's on your feet... or ever even put ski boots on before.
seriously dude,BAD idea.
im just gona stop
you can get seriously hurt giveing misleading information to people
dont charge anything because its illegal 
Nov 21 2006 2:16PM
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windhamskibum
Posts: 1193 - Karma: 16
A. a "few friends" does not count as instructing experience.
B. You are ripping people off, even at 20 dollars.
C. you are hurting the sport. let the professionals teach the consumers.
Nov 21 2006 2:18PM
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windhamskibum
Posts: 1193 - Karma: 16
he is from arizona (or so his profile says) so it would be PSIA, which is the same thing. dude it takes two days to get level one certed. pony up the money, and get a real job at the mountain. or at least have some credability behind you
Nov 21 2006 2:22PM
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waynewong
Posts: 1359 - Karma: 23
Great idea...I used to freelance all the time and it kept my bills payed.

20$ an hour is very cheap. Mountains charge 55-75$ for private lessons. I would suggest half-day/full-day packages at 200-350$.

Advertise as a ski coach, focus on kids between 9-13. Thats the best age, and unless you are a very experienced level III type isntructor, adults would call you out after five minutes for not knowing jack. You have to remember that skiing is like golf, and all of these rich fucks have paid out the asshole for private lessons their whole life. This includes their kiddies, and they know the difference between a good lesson and a rip-off.

As for insuarance, don't sweat it. I would darft a standard release form and use that to edemnify (SP) yourself from any liability.

Nov 21 2006 2:26PM
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switched
Posts: 417 - Karma: 10
Well, I appreciate your guys' honesty. I have never instructed professionaly before and I didn't know the constraints, that is why I was asking. But now I realize the factors involved and I see how impractical it can be.
Thanks
Nov 21 2006 2:26PM
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Gez
Posts: 294 - Karma: 10
You may want to look into how your local mountain feels about this, and how they may respond should you decide to go forward with your plans.

I know at my resort, if you are caught teaching lessons while not scheduled to work, it is immediate termination as well as legal recourse. For that matter, last year, we had an instructor who had not been employed by the mountain for several years who was out teaching lessons on the side, and our mountain for whatever reason decided they were going to prosecute him too (even though he didn't work for them when teaching these lessons.)

Didn't really hear the result of that case, but the point is, you may have some sort of legal action taken against you, whether by the local mountain or by one of your "customers" should something go wrong.
Nov 21 2006 2:29PM
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Casey
Posts: 7849 - Karma: 24,324
I know a guy that used to teach snowboarding privately, he made bank, but he had his shit together.
Nov 21 2006 2:31PM
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CoachG
Posts: 2546 - Karma: 448
your so fucking screwed. you have no experience and your lesson will most likeley end up being half-assed.
Nov 21 2006 3:06PM
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freestyle_kyle
Posts: 2620 - Karma: 164
yeah ive been teaching for 3 years now. you should deffinately get certified, by the PSIA i guess. then you would have the liablity insurance, but most importantly, you would actually know how to teach a leson properly.

all that siad, $20 is really cheap. i made 96$ last weekend through a private that was booked through the hill.

certification is a must tho
Nov 21 2006 11:57PM
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ski_cartel
Posts: 6598 - Karma: 18
You deffinatly need to be certified, if you are certified you then become covered insurance wise up to 10million. Teaching a few friends are way way different to teaching other people how to ski. I have had hundreds of hours of trainign and there are still times when I hate the lesson so much that  Im not all there.
Nov 22 2006 12:07AM
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Swick825
Posts: 1798 - Karma: 11
i ski at the same shithole as this kid and he could probably pull it off. just ghetto rig the shit and look for people that suck balls throughout the day and have like a business card and offer them lessons the next day. the ski school at this place is awful. the best instructor at the place struggles with the blue runs. you could probably make some money by sounding like you know what you're doing, and show how superior your services to that of the resort.
Nov 22 2006 12:18AM
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Holte
Posts: 10740 - Karma: 7,816
just get certified. It sounds like a lot of work, but it's really not, and it'll save you liability issues. If you can stand on skis and board a lift, you can probably get your PSIA level 1 cert easily. It's a bit of a joke.

If you really don't want to get certed, $20 is really, really cheap.
Nov 22 2006 12:18AM
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RRP-llc
Posts: 205 - Karma: 10
1) To get certified (PSIA) you need to be working at a ski school. You can't just take the test. You need a ski school director to sign off on you that you have taught for 10 hours or had the equivalent training.

B) I have never heard that you automatically get insurance once you are certified (I'm a level III). All insurance is throught the area/ski school. You are insured as an employee.

You may not think it is a big deal because you aren't "starting your own company" but that just means they can take everything you own. If you were a company, they would just take what the company owned.

If you want to teach, get a real teaching job with real training, then get certified.

--rick
Nov 22 2006 1:47AM
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Pipe_Munky
Posts: 10888 - Karma: 2,184

another problem, if the resort finds out that you are charging people for lessons on their property they are likely to kick you off the property. i have seen it happen and it resulted in people being banned from the resort for a few years.

basically you are taking business away from them and they won't be pleased.



Nov 22 2006 2:04AM
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titsLOL
Posts: 7485 - Karma: 396
stop hatin so much. I agree it probably isn't the best idea to do it at a resort as a freelance instructor, and probably wouldn't go over to well if anyone found out or anyone got hurt... but he's probably a way better skier than most ski instructors. At least at a lot of the mountains here on the east coast, a lot of the smaller mountains instructors are absolute jokes. Teaching skiing is more about being good with people, as long as you tell them some kinda stuff to make them feel comfortable and put a few thoughts in their head about what they should be doing they'll pick it up. Theoretically though I'm pretty sure the law would frown on you making a business of it, maybe if you just it like under the table and have the peeps at your church or whatever just give you like 20 bucks for the day and you go out and give them pointers and ski with them.
Nov 22 2006 3:29AM
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CoachG
Posts: 2546 - Karma: 448
yea thats exactly what i was goanna say. since when does it cover insurance?
Nov 22 2006 9:09AM
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switched
Posts: 417 - Karma: 10
I was just curious, but how could the resort get mad? I mean, can a golf course get mad at someone giving lessons on the course? I may be wrong, but it seems odd. Anyway, I would definitely talk to ski patrol before I did anything.
Nov 22 2006 10:42AM
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snarky
Posts: 498 - Karma: 13
you have to already work as an instructor and have experience to get certified.
Nov 22 2006 12:27PM
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TonyTheTiger
Posts: 863 - Karma: 68
wtf that's so stupid... and you know why

Another point is: where would you do it? I highly doubt your mountain ski school is going to let you take their clients, if they were stupide enough. You need certification, insurence, organization and whatever...
Nov 22 2006 5:14PM
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Ski_Unit_19
Posts: 8188 - Karma: 38
level 3? damn dude thats really impressive. listen to this guy. fucking level 3... he knows exactly what he is talking about
Nov 22 2006 5:25PM
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carve_89
Posts: 71 - Karma: 10
Everything that needs to be said has pretty much already be said.

I say get your cert man, things go wrong man...seriously. I just got my cert near the end of last season, and really, my first lesson was effing crazy.

They gave me 12 youngsters..some of them never got on a lift before, some of them aren't tall enough and you'd have to lift them. Its a hell of a lot of work, and even after getting the cert... I had a really tough day remembering where everyone was, and how to design a lesson where I could make sure I knew where everyone was.

i'm not saying its a bad idea man, I just think that if you have some knowledge on the subject, it'll really benefit you in the long run.

Good luck dude.
Nov 22 2006 5:40PM
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-+Siver+-
Posts: 1902 - Karma: 12
what he said
Nov 22 2006 5:42PM
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skogenjake
Posts: 6685 - Karma: 511
first off, you need training...it really helps you deal

What do I charge? go for 20.
What is the best # of skiers to teach at one time(group size)? if you can handle 5, youll be fine with more, but really if you have a smaller group you can help more
What is the best age or skill level to teach? adults
What are the kinds of things you would teach that makes the day fun and beneficial? crouching/going fast...skiing backwards

dude know your actual shit. turns, pivoting, edging, pole work even...
Nov 22 2006 5:43PM
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Jake...
Posts: 11976 - Karma: 296
is this guy for real?
Nov 22 2006 5:49PM
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RRP-llc
Posts: 205 - Karma: 10
I should mention that I am a level III snowboard instructor. I only have my level I for skiing. I just haven't had the time to go farther on the ski side. What I said above is true no matter what you teach on.

--rick
Nov 22 2006 9:32PM
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freestyle_kyle
Posts: 2620 - Karma: 164
yeah the CSIA works a lil bit differently then. you dont need to be working at a hill to get your level 1, at a lot of places you need you level I before you can work at all. and the CSIA gives you up to 10 million in liability insurance. and thats through the national office
Nov 23 2006 12:24AM
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anna*
Posts: 1701 - Karma: 10
if you really want to teach and make money from it, go to your local hill, do a hiring clinic, then work up through the levels.
will take bloody ages, youll need to do first aid and be able to speak a second language, but then again, its getting paid to do something you love.
and teaching is NOT easy.
like... i hadn't snowploughed in about 9 years, then i was asked to demonstrate it...lets just say everyone doing the clinic had to relearn that....
and adults... that think they know everything... but dont.
not worth the hassles.

personally i think its a bad idea.
Nov 23 2006 1:48AM
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Ski_Punx
Posts: 783 - Karma: 49
I remember when I was an instructor, and used to be fully bummed when I was stuck down on the flats teaching, while all my bro's were up top ripping fresh pow. I would say if you rip hard enough privates are the way to go. It got fun when I 'd take someone out that actually had some skills...They would listen more and were able to progress easyer. Personally the whole PSIA thing was a joke to me..but if ya gotta work at a ski area it will make you more ca$hola. Its pretty lame it has to be that way though.

sPx
Nov 23 2006 1:54AM
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Holte
Posts: 10740 - Karma: 7,816
You don't kneed first aid training or second language abilities in PSIA.

And you don't have to be a working instructor to clinic and take the test. It's usually up to the individual ski school director whether or not you have to be working. I got my level II when I wasn't employed by any ski school (but I was good friends with the school director).

You may be a good skier, but instructing is more than that. You've got to be able to see that (for example) a person's counter rotation is off because they're right hand is dropping during their turn and you know to take them through a traversing drill to help correct the problem. And it's tough to learn to identify and fix technique problems without training. Good instructing isn't as simple as you think. If you really want to teach people but don't want to clinic, please don't charge them.
Nov 23 2006 2:55AM
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wang_bong
Posts: 766 - Karma: 13
its illegal. ask your mountain about it, and they will give you a straight up NO. this dude was doing this at our mtn last year and got some jail time for it. plus you'd need all the insurance and shit.
Nov 23 2006 3:23AM
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anna*
Posts: 1701 - Karma: 10
sry, i got told that to do my level II i would need to them, i have both anyway, german/french/english and certificate for school shit.
Nov 23 2006 3:50AM
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harr][s
Posts: 1279 - Karma: 128
god is mad at you.
Nov 23 2006 3:53AM
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Swick825
Posts: 1798 - Karma: 11
i just cant respect you with such a gay icon. you look like you might as well buy some snowbladz and some ky jelly and take it up the ass like th rest of the snowbladerzzzz.
Nov 23 2006 5:05AM
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bass_munkie
Posts: 300 - Karma: 10
wow a thread on newschoolers has just properly benefitted the world... it makes me sad to think that although this guy has seen his error loads of other people around the world are gonna actually be doing this and giving people the wrong impression of skiing for their first time!

i used to teach on dry slopes in the uk. i hated it because people would come for their first ever ski lesson and decide that they hated it when really learning on a dry slope is just far to hard and painful compared to learning on snow!

Nov 23 2006 6:17AM
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TimothyLord
Posts: 2114 - Karma: 568
yeh i dont know if u actully aloud to
Nov 23 2006 4:03PM
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windhamskibum
Posts: 1193 - Karma: 16
yea, i messed up my post, you are covered under resorts insurance, not psia.
Nov 23 2006 4:51PM
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canadianskier
Posts: 601 - Karma: 184
im getting ceritfied tommorow im stoked it means i can't quit the shitty job i have right now
Nov 23 2006 6:00PM
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