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Best/worst places to instruct in the US?

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SwitchMisty540
Posts: 1862 - Karma: 629
I'm sure this thread has popped up a ton of times but I couldn't really find anything in the archives.  Just wondering if any instructors out there had opinions on the best and worst places to work in the US. 
Aug 9 2011 7:25AM
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84891jnf92048
Posts: 11552 - Karma: 2,550
Worst: Puerto Rico
Aug 9 2011 8:37AM
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Nufity
Posts: 993 - Karma: 171
sexual harassment at park city?
Aug 9 2011 9:08AM
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Trace.
Posts: 1460 - Karma: 635
Wilmot "mountain" they pay you about $2 an hour and hire so many instructors It's impossible to actually get a lesson. Then if you go and ride on your season pass you have to check in every half hour even if it isn't you work day.
Aug 9 2011 10:52AM
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waynewong
Posts: 1359 - Karma: 23
depeds on what you are looking for and what your qualifications are...if you are some instructor god, level 3++ , huge skills and client base...with the ability to yuck it up with the jet-set, wining and dinning their wife's and hanging with the family

then you need a huge resort to make the best of your skills.

If you are some kid trying to make a buck or two, or simply just want a free pass a modern ski school may not be the place for you...all large mountains have made "back lining" harder to do..and pass restriction, shitty group lessons and terrible hours result.

Squaw is a good combination of core skiers/riders with good management and money potential.

Vail is the opposite...good luckl breaking into that stuck up club


Aug 9 2011 2:38PM
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californiagrown
Posts: 9794 - Karma: 2,014
worst: the midwest- its cold and flat, and shit

Best: california- its warm, and is sunny 300 days of the year.
Aug 9 2011 2:40PM
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OldDirtyPete
Posts: 453 - Karma: 299
Best: Whaleback

Worst: Im guessing that snow dome in Saudi Arabia
Aug 9 2011 7:08PM
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Good_Deed
Posts: 1260 - Karma: 1,321
isnt that the richest place on ski earth?
Aug 9 2011 9:32PM
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BlazinBruce
Posts: 78 - Karma: 11

Ive been teaching for going on 6 years now in CT at small mountain

Everyone knows eachother/been working together for a while so its pretty sweet

Aug 10 2011 8:15AM
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dmc12380
Posts: 3545 - Karma: 792
Whaleback forsure, my friend use to instruct there and he would dip into the woods and smoke every hour. Free pass and you can hit the setup at the bottom every run. He probably got free food also idk
Aug 10 2011 11:05AM
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Rosbif
Posts: 2543 - Karma: 930
This post makes a lot of sense. If you are a pro instructor, then Aspen mountain (specifically Aspen, not Snowmass etc), is probably the best, only privates, so the clientele is loaded, also there is hardly any beginner terrain, so hardly any beginners.

If you just want to ski, then just pick whichever mountain you want to ski at, then backline as much as is financially possible.

I've heard bad things about working at Yellowstone, like even though the people are insanely rich, they don't tip too well, and you aren't allowed to actually ski there, they give you a pass for Big Sky instead. That was third hand though, so I don't know how true that is.
Aug 10 2011 4:51PM
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Parks.
Posts: 5612 - Karma: 1,093
 if you love having a stick jammed up your ass....work at mt rose up in tahoe.
Aug 10 2011 6:25PM
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Rachy
Posts: 4355 - Karma: 2,761
Working at Mt. High in So. Cal was pretty amazing. I only made $9.50 an hour as starting pay. But people in LA tip WELL. That and if I got a requested private lesson it was an additional 20 - 30 hourly depending on how many people. If the private lesson came out of a group lesson, I got paid the additional 20 - 30 hourly on that group lesson and their private.

That being said, I was also an outside sales rep for the mountain and dropped off business cards at all of my shops... I had a lot of requested privates. I did quite well there.

Mammoth on the other hand.... there are 3/4 year old lessons which are the most horrific way to spend your day ever. I was pretty lucky and teaching the adult classes in spanish and upper level kids for a while... then I got 1 3/4 year old group and quit. I wasn't making any money and my full time job at the ski shop gave me health insurance and hours at night.
Aug 10 2011 6:31PM
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