Alpine Ski Course Leader Course

Champery - Portes du Soleil

24th - 31st January 2015

Course Fee - £699(not including insurance, flights & transfers)

The Alpine Ski Course Leader Course (ASCL) is a course for School Teachers, Youth Leaders and others taking young people on ski courses

This course is open to all teachers, youth leaders and others leading groups of young people on ski courses. It is designed to offer training and assessment in the skills required to conduct their pupils or young charges safely around the mountain when they are not in lessons. It may also be used to revalidate an existing ASCL qualification.

A strong emphasis is placed on current good practice within the context of national guidelines laid down for educational visits.

The assessment is validated by both Snowsport Wales and Snowsport England, (the National Governing Bodies of the sport), giving it a broad currency across the UK.

Highlights of the Course

  • Development of the candidates personal skiing on all terrain and in varying conditions, (you should be a parallel skier to join the course).
  • On Piste leadership skills including group management, choosing a safe line down the mountain, ongoing risk assessment etc.
  • Skiing off piste for emergency
  • purposes.
  • Navigation, (in all weathers—conditions permitting)
  • Mountain hazard awareness
  • Choosing and using appropriate uplift and pistes
  • 6 full days of skiing, (Minimum of 6 hours per day), with personal debrief sessions each day.
  • Maximum of 8 candidates per tutor to maximise individual coaching.

Course fees include all coaching and assessment fees; course materials; excellent accommodation.

Saturday 24th January 2015 is arrivals and registration day and the course runs from Sunday to Friday inclusive. Departure day is the following Saturday.

To book your place on this course contact the Snowsport Cymru Wales office for booking forms by phone 029 20561904 or by email - a non refundable deposit of £100 will be required with your booking.

ASCL Champery 2015

Notes for candidates

1)What's included in the course fee:-

  1. Half board accommodation at the Palladium de Champery using the hotel accommodation at this Centre National de Sports de Glace including:-
  • Breakfast and Dinner.
  • Shared room, (Twin).
  • Free use of swimming pool and ice rink, (skate hire not included).
  • Use of seminar for evening work.
  1. Lift pass for the Swiss side of the Portes de Soleil.
  2. Course materials including a pre course work book and assessment
  3. A minimum of 6 hours on the mountain tuition and coaching per day for 6 days. This includes Leadership and Mountain skills training, navigation, hazard awareness etc. as per the course syllabus. Also included is an element of personal performance coaching to help you reach the outcome standard for the course and an assessment process which blends continuous assessment with more formal assessment sessions on the mountain.
  4. Evening seminars and workshops.

3) What's not:-

  • Travel to and from resort - check out plenty of cheap flights to Geneva from UK airports. It is then a simple train transfer to Champery with the station right next to the hotel and, believe it or not, the main lift into the skiing area.
  • Travel insurance. We recommend you take this out as soon as you book to ensure that your deposit is covered should you have to withdraw from the court at a later date.
  • Lunch and wine with meals.
  • Equipment hire should you need it. We can direct you to a number of suitable shops in Champery where we are hoping to arrange a discount.
  • Instruction to beginner skiers - you must be skiing predominantly parallel turns with good balance and technique most of the time on Blue and Red runs. The pass standard is higher than this so it is impossible to take snow plough turners to this standard in the week.

4) What is required of candidates at this stage:-

  • Completion and signing of the pre-requisites form which spells out what is required of you in terms of your personal skiing, fitness level, registration with NGB, (Wales, England or Scotland). (N.B. Registration, First Aid Course and SCO course can be done later but you cannot qualify as an ASCL without them - you must still sign the form to acknowledge that you understand and accept the pre-requisites however).
  • Enthusiasm and a sense of fun!

Once you have booked on the course your tutor, (Ian Fawcett), will contact you to have a chat about the course and to try and answer any questions you might have at this early stage.

SNOWSPORT CYMRU/WALES

ALPINE SKI COURSE LEADER – TRAINING AND ASSESSMENT COURSE

Please read section A carefully and then complete section B and return it to the course organiser, whose address is given at the foot of this page. Your application to attend this course cannot be completed until this has been done.

Section A

Requirements for participation and for the award of the Alpine Ski Course Leader Award.

The Alpine Ski Course Leader Course is for suitably experienced and appointed persons from a school, club or voluntary organisations. They will have ideally skied for at least six weeks, in three different complex ski resorts outside the UK. It is strongly recommended that candidates have participated as a leader or assistant leader in a number of off-site group visits. During six days skiing on snow in an Alpine resort, supported by theory sessions, the essential elements of skiing skills, leading skills and mountain skills are developed.

On completion of the course and all additional components, participants will receive a certificate of attendance, an appraisal of their strengths and weakness and an action plan for retention in their personal Snowsport handbook. Those who wish to do so may also take a written examination and be assessed on the practical elements for the Alpine Ski Leader Award, weather and snow conditions permitting.

NB Participants will complete the course on skis.

Fitness and ability

Candidates must be fit enough to ski for more than six hours on each day of the course in varied snow conditions and wearing a “light rucksack”. Candidates should be able to ski continuously and rhythmically linked predominantly parallel turns demonstrating appropriate balance and effective use of the skis in varying conditions and situations on all pistes. It is unlikely that this standard will have been reached in less than six week skiing with coaching/instruction. By the end of the course candidates will be expected to ski as above whilst leading a group.

Any candidate who cannot ski well enough, or who is insufficiently fit to move safely and comfortably around the mountain may be asked to leave the course and be recommended to the local ski school for lessons at their own expense.

*Candidates are expected to bring to the course a light rucksack containing essential spare items as they would when leading a group of young people.

Before attending the course, candidates should:

  • Register with Snowsport Cymru/Wales as an SCO. Registration can be completed by using the online membership scheme – please visit the website
  • Be in possession of an ASCL handbook (supplied by Snowsport Cymru/Wales on receipt of registration fee)
  • Complete the ASCL Mountain Hazards and Risk Assessment for Alpine Ski Course Leaders to gain underpinning knowledge for the course.
  • (This is required reading for sitting the written examination paper).
  • Have read and be familiar with the Alpine Ski Course Leader Award – Course syllabus and information for participants booklet (available from Snowsport Cymru/Wales).

Alpine Ski Course Leader Award

Candidates who reach the required standard and successfully complete the assessment will qualify to receive an Alpine Ski Course Leader certificate, subject to completion of the following requirements:

  • Registration with Snowsport Cymru/Wales (ASCL category)
  • Be suitably experienced and appointed person from a school, club or voluntary organisation
  • Completed at least one ski course as a leader or assistant leader
  • Be at least 21 years of age to qualify for the award. Persons over 18 can attend, but will not be eligible for the award until they reach 21
  • Hold 2 day first aid certificate relevant to the outdoors awarded by a HSE licenced organisation
  • Completed a Snowsport Course Organiser Course

Please complete Section B below and send it to the organiser of the ASCL course, which you wish to attend, using the address shown below. Please complete Section B below and send it to the organiser of the ASCL course, which you wish to attend, using the address shown below.

Your application cannot proceed until this has been done.

Section B

Alpine Ski Course Leader Training and Assessment Course

I confirm that I have read the above and agree to the Snowsport Cymru/Wales requirements for participation in an Alpine Ski Course Leader Training Course and for the award of the Alpine Ski Course Leader award as set out in Section A.

Signed:………………………………………………………. Date………………………………………………

SSC/W Reg. no………………..

Name:…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Address:………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………Post code……………………………

Contact telephone (daytime): ………………………………………… (evening)………………………………

Email:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Return to:

Snowsport Cymru/Wales, Cardiff Ski & Snowboard Centre, 198 Fairwater Road, Fairwater, CARDIFF CF5 3JR

Snowsport Cymru Wales is the governing body for snowsports in Wales

Snowsport Cymru Wales is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales No. 2918336.

Registered Office. Ski & Snowboard Centre Cardiff, 198 Fairwater Rd, Fairwater, Cardiff. CF5 3JR.

Website : Email : Telephone : 029 20561904