National Ski Patrol, Heavenly

Candidate Information (Rev T, Jan 2013)

If you are looking for a paid patroller position at Heavenly Resort, contact Brian Gannon at or 530-542-5175. If you want to be a volunteer patroller at Heavenly, please review the following requirements, fill out the form below, and return it to the Training & Testing Lead, Greg Felton, .

1)Attitude (prerequisite): Are you positive, cooperative, always willing to carry your share of the load, willing to engage and help the public, and do you work well with others? Without the right attitude, the rest of the skills don't matter.

2)Commitment (prerequisite): You, and we, will invest a lot of time the first year to make you a phenomenal patroller. We would like this investment to be worthwhile for everyone. You may not be prepared to commit for as many years as some of our veterans (50!), but can we count on you for 3? 5? 10?

3)Medical training (prerequisite):Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC) certification. OEC courses are offered every year, many taught by Heavenly patrollers. See calendar.oectools.org. Those with current equivalent or higher certification (e.g. EMT, PA, MD, etc) may "challenge" the OEC requirement by passing a written test and skills tests, and demonstrating competence in on-the-hill scenarios, though this has proven difficult for those with no exposure to OEC skills and techniques. Professional Rescuer CPR, renewed annually, is also required.

4)Skiing ability (prerequisite, though we can provide some coaching): Must be a competent skier (boarding patrollers not allowed at Heavenly), able to navigate all of Heavenly's terrain.Fitness is important on our hill. Whenever possible, we prefer to ski with potential candidates the year before they join the program.

5)Mountain knowledge: Familiarity with Heavenly's terrain and the public names for runs and landmarks is helpful though not required initially. All patrollers must study and, by the end of training, pass a test on the approximately 200 mountain landmarks patrollers use.

6)Sled handling: All patrollers must be able to smoothly and safely take a loaded sled down The Face, both in the handles and as a tailroper. We provide all necessary training at Heavenly. Technique is vital, but fitness is important too.

7)Additional skills:Patrollers must also demonstrate a long list of additional skills including competency with knots, avalanche search and rescue skills and equipment, lift evacuation, snowmobile towing, lift portal management, daily posting and removal of numerous signs and ropes, obstruction marking, tower pad adjustment, opening and closing special areas of the mountain (e.g. Mott and Killebrew Canyons, Galaxy Glades, etc), and competence at sweeping the numerous routes necessary to clear the mountain at the end of each day.

The standard new-patroller training schedule involves 5 training weekends, one mock test weekend, and one final test weekend. The dates for 2012-13 are: Dec. 15/16, Dec. 29/30, Jan. 12/13, Jan. 26/27, Feb. 9/10, Feb. 16/17 (Mock Test), March 2/3 (Final Test).

NOTE: All returning patrollers attend a “Dry Land Refresher”, typically in early November at the California Main Lodge. This is optional for candidates but a good forum to meet the team and learn more about what we do. The refresher includes numerous medical scenarios, chair evac and avalanche beacon practice, discussion of changes on the mountain, and a variety of other interesting topics (e.g. new search techniques, changing medical protocols, rescue statistics from the prior year, etc).

If you do, or will, meet the above requirementsand expect to be able to attend our training and testing sessions, we’d like to learn more about you and your background. Please provide the following information:

  • Name:
  • Mailing Address:
  • Physical Location (if different):
  • Phone Number(s):
  • Email Address:
  • Birth Date:
  • Emergency contact names, relationships, & numbers (provide multiple if available):
  • Any prior patrol experience? If so, where and when (and note that a recommendation letter from your former director will be needed)?
  • Medical:

-Certificationsand Experience (indicate expiration dates):

-Training Planned:

  • Skiing:

-Have you skied with a Heavenly patroller? If so, with whom?

-Your perception of your skiing ability:

-Your preferred terrain:

  • Your assessment of your physical fitness:
  • Your motivation for joining the volunteer ski patrol:
  • Why Heavenly, and how did you learn of us?
  • Your expectations regarding the duration of your commitment:
  • What do you know already about the ski patrol and/or Heavenly?Which (if any) patrollers at Heavenly do you know?
  • Do you expect to be able to attend:
  • The dryland refresher (optional but recommended)?
  • All of the scheduled training?
  • Are you interested in participating in a ski cabin rental (note that we’ll try to make you aware of opportunities but this is not provided or arranged by Heavenly)?
  • We receive a lot of applications and would like some help keeping you straight (especially when we get inquiries from several people with the same first name). What do you do when you aren’t skiing (e.g. occupation, other hobbies, etc)?
  • Please include a digital photo of yourself (a head shot, or something we can crop down to that)
  • What else should we know about you but failed to ask? Do you have special abilities? Or is there something in your history that would be better on the table up front rather than us or Heavenly being surprised by it later (this information will NOT be broadly distributed)?

FYI, candidates will be provided with a Heavenly Season Pass. If you terminate your involvement in the training,however, the pass will be cancelled immediately. If you have already purchased a season pass, a refund will be processed with your successful completion of the program.

You can learn more about volunteering to patrol at Heavenly at

Please return this form to Greg Felton, Recruiting and Training Director, at .

Thanks!