APRÈS #GOTTHESHOT #SNOWPROS
GOT SHOT I
ALL IN THE FAMILY:
SHARING THE EXAM EXPERIENCE ACROSS GENERATIONS By Bill Dolan
keep thinking, “This must be what it’s like to ski at the North Pole. Maybe even Mt. Everest.” On this particularly frigid day I’m attending a PSIA-AASI “Gray Wolf ” clinic at Schuss Mountain, Michigan.
T e temp is 15-20 degrees below zero with wind-chill. In spite of the near-Arctic conditions (is this the polar vortex?), I enjoy the skiing, conversation, and company of the group. But there is something lingering in my subconscious that the cold can’t distract me from – a feeling I can’t completely
identify. I’m anxious and something’s messing with me. T ere is no pressure on me to cause this;
as a 30-year, Level III alpine instructor I am exempt from any continuing education requirements. But as our chair reaches the crest of the hill and the top of the run comes in to view, the reason I’m here and the reason for my uneasiness comes back to me. T ere, near the top of the hill, is my 24-year-old daughter, Michelle, huddled up against the wind with the other Level II Snowboard exam candidates. At the end of the day they will learn if they have passed or failed the exam. Of course this would make me
Michelle Dolan 120 | 32 DEGREES • FALL 2015
nervous; I remember when I fl unked the Associate-Level exam (now Level II) twice in the ‘73-74 season. T ere is a lot that can go wrong, but Michelle is aggravatingly the picture of supreme confi dence all weekend: “Don’t worry, Dad, I got this.” My chairlift partner was also Michelle’s fi rst snowboard instructor 16 years ago –
he nudges me and says, “Don’t worry Bill. She’s the strongest one in the group.” My wife is waiting in the lodge for
us. We’ll be there, as always, for our baby’s moment of triumph, or be there to support her if the moment ain’t so hot. Michelle is chatting calmly with the other members of her group as we wait. How can she not be as nervous as I am? T en there is that buzz of anticipation
in the room as the names of those who passed are about to be called. Michelle’s is the fi rst name announced! She thrusts both fi sts in the air like a Russian gymnast, turns, and from across the room looks me in the eye and mouths the words, “WE DID IT!” T is is a moment I could stand to
live over and over again. Seeing her pass felt way better than any of my own accomplishments with PSIA over the years. Congratulations, Michelle. I wrote this for you. YOU DID IT.
Level III alpine instructor Bill Dolan teaches at Michigan’s Mt. Holly, where he continues to abuse his 63-year-old body in the bumps. Michelle Dolan teaches snowboarding at Colorado’s Beaver Creek and is training for her Level III exam.
Holly Tencer goes to great lengths to keep a board under her feet in the off -season. Here she’s jumping on her kiteboard in the Columbia River Gorge in Hood River, Oregon. Looks like an awesome way to spend the summer! Holly is a Level I snowboard and Level III alpine instructor with Children’s Specialist 2 and Freestyle Specialist 1 credentials.
COURTESY OF BILL DOLAN
THE
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